AGH! Weather!

Facebook can often be a great source for a persnickey mind...I stumbled across this, which has actually been used a commercial...for a local weather station. For those of you not from the South, I want to say this is slightly exaggerated, but sadly not by much. I have, by chance, been in a grocery store after the threat of bad weather; the bread aisle was nearly empty, along with the milk aisle. Majority of people freak out...Why bread and milk are the two things that get bought, I am not sure. I think it would be water and Ramen. You may need drinking water, and Ramen can be eaten dry or cooked- oh well the powers of be didn't ask me for my opinion. I personally don't get as freaked about snow or ice- I figure I have enough blankets to stay warm- although I would feel better if we had a gas or wood burning fireplace...but blankets will work for now.

I tend to freak out about Thunderstorms and Tornadoes. Since I was little I have disliked storms, crying until my dad would sit up with me. When he decided I was too old for that, I simply burrowed under my covers. I truly mean burrowed- my mom joked that all she could see was my nose poking out- -for some reason I hated breathing under the covers-- still do actually... anyway- I still keep my eyes shut to the lightening- and barely sleep during big storms. I am on high alert- just waiting for the warning sirens to go off. It doesn't help I have a dog that hates storms too, she comes to my side of the bed to bury her head under the bed skirt. Before she does this she paces- all I hear is click, click, click- from her nails- It is not like I was really asleep anyway.

If there is a tornado watch- I have the closet ready with blankets, purse, keys, dog food, water- and I plant myself in the basement with the local news on- ready to jump into action. My husband? Outside looking at the swirling clouds!

I am a wuss when it comes to bad storms- snow I try to just stay put- why risk it right?  I am not the bread and milk guy- but I try to be ready-

Going Under

I wasn't sure I was going to be able to post today! I have been in and out of sleep all day. According to my husband I was also in and out of delirium! I went to the doctors office for a an upper GI endoscope. I arrived at 10am with my doting husband ready to sit with me and drive me home, only to discover (nearly 40 minutes later when they finally called my name) that he was not allowed to come with me :(. So I gulped, and followed the nurse into the weirdest room I have ever seen.... A large square room, a nurses station in the middles, normal so far- but there was at least 20 numbered curtained off rooms, all filled with people... People that, despite waiting to be poked, prodded in potentially uncomfortable places(colonoscopy), were talking exuberantly, laughing- it was the loudest doctor visit I have ever had. It was like listening to multiple radio stations at once, I could hear everyone-yet see no one, again kinda odd.  The nurse led me to my own private curtain (#5)- where I sat in an gown(luckily I got to keep my bra on and pants too!) reading my book- trying to plug out all the noise! Who would have guessed that would have been a problem?

A funny nurse came in asking me 20 question while another nurse stuck me in the arm with the IV tube- let me say oww! It still hurts a little- damn IV needle- it really was uncomfortable while I reading my book waiting to be wheeled into the "scope room". Yes, wheeled- it was like being in a Dr show- I got wheeled on a gurney! (Yes the little dumb things in life are what makes it worth while. )

After all the curtian room excitement....I don't remember! Like, any of it. I remember the doctor going over the procedure, the nice nurse sticking a needle in my iv- then nothing...

(the rest of this information is based on my husbands recounts)

My weak stomached husband apparently nearly passed out once he saw me- (I guess on the bright side the idea of me lying in a hospital bed with an IV in my arm, makes him ill- I will need a surrogate husband in the delivery room, won't I?)and I don't remember any it! I nearly made him sick again when I kept trying to show him my iv, again I do not remember this, (but I wish I did lol). I don't remember the doctor talking to us, I don't remember getting moved from the "scope room" back to the large curtained room. I asked my husband multiple times how long he had been there? How long had I been there? I asked "Where am I?" "What did the dr say?" I do not remember any of this! I barely remember getting redressed!

(I do want to note, however, even half-sedated I could recognize I was not in the same numbered curtain as before. Apparently I kept asking my husband what number was up there- and he just thought I was loopy lol! )

So all in all I survived, got to eat after (hadnt eaten since 11:00 the night before), and slept for a few hours. As of now I am to avoid certain sugars, dairy and acidic foods....I think some interesting food posts will come soon...like non-dairy cheese- yes that is a thing- I know you can't wait to hear about it ;)

Shopping

Well, I have already missed a post day! Dang nab it! Time to put a reminder in my phone; can't disappoint my fans ;) I was even on the computer last night trying to finish up some Christmas shopping. Yes, I am one of those people- ONLINE SHOPPER!! I want to support local businesses, but I have to admit...I kind of dislike people. 

When I say people, I mean mass of persons because individuals are smart, multiple individuals together seem to drain brain power from each other. Look at Black Friday, how many people get injured or die? People stab, push, stampede, or beat down others, just to save a few dollars! I bet if you met any of these crazy people on any other day, and one-on-one, most of them would not be a violent person.  When panicked individuals get in a "pack" it simply becomes a stampede situation with everyone running blindly over everyone else. Think about lines/crowds at amusement parks, we all blindly follow the line in front of us. Like penguins trying to push the front part of their pack into the water to see if there are predators in the water! We are humans, top of the food chain, yet when we get in a herd we act just like wild animals.

So yes I shop online, when it becomes financially savvy to grocery shop online- I will probably do that too. Shopping carts seem to zap common sense from shoppers! Yes, please leave your cart in the middle of the aisle while you shop, please turn at the end of the aisle with out looking where you are going- geez. I have to admit I too suffer from the common sense sucking cart syndrome- so if I can avoid it- I will.

I'm going to let you in on a secret... things are EXPENSIVE!! Yes, I wanted to share that with you, just in case you didn't know!  This is another reason  I avoid stores; because I act like a child with sticky fingers! I am so bad with seeing something and putting it in the cart. Brains says "oh its only $5.00", well it adds up, then my heart sinks at the checkout-when the total is higher than I expected. Having a budget minded husband has trained me to do this less often( mainly because I don't want to see the disapproving look on his face), but I have learned to just avoid the temptation! I have even purchased something, got to the car, and walked back in to return part of my purchase! Let me tell you, you get really strange looks when you do that, another reason I avoid the aisles of temptation.

To recap- I dislike throngs of people and I have very little self control- so I shop online. It helps keep me sane and helps keep us on a budget. Oh, you get all these boxes delivered to you- somehow it's like Christmas to open them..even when it's toilet paper.

New Challenge

Ok so it has been a few days since I wrote, but hey cut me a break! I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner- turkey-dressing- green bean casserole-etc,  I made the whole shebang-(minus desserts-some lovely friends brought those). In the process I did not burn anything! I did,however, break my toe(dancing like a goofball can be dangerous- especially near ottomans) and break my glass kitchen table; a glass table, apparently , is not made to hold a 14lb turkey! Then off to the home front for Thanksgiving Lunch then Dinner, then back home again for the retail nightmare of the Saturday after Thanksgiving( I luckily asked off for Black Friday- I hate that day). So now I am back and grudgingly getting back into the groove of things! We (my husband and I)even made time to put up round 1 of Christmas decor and to buy a new WOOD kitchen table. A sign you are an adult when a new kitchen table can make you giddy! (A sign you are an artist/designer, when you are excited you get to paint and stain it too!)

OK, so that is what I have been up to- now to my new challenge- I am challenging myself to blog once a day- I will try to enlighten your day with my "wit" and humor-EVERYDAY! I know you are going to jump out of your seats! Persnickety things happen all the time, so I should be able to write about at least one a day right? I am going to try! My challenge to YOU is to comment and share! I want to know if anyone else finds this stuff funny or if it's just me... I hope it's not just me! 

Today's Persnickety thought:
I recently read a book (I have read so many I can not remember which one! I think it was in Who Am I? A great book anyone "searching" for themselves should read (http://www.amazon.com/Desires-Motivate-Actions-Define-Personalities/dp/0425183408) or it was a book about not letting people drive you crazy) explaining why things other people do, drive you nuts....Are you ready for this?...It's because that's what drives you nuts about yourself! Yes, so when some one is asking me rapid fire questions or complaining non stop about something- it means those are things I do not like about myself. ( my husband as noted that I suffer from these ailments from time to time). Another example is I know someone who is so disorganized it drives me batty- just listing off whatever is in her/his head....I have come to realize that I fight my own personal disorganization all the time! I have also noticed that I too will start a conversation in the middle- providing no background. This makes it really hard on the listener to understand you. I also have noticed people with very little patience can  affect me like nails on a chalkboard(which sends chills down my spine). I tend to complete things as quickly as possible- so slowness can cause me great aggravation(mainly with adults and my poor husband). Do you see the pattern emerging? Next time someone if really hocking you off- step back, think about if it is something in you that is really bothering you because it probably is!

No Shave November

So it is halfway through "No Shave November" , there are a lot of hairy people running around! It made me think that hair(body or head) is a persnickety thing. Everyone has his or her way of dealing with it. I am not really talking about just the hair on our heads, I mean it is pretty obvious that no two people wear their hair the exact same way. I am really talking about shaving hair... For example I hate having hairy arm pits! I shave them every night, winter, fall, summer, spring! It just makes me uncomfortable, granted I don't like having razor burn either..but at least it's not hairy razor burn, right? Any way...I know other people(yes men and women) that would never think to skip shaving their legs; I say PSH! If I am wearing pants- I can skip a few shavings- who is going to know?  I will say the downside to that is when I decide to shave- I may miss a few spots...leaving hairs long enough that poke through the tights I wore to Christmas church last year...which is totally embarrassing to look down at your knee to see little hair soldiers standing at attention...I... uh... Ahem. So...shaving.. that is where I was... There are other people(stereotypically french, but I highly doubt they are the only ones) who don't shave at all! I know "they" (the omnipresent "they") argue all your leg hair would fall out- if you didn't start shaving at a young age. I have noticed my Grandfather has no leg hair where his socks usually are, but he is in his 70's. If you look like the offspring of Bigfoot and Chewbacca, you probably are not going to wait until your 70's for the hair to fall out! I mean, Really?
 Ok, so we also know that there are other places shaving occurs...(or waxing, EEK) I get the bikini line for ladies- you really don't want little curly Q's hugging onto your bikini bottom or flowing in the ocean air. I think that falls under the category of leaving something to the imagination....Speedos and Thongs should fall under that category too... I mean if you have to wax/shave your cave then it is not worth wearing; however if you have walrus hairs hanging out of your...cave- then by all means get rid of those. While your at, you could get rid of the forest surrounding the cave. Also if the forest is climbing out of the back of your shorts- cut it down! Nobody wants to see the secret garden growing up your back. (especially if there is not hair on your head)  I'm sorry, went on a little side rant..(If you are married to anyone hairy...you can understand.)
So, yeah, Everyone has his or her own shaving ritual, which is very personal to them. Whether it is how they shave, where they shave or how often. Me,  I shave under arms nightly and anywhere else, well when needed. My hubby, shaving over the sink, allowing the hair to coat the sink, right before bed or company. See we all have different rituals.

Me

Me, that's what we will talk about today. We have talked about Mrs.Wonderful and believe me I will either pale in comparison, or amaze and astound you. First off I naturally suffer from Depression/Anxiety- start throwing more stress at me I tend to hold it in until-BOOM! Yes Boom! Either in tears(sometimes I really hate being hormonal), snippy remarks(I can be "not so nice"), or flat out anger-usually "cleverly" disguised as sarcasm. 
I recently read a book quoting Carl Jung's research on extroversion and introversion. Despite being, well Loud, I am a very much an introvert. I like to internalize information I receive, giving me time to digest it, understand it, and have the correct way to respond to it. I like to be streamlined and quick about things. Having someone throw out a random list of things-can sometimes throw me for a loop- if I don't have time to internally process it. I think being an introvert plays into my feelings of being wrong...I hate being wrong, I mean, who does- right? I, however, will stand hold onto being right, unless you can prove me wrong-with facts. I tend to know a little about a lot and will tell you about it! I don't think I know everything, if I did I would run for ruler of the world, but I don't, so no worries. I will say something if I am 80% sure, I am correct, or I won't say it-so it perturbs me when I'm wrong. I can handle it, if you can explain(with facts)why I'm wrong-your opinion is not a viable reason.
I tend  to overreact when I can't process what is going on around me, either it hits me emotionally or I simply can't streamline the information enough for it to be clear to me. For example...(I want to point out my stress level before this story happened was near volcanic levels) my husband decided to buzz his head, yes buzz his head! Ok the rational part of me is saying "So what?" right along with you; however, when the conversation you have with your husband prior to this incident is "Bathe the dog", you begin to see my processing dilemma. My husband leaves the dog outside, (yes leave, not let) while he is showering(which is 15+ minutes), without telling me or apparently remembering he had done it. In the middle of folding laundry and organizing my closet(the seasons are changing and the mess was driving me nuts) I hear the doorbell ring, then a knocking...There at my (open, which we never leave open at night.) front door is a neighbor with her daughter and my fur baby! She was three houses down! I felt like an idiot since I didn't even know she was outside! I thanked the lady and marched myself into the bathroom, "Did you let the dog out?!", my husband looks at me with a Huh? look on his face, then says "oh yeah". (This has happened twice!) So I am livid, especially at the dumb look he gives me saying "why are you mad?" I say to him, 'well I will finish up dinner( I had already roasted a chicken) and you can give her bath'. (The neighbor mentioned my fur baby stunk.) The next thing I know I am walking past the bathroom to see my husband taking his electric razor to his head! I asked the normal explicative question, with the response " I am cutting my hair". I walk back to the kitchen in a daze, stir my macaroni, take the courageous steps back to the bathroom. I peek in, cover my mouth in horror...then the tears being to flow... I don't know why, but it is scarey to me! He looks nothing like himself! I keep saying to myself "I asked him to bathe the dog and he shaves his head?" "I asked him to bathe the dog and he shaves his head?" Can you see the internal process error here? DOES NOT COMPUTE! So I, like a child, refuse to look at him for more than 10 seconds at a time. My being simply can not process this much shock...Couldn't he have said- "Hey I'm going to cut all my hair off?"  Was that too much to ask? I mean yes I color my hair( I am the guinea pig for my newly licensed sister), but I tell him prior! 
So I overreact.. I get it...I struggle with how to deal with my rolling emotions and accepting that I am just a bit nuts. That's Ok, Right?

I can too!

Ok, so I already talked about how I define Idiosyncrasies and Pet Peeves; how I feel one leads to another. Now it is also possible to accept one part of the the syncrasy while being peeved at another. 
Let's tell another story on Mrs.Wonderful's idioyncrasies. (for the record I love her dearly and feel she will get a good laugh out of these posts)  Mrs.Wonderful is a bit, as she calls it, COD. For the rest you that means OCD; she is a very clean person with almost a militant flair. She is the only woman I know (sorry mom) who can fold a fitted sheet (those damn things) into a perfect little rectangle, every time! She taught me how to do it, I can do it about 1 out of every 10 times. I helped her make a bed once, I do not know how she gets the corners tucked like that! She also sweeps all three entry ways at work; where are my manners you ask? Why would I a "young'n" (27)  allow my elder to sweep? Mrs. Wonderful can be very poignant; she told me I stink at sweeping! So I don't sweep. Mrs. Wonderful can manage to sweep all the dirt out of rug that I would vacuum 10 times before getting it that clean. So while I love that she sweeps, even giggling when she sweeps leaves into the wind(and cussing about them flying back in) , I hate that I can not stand up to her standards. Granted I generally dislike being told that I am bad at something. I pride myself at being good at most things (I refuse to do something in front of others, if I think I can not do it).  To be told that I can't sweep...sheesh, Talk about feeling dumb/useless/insufficient, take your pick of adjectives. I mean you push a broom, how is it possible to be bad at it? Yet, I can not sweep nearly as well.(I have tried on her days off) Well I may not be able to sweep, but at least I know how to navigate a computer and can touch my toes! Take that Mrs. Wonderful! ;)

Idiosyncrasy vs Pet Peeve

Ok so what is the difference between an Idiosyncrasy and a Pet Peeve?
Let's see the what the dictionary says:
Idiosyncrasy:  
                         * a mode of behavior or way of thought peculiar to an individual.

                  *a distinctive or peculiar feature or characteristic of a place or thing.

Pet Peeve: *something that annoys or bothers a person very much

                            * a frequent subject of complaint 

Ok, I found that horribly insufficient, I think for the average person these two "behaviours" overlap.  In my persnickety world an ididiosyncrasy is a pet peeve one accepts for who/how the person is. I work with a wonderful women who at 78 (although she looks to be in her early 60's) has developed her own unique ways or idiosyncrasies. Don't let age fool you though, we develop these as early as newborns carrying them well into adulthood. Anyway back to the wonderful lady I was telling you about, she has this thing about all the trash cans being empty before we close everyday. While off hand that may not sound that strange, you would need to know despite having 8 trash cans we only throw out 1 bag of trash. (Huh? You might be asking.) Mrs. Wonderful takes all the bags of trash and empties them into 1 bag, ok still somewhat normal sounding right? She will flip out if you throw something out in the bathroom, if she has already dumped it into the front trash. Once she even picked out trash of one of the bags to walk it to the dumpster because I had thrown the trash bag out! Now personally while I find it a little odd, I accept it as one of her idiosyncrasies. I do not classify it under pet peeve. I accept it for what it is.

Does that mean I do not have pet peeves? Am I human? Of course I still have pet peeves! If you eat with your mouth open I will cringe inside, while politely placing my finger on my ear to block out the disgusting sound of a cow chewing cud...ahem so sorry- this one has been engrained as a child. "Chew with your mouth closed!" Now granted while that makes utterly sick I can be polite and still like you despite your chewing habits. 

Now chewing is annoying to me, but not detrimental to my over all being. I have learned in the last few months I have a major issue...er pet peeve about being asked direct and/or frequent questions. For my sanity and everyone else's safety I need to learn to accept people will ask me questions, often at rapid fire with no chance to answer....ahem and I will have to answer them. I hate answering questions that I do not have a prepared answer for, so I often respond with a snarkey response, rudeness, or just flat out anger. It's my way of relfecting and avoiding. So how do I go about accepting there will be questions and I may not have the right answer? How do I accept being wrong? How does anyone?