Where on the OCD
spectrum do you sit (or stand?)
DLL and I agree, at
least, on these:
(1) When wearing ear
buds, it is perfectly and absolutely acceptable to ensure that the
one marked 'R' goes into the right ear, and that the one marked 'L'
goes into the left ear.
And that:
(2) (1) applies, no
matter how tangled the wires, how indistinct or unclear the 'L' and
'R' (or funky alternate designations). In fact, whatever it takes, it
is vital to get the right bud into the right ear. And the left bud
into...
I'm certain that
BLISS would see (1) as unacceptably anal, and (2) as absolute
madness.
My point of view is
that highly skilled musicians, sound engineers, record producers,
etc. have all worked their socks off, fretting and worrying about
every last detail, and the least I can do is pay them the respect of
sticking the headphones on correctly...
...oh, and I insist
on listening to the album in its entirety, and in the designated
listening order. Those 'shuffle' options? You can biuld them out of
my devices, Mr Jobs (deceased) I'll never be needing them.
This OCD thing is
far from clear-cut. Yes, the bloke washing his hands twenty seven
times in super-powered disinfectant hand-cleanser before venturing
out of the toilet is definitely on the spectrum, and at the high end.
However, who would complain if their surgeon, about to operate on
them, went back for a second handwash, just to be double-sure?
The insane and
dangerous folk are, obviously, going to be those who think they're so
far off the low-end of the spectrum that they're miles from ever
exhibiting any OCD behaviour.
Generally, the car
is a giveaway. There's no end of obsessively tidy cars on the road. I
admit to being a long way towards the non-OCD, un-anal, end of the
spectrum car-tidy-wise. Most people's engine compartments are tidier
than the interior of most of my cars. Particularly after the
honeymoon new owner period has worn off. After a couple of weeks
(tops).
The behaviour has to
be put in context too. For a small boy, lovingly filling in every
detail of the World Cup wallchart, knowing every result, every
scorer, every player in every squad, well, that's fine. For a
middle-aged man (and, no, I didn't, by the way) it would smack of
both OCD and not having enough proper stuff to think about.
What's a quirk? Left
sock first, right sock second? What acceprable changing room
superstition? Left shin pad, left sock, left boot, left tie-up, left
everything first then right everything? When does that become OCD? At
cricket some guys have 'their' places in the changing room (just as
guys like me like, occasionally and randomly, to occupy those places
just to see the abject dismay, denial, disbelief, aggression: “you're
in my place”, and grief: “so what?”. At home, BLISS and DLL
have 'their' places on the comfy seats in the television lounge (I'm
not sure whether I'm officially barred, persona non grata, or a
nuisance neighbour they're going to get the environmental health
police onto any minute now) and at the table. Is that OCD, or force
of habit, or what, exactly?
I have seen a grown
man pulling his hair out, because every time he returned to his
lovingly-arranged desk, where every notebook, pen, phone, were
precisely lined up at perfect right-angles, someone (guess who? -
irresistible) had messed everything up. His locker was the same. We
found that out when his old watch were standing by at our station
when we came on duty.
“What're we
shaking G----m's locker for?”
“Wait and see.
Watch him open it when they get back.”
They were radioed
away before our guys returned, but our lot passed them on the way,
because a distressed G----m was seen running towards his locker,
wiping away the tears...
No comments:
Post a Comment