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Writer/software guy Rands recently sent out a fairly innocent tweet* saying: “Making a list of superstitions / foolish consistencies / lightweight OCD behaviors e.g. I always put my RIGHT shoe on first. You?” He quickly received nearly fifty replies (okay, tweets) from others with minor quirks. Rands compiled them into The Quirkbook, and it’s delightful reading. (* = For the uninitiated, a “tweet” is the term for a message on Twitter.)
Here are a few of my favorites from the list:
brentsimmons I always sit on the right side of the plane, where it’s safe.
ckolderup volume levels on TV/stereo/etc must be even or divisible by 5
epochblue M&Ms must be eaten in even numbers. You wouldn’t want one side of your mouth to get jealous while the other eats an M&M, would you?
gooddoug Also, whenever I get a paper coffee cup sleeve, I _HAVE_ to line up the fold with the join in the paper cup. Always.
OcelotPotPie I always set my alarm clock in odd numbers. For example, waking up at 8:00AM is an alarm set to 8:01AM. Or 8:59.
Rands got the name “Quirkbook” from Twitter user robertpalmer, who mentioned that such a book was used at his former office to collect little obsessions or oddities.
So what’s your quirk? I’ll start: I check that my keys are in my pocket at least five times as I’m walking out the door, with one last check as I’m actually closing the door. Physical contact between hand and keys required, no touching through the pocket. Also, wallet must be in left pocket. Oh, and I like to stop the microwave when one second remains, to avoid the beeping. I could go on. But I want to hear yours!
(Illustration from The Atlantic’s article Quirked Around.)
Comments (137)
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-Chapstick must always be put in the left pants pocket, money in the right.
-The Cartoon Network must be on at night because that channel doesn’t run infomercials. Infomercials wake me up and a new channel has to be found to sleep to.
-Food like onion rings, fries, boneless buffalo wings, etc. must always be eaten starting with the smallest piece first, working up to the largest.
Those are the first things that jump to mind…
reCAPTCHA: gifted Here
posted by beth on 9-3-2008 at 1:41 pm
I also one of those who can’t set my alarm clock to wake up on a 0 or 5. it is always something lik 7:27 or 8:19.
My brother loves skittles and has to eat them a certain way. First, he eats the yellows and greens together. then the orange. then purple. Then he takes a little break while he clenses his pallet. Finally, he eats the reds. And only a maximum of 4 reds at a time.
posted by Andy on 9-3-2008 at 1:41 pm
When I unplug the iron, I have to call out that I am unplugging the iron. If I don’t I end up checking 3-4 times before I leave the house, and then always wonder if it is unplugged. I also have to hit the car door lock twice, cause if I don’t hear that beep twice, it bugs me all day.
posted by Ann on 9-3-2008 at 1:42 pm
I’ve got the same quirks as you Higgins – check my pockets for my keys and wallet always as I’m walking out the door (also checking for the glass heart my fiance gave me and usually a lighter). Wallet always goes in the right side for me though. I always stop the microwave as well, although I usually try to get it right at 0.
my left shoe always goes on first, and I always have to double check that my car alarm is on after parking and walking away – pretty much as soon as I get to the point where my key fob no longer reaches the car…so I have to turn around, walk back a few steps and double check
posted by Clotho on 9-3-2008 at 1:45 pm
Microwave times must be always the same number i.e. 33 seconds or 1 minute 11 seconds
posted by Dan on 9-3-2008 at 1:46 pm
I **MUST** touch my wallet twice, in the right pocket (and agreed, it’s gotta be physical touch) before leaving the house.
The “gig” line on my clothes must be straight, fly line, belt buckle, shirt line… I will stop and leave in a meeting to straighten out this problem…
posted by sarkazien on 9-3-2008 at 1:47 pm
When I’m getting out of my car, I have to hold my keys in my hand and think to myself “keys in my hand”. It’s not enough to be holding them, I have to make sure I’m THINKING about holding them too!
posted by June on 9-3-2008 at 1:52 pm
Not so much minor-ly as majorly OCD: Whenever I buy a new box of crayons (always a 64 count, and I used to buy a new one every year and give the old one to my mom, a kindergarten teacher), I have to colorize them. I start with yellows, lightest to darkest shade, and go through oranges, reds, purples, blues, greens, browns and then white through grays and blacks. I know, I’m special…
posted by Bekah on 9-3-2008 at 1:55 pm
When putting coins in the coin holder in the car, they must each be heads on top, tails on the bottom.
posted by John C on 9-3-2008 at 1:59 pm
Whenever I have a drink, be it a beer, water, gatorade, I have to peel the label off the bottle.
posted by Jena on 9-3-2008 at 2:01 pm
Short of checking the mail, any time I leave the house I compulsively check for pet hazards. Anything our Boston could choke on, pull off a shelf, any dangerous materials…. obviously, I don’t have kids. Any time I come back and have to leave again, it requires a new inspection.
posted by Kande on 9-3-2008 at 2:05 pm
When I want to go through the interactive program guide on my TV, it has to start out with channel 2 on the bottom and work its way up. Even if I can see channell 2, and it has that weird channel 9964 underneath it, I have to scroll up until 2 is at the bottom and (here in Houston) 20 is at the top.
posted by Witty Nickname on 9-3-2008 at 2:08 pm
-When I type strings of random numbers or numbers and letters, I have to check the typing several times. I really like ReCaptcha.
-I brush my teeth starting at the bottom left, working to the right, then do the top.
-The biggest quirk I guess…shopping carts. I can’t stand when carts are not in the cart corrals or when they are not pushed together in the corrals, and I’ll often spend several minutes gathering carts and straightening them before I leave a store.
posted by Eileen on 9-3-2008 at 2:09 pm
Whenever I drink from a bottle with a screw-on cap, I must put the bottle down and screw the cap back on after EVERY sip. Even if I know I want to take another sip immediately. If I don’t, the drink will undoubtedly spill everywhere. Now I just drink from glasses.
posted by Mollie on 9-3-2008 at 2:11 pm
I’ve got a couple involving food…like Andy’s brother I have to eat my food (M & M’s though) in color order. Blue comes last so that my tongue is the most fun color possible. I also have to eat my chips in size order–smallest to largest. I’m not slavish about these things, but given the time, I will definitely organize my food.
posted by Fruppi on 9-3-2008 at 2:11 pm
When I get in the car, I cannot put on the seatbelt until I have gotten in gear and am heading forward. This started b/c backing out of my driveway, the belt went across my neck when I turned my head. Now I can’t put it on at all until I start driving forward!
posted by GizmodoDragon on 9-3-2008 at 2:15 pm
When I go up or down stairs, I have to go up with my left foot first, and count each stair in my head. I also have to add up the numbers in a certain sequence when I am a passenger in a car and see them on trucks, or on license plates.
posted by Lisa on 9-3-2008 at 2:15 pm
I am constantly pushing my glasses back up on my nose. Even when I am not wearing them.
Also, I can never forget the classic All in the Family episode where Archie and Mike (Meathead) argue over the way to put on socks and shoes
posted by Bill on 9-3-2008 at 2:19 pm
*Bite sized food and small candies (like M&M’s or Cheez-its) must be eaten in twos — one on each side of the mouth.
*The TV, computer, radio, home stereo, or car stereo volume MUST be left on an even number. My husband will mess with me by bumping up the TV volume to something like 27 when he has the remote; so cruel!!! It makes my skin crawl to know it’s not on an even number.
*If I happen to brush my right ankle with my left foot (especially when I am jogging) I have to tap my left ankle with my right foot. Or vice versa. Same thing if I bite the inside of my cheek while pondering a subject. Without thinking, I will automatically bite the other side.
This all started when I was in 2nd grade or so. It is not debilitating, it’s just a little odd…
posted by renis on 9-3-2008 at 2:20 pm
I forgot to mention, I also have special rules for M&M-eating. Not only must they be in even numbers, the coloring must be even — as in, I could eat two blue M&Ms with two yellow, or I could eat four blue, or four of all different colors, but I could never eat two blues, a yellow and a red.
posted by Mollie on 9-3-2008 at 2:23 pm
I cannot sit with my back to the door. It bothers me so much that I have rearranged rooms so that my chairs and desk are facing the door. It’s even worse if I try to eat with my back to the door. Of course, my mother is the same way so if we go out to dinner together, we fight over who gets the good seat.
posted by thedistractor on 9-3-2008 at 2:24 pm
When I’m taking classes, I sit in the same desk/place at the table every day. I once had a professor watch me stand and wait for ten minutes until a student from an earlier class vacated “my” seat.
posted by Emily on 9-3-2008 at 2:25 pm
-The cash in my wallet MUST be turned and facing the same way, with bigger bills on the bottom and ones on top.
-I, too, hit the lock button on my car remote over and over until I can’t hear it anymore. And if I can’t hear it unlock when I am approaching the car (in the driveway or anywhere else), I lock it again and unlock.
posted by Jen on 9-3-2008 at 2:29 pm
When eating chips, or any other sort of chip like food that is salted or flavored more heavily on one side or the other, I have to eat it seasoning side down (towards my tongue). I can’t eat french fries that have a sharp point on either end, and I can’t eat chips that are folded, only those that lay flat.
posted by Kim on 9-3-2008 at 2:30 pm
If a dishwasher has been loaded by anyone other than myself, I will unload the contents and then reload methodically, so as to ensure maximum capacity has been reached. (This happens regardless of whether I am in my own home or someone else’s.)
posted by Megan on 9-3-2008 at 2:34 pm
When I am eating m&ms and skittles I have to eat them in color order. I take empty the whole bag on a clean flat surface, group them all into their colors and count to make sure that each group has the same amount. Any color overflow gets eaten first (in most to least order) once that is done, I eat them in order of the rainbow (mostly because I like purple skittles the best).
As to the key thing- I always have to have my house keys in my hand when I leave the house and my car keys in my hand when leaving the car.
I am sure I have other little habits that I am not aware of.
posted by Karen on 9-3-2008 at 2:37 pm
Sounds like I’m not the only one with the M&M quirk (must be eaten with an even number, colors must be the same). Money must be facing the same direction with biggest bill on bottom, lowest on top. My clothes must all be pointing the same direction on the hangers in my closet (my husband is the same way but his point in the opposite direction of mine). And everyone at work knows the quickest way to get to me is to mess up my desk and move things around.
posted by Carol on 9-3-2008 at 2:40 pm
I have to wash my feet before i go to sleep. It doesnt matter where i am home, hotel, friends houes, drunk at a bar. If i am about to pass out I have to wash my feet and keep them wet when i get into a bed. While driving somewhere overnight i have ask the driver to pull over so i can pour water on my feet before i go to sleep in the back of the car.
I feel bad for my roommate sometimes after drinking with him becaues he has to help me get my feet in the sink while i think the room is spinning.
Wow! i am a fruit!
posted by Jennifer on 9-3-2008 at 2:45 pm
My pens must face down in the cup and pencils must face up. The pens need to be down so the ink flows immediately upon selection; the pencils need to be up because the points would break if they were dropped into the cup point down. These things are so obvious that I honestly don’t know why everyone doesn’t do it too. I’ve stopped conversations with people who have borrowed a pen or pencil then dropped it back in the cup wrong (or – god forbid – into the hiliter cup rather than the pen/pencil cup); I have done this with bosses but it is so distracting I can’t think. I can’t let little paper clips co-mingle with larger paper clips; they always have to be separate. I’m very weird about my desk – when I go on vacation people like to mess with it so it takes me fifteen minutes to fix upon my return.
posted by modulegirl on 9-3-2008 at 2:47 pm
Pens must go point down in the pen/pencil cup; pencils must go up. Pens go down so the ink will run immediately upon being selected; pencils up because the point will break when dropped point down into the cup. These things are so obvious that I honestly cannot understand why everyone doesn’t do it too. I have stopped conversations to fix a pen or pencil when someone who has borrowed it has put it back wrong (or god forbid put it in the hiliter cup rather than the pen/pencil cup). I’ve done it to bosses but I find it too distracting not to fix immediately. My little paper clips must be separate from my large paper clips; I check them both out on a regular basis not that I let it happen very often. If I do it, the cup has to be emptied and the offending clip removed as well as all other clips checked as though contamination might make them spontaneously change their size. I am very weird about my desk and people will be aware of it to the degree that I have to check for any changes someone may have made to my desk while I was away on vacation.
posted by modulegirl on 9-3-2008 at 2:57 pm
How odd that I blogged about this topic just last night. The quirk I notice only in myself is that all of my office supplies coordinate. Everything is red–pencils, pens, notebooks, hardback journals, stapler… all of it. Maybe I don’t notice this in other people because I’m not in the practice of visiting others’ private offices. Or, as in my case, bedroom/home office areas.
posted by adrienne on 9-3-2008 at 2:57 pm
When I eat M&M’s they have to be eaten in 2’s one for each side of the mouth at the same time. They also cannot be the same color, and preferably they cannot be the same color combination as the last bite,though if that is the only way to avoid the dreaded 2 of the same color I will
posted by Sabrina on 9-3-2008 at 3:01 pm
I’m weird about my desk too, everything has to be in order by size and pens/markers are pointed downwards for the same reason! I do the dishwasher thing too. Thinking about it, everything I do is quirky, I refuse to wear anything that tapers or closes around my neck, ankles or wrists and I can eat a salad but I refuse to eat a sandwich with lettuce on it, especially the shredded kind ewww!
posted by Maria on 9-3-2008 at 3:02 pm
People have laughed at me for what I call “full coverage”. I have to take my time when making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, making toast, or arranging cold cuts on bread. No extra bread can be showing from around the edges and all of the contents must be completely level, fair, and equal. I even get my eye down to counter level to make sure I ripped enough cheese in half as to not bulk the center of the sandwich bread.
I’ve got a radio number thing, too. My car stereo’s volume can NEVER be on 15. Ever.
I will always save the “best” bite of food on my plate for last: the bit of home fries that looks the crispiest, the reddest raspberry or the most succulent piece of steak.
I line things up. Chicken nuggets on the baking sheet for my son, spices in my spice rack (oh, and all labels in my cabinets must face out, just like the mean guy from Sleeping With The Enemy), and groceries in my shopping cart. My pantry is organized by category and “popularity”, so that I can reach in and grab what I need without having to check the label. I know exactly where my onion powder is, thankyouverymuch.
Also – the closet door has to be shut when I go to bed at night. No exceptions, no matter where I sleep!
This is just a brief smattering of my peculiarities, mind you…
posted by Jill on 9-3-2008 at 3:05 pm
Dailies must be done in the order of:
kill 6 demons then put up the standard, then take the portal reading
kill 6 summonners, then 6 blood knights, then 3 archers, then take the bloodcrystal reading
find 6 bloodberries
activate 5 enforcers, the get the 4 mana dust
do the bombing run, followed by “stopping the reinforcements”
kill 4 sirens, then use the 4 murloc control orbs in a row, then grind away at the naga that drop keys (name escapes me), then take the shrine reading
hand in disrupting the coast, followed by the bloodberry quest, then the recharging the crystal, then the arcane enforcer one, then the stopping the reinforcements one, then the bloodelf killing one, then jump down and hand in “dont stop now”, then run to the last building and hand in the bombing run one, then the demon killing one, then “know your ley lines”.
posted by chris on 9-3-2008 at 3:08 pm
Radios sound better when the volume is on an even number :)
posted by Casey on 9-3-2008 at 3:21 pm
when i am flipping thru the channels, no matter what channel i am already on, i have to go back to 2 and start there. and if i find something i want to watch i still have to flip through the rest just incase i find something better.
posted by gina on 9-3-2008 at 3:22 pm
When eating Crunch Berries cereal, have to eat the biscuits first and then the berries two-at-a-time by color.
posted by Todd S on 9-3-2008 at 3:22 pm
When I eat a meal, each item must be eaten separately until it’s completely gone, starting with the item I like least and ending with the item I like most. Beverage consumption must be carefully measured so that I finish my last sip right after my last bite.
posted by airship on 9-3-2008 at 3:24 pm
My boyfriend and I just had this conversation the other day over corn on the cob. The small end of the corn must be in my left hand, and I eat the kernels from left to right, then back right to left until it’s finished.
(He eats his corn by eating the kernels on the ends, then left to right, right to left.)
When I place food on my plate for a meal, it can’t touch. Unless the food is supposed to be mixed together, like a stir-fry, I don’t want it touching at all on my plate. And, I eat all of one food, then the next heading clockwise around the plate.
When I’m finished eating, I either start playing with my food or place a napkin over the food that I’ve left there to cover it.
Eating M&M’s – I have to arrange all of the M’s by color, and eat the same number from each group so they all end up with the same number. So, say if when I pour them out of the bag there are 6 greens and 3 reds, I’ll eat the greens first to match the number of reds.
Oh the list goes on…
posted by pedro on 9-3-2008 at 3:31 pm
All my money in my wallet must be in order, smallest in front, largest in back. They also must all be right side up, faces in front.
Also, at a restaurant, the wall/divider must always be on my left side. If they want to seat me at a table in the middle of the room, I request another table.
I probably have more, but I don’t really think about them, since I do them without thinking.
reCaptcha: spelling humanity
posted by Amy D on 9-3-2008 at 3:32 pm
When I get up in the morning, my right foot must touch the floor first, or I am practically guaranteed a bad day. When I put on shoes, again, it’s right foot first – and when descending the stairs, yup, right first.
Like many other folks out there, I must keep my money all going in the same direction, stacked by denomination, largest on the bottom and smallest on top. If I have to fold it, the singles are on the outside; larger bills inside.
I cannot go to sleep if my hair is tucked behind my ears. If I had NO hair, I would still go through the motions of fluffing it out over the tops of my ears.
When it comes to M&Ms, NO blue ones! I will give ‘em away or toss ‘em, but I won’t eat ‘em.
Recapcha: commended urgently
posted by Mama9cats on 9-3-2008 at 3:32 pm
My strangest one hinges on my completely irrational fear of spiders. Any spiders killed in the house must be flushed down the toilet and the toilet must be flushed 3 times.
posted by Brans on 9-3-2008 at 3:41 pm
I always have to get in and out of bed on the left side. I’ve never gotten out on the right side and when someone else sits on my bed and gets off on the wrong side, I always cringe.
posted by leggy on 9-3-2008 at 3:50 pm
(Some) of my bizarre quirks:
Wallet belongs in the right pocket. Money in the wallet must be face up and oriented correctly and ordered from the smallest to largest denomination.
Pants, socks, shoes must go on the right leg/foot first. On removal, the order is reversed. I cannot walk with only one shoe on.
Alarm settings must be a multiple of five.
Rainbow candies must be grouped and eaten in certain sets if possible: “stoplight” (red, yellow, green) or “flame” (red, orange, yellow). Otherwise they must be sorted by color.
If salt is spilt, I must toss a pinch over my left shoulder. I know it’s a silly superstition, but it’s a strong compulsion.
I prefer to sleep on my right side with my head pointed North.
If I enter a building or drive a particular route, I feel the need to retrace that route back out, regardless of how convoluted the route was.
Wow… I’ve just realized I either have some serious quirks or OCD…
posted by Jason! on 9-3-2008 at 3:55 pm
I have a few that involve going to bed:
a) I must get into a made bed. I will even make the bed immediately before getting under the covers.
b) I have to put on chap stick before bed. A really thick layer to last the night.
c) All doors must be closed and locked before bed. I will often check on doors 3 times before going to bed (yes that does sound OCD.)
d) I need white noise at nighttime and cannot get to sleep without it.
e) All alarm clocks, cable boxes, etc, anything with a time on it has to either be turned against the wall or covered.
posted by Mick on 9-3-2008 at 4:04 pm
i always eat grapes in 2’s. i like how i can make them pop on both sides of my mouth. like someone mentioned earlier, you can’t have just one side of you mouth filled with delicious grape juice and the otherside with none!
my other odd quirk is that (when a passengar in a car) i always count how many of the cars (i am currently in) can fit in between telephone poles, walls, trees – basically any obstruction. its more of a guess-t-mation , but for some reason i always count 1,2,3 stop 1,2, stop 1,2,3,4,5, stop…. yes im special..i know
posted by jenny on 9-3-2008 at 4:23 pm
I’m like Lisa. I need to count stairs as I go up or down, and I too have to start with my left foot so that odd numbers are always on the left and evens are on the right.
When I run, I count my steps by eights, again starting with my left foot. If I lose count, I have to start counting by eights over. I measure my distances and rate this way–i.e. point A to point B averages 11 eight counts, but if I’m having a good running day, I might get it down to 9 1/2 eight counts. It gets me through the run! And, that’s why I like to run by myself. Running with someone else messes up my counting.
Oh, and I hate the number 6. My husband got me a new cell phone number one time and it ended with 2 sixes. I had to drive 45 minutes to take it back to the store to get the number changed with NO sixes (and as many fours as possible).
posted by Heaz on 9-3-2008 at 4:24 pm
I wasn’t going to post until I read Jenna’s b/c I’m the exact opposite. I can’t drink something if the label is torn off – even bottled water – b/c it seems like it will then taste “old”.
I also have to eat a couple of pieces of cereal out of the bowl before pouring in the milk.
posted by Sarah on 9-3-2008 at 4:27 pm
I drive my wife crazy with these…
When I eat a hot pocket, when I take it out of its warming pouch, I must rotate it 90 degrees, then cut it in half with a fork.
I can only eat popcorn out of a plastic bowl. It can only be eaten 10 minutes after I have cooked it.
Whenever I get out of my chair, I have to touch my watch, my wallet, my keys, my cell phone, and my inhaler.
Whenever I see a sequence of numbers (like phone numbers), I try to add them in my head to see if they are divisible by three.
Back when I swam in college and high school, before my event I had a long routine that involved spitting, splashing, slapping the block, and yelling.
posted by Beaker on 9-3-2008 at 4:27 pm
I also have to have the volumes numbers on TV/Radio/etc be even numbers or divisible by 5.
One of my weird quirks is…if the knife slots on a knife block are vertical, then I have to put my knives in the slots with the blades up so the blades do not ruin the block and so the block does not ruin the blades.
posted by RT on 9-3-2008 at 4:31 pm
Megan – I would love to have a friend that rearranged my dishwasher for max efficiency.
Jill – I also save the best bites for last. Once my boyfriend wanted a bite of my food and just ate the last piece that I was saving. I was so disappointed!
Mick – I can’t sleep if I am out of chapstick.
posted by Kim on 9-3-2008 at 4:34 pm
I memorize random people’s license plates, in case they commit a crime and drive off.
posted by spence on 9-3-2008 at 4:38 pm
The bed must always look made. I sleep on top of a quilt and under a sleeping bag so that when I wake up in the morning, it’s just a matter of smoothing out the quilt and shoving the sleeping bag out of sight to make it look made.
I have to organize gummi bears by color and eat them by deliciousness (yucky ones first). I’m organizing a 1lb bag of them at the moment, pinks in one bag, clears in another, yellows and oranges in another bag (I’d separate those, but I’m low on bags and they appear to taste the same), and greens in another bag. I will eat them in green-orange-yellow-clear-pink order.
I can’t stand to set a microwave or alarm clock to go off at a time ending in a 5 or 0.
Volumes must be ODD numbers. But 3s are bad. Ya’ll who have to have them on an even are crazy.
posted by S on 9-3-2008 at 4:38 pm
-I have to put the right shoe on first.
-I have to eat food on equal sides of my mouth
-I have to write the day,month and then year when it comes to my dates. It drives me insane otherwise.
- The microwave must me set on some strange number when warming up my food. Like 31 seconds instead of 30
-Coasters are a must for drinks. I don’t like non coastered drinks.
Those are some that come to mind.
posted by Brittney on 9-3-2008 at 4:43 pm
I think everyone has one with M&Ms … me, I have to eat two of the same color at a time, starting with red (least tasty), then blue (weird-tasting), then green, yellow, orange, and finally brown, which taste the best. (I’m fully aware that they all taste the same … but somehow, my brain fools me into thinking the brown ones are the most chocolatey.)
Also, my alarm clock is always set to x:30, even if I lose an extra half-hour of sleep in the process.
And of course, I have an out-the-door routine, too, which I recite as I touch every object … “rings, watch, keys, car keys, purse, phone, sunglasses, lip balm, dinner.”
posted by M on 9-3-2008 at 4:53 pm
I only have two that I can immediately think of.
The first involves Reese’s Pieces. I have to eat them until they remain in groups of three with one of each color, then I eat each of the groups togtether.
Secondly, when packing down a pack of cigarettes I must smack them a multiple of 17 (usually 51).
posted by Josh on 9-3-2008 at 4:54 pm
I say my ABC’s twice while washing my hands, you have to make sure you are getting them really clean.
Anything liquid that needs to be shaken has to be shaken really good…by me, and it never hurts to shake things that don’t really need shaking, like milk or orange juice.
The cap to any soda bottle needs to be on really tight, I mean really tight!
Its sock and shoe, sock and shoe, not sock sock, shoe shoe, I learned this from Meathead on “All in the Family”
posted by Don on 9-3-2008 at 4:55 pm
your all crazies :)
i can’t carry a purse over my left shoulder. don’t know why, just feels incredibly awkward and im afraid i’ll drop it.
i too save the best bites. i will eat all the crust off a peice of toast or bread first so i can enjoy the center part last.
also, must wipe the face of my cell phone before i can close it.
posted by tiffany on 9-3-2008 at 4:56 pm
I’ve noticed this summer that I must have the AC temperature set to an even number.
My job involves me driving most of the day. I find myself making up acronyms for the first three letters on Pennsylvania license plates, e.g. if I see GSW, I’ll think (or sometimes say aloud) “gun shot wound.” I ignore vanity plates and plates from other states.
My friends and family who drive PA vehicles, I can probably recite the first three letters on most of their plates. My brother lives in New Jersey and I have no idea what’s on his license plate.
posted by Ed on 9-3-2008 at 5:10 pm
my strangest quirk is when going to bed I must have a “deep yawn” to relax myself before I can go to sleep. If I can’t get a “deep yawn” or I am interrupted in the middle of my yawn, I can’t sleep. My girlfriend interrupted me in the middle of a yawn and I couldn’t sleep for hours afterward.
Man, i’m strange
posted by Kyle R on 9-3-2008 at 5:18 pm
I always walk so that I step on each surface (like carpet, hardwood, pavement, etc.) an even number of times. So, I always step onto a new surface with my right foot, even if it means shortening or lengthening my steps before I get to the edge.
If I start writing on a piece of paper with a pen or pencil, I can’t switch halfway through. If it is an identical utensil, it’s okay, but different colors, and even different thicknesses bother me.
posted by scoobnut on 9-3-2008 at 5:22 pm
Nothing personal, but you people are nuts.
posted by Anthony on 9-3-2008 at 5:25 pm
Here’s my M&M’s rule: I have to eat an even number with each side of my mouth. They all have to be the same color, and I eat them in rainbow order. If there are odd numbers of certain colors I’ll give them away or throw them away.
Also, my markers, crayons, etc., are all in rainbow order. My movies are in alphabetical order by title. The books on my bookshelf are in height order (tallest to shortest). I also lock my car door twice, and I can’t have the tv or music volume on a level that isn’t even or a multiple of 5. I try not to step on cracks in the sidewalk or tiles. But here’s the weirdest one: I usually wear an undershirt, and I always tuck it into my pants, because somehow that makes me feel safer. Go figure.
posted by Case on 9-3-2008 at 5:27 pm
I am also a money organizer — all facing the same way, small bills in front of large bills. And there can be no dog-earred or crumpled bills. I have to iron the bills to make them all nice.
I’m a teacher and it is really hard for me to deal with all of the messy crayons. I keep my own set of crayons — always the big box — and they are organized lightest to darkest of each color. The points are used evenly around each one. If even one crayon becomes too small to use without tearing the paper then I have to replace the whole box.
posted by Kay on 9-3-2008 at 5:32 pm
My quirk: I like to pick dried glue off the bottle. I’ll even disassemble the cap and use a bent paper clip to get every piece. Elmer’s Glue-All is the best since the pieces don’t crumble.
posted by Chris on 9-3-2008 at 5:56 pm
I guess for any of us who do these things it doesn’t seem odd. To an outsider…?
I wash my hands roughly twenty times a day. I clean hotel rooms upon checking in. I fold my hands right into left behind my back when I’m just standing still. I won’t drink out of a soda can – this one I explain because I always imagine rats running over them in a warehouse.
posted by Jim on 9-3-2008 at 6:06 pm
“Dailies must be done in the order of:
kill 6 demons then put up the standard, then take the portal reading
kill 6 summonners, then 6 blood knights, then 3 archers, then take the bloodcrystal reading
find 6 bloodberries
activate 5 enforcers, the get the 4 mana dust
do the bombing run, followed by “stopping the reinforcements”
kill 4 sirens, then use the 4 murloc control orbs in a row, then grind away at the naga that drop keys (name escapes me), then take the shrine reading
hand in disrupting the coast, followed by the bloodberry quest, then the recharging the crystal, then the arcane enforcer one, then the stopping the reinforcements one, then the bloodelf killing one, then jump down and hand in “dont stop now”, then run to the last building and hand in the bombing run one, then the demon killing one, then “know your ley lines”. ”
Best comment, hands-down.
Three pieces of paper towel when drying my hands at work. No exceptions.
posted by amaranthcrown on 9-3-2008 at 6:07 pm
I always eat the things on my plate in order of how much I like them — the things I like least get eaten first, and whatever I like best I save for last. I try to save the absolute best bite for the very last.
Reading some of the other comments I see I’m not the only one with this quirk. That’s somehow comforting. :-)
posted by Tina on 9-3-2008 at 6:21 pm
I feel stressed when my boyfriend changes the channel during a show because he doesn’t want to watch the commercials. I’m always worried I’ll miss the beginning and not know whats going on. It especially annoying when he says “I’m just checking the score” and we end up watching the game for 20 minutes!
posted by Sarah on 9-3-2008 at 6:24 pm
Lots of shower-time quirks
Drying off out of the shower, face, neck, left arm, right arm, chest, torso, left leg, right leg, then towel to hair. This cannot change…
Right contact, left contact
and I must do the same patern with shampoo, face wash, conditioner, soap, shave, rinse. I get all thrown off otherwise.
I appreciate all the weird quirks! yay!
posted by Cheri on 9-3-2008 at 6:24 pm
This may or maynot have been mentioned but…
Any food that is round or square I will eat in a circle. For example, a pb&j sandwich. This is the “save the best for last” mentality…naturally the best mix of Peanut Butter and Jelly is right in the center. If it’s oblong (such as a taco or a sub) I alternate the ends first and finish with the middle.
posted by Cora on 9-3-2008 at 6:38 pm
Where to start:
The closet door must ALWAYS be closed before I go to sleep. I mean, ALWAYS. If the closet in whatever room I’m supposed to sleep in has no door, I do not sleep in that room. Period.
Shot glass has to be turned clockwise on the bar three times before I shoot.
Lip gloss or lip balm must always be on my lips. I feel naked without it.
I can eat turkey and chicken meat, but I can’t see a whole turkey or chicken. It skeeves me out to see the carcass. At Thanksgiving my family used to have to hide the turkey behind something just so I would sit at the table.
I’m afraid of clowns. Midgets kind of freak me out. Yet, I’m oddly fascinated in the possible existence of midget clown porn.
And, thanks to Jim, I now will never drink straight from a soda can due to the image of rats running across them in a warehouse. My therapist will probably thank you as well, Jim.
posted by Charm City Barfly on 9-3-2008 at 6:38 pm
I just linked this article to my cousin, and we both thought we didn’t have any quirks till he pointed out one of mine.
I say ‘hehe’ a LOT in IMs. Text is so unemotional! I have to put little bits of flavor in there so people know my ‘tone of type’.
posted by Eric on 9-3-2008 at 6:39 pm
I have a few…
I hate spoons and will only use them if I can’t eat a food without them, like with soup. Also, I can not use soup spoons. I must use a teaspoon.
If I’m eating “mixed” food (like a stirfry or a salad), I start eating from the side of the plate that’s farthest from me and work my way across the plate towards me. I don’t do this if the food is separated, as with meat and a vegetable.
I organize square objects on my desk in the same way. They are oriented on the corners in diamond shapes and lined up in a row.
I hate hearing the microwave so I either try to open it before it goes off or, if I can’t reach it in time, plug my ears.
I only eat ice cream out of a coffee mug.
I’m sure there are more but those are the only ones that come to mind right now.
posted by Carrie on 9-3-2008 at 6:42 pm
Keys and lighter in the right front pocket, cell phone in the left. Always. All of my clocks have to be set fast, but all of them by a different amount. I’m always late and its supposed to make me on time, but I know my car clock is 4 minutes fast and the one on the microwave is 7 minutes fast, so it doesn’t really help, but I do it anyways.
posted by Bradeb on 9-3-2008 at 7:15 pm
My M&M’s one is that I must have equal numbers of all colors. I look at what I have and eat the extras until the numbers are the same.
My silverware must be organized in the dishwasher.
Like someone else said, I must verbally confirm that the iron is unplugged.
posted by Joy on 9-3-2008 at 7:35 pm
Chris- you freak me out with your endless supply of quirks in what I can only imagine is a game of Warcraft or D&D…..if anyone still plays that.
John C., Eileen and Mollie – most intersting quirks.
posted by lizhot on 9-3-2008 at 7:41 pm
When I’m playing solitaire on my computer, the aces MUST be spade, diamond, club, heart. I will start over if somehow they don’t end up that way. Even if I’m about to win.
My phone will always be in my left pocket, my purse or bag must be over my left shoulder, and I too check my keys no less than three times whenever I go anywhere. I find this is more practical than quirky.
As I walk on campus, there is a line of plants next to the library. They are alternated, rose, filler plant, rose, filler plant. As I pass, I must brush my right hand against the filler plants while avoiding the roses. I have no idea why I do this, but I always feel like I have to.
Also, when my friends and I are walking anywhere, I must be on the left side.
posted by Kieran on 9-3-2008 at 8:08 pm
Oh! I also had a friend who could not eat anything unless she tore it up first. She had to tear her pizza up into tiny pieces, taking off all of the toppings, then the cheese, then the sauce. It was, frankly, a little gross.
posted by Kieran on 9-3-2008 at 8:10 pm
Our house’s floor has marble 4″ x 4″ tiles on it and I always make sure that I walk in an L pattern – like playing chess! When the last tiles can’t be done in a exactly one upright L position, I make several supine L patterns until I reach the edge.
posted by Leizl on 9-3-2008 at 8:13 pm
My bed sheets must be tucked in meticulously at the bottom, otherwise I feel like I will fall out of bed.
posted by Nick on 9-3-2008 at 8:38 pm
Oh! I forgot about the clock in my car.
It can not be set to the correct time and it can not be slow. I have to have it a few minutes fast.
posted by Carrie on 9-3-2008 at 8:46 pm
I have to run stuff like this through a word processor first to make sure the spelling is ok. Quirks are so quirky!
recaptcha = school brokers
posted by bakara on 9-3-2008 at 8:52 pm
I’m tall (6′6″), so I realized when I was in high school that it was easier for me to take steps two at a time. Now I can’t go up one stair at a time without feeling uncomfortable, and I never (even when going down) touch the first or last stair. Staircases with three steps always pose a quandary…
And Carrie, my car clock purposely runs fast too.
posted by Kevin on 9-3-2008 at 9:36 pm
Whenever I eat Lucky Charms I must eat all of the non-marshmallow pieces first, then I count how many of each marshmallow shape there are.
I then eat one at a time keeping everything at the same number, so if I have five rainbows, three hearts and two shooting starts I will eat two rainbows, then one heart, another rainbow and then a shooting star…I do this with every food that has colors/special pieces like M&M’s or skittles.
Whenever I eat nachos I always must eat the chips on the edges with nothing on them first and save the most heavily covered chip for last…
posted by Liz N. on 9-3-2008 at 9:45 pm
cutlery must go in the dishwasher sharp side down…..makes sense to me….others call it a quirk, and I cannot work at a messy desk, so must clean the desk first….even if the “mess” isn’t in my way. I don’t eat M and M’s, but I do eat smarties, and I too pour them out of the box, match up even numbers of all colours, and then eat the leftovers first. I know I have others….but I don’t think any border on OCD….I am just very organized!!
posted by sandie on 9-3-2008 at 9:58 pm
I eat my Viva Puffs section by section: First I peel off all the chocolate, then I pull off the marshmallow, then I eat the jam filling, all so I can enjoy the spongy cookie interior on its own.
posted by Emma M. on 9-3-2008 at 10:07 pm
While driving, my mother will constantly lift her right arm up and look under it. We think she’s checking to see if the key is still in the ignition.
If I have anything in my pocket, money, keys, etc I have to constantly check that it’s still in there.
recaptcha: Bolsheviki Aaron
posted by AG on 9-3-2008 at 10:24 pm
I have to have my silverware lined up a certain way in the dining hall. I put my fork on the far left, plate, knife (facing the plate), then spoon. In class, all of my papers and notebooks have to be parallel. I memorize patterns in people’s license plates and phone numbers. Also, I don’t abbreviate words in my text messages.
posted by Christy on 9-3-2008 at 10:39 pm
I have some similar food eating habits. I was worse when I was younger, but food must not touch unless they’re supposed to (stir fry). Separate skittles/m&m by colour, eat until each colour has the same amount, then by preference (red or pink last). When I was much younger, I used to eat fruit loops by colour too (red last). Corn on the cob: pointy end in the left hand, eat left to right, left to right, and i’ve noticed that i always eat 4 rows of corn at a time (and the total number of rows on the corn is oddly often divisible by 4). I keep the best for last (like if a happen to have an edge, or worse, a corner, piece of cake, i’ll eat the edge first).
When going to bed, I have to fall asleep on my stomach. When reading, I hate not finishing at the end of a chapter. I almost always put my right sock or shoe on first. I hate leaving lights on in unoccupied rooms.
hmmmm… i’m sure there are more i think are normal. :P
posted by Amanda on 9-3-2008 at 10:43 pm
I get very uncomfortable when walking on patterned floors. If I step on the design more frequently with one foot than the other, I imagine that the sides of my body feel uneven. I end up constantly adjusting my stride so that the sides even out.
posted by Erin on 9-3-2008 at 10:44 pm
MUST HAVE:
- All doors, cabinets, drawers, etc. must be closed before going to bed.
- No matter the temperature (and I live in TX), I cannot sleep without socks on.
- When eating Lucky Charms all the oat bits need to be eaten first. Then all the marshmallows.
- I need to slather my lips with MedEx (a medicated lip balm) before bed every night. Nothing else counts.
posted by bige0725 on 9-3-2008 at 11:49 pm
There seems to be a fine line between obsessive compulsive and quirky … and I think I have my fair side of quirky and obsessive.
I have to do things in certain amounts of time … like, in the morning, I have to get dress within a certain amount of time, brush my teeth within a certain amount of time, eat within a certain amount of time and so on. And when I don’t get it right, I freak out and it feels like my whole day is screwed up …
posted by Nanette on 9-4-2008 at 1:20 am
1. Funny that many people mentioned microwaves. Mine is that I don’t mind it beeping once but it can not be twice (from leaving food in there for awhile.)
2. I have to staple things three times like a book. I don’t like flipping pages.
3. I read magazines starting from the back.
posted by Matt on 9-4-2008 at 1:46 am
I must eat any circular food in wedges, no matter how awkward this becomes; every bite of Lucky Charms must contain both oat and marshmallow; my blankets cannot cover the soles of my feet but must cover the tops; if drinking two beverages I must keep them equal; alarms must be set to a number divisible by 11; and I will not take the spoon out of my coffee. Ever.
posted by Aemi on 9-4-2008 at 2:10 am
- I only get out of bed at times that are divisible by five, or have some correlation to one another (12:34 or 2:46 that one horrific time)
- It looks like I’m not the only one who saves the best bit for the last. I LOVE the corner piece of anything and save the last chewy bit for last.
- Whenever I eat things that come in a variety of flavors like skittles or trail mix, I have to eat each component separately, once again in order from least to most liked.
- If there is a clicky pen in my possession, I WILL disassemble it. I’ve rendered countless pens useless this way because I lose the @#$@*# spring.
- When I first buy a cd I like, I have to listen to it and it only until I’m know the words to my favorites and/or am sick of it.
- Whenever I drink soda from a can, I have to wipe the edge of the lid with my shirt (for hygiene reasons, I always find a dark smudge on my shirt afterwards. yuck!) and tap the top at least twice.
- My day is ruined if I accidentally leave the house without chapstick, because I know I’m going to chew on my lips until I get more.
Whew! Got that off of my chest!
posted by heather on 9-4-2008 at 2:39 am
All round food (pizza, burgers etc) must be eaten in a round manner so that the last bite is the innermost part
posted by Clubby on 9-4-2008 at 2:45 am
Okaaayy….. I feel quite sad that I don’t have any real quirks like everyone else : (
However, I do have a toilet cubicle preference at work- if someone’s in ‘my’ cubicle, i’ll wait, or leave and come back when it’s free. And I have a sink preference too… maybe I have more quirks than I realised!
posted by Blaise on 9-4-2008 at 3:17 am
MUST tear perforations in paper/cardboard.
Also, whene eating Taco Hell food like the Mexican Pizza or Tostada that comes in the box, I MUST tear the corners so the box is a flat piece of cardboard.
posted by LALALA on 9-4-2008 at 4:03 am
I have two underwear drawers-one light and one dark with everything rolled and sorted into dividers. Hey, it really does save time when getting dressed. All the hangers must face the same way, tops are organized by sleeve length, pants hang with pants, skirts with skirts. I don’t like anyone else to load or unload the dishwasher because they always do it “wrong.” My 800 book library is largely sorted by the color of the spine. Sandwiches must be cut in half to preserve the structural integrity and the pickle is always saved for last. No meat on the bone and no meat product that looks anything like what it used to be. No dark meat ever. When I am cooking or baking, every dish not holding the item being prepared must be washed by the time the food is ready to be served. I open the curtains every morning all over the house and I hate it if they are not closed at night. I pick up trash everywhere I go and walk through my own yard daily to pick up windblown items. Reading this it is a wonder I get anything else done. Oh well, keeps me moderately sane. All my clutter is on the inside! recaptcha: rector drinks
posted by frida tastic on 9-4-2008 at 5:25 am
I have to sleep with the bedroom door closed. I’ll wake up if someone opens it.
posted by Todd on 9-4-2008 at 6:53 am
I also won’t eat leftovers, I imagine germs growing on them.
posted by Todd on 9-4-2008 at 7:02 am
Let’s see….
When I have to pay for something in cash, and I have change, all of it must be heads up and in order – largest on the bottom.
My computer habits are tricky. I have to follow the same routine everyday. I also have to have my programs opened in the same order everyday. If one of the them accidentally gets closed, all of the them have to closed and I start fresh.
I will only put my seatbelt on while my foot is on the brake – same for when I take it off.
posted by Kristi on 9-4-2008 at 7:03 am
Whenever I play golf and I use a driver off the tee, I have to tap the head of the club against the ground behind the ball twice or else I won’t the ball straight
posted by Colin on 9-4-2008 at 8:28 am
I have the Lucky Charms quirk as well. I eat the cereal first and then the marshmallows. It just makes the day a little bit better for me.
posted by Charm City Barfly on 9-4-2008 at 8:31 am
This is as baffling as the phobia post.
Is there anyone else out there without a multitude of fears and compulsions?
posted by BassMan on 9-4-2008 at 8:42 am
-I don’t like my food served together. Each has to be separate. I’ll eat it together, but I won’t like it as much.
-I have a morning routine and a bedtime routine. If something messes that up, I am not a happy camper. This used to happen in high school when my mom would get us out the door instead of my dad. She never understood how much it pissed me off.
-I have an order that I visit websites in.
-My books (at least the top shelf) are alphabetical by author.
That’s just the ones I can think of right now. I’ve got a bit of the corner market or neuroses.
posted by Liz on 9-4-2008 at 8:43 am
Dollar bills must not only be facing the same way in my wallet, they have to be in numerical order, and in sequential order by serial number (like if i have 3 5 dollar bills). So it goes all my ones, in order, fives, in order and so on. and sometimes i get this really uneasy feeling like i forgot to do it. Or if i see people in the store just shove money into their pockets, it makes me want to cry.
also, my thumbnails have to be longer than all my other nails. if for some reason i break one, i have to chop off all my others until they are shorter. i think its because i have square thumbs and long nails make them look normal…?
posted by Bethany on 9-4-2008 at 9:15 am
I will not eat the brown parts of french fries or chips, it drives my husband nuts.
I will not eat Mac and cheese once it cools, I only eat it melty and good.
I cant stand eating yogurt with a metal spoon, has to be plastic.
I know I have many more, my 3 year old daughter loves to line things up, I will walk in to rooms and see candles, books, toys, little bits of things, all lined up, I have no idea where she picked that up.
posted by Julia on 9-4-2008 at 9:17 am
Where to begin…
- Everything must be alphabatized. Books, movies, CD’s, etc. If it can be put in alphabetical order, it will be.
- All the clothes in my closet are arranged in rainbow order and by what type clothes they are. Ex – shirts first in rainbow order, then pants in rainbow order, dresses, and so on.
- If I am eating colored candies (skittles or M&M’s) I have to eat them in rainbow order. Foods like trail mix have to be eaten ingredient by ingredient starting with my least favorite.
- The volume on the TV or radio must be set to multiples of 5, or one of the numbers from the sequence 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42 (Lost fans should understand this). NO EXCEPTIONS. I have been involved in fights with my friends over this issue.
- The bills in my wallet have to all be facing the same direction, in order of denomination smallest to largest.
- I CANNOT crumple up napkins or pieces of paper when I am about to throw them away. I have to fold them NEATLY into quarters before I can throw them away.
- Different foods are not allowed to touch each other on my plate. If the green beans somehow make it over to my potatoes, I can’t eat the ones that are “contaminated.”
Oh, the list goes on and on…
posted by Ashley on 9-4-2008 at 9:42 am
Socks…I have right socks and left socks (I have a right foot and a left foot!)…I have bought packs of white cotton socks and put a colored dot (Sharpies!) on the big toe of each one and keep the pairs matched (Sharpie has LOTS of colors!)…colored socks I just have to figure out the R/L bit until they shape themselves to my feet (left middle toe is longer than the right) and I CAN tell the difference!
posted by Ginger on 9-4-2008 at 9:48 am
None of my behaviors are quirks.
I can completely justify all of them.
posted by n2y2 on 9-4-2008 at 10:40 am
When driving (I live in WI), and I look at someone’s license plate (that isn’t a vanity plate)I have to think of a word or words in which the letters on the license plate are in the word/s in the same sequence.
i.e. my license plate letters are HTR = Hater.
posted by sue on 9-4-2008 at 11:18 am
When I’m driving and I look at someone’s license plate, I have to think of a word or words in which the letters on the license plate appear in the same sequence in the word/s.
e.g. my license plate is -HTR = Hater
posted by sue on 9-4-2008 at 11:21 am
My fingers must always touch everything the correct number of times: pinky and thumb once, ring and pointer twice, middle finger three times…like building a pyramid with finger taps.
*
***
*****
When driving, I imagine that I’m “saran-wrapping” the curbs – so I do a little move with the proper elbow whenever there’s a break in the curb on either side of the street; for other streets, driveways, grassy areas, etc.
Also, I do all the crazy stuff with M&Ms and Skittles, too…but that’s a given!
posted by Gregg N on 9-4-2008 at 11:39 am
i’m more the kind of person that has money crumpled and folded in my wallet or just thrown in my purse…and my clothes dont have to hang the same way or shirts with shirts in my closet, its a big step if things even get on hangers.
but i always, always have to grab the second item on a shelf. i will reach behind the first for the next in line, even if its a 30 pack at the gas station and all the cases behind it roll foward. i’ll take the first one out, then the second, then try to push back all the rest rolling down.
oh, and i eat skittles green and yellows together then the rest by color leaving one of each color for the end.
**thanks jason for helping me post**
posted by ellen on 9-4-2008 at 11:55 am
I don’t eat my M&M’s by color what i do is i eat all of them except the brown ones. The brown ones i leave for last because in my head they taste better than the others. Also, before starting to eat the brown ones i count them. Of they are odd numbered i eat them one by one and not chew them until all the coating has gone then i chew them. If they are even numbered i will chew them, but one by one.
reCAPTCHA: Reynolds nation
posted by beto on 9-4-2008 at 11:58 am
I feel plum normal, amongst you people. My biggest quirk is probably that I have to chew the same amount on both sides of my mouth (normal here). If I have a toothache or something that keeps me from chewing on one side, it drives me crazy.
posted by Vickey on 9-4-2008 at 12:20 pm
Oh, how excited am I that I am not the only quirky person out there! Here are is a few of my quirks.
1. Ohio has license plates similar to Pennsylvania, with 3 letters at the beginning. I try to figure out a word from those 3 letters (and they have to be in the order on the plate, so ADJ could be adjunct), if I cannot come up with a word then I start working on acronyms (DNQ is Did Not Qualify).
2. I cannot get out of bed if my alarm clock ends in a time other than a 0 or 5.
3. I cannot sleep if my head is not facing north.
4. When I turn off my vehicle, the heat or A/C must be turned off and the setting must be dead center of the hot and cold setting.
5. Markers, crayons, etc. have to be arranged (left to right) using ROY G BIV then black, grey, white and brown.
6. All the clothing in my closet is arranged the same way that crayons are and within each color by length of the pant, skirt or sleeve from shortest to longest.
posted by Laurie Beth on 9-4-2008 at 1:07 pm
I have to wash my feet every night before I get in my bed. If I nap? Have to wash them. If I’m sitting on my bed? Have to wash them. I despise dirty feet…or any feet at all…near my bed. It makes my skin crawl to even think about it.
And one alarm is never enough for me. I have to set at least 5…one on my real alarm clock and 4 on my phone. I check them at least 5 times each before I go to bed.
I also HATE seafood. The thought of any fish or crustacean, especially shrimp, makes me feel sick to my stomach. This guy at my work once at tuna fish near me and I had to excuse myself from the table and go get air outside. I often tell me I’m deathly allergic so I don’t have to deal with it.
posted by Pam on 9-4-2008 at 1:53 pm
If I see any spare Post-It note floating around my desk (not attached to a piece of paper or in a pad), I have to make it into a paper crane. This also happens with Andes Mint wrappers at restaurants.
I cannot drive in shoes. I have to drive barefoot. I make an exception if I’m wearing sneakers, but only if the drive is less than half an hour (otherwise I take them off and drive barefoot).
If I have to highlight something with more than one color, I have to use hihglighters in the following order: yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue green. This is because it’s often straight lines and I use a ruler and otherwise I end up with a weird brown smudge where the highlighter ink has all touched the ruler.
posted by Sara on 9-4-2008 at 2:04 pm
I eat my dinner one item at a time, but nothing that has juices. Those items go in a side dish so the others won’t get soggy or mix together. My mom had always fed me on those divided trays growing up!
posted by karissa on 9-4-2008 at 2:45 pm
every time I hear a microwave go off with the ::beep beep beeeeeeeep:: pattern, I impulsively sing the bass line to “Yes Sir, I Can Boogie” by Goldfrapp.
if there are stairs that are of an awkward length (where it takes two steps to cross each one), it’s always my right leg that takes the step up, and therefore always my right thigh that starts complaining
posted by Alex on 9-4-2008 at 4:26 pm
Sock and shoes go on in this order-
Right sock, left sock, left shoe, right shoe, unless I’m wearing slip on shoes, such as heels or some flats, then it’s whatever one is closest to me at the moment.
I cannot wear socks to bed unless I am so tired I collapse into bed as soon as I get home. If I’m still consciously aware of the socks when I go to sleep, I toss and turn until I take them off.
When I get out of my car, I check for my keys multiple times as well. I work thirty minutes away from home so if I lock my keys in the car, I am stuck waiting for a while.
I check six news websites daily and I always visit them in the same order. If I accidentally click one in my web history, I have to read them all and put the clicked one back in the right order. If I’m in the middle of reading them and click on a non-news link, I finish reading the news and revisit the non-news website afterward. For example, if I visited four news websites, Mental Floss, then the last two news sites, I’d have to go BACK to Mental Floss, even if I had just read it five minutes earlier.
I read mental_floss in the afternoon, usually after the bulk of the posts have been posted, so I’ll open up all the links in a new tab and read them one by one, rather than clicking them and going back to read another. [Okay, maybe that's not so quirky, but it's what I do. :)]
I’ll eat my cereal the same way. Generic oat bits first, then sweet treats afterward.
I always seem to see the clock at 9:11. If it’s 9:10, I will avoid all clocks for five minutes to avoid looking at that number.
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posted by Myleti on 9-4-2008 at 4:41 pm
Oh, yeah…I love it…all these years I thought it was just me.
One of mine is unique so far. When I fold the laundry each week, I MUST count the number of underpants. Then I always say “I am the Count”…with “the Count’s” accent, of course.
What? I think I might not have worn a clean pair every day? Not in this life-time, but still it persists. Only one of a very, very many…none involving M&M’s.
posted by Sharron on 9-4-2008 at 10:02 pm
I only have one true quirk, but it’s an odd one: Whenever I take my gaze off of an object or person I must always try to move my gaze up through the highest point or tip of the object/person. Sometimes I move my gaze at an angle to make sure it is taken off at the highest point.
posted by Ron on 9-5-2008 at 9:47 am
Buncha freaks… :-B
posted by shane on 9-5-2008 at 4:21 pm
wow this is like group therapy.
i always save the best bite of food for last
i have to have drinking water nearby at all times
i have to get up to pee four or five times before i go to sleep just to be sure
i generally don’t step on cracks in the sidewalk. if one foot does step on a crack, the other has to step on a crack with the same part of the foot
i hate to walk the route from my house and to it, i have to switch it up
i won’t pick dimes up off the floor and i’m pretty freaked out by dimes in general
i can’t let my feet touch each other, ever.
i have to put on lotion within one minute of leaving the shower
i can’t sleep without a pillow under my knees
i could go on all day…
posted by tilly on 9-6-2008 at 2:25 pm
oops that’s the SAME route from my house and to it.
posted by tilly on 9-6-2008 at 2:27 pm
Well, I’m the opposite of many here.
I always have to step or do something with my left foot first (or hand).
When I eat something like Crunch ‘n Berries or Lucky Charms, I eat the berry or marshmallow first and save the oats for last.
I love crust so I always eat sandwiches and such like a typewriter. That way I start out with crust and end with a double crust (the corner).
If it’s food that I can’t do that with (like a brownie piece where there is only one side of crust) or something where there are several items (like chips or grapes or the like), I eat all of the parts that I prefer except one, then eat until I’m almost done, and then eat one I set aside. So I may not eat all the fries but I eat all the crispy ones first but one, then until I’m done, then the last crispy one. With the brownie, I’ll eat half the side with the edge, then the middle, and then finish the rest of the edge.
I curl my toes when I’m the passenger in a car, alternating feet. I’ll match them to utility poles or car wheels (semis are always fun). And I like those curls to match up with the beat of whatever song is on the radio. I also sometimes (when driving in town) curl my toes when going past a curb and release them when there is a driveway or another street intersecting. And the left foot does the left side and right foot right. I don’t do that so much anymore but I have to consciously stop myself.
Volumes need to be set at one of three types of numbers: lucky/favorite numbers (13, 18, 16, 3, 26, 28, 42), numbers ending in 0, or ending in 5. (Which is weird because those numbers normally cause me to dislike something.)
I like things to be in groups of three and if of varying heights, tallest in the middle, mid-height on the left and shortest on the right.
My spices have to be in alphabetical order. Then, if I have several forms of the spice/herb, ground comes first, then flaked, then whole.
I also have money organizing quirks. But it changes a bit. I need to have it a certain way in my wallet. But it has to be a different way when I hand it over to a cashier. I also hate when people hand me paper money before the coin. But that’s more for practical reasons.
posted by Joy on 9-6-2008 at 6:18 pm
When I eat cereal I chew every bite on the left side of my mouth, except for the last two bites, which are chewed on the right.
posted by MetFanMac on 9-7-2008 at 4:41 am
My quirk is that when I notice a tendency to engage in an OC behavior, I choose to do the opposite! For instance, I feel it is important to put on the right shoe first, and I put on the left just to break the pattern. (Although this is a pattern in itself, of course, so I sometimes do it just to break that one…)
posted by Per on 9-7-2008 at 9:10 am
WOW,
I checked this site when there was 133 responses to it. Of these, 30 were obviously men (Ron, John, etc) 25 were unknown (Per, Myleti, etc) and a whopping 72 were women (Pam, Jane, Sharon, etc). Yes, I know this adds up to 127, but I eliminated the obvious duplicate names (i.e. two with ’tilly’ one right after the other).
What does this all mean? Well to me, it strongly suggests that my wife isn’t the only fruitcake out there!
Seriously though, I don’t have any OC issues that I’m aware of; but the wallet does go in the right rear pocket! Other than that, I’m totally disorganized, resulting in my not being able to find a bloody thing. I feel this adds a bit of adventure to my daily life!
Enjoyed the read though! Lots of fun!
posted by Lee on 9-9-2008 at 1:38 pm
I have to colour co-ordinate the pegs and the clothes when hanging out my washing. As I dont have any black pegs i have resorted to using pink pegs for my black clothing, although i have just been told by my colleagues who have spend all afternoon reading the quirks with me, that you can purchase designer pegs…. oh man…
posted by Laura on 12-22-2008 at 10:12 pm
I used to be fanatical about checking for my keys before leaving the house after I once locked myself out but that has stopped.
I have to take a shower in the same order or I get off center, feel strange all day.
I always have to wear a necklace or I feel like I forgot something, always touching my neck if I’m not wearing one. Good thing I have plenty stocked up.
I also have to eat M&Ms and other type foods in even numbers… if I happen to eat them in an odd number, the odd one out gets bitten in half so each side can share it, haha.
posted by Sarah on 1-19-2009 at 3:19 pm
After reading the comments… maybe the author should write a second book: “Everyone Has A Little OCD”, ha.
posted by Sarah on 1-19-2009 at 3:24 pm