Compulsions! There’s At Least One in Each of Us!

I have a thing for stray crumbs— on the counter, on the tablecloth…. I don’t know why. I am compelled to wipe things clean and crumb free! I try to keep my compulsion under control and I succeed most of the time. But after I watch myself wipe the kitchen counter clean of crumbs for the third time in two minutes, I begin to wonder. Am I nuts?

Compulsions come in all shapes and sizes. We’ve all heard about the hand washers… people convinced they have germs on their hands to the point where they wash their hands hundreds of times a day. Or the people who have to keep checking that the doors are locked. I know a woman who is compulsed about stitches—you know, the ones in a sheet or quilt?—they have to be perfectly straight and even. She’s tempted to throw out perfectly good bedding if it does not meet her standards!

I have a good friend who has my crumb compulsion. But she admits to be being totally horrified when, at a recent dinner, the woman next to her at the table leaned over and started wiping the stray crumbs away that had landed at my friends place setting!

My mother had a compulsion for perfect plaids. They had to match across the seams. I recently bought a pair of plaid golf shorts and only examined the plaid when I got the clothes home. Horrors! The plaids did not match. My mother would never have tolerated such a thing. Poor workmanship. So back to the store they went! Saved me $39!

So what’s your compulsion? I know you must have one.