I've written previously about how the clock on the stove and microwave have to have the exact same time or it drives me a little mad. And in that post, I stated that I didn't like to think of myself as strange but rather I preferred the term unusual.
For the record, I would like to say that I still maintain that I am just a little unusual but ya'll, my husband is just flat out strange.
My husband is a voracious reader. He loves mostly nonfiction. He prefers history books and biographies.
(Just typing the words 'history books' and 'biographies' made me nod off and a little bit of drool just dripped onto the keyboard. Just for the record, I enjoy reading too. But my genre of choice is People magazine and mom blogs.)
Because Dan reads a lot and because we aren't made of money and you never know when another round of layoffs is coming to his company, for the last year Dan has been using the library.
But he does the strangest thing when he gets home from the library with a new book.
And please note, I just came right out and said strange. I'm not even going to pretend that his behavior is unusual or exotic...it's just downright odd!
Before he even puts the library book on his nightstand, he gets an antibacterial wipe and scrubs the front and back covers down as if he thought the book might be contaminated with spores containing the bird flu, SARS or whatever the virus du jour might happen to be.
Isn't that the strangest thing you've ever heard of?
I guess Dan is a wee bit germophobic.
He's no Howie Mandel but he gets upset if I drink from his glass and he doesn't like me to eat from his plate. Hmmmm...maybe he's just a wee bit selfish as well. (Only kidding, honey!)
But the worst thing about all of this? I think it's hereditary.
A couple of days ago I drank out of Sarah's cup at McDonald's (just trying to save a little money) and she started crying and yelling, "Did you just drink out of my straw? Now it's got germs on it! Now it's got germs on it!"
Geez! I guess I'm going to have to stock up on antibacterial wipes and just get my own darn drink from now on!
21 comments:
Ok, I'll agree that it is a little bit odd, but then again, I open public bathroom doors with my elbows. I guess you can never be too careful. But I think I also get it honest. My dad would not allow me to drink from his cup, use his fork, etc, same as your husband. My dad's brother worked for the health department and I guess told him too many disgusting stories.
Ask Dan if he has any suggestions for how I can quickly get the smoke smell out of books I bring home from the library? Drives me batty. He may be just the person to help me with this.
I don't actually wipe down my library books, BUT I WANT TO. I guess I feel I just don't need to add yet ANOTHER strange behavior to my life. :) And I've certainly made the choice to NOT read a book based on icky brown unidentifiable spots on certain pages. EWWWW!
I have to say, though, that I was THRILLED that my last library book was an obviously BRAND-NEW book. The spine cracked! OH THE JOY! :)
Because I like to read in bed and the thought of a who-knows-where-it's been library book near my clean pillow, well...
Okay, okay. Maybe I'm kidding a LITTLE bit, but really, I GET the wipes thing. :)
I hate public bathrooms, but I've never thought of books as harboring germs. Too funny!
Well...I have a colleague who uses antibacterial wipes on all of his canned goods when he gets in from the grocery store! He wipes them all down and places them in the cabinet!
Shoot, I am lucky if I get to the store, let alone clean each can! I do the elbow thing at public restrooms too though...germs there creep me out...on cans though I guess they seem ok! :)~
That is too funny! My mother was always the same way about drinking out of the same glass. Now as a mother I understand why :o)
Beth! I could hardly believe it when I read this post because my husband and I were just talking about this very thing...wiping off library books! I used to be a librarian and we were constantly cleaning returned books. Not all of them, mind you, but some of the books that were returned were so gunky and sticky that we had to. And we were especially diligent about this during flu and cold season. We used alot of Lysol spray, too. *smile* So, don't be too hard on your hubby.....at least about the library books. *smile* Happy New Year! LOL
Of course Dan is odd, he married you didn't he? You know I am just kidding.
I never thought about all the germs on the library books, but I think it is a good idea.
Too funny! I am the same way about drinks. LOL
That's W.I.E.R.D. in my germ-laden book...
Ha, see now this just makes PERFECT sense to me (especially the clock quirk - ME TOO ME TOO)!
It's funny but I am the same way about the clocks being the same time.
She clearly gets that from her daddy. Some people are definitely more germaphobic than others. I don't mind sharing drinks with the bf or even some of my friends or family. That said, I did end up with mono over the summer. (still not sure how I got that one) But as long as no one's sick or diseased, I don't have a huge issue with it.
Oh. My. Gosh!
I am the anti-germaphobe...I truly believe we get sick more today because we are so paranoid about germs. Yes I said paranoid!!
If you don't encounter germs your immunity will never be able to fight it for goodness sake. That's how the system works!
That said, I love all y'all germaphobes...cos you crack me up so much :)
And as for your hubby Beth...I'm assuming the man kisses you from time to time. Does he use those wipes on his mouth afterward?
Just sayin...
My sister's the same way. I've been pointing the kissing thing out to her for years to no avail.
Thanks for the giggle!!
that is very funny- it reminds me of the Seinfeld where George gets a book from a bookstore and brings it to read in the bathroom, then tries to return it- and they all know where it's been and won't touch it or return it- I don't know why it reminds me of that, but it does
Does he realize the spit that's swapped when you kiss??? Hmmm... If he thinks a little drink or pick of food is bad...ewww... lol ;)
Odd. I guess. I know some people just like that- so I guess he's not totally out there.
And the clock thing- Ugh. We have 4 different clocks I read time off of at work. All four say something different. I used to try to keep them in sync, as do some of the other dispatchers. The bad thing is I cant log a 911 call at 1215 hours, and the ems squad enroute at 1214 hrs...hmmm. They can leave the station before I tone them
I'll let my husband drink out of my glass, but he has to wash his hands before I'll let him touch me if I've seen him pet the dog. I'm strange too.
I've never heard of anyone doing the wipe-down book thing...BUT...in all fairness...if EVERYONE who has ever checked out that book as used the bathroom as their library, I think I'd be ok with hubby wiping down the books he brought home!!! :)
But the straw thing...hilarious. You should've coughed all over her, too...really freak her out, mom!
hi,
my lil girl was born at 27 wks now she is 25 mos .Her vocabulary is limited and she has sensory disorder .I contacted EI and now OT has started for her .Is there anything elso I shd do for her .
she has eating issues too.I am worried about her, EI mentioed to us about child psychologist but nobody ash contatcde us as yet.What do i do?
this is my id: onlyash29@yahoo.com
I have a brother in law who sounds similar to your husband. His children are taking after him.
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