We’ve been hearing a lot lately about “obsessive this,” “compulsive that,” and how people who exhibit signs of either are sort of wacko.  I’d like to meet whoever is coming up with this stuff and follow them around for a while, because I’ll bet my bottom dollar they are obsessive about SOMETHING.

Everyone’s got one. We may call them habits, or things we do for “good luck”, but the truth is, if we don’t do them, our world just isn’t round.  It may be that you have to sleep on a certain side of the bed.  Or maybe you load your dishes into the dishwasher a certain way and if someone else does it, you have to go behind them and change where they put stuff.  They say females are worse than males, but I call baloney on that.

Just turn on the television and watch baseball for a while.  These guys who are paid millions for their talent cannot swing the bat unless they do certain things first.  One has to tap each tip of home plate.  Another has to have exactly five practice swings.  Not four, not six.  Another has to check the fit of his batting helmet at least twice.  It’s the same helmet he has worn for years, and it’s the same one he just checked ten seconds ago, but he’s got to check it again.  If a team psychiatrist told these guys that for one game. they couldn’t do anything obsessive, they wouldn’t be able to play.  No way.  We’d have to set up for a T-ball game.

Pitchers are the funniest to watch. They have to lick their fingers, touch their hats, and wipe their brows.  One guy has to tap his toe right before he throws the ball.  If  the coach told him not to tap his toe, he’d be working at McDonalds.  He believes he HAS to tap to throw strikes.  It’s as simple as that.

Heck, just go to the Little League field to see some great examples. One cute kid showed up with one pants leg up around his knee and one down around his ankle.  His mom asked why.

“This is the way my pants were when I got that good hit.  So now I have to do it for good luck.”  Maybe someday when he’s playing professional baseball, he will be famous for his one-up-one-down look.

Okay, I admit it.  I’ve got a couple myself.  But you know what?  I think I’m pretty normal.

So, hey, to all you fellow women out there who have to check the front door twice to make sure it’s locked, I ask…

“How do you stack YOUR dishes?”