In which the Meridian submits to a candid world his 5 weird habits

Over at Bittersweet Life, Ariel appears to be laboring under the impression that your humble blogger is "highly eccentric." Being a teacher, I long ago gained the facility of humoring deluded people, at least for a little while; so, with the help of Mrs. Meridian (because, you see, I have so few that are immediately obvious to ME), I've come up with a list of 5 habits that someone, somewhere, might think "weird." I can't decide, incidentally, whether it's a) serendipitous or b) unnerving that at just about the time Ariel tagged me, I was reading in The Intuitionist where a black character says something to the effect that "eccentric" is a word used to describe white people who are going crazy but won't get locked up because they're white.

Well: I list (and I'm white, in case you were wondering); you decide.

1) When I arrive at my workplace, I feel compelled to hum tunelessly as I walk down the (long, high-ceilinged) hallway. I think it's because of the acoustics. A specific tune would have the effect of setting a sort of agenda or world view for the day; tuneless humming suggests a sort of openness to whatever might come.

2) Mrs. Meridian says that I lick my upper lip when I'm about to say something important. I have no explanation for this; indeed, I wasn't even aware I did it until she mentioned it . . . which would seem to place this particular one in the category of "tics," no? Eccentricities, I'd think, would be those behaviors that one is not only conscious of but can rationalize in some way. So: make that "4 1/2 Weird Habits."

3) When I turn the page of a book, I run my thumb down the center three times. I don't see this as eccentric but practical: it helps keep the book open. But Mrs. M. says this behavior is one of the first things about me that endeared me to her.

4) When I walk Scruffy early in the mornings, I often hum/sing, sotto voce, either side one or side two (more often side two) of Close to the Edge by Yes. Longer songs work better on walks than do shorter ones because, after all, the walk is only one walk, one unit of time. The soundtrack should reflect that as much as possible. And why Yes? I think it's because it's almost but not quite true that every Yes song contains the word "river," and my walk takes me along a river, so . . .

5) (Another walking-the-dog one) We ALWAYS go counter-clockwise on our route. Well, okay: almost always. Because once, when another walker leading a Rottweiler approached from the direction we usually go, I decided to go the other way (Scruffy is about the most gregarious dog I've ever been around . . . which sometimes gets him into trouble with dogs (and/or their owners) who are less inclined that way). To go the other way was exceedingly disorienting. It was as though I'd never been on that path before. You'd think I'd like such a thing, but no. I couldn't notice anything, because I was noticing EVERYthing. So, it was back to the safe, the predictable, the routine. I'll be sure to let you know if I ever have to break up any dog fights.

Jeez, I'm dull. THAT is what I should be locked up for.

Now: whom to tag . . .

Dejavaboom at Musement Park
D-Day at Saucebox
Fearful Syzygy at Delights for the Ingenious
Erin at Mannequin Hands
and Nancy at Sine.qua.non.

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