Tuesday, December 13, 2005

"My Big Book of Grievances"

So, everyone's obsessive-compulsive about something. Whether it be your iTunes being kept tidy, or your bed being made every morning, or racing back to the couch before the toilet has finished flushing, or buttoning and zipping your jeans before they go in the washing machine... every one has a thing. (And yes, every one of those is one of you and you know who you are.)

I may be a tad more orderly than others, but only in certain ways. Yes, I like my cds in alphabetical order. By artist. Within artist, they go chronologically. Books are shelved by genre. I have to unpack everything and put it in drawers when I check into a hotel, even if I'm only there for a couple of nights. I refuse to flip on the TV and watch a movie from the middle.

But I'm not crazy-OCD as a rule. I don't have to lick light switches or count prime numbers or turn off the radio on a verb. My iTunes disarray would send some of you into a frenzy and I haven't made my bed (barring clean sheets, visitors, or room check - Go Tigers!) since the Reagan administration.

BUT, I do have one really strange thing. When I'm in the shower, and washing, I like to soap up my ENTIRE SELF before rinsing off. I have no idea why. But I have, for as long as I can remember, stepped out of the water stream to lather up all over, and then step back under it to rinse off. Go ahead, laugh and laugh. I'm aware that it's abnormal.

So, I'm staying at the Paris this week, and it has a big fancy bathroom with a large tub and a separate, glassed-in shower. Which is astetically pleasing, but not so practical, especially for someone who has to balance on one leg to shave. Additionally, I have no where to step out of the shower spray to wash as it fills the entire cubicle. I am forced to wash and rinse simultaneously.

It's going to bug me all week.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

wow. remind me to shed a tear for you as i step into my freezing tub shower of undiscovered organisms this week. :)

krysten said...

ok, so why is it abnormal to want to use soap and then rinse it off...in that order? do other people like wash an arm and then rinse it off before moving to the other arm?? i am interested to hear how lathering followed by rinsing doesnt fit into the realm of the norm.

i can't think of anything i do that is OCD-like... i'll have to get back to you on that one...

Anonymous said...

J, I love you.

I'm slightly OCD in that I tend to read things backwards but not everything which is where the 'slightly' comes in. It's a nice party trick because people can shout out words and I can pretty much immediately spout it out backwards. I know there's more OCD in me but I can't seem to think of any now.

J.T. said...

I'll admit to turning off my car, taking the keys out of the ignition, climbing the stairs to my apartment, and checking the door to make sure I locked it.


Pretty much every day.

In other news - .... I lost 7 pounds this month!

hello jamie: said...

and I didn't even get to say goodbye!

krysten said...

must have been from all that walking...

*snort*

Dannybrou said...

When I am taking a test. Whether it is multiple choice, fill in the blank, or short answer. I always start at the bottom of the page and work my way up...

I know..it is strange.