Friday, September 29, 2006

Quirky Old Habits I'll Likely Never Break

I’m a creature of habit and routine. There are certain things that have to be a certain way or I’m all antsy and irritable. There are some things that I do without even thinking about it because for me it’s almost like breathing.

I can’t go to the movies without a hoodie or light jacket on hand, even during the summer months when it’s 100 degrees out. I’m the same way about restaurants unless we are already out and about and I don’t have one in the car and am absolutely forced to do so.

I will not eat alone in a restaurant. I'll get it to go and eat in my car before I do. I’ve only eaten alone in a restaurant once ever, and it was recently when my husband and I mixed our signals and he stood me up. I’d already ordered our drinks and sat there for half of my lunch hour before realizing it so I stayed to eat but it totally sucked!

I have to have a bottle of nose drops (nasal spray) next to the bed. I don’t use them daily but often wake up stuffy and need a squirt. I make sure they are sitting next to the bed every night, just in case. I also keep a bottle in my purse at all times and usually in the console of my car. My mother and sister are actually addicted and much worse than I am. When my sister and I were neighbors she often came down to use mine if she was out. Yes, we’ve actually shared those. Is that sisterly love or what?

I can’t sleep without the noise and circulation of a ceiling fan and preferably a loud one. If I'm ever in a situation without one it is a long and miserable night.

I can’t just lay my head down on the pillow and fall asleep. I either have to read, watch TV or mess around on the laptop until I can barely keep my eyes open. If I don’t have something to focus on then the sixteensisters in my head will remind me of all of the bills that need to be paid, home improvements needing to be done, blog entry ideas, whether I remembered to put the clothes in the dryer so they don’t mildew, whether I locked the doors (of course I would never forget that because it’s another thing I have to do before going to bed, but of course a sister will have me questioning whether I actually did it or not and then I’ll have to get back up to double check), etc. Get the picture?

I have to have sleep with three pillows and arrange & fluff them before I lay down.
I have one feather pillow that I guard with my life. I will pull it out from under my sleeping husband’s head if necessary. Hey, I’m gentle about it! He shouldn’t have been stupid enough to fall asleep with it knowing it’s my pillow.

I can't sleep in a messy bed. The sheets and comforter don't have to be prefect, but close. If they've been pulled more to one side or the other I just hate it! (unless it's my side that got more!)

The bedroom door needs to be “pulled to”. My words to the kids as they come in and out after I’ve already laid down. “Pull it to on your way out”. Before bed I put a piece of clothing or a small towel in the door way to keep it from shutting completely. I know that’s really weird! But if it’s shut all the way it’ll drive me nuts when my husband gets up for his middle of the night snack and if it’s just cracked and not shut I’m convinced I can still hear a kid in distress. Actually, I can’t hear much over the noise of our fans. In addition to the Fantastic Fan, we also use a small floor fan to block out noises like barking dogs, the sound of our oldest daughter’s music, her talking on the phone and the repeated opening and shutting of her door long after we’ve gone to bed.

I don’t like spending the night away from home. I will, but only when I have to and only at certain places. Anyone wonder why? Isn’t it obvious from all of the above?

I can’t go to bed without taking a bath or shower at least a few hours beforehand.

Here are my special habits that were initially developed as a result of my cockroach phobia that has been mentioned here many times before. We were clean people growing up, but the big ones would get inside from time to time. Everyone knows they like to come out at night, so some of the following were habits I developed when I was younger but have stayed with me until this day, even when we lived in California, where I never even saw a roach.

Since I was a teenager I’ve made a large glass of ice water every night before bed and sit it on my night stand. I started doing that so I wouldn’t have to get up in the middle of the night if I got thirsty and chance a roach encounter. When each of my kids was little they picked up my water next to the bed habit, too. Most nights I may not even drink but a sip or two and other nights it’ll be almost gone by morning, but it’s always there just in case I get thirsty. For a long time I used to put a wash cloth over the top of it to ensure nothing would fly or fall into it while I slept. I didn’t want to drink a floating mosquito, fly or even worse but I eventually broke that habit. The official name for that glass of water in our house is “Night Water”.

I always wear house shoes (slippers), flip flops or socks around the house. If I wake up to go potty at night I have a pair right next to the bed that I slip on. Yet another habit created from my fear of stepping on a roach in the dark. It used to be only a night time thing but then I developed a fetish about walking around barefoot in general and now I always have something on my feet if I am up and moving around, day or night. Okay, I might walk through the house barefoot on occasion, but 99% of the time I just don’t.

I hope this doesn’t make me sound part OCD/part high maintenance. I am in some ways, but for the most part my habits/routines don’t effect anyone else or require anything of them, so that’s not technically high maintenance is it? (The husband is not allowed to answer that question!)

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Freak'n freaky. I feel like I was just reading about myself. I don't need the nose spray or light jacket, but I can't go to sleep without taking a bath (even if it's 5:00am, I'm totally serious), I have a noise maker I can't sleep without, I can't get in the bed if either of the corners of the sheets are pulling off (just FYI, you can buy a California size that fit pillow top mattress' & they actually do work), I can't sleep anywhere but my bed without serious sleep aides (remember the slumber party we had a Carla's house about 8-10 years ago & I actually went home "b/c of the cat", RIGHT!, I do NOT walk around the house or anywhere barefoot, not b/c of roaches, I just hate the way it feels, I sleep with 2 pillows (one between my legs & one under my head, I've also pulled them from under my husband's head on many occasion) & lastly, I have to make a glass of ice water before I go to sleep. It cannot be just water, it has to be ice water. I do not put it by my nightstand, but on the bathroom countertop because I have knocked it off too many times hitting the snooze button for about the 7th time because I stayed up too late due to the fact that I will not even get in the bed until my eyes are squinting shut. I will not lay in the bed tossing & turning when I have other things that I could be getting done. It usually takes my brain about an hour & 1/2 to shut down every night. I like to say that I have to have perfect sleeping conditions. I didn't realize that there were others out there like me. Does that make me sixteencousins or something?
I can't believe I just revealed all this about myself. I think we need serious medication.

Carri said...

teedee,
You just cracked me up again! I almost went into great detail about how I have to take major sleep aides if I'm not at home, but the entry was so long and I already sounded so OCD, I opted to not even go there. If we go to the family lakehouse with just us, I'm ok, I can watch TV, etc. If the extended family goes and I can't have the TV on or light to read, I have to take major sleep aids. My barefoot thing started at night but I also hate the feeling now without any roach worries. If someone spilled something on the kitchen floor or you step on something it makes my feet feel so gross. If we visit family or friends and they have a cluttered house I can't stay over night cause I know roaches love clutter! I'll make up any excuse, too to get the heck out of dodge. I remember that slumber party and you were hell bent on going home cause of your cat. We made fun of you! Remember?? Oh wait, you'd already left. HA! J/K
Now what good is the water if it's in the bathroom? You still gotta get up...........unless your bathroom is like a step from your bed. ?? You need a lap top so you can get sleepy in bed.........If the sheets come undone at the bottom, forget about it! Too funny! Is it the Scorpio in us??
PS. The slumber party was actually when Lauren was 4-5, so it was 13-14 years ago.........Etched in my memory forever because of Shea and all the crap she started after that party. Shea could be a whole blog entry by herself. Jeez! But I won't even bother.
Thanks for making me feel normal! ha
Actually, is anyone normal? What is normal?

Carri said...

teedee, what's your noise maker?

Anonymous said...

Here is the link to my sound machine. Its wonderful. I've had one since 1990, then just bought another one in 2003 for Tyler's room. If I travel, I bring that baby with me! Mine is the round one right on the front page! http://www.marpac.com/

Carri said...

Wow! Very interesting. I think I'd go with the seashore or waterfall but not the frogs or owl. Ha! That's so cool.
We used to have tapes of thunderstorms and waves and slept great, but over time we just quit playing them. Now it's the fan.

Anonymous said...

Oh, I can't sleep with any sounds other than the white noise (that would disrupt my perfect sleeping condition. The machine I have only sounds like a fan. If I listen to one of the ocean or rain, etc, my brain can pick up where the recording starts over & then thats all I can focus on. I also can't sleep if the ceiling fan makes a ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, ting...

Anonymous said...

Jeeeezzzzzzzzzzz!! ohhh Jeeeezzzz!

Anonymous said...

fyi--i am not a nose drop addict. only use it when i have sinus. and glad you told everyone your house was clean growing up...and yes, you and td are two of a kind. you probably fed on each others bad habits growing up.

Anonymous said...

Bahahahahahaha!

Carri said...

Gee, I wonder who anonymous is?????
ha!

Anonymous said...

whose anonymous???

clue me in so I can pick on them "UNMERCIFULLY"!!!

I want the 'juicy' details so i can exploit it to the max--awww, I'm just kidding..but, who is anony(mouse)???

come on, Tell me!!

mever mind...

does it start with an l and end with an s ?? (only somebody that knows you well would know all that stuff)

Just kidding--I think I need to get out of here before I get hit with a rock.

Carri said...

Paul,
I'll give you a hint..........She brought me into this world and she can take me out.......Starts and ends with with an M and there's an O in the middle. She's always here to make sure I'm not telling anyone about my awful childhood. (ha!)

Anonymous said...

Well there 'ain't' no 'O'in L-s but there is one in...Hi George!! I was just kiddin. L-s is fair game but no way I'd give you a hard time, your way to quick for me. you'd have me turned into catfood in country minute.

I bet you could really dump some juicy stuff on Carri's blogg though. ( yu know what I mean)

Anonymous said...

Carri and teedee, I think you both suffer from OCD.........hahaha....j/k, although I DO have to have my ceiling fan on every night, dark room with door shut to fall asleep!