What is *your* obsessive compulsive behavior? Here's mine...

[Lakeside]

I do this, too. I don't know what on earth is up with all this mixing, but it's just wrong. For one thing, I want all of my refrigerated items bagged up separately, that way I can put them away first. Items that are clearly bathroom products should also be in their own bag. Same goes for produce, meat, dairy, and well, pretty much everything!

 

Why would I have soap in a bag with my lettuce? Cheese in a bag with canned goods? I think I need to develop a training program for grocery baggers, so there can be order in the world.

 

Most of this is for ease of putting things away, but it's also because those things just shouldn't touch. I organize things in my grocery cart this way, too. I usually end up bagging my own groceries to get it right, but I try not to offend the baggers.

 

I think they know I'm loopy, so we're cool. :tongue_smilie:

 

My first job in high-school was as a cashier in a grocery store and this is how we were trained to bag groceries. It is maddening the things people put together in grocery bags these days!

[crazycoffeechic]

I rotate my ice trays....yes, I rotate my ice trays. I don't want old ice in my freezer.:D I really am weirder than I thought I was.;)

[mcconnellboys]

OMG, Wendy! That is seriously disturbed, LOL! I do use a label maker on my bookshelves so I can remember what category I've got stashed where. I do organize items in my pantry by category - well, I thought it was some form of organization, anyway, until I saw your pic! I do not re-store into tupperware, however. Do you buy in bulk? That would make sense of the storage! Could you come do my cabinets - please?

[Dawn in Ohio]

 

I type in my head. Sometimes I type with my calf muscles - you know flex the right calf if the letter is on the right side of the keyboard, ditto with the left calf. Nothing useful or efficient like your obsession.

 

 

 

I'm not the only one who does this? I type in my head too. I especially like "balanced words"-- words with the same number of letters typed with the right hand as the left hand.

 

My other obsessions include:

-a clean microwave

-couch throw pillows have to be zipper-side down

-dealing w/ mail immediately (I would rather leave it in the mailbox for 3 days than have stacks of mail sitting around the house)

[WTMindy]

Didn't someone on here have a baby born on 08/08/08? That's awesome!

 

Well.....not yet!! ;)

[KidsHappen]

It's odd to me the fasination with even numbers. I'm the opposite. My address, 1924, bugs me because it is even. I like groupings of three or five in arrangements or garden plantings.

 

I am the same way about numbers. I really dislike most even numbers although some are acceptable because they are made up of certain groupings of odd numbers - for example 8 is an acceptable number because it is made up of 3 and 5. Two is also ok but only if offset by a grouping of an odd number - 2 and 3 are ok but 2 and 2 are not. I was if-y on this house because the address is an even number but decided that it was alright because it the digits added up to my favorite odd number. My family has asked me if I keep a list of the "rules" somewhere. I don't. So they wanted to know how I know what the "rules" are. I don't know how. They are just in my brain somehow and I couldn't make them go away if I wanted to. :tongue_smilie:

[KidsHappen]

The only one I can think of is one that I didn't even know I had until my mother pointed it out recently.

 

You know how, when you eat cereal, some of the cereal gets left on the side of the bowl as the cereal level goes down (does that even make sense?)? Apparently, for my entire life, I have continually scraped that cereal back down into the bowl while eating. 'Round and 'round I go, the entire time I eat, until the bowl is empty.

 

So I suppose I have a thing about pieces of cereal stuck to the side of the bowl . . . I suppose I've always had that thing . . . but it wasn't brought to my attention until recently.

 

Now that she mentioned it to me, I notice it. And I do it constantly.

 

Oh -- I forgot one. I'm another one who's obsessive about being places early. I'm pretty much always the first one to arrive for anything.

 

Please don't tell me that there are people who DO NOT eat their food this way! :eek: I can't even imagine. :001_huh:

[frogpond1]

Vacuuming floors daily.

Checking dates on bread and meat. I really don't want to eat bread past the suggested sell date- to a compulsive level.

I cannot go barefoot at the moment. I cannot stand the thought of stepping on anything.

Makeup everyday.

[kim in ks]

My closest is color organized. Anyone who walks past it pauses and looks again. I also like to have the linen closest match.

 

 

My Mom's Closet is like this!

kim

[kim in ks]

My closest is color organized. Anyone who walks past it pauses and looks again. I also like to have the linen closest match.

 

 

 

My mom's closet is like this also!

kim

[kim in ks]

Oh, one more!! I'm also compulsive about the way I fold the clothes. My best friend was staying with me last week and she volunteered to help me fold my clothes while we were sitting there talking. It was ALL I could do not to refold everything she folded right then and there. But, I didn't! :001_smile:

 

My son, Luke has this!!! He told me, " Mom, if this is all the better you can fold my laundry don't bother!" he then proceeded to show me how to fold each tshirt so it would fit 4 to a shelf?" Talk about compulsive behavior, but his room is very, organized!" and yes he now folds all his own laundry!

kim

[kim in ks]

I've really, really enjoyed this thread! I've been trying to get over this obsession, but it really gives me the "heeby-jeebies" okay are you ready for this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I HATE, AND IT DISGUST ME :ack2: to find any type of hair in our bathroom! any kind! I keep a loaded swiffer by the door , and I have to sweep it before I walk on the floor, It's a small room, So I can stand on my carpet and swiffer most of it, so I can place my bare feet on the floor, and I refuse to enter the other bathrooms, because of hair that could be on the floor! yuk! My husband laughs every evening, when I go into our mstr bth, and swiffer the floor before peeing! He will actually run in there and rub the hair on his chest and laugh:lol: at me, it's quite funny ,

 

Now I've officially embarrassed:blushing: myself! but everyone else took the plunge , so i joined in!

 

kim

[Ferdie]

LOL!!! You guys are too funny. What a great thread.

 

I am really picky about the type of dental floss I use (Glide type) and the length of my floss - not too short because I don't want to reuse any and not too long so I don't waste any. I also always floss my teeth in the morning (my dh flosses at night). My dh drives me nuts because he uses way, way, way too much floss. He is tall with long arms so he just whooshes off a really long piece. Nobody could ever use that much floss. What a waste!

 

My other quirk is that I alway hold my breathe when driving through a tunnel, though that hasn't come up much since moving to Texas. :tongue_smilie:

[Staci in MO]

He waits until I'm in bed and settled in, then he will ask, "Did you check to see if the doors are locked?"

 

Then he laughs, because he knows that I will then HAVE to get up and check them again. :glare:

[Staci in MO]

Be it a thermostat, volume control, what have you, it must be on an even number.

 

I tease her about it in order to make myself feel better that I have to check the locks over and over before I go to bed.

[Staci in MO]

I love and adore my mil, but she crams the top rack full of dishes, and puts nothing on the bottom rack. Dh is the same way, so I tell him it's genetic.

 

I don't rearrange it in front of them, but I always seem to have to "make room" for one more thing, so it often LOOKS like I'm rearranging to the untrained eye. ;)

[Frontier Mom]

Well, I'm glad to see I am actually normal because my dh thinks otherwise. For me, it is having things in their place. For instance, don't move the coffee pot, canister, etc. or it just drives me crazy.

 

I also can't stand non-kitchen items on the counter. This bugged me for years until I figured out just to "dump" it on my dh's desk. Lovingly, of course.

 

Out the door procedure has to be done just right. Den must be tidy, doors locked, lights checked in all rooms, etc. I claim I am just trying to be "green", but it is actually hidden OCB.

 

I'm a perfectionist about lots of things. My dh says it keeps me from getting things done sometimes because I just can't stand it done halfway. However, he says it also pushes the dc's to a better plateau. Funny because we just had this discussion today.

[MyThreeSons]

it's like OCD, only alphabetical, like it SHOULD be.:001_smile:

 

Having a dh with Alzheimer's will break you of any OCD because you just can't keep up with his messing things up!! My dh likes to unload the dishwasher in the morning. When I go to cook, it's like a treasure hunt to find pots, pans, mixing bowls, measuring spoons, rubber spatula, ...... And it does no good to ask him where he put them, because he doesn't even remember unloading the dishwasher.

 

My personal OCD tendencies are in making schedules, charts, plans. They are beautiful -- lettering, spacing, alignment, color co-ordinated. Not that I follow thru on them, because I often take so long making them perfect that I'm already behind schedule by the time they're done, LOL.

[MyThreeSons]

Oh, one more!! I'm also compulsive about the way I fold the clothes.

 

LOL -- I first read this as the "day" you fold your clothes.

 

I know what you mean. My dh folds the sleeves on Tshirts wrong!! I do the folding, and hand him the stacks to put away, LOL.

 

BTW, my house may be a mess, but I NEVER have a pile of clean clothes sitting around. I fold and put away as I take them out of the dryer.

[Remudamom]

Making sure the oven and iron are off, checking them a lot.

[A.J. at J.A.]

I'm weird about the volume control number (okay, I know that is really weird). Like on the radio or TV, I can't handle odd volume control numbers (unless they're a multiple of 5 and then they're almost tolerable.)

 

I feel like a freak just mentioning it, DH thinks I'm a loon! But it really bothers me.

 

Angela

[Trivium Academy]

Oh my Mindy. That is a whole other level! Lol. I don't think I could fit all the stuff I use into containers like that and the time it would take to transfer to new containers...wow.

 

My OCD tendencies...

 

The bathroom counters should be clear, nothing on them but what is absolutely needed.

 

Beds made, a messy bed makes the entire room look messy.

 

The toilet paper roll. It doesn't have to be facing a certain way but it has to be filled. Has to be. No roll sitting on the counter.

 

Clutter. I can stand my own clutter, because I have a reason for it even though it might not be reasonable but it's my reason. Other people's clutter, I cannot stand. Double standards, I know but that's how it is.

 

Moving a drink away from disaster at the table. I have even moved dh's glass while at dinner in public with other people present b/c his glass was in the DANGER zone of being knocked over. I don't know what it is, I can't help myself.

 

I'm very conscious of those around me, I get stressed if I'm in company that is not conscious of how loud they are, how their actions affect those around them. I take it upon myself without wanting to. It stresses me out. My blood pressure rises, I feel anxious and perturbed. I am the woman who moves out of the way in the grocery aisle in order not to get run over. I am the woman who says, "have a nice day" even when the customer service person doesn't. I smile at strangers as I walk by.

 

Oh and if you visit my house, things that weren't a big deal to me when I didn't have company like the lampshade seam showing, all of a sudden are stress makers for me. I notice EVERYTHING when people visit my house and I can't stop the thoughts in my head, "I should have..., I wonder if they notice..., Oh my, I didn't see that before..."

 

Then they leave and I don't care anymore. Yeah. I'm a little nuts.

[Mom2boys]

I'm an obsessive door locker too. And I am really obsessive about the window blinds. When it is daylight all blinds and curtains must be open, and as soon as it is dark, they all have to be closed. I want every last bit of daylight we can possibly get - so much so that I have a hard time restraining myself from opening all the blinds as soon as I wake up, even if other people are still sleeping.

 

I wish I were compulsive about clutter on my kitchen and bathroom counters.

[crazycoffeechic]

Moving a drink away from disaster at the table. I have even moved dh's glass while at dinner in public with other people present b/c his glass was in the DANGER zone of being knocked over. I don't know what it is, I can't help myself.

 

That's called having kids!:lol:

[Cindy in FL.]

I can relate to most of these, except the stuff with numbers. Numbers only bother me if there are three 6's in a row.

 

I always load my dishwasher a certain way and will rearrange it if someone does it differently. My dh recently got me a new dishwasher because mine was having problems. After a few days he asked me how I liked it. I had to tell him I wasn't sure yet because I first had to figure out how to load it "right".

 

I didn't realize that I had a real problem with handwashing until a 7 yo guest asked me why I washed my hands so much.

 

I've got a really long list of OCD issues!

 

Cindy

[Diann]

Ooo Mindy, I can see myself headed in your direction.

 

For me it's made beds. Why? I have no clue. I'm the only here that cares, but I have to have the beds made. And they have to have the pillow cases with their open ends facing to the outside of the bed. Dh has resigned himself to the fact that I'm insane.

 

I'm the same way. I have to have the beds made. Somehow, it seems like the house is neater if the beds are made. At least in my crazy little mind.

 

Diann

[KidsHappen]

This is in no particular order because I wanted to finish it today.

 

Kkitchen cabinets must be organized. I have a beverage cabinet, baking goods, spices, canned goods, cereal & breakfast goods, and so on. Dishes must be loaded in dishwasher a certain way and put in the cabinets in certain places. All kitchen cabinets must be wiped down and I must feel them to make sure they feel clean. I go through tons of kitchen towels because my kids, with their own OCD issues, must get out a new one each time they need a towel and then I don't know which ones are clean.

 

I can not stand sticky messes, no jelly, honey, syrup, peanut butter, etc. Drinks must not be placed in the danger zone due to spillage issues. I will also move adult cups. It is almost enough to bring me to tears especially if I have to touch it. I can deal with dust bunnies, pet hairs and other fluff. I can not stand the feel of lotion or make-up on my skin. Hand sanitizer gives me the heebie-jeebies. I would rather my hands be dirty. And I really hate it when I don't like the smell of the soap in a public bathroom. I can handi-wipes in my purse for just such occasions.

 

As already mentioned, food in bowls must be eaten in a certain way. I mix Reeces pieces and M&Ms. One of each in my mouth at a time. First they must be color sorted and then eaten in certain color combinations. All other snack foods must be eaten in combinations of three or five, as in three or five cookies, never four.

 

Towels are folded in a certain way and then put in the closet with the folded edge out. Every person has their own colored towels which go in their own stack in their own bathroom. Never use someone elses towel. Closets are organized by color and each person had their own colored hangers. All hangers in a given closet are the same color and your may never borrow someone elses hanger that are a different color.

 

Pillowcases are always placed with the open end out. The edges of sheets, blankets and comfortors must line up. I have been known to change the size of the top sheet if it doen't line up correctly. I can not sleep in a bed that is rumpled and not made correctly. I have also made my dh get up so that I can remake the bed correctly. Sheets must always match, never mix and match.

 

Books must be organized in shelves by subject. At first I couldn't decide if it should go by author after that, or perhaps by title, maybe size or color? I went with size because it is more visually pleasing. Dvds are organized by genre and then production company.

 

Everything in my house must be lined up correctly, symmetrical and balanced. Crocked pictures drive me nuts and I will straighten them even if it is not in my home. When I am walking around the block and someone's yard is not quite right, it takes eveything I have not to walk into their yard and straighten it for them.

 

The odd number thing already mentioned in another post. Volume control, thermostats, timers and such must be set to odd numvbers but whole numbers. No 19:23 as someone said. I get very excited when a bill comes out to a whole number or when my odometer hits a whole number. I love it when I look at the clock and it is 12:34.

 

Food must go in the grocery cart in a certain way, like a puzzle, no empty spaces. It must also be placed on the conveyor belt in a certain way, also like a puzzle with all like items together. Items must be bagged a certain way. I love self-checkout because that way I know that it will be done correctly. It must also be loaded into the car a certain way.

 

When I start a collection of something, I must have the entire collection. Beanie babies were horrible. I used to collect McDonalds toys (back before they got cheesy) and it got totally out of hand. People know not to buy me items that come in sets.

 

TP must always go over the top.

 

I am never late. I can barely forgive my children for showing up late, one of them even in the wrong year. Birthdates in this family are: 29, 30, 31, 1, 3, 5, 6, & 15. I find it hard to forgive them one born on the 15th. Of course she is quirky so it fits her.

 

I make lists of everything, including lists of my lists. I had to make a list to write this post.

 

It drives me crazy if I am looking for something and can't find it. I sometimes am unable to drop it and move on and may spend the entire day looking for it until I find it.

 

And finally, an issue that I have only heard of two other people having. My hair must be parted in the middle of my head and be perfectly straight. This can sometimes take up to 30 minutes to accomplish and my family knows not to disturb m when I am parting my hair. I have tried to change this but it is very stubborn and refuses to conform. My head just feels weird if it isn't right. It takes everything I have not to straighten other peoples' parts.

 

Almost everyone in my family has OCD issues and unfortunately they are not all the same so most everyone spend time telling everyone else, "You are doing it all wrong," We are like that episode of Monk where the two guys are constantly rearranging the magazines, only it is my entire house! I tell you it is just tons of fun around here! :tongue_smilie:

[Trivium Academy]

Oh, I do that too! I wash my hands constantly and I've always done that. I was the only 5 year old that said, "I have to go home and wash my hands," after playing at the park. It has to be water and soap too, the sanitizers will do in a pinch but they don't leave my hands clean.

 

The dishwasher thing, YES. I forgot about that. I think anything I do regularly has a method in some way or the other though. I do the blinds thing too, closing them as soon as dusk sets in and opening them as soon as the sun is peeking through (or I'm out of my pj's). :lol:

[Trivium Academy]

I guess so! Oh dh hates it when I move his glass though, esp. with other adults present. I just do it and smile though because I cannot stand it.

[Mom2legomaniacs]

Okay, a few others popped up when reading these.

 

Today at the market, I realized how strongly I like the cart to be loaded and unloaded in a particular manner. DH was with me and he unloaded the cart in the most WRONG way! It took a good bit for me to not fix it!

 

It also drives me to insanity if I cannot find something. I usually am the finder in this house. And if it is something of mine, even worse. Right now, 2 cds of mine are missing and have been (as far as I can tell) for about a month or more. It is still irking me to no end.

 

I do push drinks away from the edges no matter whose they are.

[Amy loves Bud]

I'm not the only one who does this? I type in my head too. I especially like "balanced words"-- words with the same number of letters typed with the right hand as the left hand.

 

 

 

Thank goodness there is somone else. I get on here and bare my typing obsession and everyone else talks about how organized they are. Nice. :blush5:

 

My sister also types, and she's like you - she likes the words to be balanced.

 

I have nice calf muscles, by the way!

[Guest Katia]

I have so many, but I'll try to just list a few....

 

Before I leave the house to go anywhere, everything must be in it's perfect place and clean: all dishes loaded in the dishwasher, sink dry, counters wiped and perfectly arranged; beds all made and nothing sitting any where that it does not belong.

 

I am late everywhere because I absolutely can NOT make myself leave the house until it's all done and everything is in it's proper place. Dh hates it that I live across the street from the church (he is the pastor) and I am never, ever on time. :001_smile:

 

When I walk in the door from where I have gone, I want to see a clean and perfectly ordered house. I don't want to be exhausted from a long day out and come home to more work. It must be done before I leave.

 

Of course, conversely, before I go to bed, I walk through the house and everything must be clean and in it's place before I can go to bed. Actually, I check each dc's room and they must have all toys, books, whatever cleaned up and in their place, (clothes in the hamper or hung up, etc.) before they are allowed to go to bed.

 

I check all that all the doors are closed and locked and the windows adjusted, etc. I can NOT go to bed with a messy house. When we get up, the house must be clean and ready to go for the day.

[Peek a Boo]

This is in no particular order because I wanted to finish it today.

 

Kkitchen cabinets must be organized.

 

not me! my cabinets can be messy. i do insist that the kids be able to tell me where something is if i can't find it --they are the Unloaders ;) As has been mentioned, I hate watching anyone else load my dishwasher or wash my dishes --they never do it well enough. My 14yos looks like he has promise tho.... i am getting better about NOT re-washing or reloading tho.

 

I can not stand sticky messes, no jelly, honey, syrup, peanut butter, etc. Drinks must not be placed in the danger zone due to spillage issues. I will also move adult cups. It is almost enough to bring me to tears especially if I have to touch it. I can deal with dust bunnies, pet hairs and other fluff. I can not stand the feel of lotion or make-up on my skin. Hand sanitizer gives me the heebie-jeebies. I would rather my hands be dirty. And I really hate it when I don't like the smell of the soap in a public bathroom. I can handi-wipes in my purse for just such occasions.

 

My 4yodd HATES the smell of the cleaners in the bathrooms! I love PineSol, lol.

 

i can handle messes, and I would NEVER cut my long hair, but i too hate hair everywhere!!! Washing my own hair is ghastly enough --dry hair is yucky enugh to work with, but WET hair is even worse. I'd choose a live-in hairdresser over a maid anyday!

 

I'm w/ ya on the hand sanitizer.

 

i never realized my 'move cups from the danger zone' thing was an OCD issue, but ok.....

 

 

As already mentioned, food in bowls must be eaten in a certain way. I mix Reeces pieces and M&Ms. One of each in my mouth at a time. First they must be color sorted and then eaten in certain color combinations. All other snack foods must be eaten in combinations of three or five, as in three or five cookies, never four.

 

 

i tend to prefer odd numbers too.

 

thebowl thing? oh. yeah. leave one bit of rice/ krispies in the bowl/plate and it's a waste! don't let your food fall off the plate, no matter HOW you eat it!

i also scrape out ice cream the same way: never from the middle, but always from around the edges, then the top, working my way in.

 

My other food OCD issues: peeling oranges --i have to peel every tiny bit of white off them. Sometimes i have to peel the skin off each slice and take even the tiniest seeds out. It takes me about 30 minutes just to peel one orange! And my sandwiches must be made/ spread symmetrically: there must be the same amount of Peanut Butter all over the piece of bread --no lumps! ditto to the jelly side! and that goes for mustard, ketchup, and mayo too! Do you know how hard that is to accomplish w/ pickles and tomatoes?? Thank God for relish! I can tear lettuce into straight edges or cut them into squares. Blessed will be the gardener who figures out how to grow square tomatoes!! The Subway guys drive me nuts if they go too fast.....

 

I usually eat candy by color, but the only candy i'm REALLY ocd about is the valentine heart candies: i LOVE the white ones!!! i pick all those out first. then i move to the pink ones, then the purple ones, then orange. I only eat the yellow ones if i'm desperate.

 

Towels are folded in a certain way and then put in the closet with the folded edge out. ..... Never use someone elses towel.

 

I don't obsess about folding towels too much anymore --i let everyone else fold them. but if I have to fold them, then yeah --they are gonna look NEAT. No edges showing!

Pillowcases are always placed with the open end out.

I can mix and match sheets and pillow cases, and never figgered out why people insist a bed be MADE, but pillow case openings HAVE to be in the middle --i can't let those open edges show!!

Books must be organized in shelves by subject. At first I couldn't decide if it should go by author after that, or perhaps by title, maybe size or color? I went with size because it is more visually pleasing. Dvds are organized by genre and then production company.

 

i'm still waiting for more shelves, but i don't mind some books being disorganized: like the poster who was giddy at the op to fold more clothes, i would be giddy to SORT BOOKS lol. It does send me over the edge when the kids STEP on a book tho! we have them everywhere: on the floors, in piles, on tables, etc. i don't mind them BEING on the floor, but for the love of God don't STEP on them!

Everything in my house must be lined up correctly, symmetrical and balanced. Crocked pictures drive me nuts and I will straighten them even if it is not in my home. When I am walking around the block and someone's yard is not quite right, it takes eveything I have not to walk into their yard and straighten it for them.

 

i like chaos.

i laughed about the car being parked in the same place: we have an open acre and a half and i never know WHERE the van/ car will be: sometimes we drive it right up on the grass to the front door, sometimes dh puts the car in the garage, sometimes he puts both of them under a tree in the backyard. Or they might be on any portion of the L-shaped driveway we have. He used to be real ocd about garaging his vehicles, but now that he's past it, he's making up for lost time, lol.

 

 

Food must go in the grocery cart in a certain way, like a puzzle, no empty spaces. It must also be placed on the conveyor belt in a certain way, also like a puzzle with all like items together. Items must be bagged a certain way. I love self-checkout because that way I know that it will be done correctly. It must also be loaded into the car a certain way.

 

I do this, but i do it deliberately, not as an ocd thing. It might be progressing into an ocd thing tho-- I LIKE being able to unload groceries quickly because the items close to each other on the cabinets ended up in the same bag. I also LIKE to have heavier things on the bottom of the basket so they don't crush the lightweight things that need to stay at the top. This presents a challenge when you shop for heavier things first, load from heavy to light, then have to UNLOAD ..... but when you unload you don't send it down the line, you hold it back until you get to the heavier items first! Then you gotta re-load the basket! I've taken to having a second basket w/ me just to assist in separating and loading. And the puzzle thing? yeah-- that's the plus of playing tetris for years, lol. I can do that w/ packing for a trip/ campout too ;)

When I start a collection of something, I must have the entire collection. Beanie babies were horrible. I used to collect McDonalds toys (back before they got cheesy) and it got totally out of hand. People know not to buy me items that come in sets.

 

I used to do this w/ books -- i needed ALL the Mercer Mayer, Clifford, and other series books. I'm getting better tho ;)

TP must always go over the top.

 

IF i feel compelled to place it on the roll, THEN it must go over the top. and yes, I'll change it if i see it elsewhere the wrong way. But lately I've insisted it be left on the counter: otherwise the KIDS get to unrolling it on a high-speed setting. not fun..... and I'd rather it sit on the counter than NOT roll smoothly [by crushing the roll so it won't roll so smoothly --heresy!]

 

I am never late.

 

i am almost always late! :eek:

I'm trying to budget my time better, but,.......

 

 

I make lists of everything, including lists of my lists. I had to make a list to write this post.

 

YES!! I was so glad you compiled everything, lol. list, lists, lists! I'm another chart-maker too: spending so much time MAKING the darn chart that you're already behind ? yup. that's me.

 

 

And finally, an issue that I have only heard of two other people having. My hair must be parted in the middle of my head and be perfectly straight. This can sometimes take up to 30 minutes to accomplish and my family knows not to disturb m when I am parting my hair. I have tried to change this but it is very stubborn and refuses to conform. My head just feels weird if it isn't right. It takes everything I have not to straighten other peoples' parts.

 

not in parting my hair, but i almost always wear my hair in a high ponytail or a bun. It MUST be smooth! no bumps!! it takes me about 10-15 minutes of bending over w/ my hair hanging almost to the floor to accomplish it. talk about a head rush ;) i often get it up then have to take it down and redo it.

 

one I haven't seen listed: vacuuming carpets! i must vacuum in a specific pattern: nice straight rows, each row overlapping just a bit, then vacuum the same room at a 90* angle. Even the steam cleaning gives me a rush cuz i can see the instant gratification of the dirty water/ clean spot.

 

i'm sure there are more I'm forgetting.....

[MicheleB]

Thank goodness there is somone else. I get on here and bare my typing obsession and everyone else talks about how organized they are. Nice. :blush5:

 

My sister also types, and she's like you - she likes the words to be balanced.

 

I was getting on to type that I "type" and here I found you two! I have to do the "balanced" thing as well. I type what I hear and what I read. I even move my fingers if I'm not careful about it.

[Cricket]

I'm :lol: while I read these. I can relate to so many of them.

 

Can M&M's be eaten in any other way besides even numbers? I have to have the same number on each side of my mouth when I chew them. I usually eat them in groups of four. They can be four different colors ('cause I like putting the yellow, blue, red and green together and yellow, orange, brown and red can go together because they are fall colors) or they have to be two pairs that match. If I end up with an odd number, then I bite one in half so both sides are even.

 

I also type things in my head. It's so funny to be talking to someone and if I latch onto a certain word, I start typing it over and over in my head. And of course the letters have to come out even on each hand. Sometimes I add the space bar to make the letters come out even. My sister-in-law were talking one day and she admitted she does this too. :lol: Her son likes words with even numbers of letters. Dh thought we were all insane. (although dh is fanatical about having the dishes complete clean before loading them in the dishwasher. Most nights he rinses the dishes after supper. I drive him nuts. :D)

 

Gardenschooler, I'm right with you on the bagging thing. What really, really irks me is when they put meat in with produce. I mean, what if that raw meat leaks onto the produce?!?! Raw meat with anything actually. And soap with food? The smell would make the food taste funny! And it goes without saying that only frozen foods belong in the bag together.

[Trivium Academy]

Were you this way when the kids were younger??? If so, come rub off on me! There is a switch that happens in me once the kids are in bed, my blood pressure lowers, I breathe a little easier and I relax. For about 30-1 hr and then I go to sleep to start it all over again the next day.

[sandellie4]

This is the funniest thread ever! I do the clock-checking thing and have even pulled my husband into it. He knows I won't sleep unless it's checked repeatedly and so he does some of the checks. Also, I have to have words to go with any of the checks, depending on the number of clicks, buttons to push, whatever. For the clock it is, "Dot, dot, shoot." If my husband checks the clock and forgets to say that, it doesn't count.

 

I also count everything. When I'm washing dishes, I line everything up on the counter in order, with the things I hate and want to get over with first. I sing a song while I wash, to the tune of "100 bottles of beer on the wall."

 

Hmmm. Maybe I'm INSANE!

 

Sandy

[gardenschooler]

 

Before I leave the house to go anywhere, everything must be in it's perfect place and clean: all dishes loaded in the dishwasher, sink dry, counters wiped and perfectly arranged; beds all made and nothing sitting any where that it does not belong.

 

I am late everywhere because I absolutely can NOT make myself leave the house until it's all done and everything is in it's proper place.

 

When I walk in the door from where I have gone, I want to see a clean and perfectly ordered house. I don't want to be exhausted from a long day out and come home to more work. It must be done before I leave.

 

 

 

This is so me. If I have to leave even one thing out of place before going out, it irritates me to no end to have to see it when I'm walking in the door. It just ruins my day. I want to come home to order, not a mess.

 

I used to also have to have all of the laundry done before leaving, but I grew out of that real fast after having kids!

[gardenschooler]

I can relate to most of these, except the stuff with numbers. Numbers only bother me if there are three 6's in a row.

 

 

 

The house behind me has that address. My friend used to live there, and worked from home, so that address was on all of her business cards!

[KidsHappen]

 

i also scrape out ice cream the same way: never from the middle, but always from around the edges, then the top, working my way in.

 

My other food OCD issues: peeling oranges --i have to peel every tiny bit of white off them. Sometimes i have to peel the skin off each slice and take even the tiniest seeds out. It takes me about 30 minutes just to peel one orange! And my sandwiches must be made/ spread symmetrically: there must be the same amount of Peanut Butter all over the piece of bread --no lumps! ditto to the jelly side! and that goes for mustard, ketchup, and mayo too! Do you know how hard that is to accomplish w/ pickles and tomatoes?? Thank God for relish! I can tear lettuce into straight edges or cut them into squares. Blessed will be the gardener who figures out how to grow square tomatoes!! The Subway guys drive me nuts if they go too fast.....

 

It does send me over the edge when the kids STEP on a book tho! we have them everywhere: on the floors, in piles, on tables, etc. i don't mind them BEING on the floor, but for the love of God don't STEP on them!

 

I do this, but i do it deliberately, not as an ocd thing. It might be progressing into an ocd thing tho-- I being able to unload groceries quickly because the items close to each other on the cabinets ended up in the same bag. I also to have heavier things on the bottom of the basket so they don't crush the lightweight things that need to stay at the top. This presents a challenge when you shop for heavier things first, load from heavy to light, then have to UNLOAD ..... but when you unload you don't send it down the line, you hold it back until you get to the heavier items first! Then you gotta re-load the basket! I've taken to having a second basket w/ me just to assist in separating and loading. And the puzzle thing? yeah-- that's the plus of playing tetris for years, lol. I can do that w/ packing for a trip/ campout too ;)

 

I used to do this w/ books -- i needed ALL the Mercer Mayer, Clifford, and other series books. I'm getting better tho ;)

 

IF i feel compelled to place it on the roll, THEN it must go over the top. and yes, I'll change it if i see it elsewhere the wrong way. But lately I've insisted it be left on the counter: otherwise the KIDS get to unrolling it on a high-speed setting. not fun..... and I'd rather it sit on the counter than NOT roll smoothly [by crushing the roll so it won't roll so smoothly --heresy!]

 

spending so much time MAKING the darn chart that you're already behind ? yup. that's me.

 

not in parting my hair, but i almost always wear my hair in a high ponytail or a bun. It MUST be smooth! no bumps!! it takes me about 10-15 minutes of bending over w/ my hair hanging almost to the floor to accomplish it. talk about a head rush ;) i often get it up then have to take it down and redo it.

 

one I haven't seen listed: vacuuming carpets! i must vacuum in a specific pattern: nice straight rows, each row overlapping just a bit, then vacuum the same room at a 90* angle. Even the steam cleaning gives me a rush cuz i can see the instant gratification of the dirty water/ clean spot.

 

 

 

 

 

Oh my goodness, Peek! I don't know how to do the multiple quote thingy but you covered so many good ones that I forgot.

 

 

Ditto on the ice cream although I never really thought about it before. Just one of those things where I assumed everyone ate it this way. Certainly people don't just dig in and eat their ice cream all willy-nilly do they? :willy_nilly:

 

 

I just don't do oranges. It easier this way. I am the same with spreads on bread and I have been known to cut the lettuce with scissors. I agree about tomatoes and I use the sandwich slice pickles as I find I get better coverage that way.

 

 

I am the same way about books. I can't help but complain loudly if I see someone step on a book. I don't think I could keep myself from saying something to God himself if I saw him step on a book. And even fictional representations of book burning make my physically ill. When they burned the books for fuel in "Day After Tomorrow" I yelled right out loud in the theater.

 

 

Yes hon, the grocery thing sounds like it is progressing to OCD level. I could relate to every single thing you said there.

 

 

Same way owning all the books in a series or by a certain author. I have an entire set of shelves dedicated to Stephen King and I haven't even read the last five or six but I keep buying them because I have the rest of his. I will be tickled when he quits writing because I only have room for a few more and he is already taking up more than his fair share of space. :glare:

 

 

I understand about the high speed unrolling. And once it is unrolled it has to be thrown away because you can't roll it back perfectly. My kids have gotten where they just leave it sitting on the counter. But I can't help but put it on the roll if I see it even if there is just a little bit left.

 

 

I am always behind. Being OCD is time consumptive.

 

 

Yeah, I can't wear my hair up for just such a reason. Most of my dds are the same way. I think that we have all been reduced to tears because of hair bumps. :ack2:

 

 

Luckily, I have an OCD dd who does the vacuuming but the one who mows seems to just wander around the yard. I honestly can not watch her because she can't hear me telling her that she is doing it all wrong! I don't even look at the back yard because there are strips she misses. :ohmy:

 

Thanks for all the laughs. I had to rep you for this post!

 

Ps. - Not all my paragraphs have smileys because there is apparently a limit on how many you can put in one post. But I tried. Insert wan smile here.