Even or odd numbers (Ocd/Obsessive compulsive disoder?)

[tillyn]

I was wondering does anybody else buy products in 3's, 2's ,4's or let the phone ring 2,3,4 times before answering? Do you line your books tall to short? short to tall? Even number of pillow's on sofa? or odd? Fold things a certain way and only that way? I know we all have our little weird (but not to us right!) . Dare to tell? :eyebrow:

[Todash]

I do one thing like that. It's strange, but harmless. Good thing it's harmless because I don't think I can stop. When I was in high school, that was about the last time they taught typing on a typewriter instead of keyboarding on a computer. I learned to center by tabbing to the center of the page, then backspacing one space for every two letters. So if a word or phrase had an even number of letters, it could be perfectly backspaced. If it had an odd number of letters, no luck; one edge of the print would be a little closer to the page.

Anyway, every once in a while I'll think of a word or phrase and count it off in my head to see if it could be perfectly centered. Sometimes, with a sentence, I'll "cheat" and count depressing the shift key as a stroke, even though that's not how it works.

Now you guys are the only people who know that about me. Ah, true confessions on the intarwebs. :p
[Double Post]
Oh, and I also look at the patterns in everything, but I think a lot of people do that.

[brownmouse]

I'm a proud card carrying member of the OCD club (:wow: :glare: :wink2:) but I don't have the number compulsions. Words are much scarier for me. My husband knows that he cannot say "never, always, last time, no more..." without me yelling in response:"Take it back!". I would write an example of what I mean but then I would have to take it back and to take it back I would have to delete it so... well, you see the complications.:eek2:

It's really all about control (for me at least). I can't control the things that really scare me (those would be my obsessions)so I (try to) control the things I can.

HOWEVER- it would be a rare thing indeed for me to walk out of a store with $6.66 in change. Or purchase something for that same amount. Thank goodness for the impulse items (gum, magazines, eye glass screw drivers-what's up with that by the bye?) next to the registers. Oh, and I am not likely to throw down a three of a kind of 6's in poker, no matter how big the pot.

[JohnDalglish]

Hi,

A thing that I learned from discussing 'N' in Just After Sunset, was that we ALL suffer from/enjoy OCD.

It's not a matter of black and white, merely a question of degree IMO.

And eight keeps it straight!

Long days and pleasant nights

[Natjen24]

Well, I don't care for even or uneven numbers, but I do tend to count. The little and the big things. For example, when I do the dishes I count how much pieces I'm washing. Sometimes I'll say before I start I'm just going to do 50 pieces or so and that's it. It doesn't matter of there's only one thing left after those first 50. It will have to wait for the other day.

Also my steps, when I'm walking a long distance, I'm counting my steps.

Another, non-counting neurotic example, I play on my Xbox from time to time, only for one thing, to unlock so many gamepoints as possible. If XBox didn't start this gamepoint thing, i think I wouldn't even play at all.

And I have the tendency to correct people. Even when it's something unimportant. I really have to bite my tongue to not say anything. I can say that this perticular thing doesn't make good friends.

[mojomofo]

LOL- I am all kinds of screwed up! I do prefer even numbers, I like things symmetrical, I count my steps (if anyone remembers Edgar's number game when he starts walking, that's me!), I eat food in a certain order- and the plate has to be color organized. Quite the butt of the joke in my family.

[racheypen80]

My OCD used to be really excessive when I was a kid- I counted and organized- recounted and reorganized and thought nothing of it.

The worst was when I would watch a movie and connect every actor to Kevin Bacon (taking all the fun out of the kevin bacon game).

When I was 21, I started taking medication for the OCD and have calmed down quite a bit.

[brownmouse]

Hi,

A thing that I learned from discussing 'N' in Just After Sunset, was that we ALL suffer from/enjoy OCD.

It's not a matter of black and white, merely a question of degree IMO.

And eight keeps it straight!

Long days and pleasant nights

I gotta say , IMO, that's a little like saying everyone has cancer because we all produce new cells. (and , ugh -if that doesn't make my OCD alarms go off-but I'll keep it to make a point). Many people keep their books in specific orders or straighten errant shirts on store hangers or keep their green vegies from touching their orange ones but not everyone has OCD. OCD is a disease. One that interferes with normal functions in life. If you like to line up your books a certain way there's that but if you have to line up your books a certain way because something terrible is going to happen if you don't there's OCD. This is what I think, at least.

[nicos]

I do it but I don't see it as a problem but as a mind game, I got for example the LRH book from australia on tuesday 3/3/09 and when I saw the date written my mind saw also 3 x 3 = 9 :grinning: sometimes while reading a text I can see an other story by selecting some words of the text and leaving others but not changing their order and not by reading it again, I just smile I do not think it bothers me it is a matter of imagination IMO

[smooth operator]

Let's see... I wash dishes in a very definite order, whether I am washing them by hand or putting them in the dishwasher (and I scrub them off first.) I fold clothes in a specific order, so that they are easier to stack and put away. I don't like my food touching on my plate. I don't step on cracks in the sidewalk, if I can help it. I separate M&Ms (or other colored candies) into colors and eat one color at a time. I like things ordered, by height, color, or some way. Some times I am a triple checker, especially when it comes to my keys, but I am a very careful checker of letters, emails, or anything I put my name to. There are other little things, but I cannot remember them right now. If it is not OCD, then I am very organized.

[bookworm101]

Don't even get me started. Dials have to be even. Always even numbers. I lie to myself and say its because I'm a Libra. Balance you know.

[Agincourt Concierge]

When decorating......I have lovely blown glass pieces ..those I put in groups of three...wall hangings usually groups of four, unless they are really big....

[Spideyman]

I do like even numbers over odd: "Six is a fix"
But must have things in there proper places- if something is used, put it back where you found it.

[tillyn]

By the way i'm not poking fun at anyone who actual OCD. I just happened to notice that i have some really weird habits, and wondered if anyone else did weird stuff.:umm:

[JayneH]

When I hang clothes on the line I have to use the same size and colour pegs per outfit.. eg. A blouse uses two pegs exactly the same. I tried using odd pegs but get quite agitated as I do it ! I know it will make no difference.

I count stairs without even knowing I am doing it... all of a sudden I will catch myself thinking 100,101 etc (I also count when I chew)

If I wink with one eye then I have to wink with the other (like when a speck of dust gets in it) that is an embarassing one !

Before I set the house alarm I have to recheck all of the doors to make sure I have closed them - even if I know I have.

I have to unplug the iron from the wall and repeat it outloud if I am not packing it away straight away - otherwise I wonder if I switched it off at all !

otherwise - nothing weird :smile2:

[Todash]

Oh, I forgot about counting steps. I do that too. And I used to eat sandwiches in nine bites (One, two, three across the top; one, two, three across the middle; one, two, three across the bottom.) I don't do that anymore, though.

[sunshine05]

I have a bit of OCD with numbers. When it comes to the numbers 6 & 9 i freak! For ex: the McDonalds mcnugget meal comes with 6 nuggets. When i get down to my last little nugget I can't eat it. Lol! Also when I place things down or if I'm picking up an area, I have a tendency to place things down in an angle.

[JohnDalglish]

When I hang clothes on the line I have to use the same size and colour pegs per outfit.. eg. A blouse uses two pegs exactly the same. I tried using odd pegs but get quite agitated as I do it ! I know it will make no difference.
:

Hi,

'Six pegs, Dolores, not four, six pegs!'

Well, I guess six IS a fix LOL

Long days and pleasant nights

[lilredkdn]

I count my steps. I count the number of stairs when walking up or down them. The volume on the radio in my car must be on an even number or a 5. The volume on the TV must end in a 0 or 5.All of my movies are in alphabetical order (and my husband knows that if he gets one out, it's best to leave it out and let me put it up, lest he put it in the wrong place). My SK books are arranged by year, the others are by author and size of book.

[nicos]

I had printed side etiquettes for all the cds showing artist, year of release and title of the album. and not just that the colors of the background of each was different according to the first letter of the artist, of course the albums of each artist were chronologically in order on the shelf. It was very easy to find everything and it looked nice!! I use past tense cause now I use itunes (everything in there is in order too :biggrin2:)

[JRLauer]

I don't have any compulsions. Odd, even, doesn't matter.

Good, 42 letters in that sentence. Now I can rest easy.

42 again, I'm on a roll.

16 in that one.

Uh oh, 11 in the last one. Now I have to sacrifice a virgin.

[JayneH]

It took me months but I finally got my other half to agree to put the DVD's in alphabetical order - we have nearly 1000 of them and it took me three nights to sort them out ! But.... the only way he would let me put them in alpha order is if I would put all the movies starting with "The" under T - still drives me nuts as I then had to alphabetise all of the "The" movies as well ! But it was better than his order - he had them by rating then by who was in the movie which made it very difficult for movies like Oceans Eleven etc where there were a heap of stars....

[Sundrop]

I don't keep things in any certain order, count windows, or anything like that.
I do, however, eat my pizza toppings first, then the crust.....always.....every time.
I always eat my pie or cheesecake crust first, then the filling.
Yeah, I know..... :)

[poisonbat]

We have had this discussion before, but I will tell you a few of my "Strange Quirks" I can not say it is OCD, that would call for a diagnosis and I have never had such a diagnosis.

1. I must purchase food items in even numbers or in multiples of 5.
2. I must do my housework at the same time every day. Never late.
3. I must go to bed at the same time each and every night, weekends included.
4. Dishes must be washed in the same order every time. Glasses, plates, bowls, silverware, plastic dishes, pots and pans. These must be placed in the same organized places in the dish drainer.
5. My Stephen King books are in chronological order at this moment, but that darn Dark Tower drives me crazy. I like to put it together as a set, but then they are not in chronological order anymore. Plus they are all different sizes :eek2: Sometimes I have to just back away from my bookshelf and let it be.

I could go on, but this list is in a multiple of five, a good number, so I will let it be.:bat:

[dsurrett]

Like others mentioned, I look for patterns in things - ceiling tiles, floor tiles, etc. and sometimes count the rows and columns if the tiles are squares or rectangles. If I hear or see a large number I'll divide it by 2 until it's an odd number, then divide it by 3, 5, etc until I think it's prime (like 19 from DT). When watching 1408 I saw the numbers added to 13 before it was mentioned in the movie. Stuff like that.

[dsurrett]

Hi,

A thing that I learned from discussing 'N' in Just After Sunset, was that we ALL suffer from/enjoy OCD.

It's not a matter of black and white, merely a question of degree IMO.

And eight keeps it straight!

Long days and pleasant nights

After reading 'N' I caught myself counting more stuff than usual for a couple of days. And I like things to be symetrical. When I make a hamburger I like for every bite to taste the same, so the pickles and onions have to be arranged carefully.

[mudpuppy]

I do count my steps when I'm walking, but I don't really pay attention to the numbers, it just sort of goes on in the background. Other than that the only other thing I do is to make sure I do things differently from one day to the next. Like:

If on Monday I:
feed the dogs, make tea, pack lunch, brush my teeth, take a shower

Then on Tuesday I will:
make tea, feed the dogs, brush my teeth, take a shower, pack lunch

I try to mix it up because I think it I do not then I will get too comfortable, go on autopilot, and then something bad will happen because I wasn't paying attention.

[tillyn]

I just remembered there's a story in Just After Sunset where the characters deal with compulsions. "N" Also SK said he deals with some compulsions of his own. Watch the video at the library. (concerns this story.)