Every time I get up and leave a place, I quickly glance back a second time just to be sure I didn’t forget something where I was sitting. I also talk to my cat constantly, and I’ll never walk out of a store without purchasing anything without getting a pang of guilt because the employees might think I’m stealing. And as it turns out, these are all perfectly normal human habits!
Redditors have been discussing those odd things that we do instinctively but don’t often talk about, and they’ve confirmed that many of our “weird” behaviors are totally normal. Enjoy scrolling through this list, and be sure to upvote the not-so-strange little things you do too! Image credits: Shlegnog
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Having conversation with pets, like, walking around the house doing tasks while talking to your dog.
Having imaginary conversations with people, that I know will never actually happen in real life.
I daydream constantly. I'll sit there and be imagining I'm the hero of some story, or I just won a billion dollars and how I'm spending it. I just have an imagination I get lost in when nothing is happening.
Me too <3 like, all the time. It's a wonder I can maintain a fulltime job, haha. I've tried telling people how often I daydream, but they never seem to fully grasp that some part of my brain will always be in the middle of a daydream, spinning tales from whatever is happening in real time.
Feeling like you're looked at suspiciously when you leave a store without buying anything.
What if I've just accidently shoved a 50in plasma telly down my bra, and haven't realised?... 0o
For some of us this is a culturally ingrained action based in part on what we were taught by family members and by our real, lived experience. As someone once said: "You may be paranoid, but that doesn't mean they aren't really after you."
I bring a backpack shopping, because it's easier and more comfortable than carrying bags all the way home. I worked in retail for years. I KNOW they are looking at me suspiciously, so even if I don't find what I'm looking for I at least buy a water or something. That way I can open my bag in front of a cashier, to take my purse out, and they can see there's nothing in there.
I don't but I have been stopped and asked, the last time only the other day, "May I ask why you haven't bought anything?" "Yes, you don't have what I want". Easy enough. Silly question though. Like "yes, I suddenly realised I have everything I could possibly want". I might try that one next time.
Especially a store in which I would never buy anything. (Too trendy, too expensive, etc)
I wonder what the proper response is when asked "Did you find everything you need today?" when I didn't. If I say no, will the cashier magic up the item the store doesn't carry? Will they complete some form which will lead to the store carrying the item? Why ask if there is nothing that can be done?
What should be illegal is how some setups allow them to manually trigger the alarm arch, they pulled that once at a compusa, I walked back to the checkout area and was like "Seriously, you know d--n well I don't have anything besides what I bought" walked back out a second time without it triggering and no difference in what I was carrying.
Listen, as someone who's worked retail, most workers don't pay enough attention to notice or care.
I sleep with my feet outside of the blanket so my feet can "breathe". I feel suffocated if my feet are under the blankets.
i hate my feet being held down by sheets or blankets, i hate it, just so uncomfortable. plus, i like sticking them out to cool them off
I wet my toothbrush, put on the toothpaste and then wet it again.
Always wondered if this was normal but never asked.
I do that! I was the brush first, then add toothpaste, then wet it again, so the paste is not too dry in the mouth.
I randomly talk to my self when I’m home alone,
Though it makes no sense.
It’s like
„I hate this“
„This is Fine“
And i have no clue what I’m talking about.
Pls tell me I’m not the only one :c.
My mom used to say 'sometimes talking to yourself is the only way to have an intelligent conversation.'
My voice changing depending on who I talk to. For example, the “voice” I use when working is entirely different than the voice I use for, say, speaking to friends.
I am talking about the pitch, tone etc.
everybody puts on a different voice on the phone too. i think its due to us not being able to see the person we're talking to so we try to speak clearer than we would face to face. my mums is kinda funny, she goes from barely sounding like english (very strong accent) to sounding like shes presenting on the bbc during the 60s and 70s
Whenever I leave a spot I've been sitting in outside, I make sure to look back and check if I've dropped anything.
Look at each side of a potato chip/dorito to determine what side I want to put against my tongue.
When I have a cringe thought or something negative on my mind I'll make some noise out loud to interrupt said thought.
Have strange intrusive thoughts that seem incongruous to my values and beliefs.
'Maybe I should shout "S**T" loudly in my workplace'
'What if I pushed that man in front of our upcoming train?'
Etc.
When I add 7 + 4, I break up the 4 into 3+1. 7+3 is obviously 10, 10+1=11.
There is probably several other examples of math problems I break up in my head to make solving easier.
When I eat cereal (or other small separate food like corn or peas) I'll split it evenly in my mouth so I chew evenly on both sides. If one scoop has an odd number in it, I'll keep a tally of which "side is up" to know to put the next on bit on the other side.
I really thought this was normal until I told my wife that I do this and she has assured me that it isn't, along with making sure everyone else knows that I do this abnormal thing.
Significantly Changing your personality based on who you’re interacting with.
If I'm out in public (grocery store, school pick up line, doc office, etc), I'll have a quick thought of "I wonder if anyone is reading my mind right now. Quick! Don't think of anything weird!" and then I proceed to automatically start thinking of weird s**t or trying to tell this imaginary mind reader that I'm totally not a weird person or side-eyeing people that I see.
Cancelling plans by actually saying I changed my mind instead of making up an excuse.
Clearing a notification off my phone as soon as I get it, deleting most of my texts after a few days, and then swiping up on any open pages/apps at the end of the day.
Pretending like I’m filming a YouTube tutorial every time I cook/bake or clean. I talk in my head about the step-by-step way to do whatever it is I’m filming about.
The amount of water I can consume. I know they say you should drink when you are thirsty, but I can be thirsty a lot, especially during warm weather / summer days.
I can easily drink 100oz (or about 3L) of water a day.
Putting my hands on my pockets where I keep my phone/wallet when I closely pass by someone, just in case they may be a pickpocket.
When I wear my glasses, I raise my eyebrows and my ears just enough to lift and readjust my glasses. Never realized how stupid I looked.
My foot wags when I'm really happy. I'm sure it's "normal" in the sense that it's just an outlet for extra energy, but I don't know if other people have a waggly foot.
P.S. I used to think it was something I was just making up, but the boyfriend tells me I do it in my sleep too! :D.
I can give myself pins and needles by focusing.
I think I can do this too... It's more of a pleasant shivering feeling, kind of like goosebumps, for me. Not like a "my foot is falling asleep" painful feeling.
Whenever I haven't talked to a person for a couple of hours, I just say something out loud to test if my voice still exists.
If I have a song stuck in my head I often click my teeth to the drum beat. When my wife notices me doing it she asks me what the song is.
I always wake up with a song in my head. Different one every morning. It eventually dissipates throughout the day.
Make the same face as my drawing as I’m drawing it.
Did you know people who day dream do this. And people in there sleep do this. It thoughts and feelings acting on your face as you imagine them. Honestly it kinda cool if you think about it.
I prefer cold pizza that’s been in the fridge overnight to hot pizza.
I actually enjoy soggy fries, or any cold food. I don’t mind if it is hot or cold. My boyfriend and dad find that odd.
Note: this post originally had 45 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
When doing math I usually prefer working with even numbers because I don’t like the personality of the odd numbers. The only odd numbers I can tolerate are 1,5 and 9 (even though 9 is very intimidating). I hate 3 and 7 because 3 is extremely bratty and 7 is very creepy.
This sounds like that thing where people can taste words.
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I'm 69 years old and share my bed with 2 teddy bears, a large pink bunny, and soft stuffed manta ray. Hubby of 40 years has a separate bedroom due to health issues and he can't have pets, so I have something to cuddle at night. And I don't have to feed them. The stuffies, not the husband. Him, I feed.
I just turned 42 and I still sleep with my German Shepherd stuffed animal I got when I was 5! :D I also have a sabretooth tiger plushie and a long-cat plushie that share my bed with me. I’ve always slept alone (been with my boyfriend for 23 years, but we both snore too abominably) so I’m not used to having another human in my bed, but I absolutely cannot sleep without my stuffed animals. I totally understand. (We do have pets, two cats and two dogs, but the cats are…. well, cats, and the dogs stay in their crates at night, otherwise I’d probably pile all four of them in with me!) I hope you and your husband have many more years together <3
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When I am thinking about a conversation that I already had or one I'm preparing for, I will just start speaking my responses out of the blue.
Yessss, and then I startle myself with my voice lol
Load More Replies... This whole thread made me feel much more normal and much less neurotic. <3 to you all
Sometimes I do this weird thing with the muscles in my leg, I’ll tense the muscles “to the beat” of words or phrases, with syllables. Starting with my right leg, then on to the left, it’s sort of like (1 for tensed 0 for relaxed) 01 11 10 00 and repeat for each syllable. I also try to “configure” which leg is already tensed so that it will be 00 by the time the word is done. For example, the word “syllable” starting at 00 would be 01 11 10, but if I start at 01 it would be 11 10 00. No clue why I do this, but it’s fun. Just a very strange thing I do. Never really found the words to describe it until now.
1: I forget if I said or thought something and I say "did I say smth a few mins ago" 2: in my head, numbers are abstract colors. They are kinda one color, but if I put a name on the color it feels wrong. 3: my mind is an ai image generator. It doesn't really understand specific details (what kinda hat the dungeon keeper has, hands in general, whether or not mine craft villagers in anime art style should have potato noses) and just makes them kinda exist but kinda not.
sometimes i look at unedible things and wonder what they would taste like. like last night i asked my brother what he would think sparks would taste like and he was like ash??? and i was like no if it was edible and he was like ash??? i think it would be like spicy or it would be carbonated. please tell me im not the only one who does this.
If you start actually eating strange things, like brick dust or ice or paint, that's called pica. It could be a sign you're missing a nutrient or mineral. Tell a doctor if it's like that.
Load More Replies... With certain foods I first separate everything and then take the same amount of everything on my fork and eat it. This way I have never too much of ingredient a or b in one bite….
When I want to leave a website I don´t need anymore and go to a new one I haven´t already open in a tab, instead of simply typing the new website in the address bar of the old tab I close the old tab first before I open a new Tab to go to the new website.
Might as well have posted "gosh, I do this weird thing where I, like, fill my lungs with air and then push it out again. I'm like, so weird"
While cutting something thick or tough with scissors, I often make chewing motions, like I'm chewing whatever I'm trying to cut.
Not a single weird thing in this list… in the comments on the other hand… :p
I HATE hot food (hot as in temperature, not hot as in spicy.) You know how when you go out to a restaurant and they bring you your just-cooked meal and it's steaming, burning hot? Yeah, I hate that. I hate burning my mouth on food and I can't fathom why people WANT to eat food when it temperature-burns their mouth. I don't want my food cold or even room temperature, I just want it a LITTLE less than freshly molten-hot. My family and my boyfriend think I'm psychotic. I'd rather wait 5 minutes for things to cool off just a little so that I can TASTE my food instead of tasting only pain and suffering. My family members will cheerfully cram molten food in their mouth the second it arrives, then open their mouths and wave their hands around going "ooh ooh hot hot hot that's hot" ...like maybe JUST WAIT A MINUTE for it to cool? But they treat me like I'm nuts for not liking burning-hot food XD
When doing math I usually prefer working with even numbers because I don’t like the personality of the odd numbers. The only odd numbers I can tolerate are 1,5 and 9 (even though 9 is very intimidating). I hate 3 and 7 because 3 is extremely bratty and 7 is very creepy.
This sounds like that thing where people can taste words.
Load More Replies... I'm 69 years old and share my bed with 2 teddy bears, a large pink bunny, and soft stuffed manta ray. Hubby of 40 years has a separate bedroom due to health issues and he can't have pets, so I have something to cuddle at night. And I don't have to feed them. The stuffies, not the husband. Him, I feed.
I just turned 42 and I still sleep with my German Shepherd stuffed animal I got when I was 5! :D I also have a sabretooth tiger plushie and a long-cat plushie that share my bed with me. I’ve always slept alone (been with my boyfriend for 23 years, but we both snore too abominably) so I’m not used to having another human in my bed, but I absolutely cannot sleep without my stuffed animals. I totally understand. (We do have pets, two cats and two dogs, but the cats are…. well, cats, and the dogs stay in their crates at night, otherwise I’d probably pile all four of them in with me!) I hope you and your husband have many more years together <3
Load More Replies... When I am thinking about a conversation that I already had or one I'm preparing for, I will just start speaking my responses out of the blue.
Yessss, and then I startle myself with my voice lol
Load More Replies... This whole thread made me feel much more normal and much less neurotic. <3 to you all
Sometimes I do this weird thing with the muscles in my leg, I’ll tense the muscles “to the beat” of words or phrases, with syllables. Starting with my right leg, then on to the left, it’s sort of like (1 for tensed 0 for relaxed) 01 11 10 00 and repeat for each syllable. I also try to “configure” which leg is already tensed so that it will be 00 by the time the word is done. For example, the word “syllable” starting at 00 would be 01 11 10, but if I start at 01 it would be 11 10 00. No clue why I do this, but it’s fun. Just a very strange thing I do. Never really found the words to describe it until now.
1: I forget if I said or thought something and I say "did I say smth a few mins ago" 2: in my head, numbers are abstract colors. They are kinda one color, but if I put a name on the color it feels wrong. 3: my mind is an ai image generator. It doesn't really understand specific details (what kinda hat the dungeon keeper has, hands in general, whether or not mine craft villagers in anime art style should have potato noses) and just makes them kinda exist but kinda not.
sometimes i look at unedible things and wonder what they would taste like. like last night i asked my brother what he would think sparks would taste like and he was like ash??? and i was like no if it was edible and he was like ash??? i think it would be like spicy or it would be carbonated. please tell me im not the only one who does this.
If you start actually eating strange things, like brick dust or ice or paint, that's called pica. It could be a sign you're missing a nutrient or mineral. Tell a doctor if it's like that.
Load More Replies... With certain foods I first separate everything and then take the same amount of everything on my fork and eat it. This way I have never too much of ingredient a or b in one bite….
When I want to leave a website I don´t need anymore and go to a new one I haven´t already open in a tab, instead of simply typing the new website in the address bar of the old tab I close the old tab first before I open a new Tab to go to the new website.
Might as well have posted "gosh, I do this weird thing where I, like, fill my lungs with air and then push it out again. I'm like, so weird"
While cutting something thick or tough with scissors, I often make chewing motions, like I'm chewing whatever I'm trying to cut.
Not a single weird thing in this list… in the comments on the other hand… :p
I HATE hot food (hot as in temperature, not hot as in spicy.) You know how when you go out to a restaurant and they bring you your just-cooked meal and it's steaming, burning hot? Yeah, I hate that. I hate burning my mouth on food and I can't fathom why people WANT to eat food when it temperature-burns their mouth. I don't want my food cold or even room temperature, I just want it a LITTLE less than freshly molten-hot. My family and my boyfriend think I'm psychotic. I'd rather wait 5 minutes for things to cool off just a little so that I can TASTE my food instead of tasting only pain and suffering. My family members will cheerfully cram molten food in their mouth the second it arrives, then open their mouths and wave their hands around going "ooh ooh hot hot hot that's hot" ...like maybe JUST WAIT A MINUTE for it to cool? But they treat me like I'm nuts for not liking burning-hot food XD
