316. random bits

I've been working on another post in the Layman's Theology series but it's still a work in progress. Give me a few more days on that one.

In the mean time, here are a couple of random bits about me:

1. I have this thing where I rarely finish books. I don't mean that I start reading a book and stop reading somewhere in the middle (although that happens as well), I mean I read the book almost all the way through but stop just a few pages from the end. This happens with both fiction and non-fiction works.
   
   Thing is, if I've made it to the end of a book, I'm very invested in it and dread getting to the absolute end where the book will be behind me. I don't want it to end and so I just don't get to the end.
   
   Of course this poses a problem with works of fiction because while in non-fiction works, you usually have a very good idea about what the last few pages or paragraphs are going to be about (some kind of summary or recap of the author's conclusions), the end of a story is unknown. To get around this, with works of fiction, once I get near the end of the book, I'll flip forward and read the last few pages just to see how it will end. Then I go back to where I was reading and then read forward but still stop before I get to the bit at the end that I've already read (because if I read that far then I'll have finished the book which is what I'm trying to avoid).
   
   This is one reason I like reading short stories. Because they're shorter, I don't get as emotionally invested in the book and so have no problem finishing. For some reason, I don't have a problem reading the last short story of a short story collection.
   
   
2. I hate my feet so I wear socks almost all the time.
   
   Living in Seattle, this isn't a problem because the cold weather necessitates socks and shoes almost year-round, and so even though I don't wear shoes in the house, it doesn't look odd if I have socks on indoors. In Hawaii, I got around this by wearing shoes whenever I went to friends' houses and only wore slippers (flip-flops) at home when friends weren't over.
   
   Why do I hate my feet? Because I have ingrown toenails on my big toes - actually on most of my toes, but it's particularly bad on the big ones.
   
   I don't think it's bad to the point of being repulsive, but they're far from being properly pedicured (I can't cut them to the proper length anymore) and so I keep them covered up.
   
   
3. I part my hair on different sides depending on what day it is.
   
   I wake up in the morning, take a shower, and before I style my hair I check my computer or cell phone to see what the date is. If it's an odd-numbered day I part my hair on the left. If it's an even-numbered day, I part it on the right.
   
   
4. And speaking of bathroom habits, here's how I brush my teeth. I squeeze a bit of toothpaste onto my finger (about half an inch worth). I pop this bit into my mouth and mash it into my teeth using my tongue. As I'm doing this, saliva builds up and once things get wet enough I start swishing it between my teeth. After a few minutes of this, I spit out what's in my mouth and then start in with my toothbrush.
   
   Two reasons I do this. One, while swishing the saliva/toothpaste in my mouth, my hands are free to do other things, like shaving or styling my hair. Two, I like to think that this is kind of a poor man's mouthwash - that it gets the toothpaste into those hard to reach places like back teeth and between teeth.
   
   And lastly. . .
   
   
5. I once saw three movies in two different cineplexes in one day. But I can't remember which movies.
   

I have quirks galore, but who doesn't?

Feel free to share your odd habits in the comments section.