i am neurotic.

Whenever I go to someone else house I cannot eat their lunch meat because if I take it I may have to owe them later. The same goes with milk and other dairy products.

Every time I turn off my car, I have to make sure that whatever is playing on the the stereo, radio or CD, is sufficiently “cool” in case someone gets in my car with me the next time and thinks I’m a dork for jamming out to something not hip enough. I feel like people would judge me for listening to certain radio stations.

When I start studying, I read and review using my own voice in my head. When one of my friends comes to visit me in the library, after they are gone I use their voice to study in my head and go over stuff. I use them until the next friend, and when their corresponding questions come up on tests, I answer in my head with their respective “voices.”

When I am doing laundry and putting clothes into the washing machine, the water must already be filling up and I have to put socks and underwear on the side where the water will pour directly on top of them as I feel they need to get cleaner than the rest of the clothes and this is the only way to ensure this.

I absolutely cannot stand to press “snooze” on my alarm. The alarm must be shut off after it goes off. If this means I have to set more than one alarm to make sure I get up, so be it, but snoozing is NOT allowed.

note: Check out the cover of the book!

I’m a very careful driver, but every time I notice a cop behind me I start feeling really paranoid that s/he is going to pull me over. For what? I don’t even know! I start driving like a nervous old lady, and if they’re close behind me and I can see them in my rear-view mirror I go out of my way to avoid eye contact because if I lock eyes with them they might pull me over. I’m so relieved when they finally turn down another street…

I like to grow my facial hair but I can’t seem to break the habit of pulling all the hairs in one spot to the point that its noticeable a and then chewing on the hairs. I mostly do it while surfing the internet like right now.

I find myself eating trays of ice each day. I eat the small ice cubes, then the glossy ice cubes, then the cracked ice cubes. This is a VERY distinct order that can never be broken.

When I download or install something, I always watch the percentage bar and try to convert the percentage into a fraction, like “okay, it’s seven twentieths of the way done.”

I have friendly nicknames for everyone I know. It seems harmless, but I do it because I’m afraid that if I don’t give them nicknames, I’ll forget their names and call them by the wrong name and they’ll be mad. I also rotate these nicknames often, just so calling them by the wrong nickname won’t seem out of place. My best friend has had eleven so far.