# The OCD thread



## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 28, 2013)

We all have OCD tendencies. What are some of yours?

Here's one for me:

When making a PB&amp;J sammich, peanut butter is put on one slice of bread and jelly on the other. I won't eat it otherwise.


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## snickerd3 (Aug 28, 2013)

right sock, left sock, left shoe, right shoe...it messes me up if i vary the order


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## Judowolf PE (Aug 28, 2013)

When I eat french fries, I make a pile of mustard and then completely cover it with ketchup so that no mustard shows


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## Exception Collection (Aug 28, 2013)

Serial eating (eating one item, then the next, rather than going back and forth)

I hate having my food touch other food. (Exception: bread and egg yolk.)

When I walk by a half-wall 48" or less (but not railing), I tap the top of the wall with three fingers every step I take.

Temporary Compulsive behavior - gaming, web surfing, etc have been known to take over my life at times.

Organization: if I organize something for myself, I organize it the way I want to... and others can rarely figure out how I do it. (It's a struggle to put calcs in order, since my default is by material rather than purpose; wood beams belong with wood shear walls, not steel beams.)

When I get in my car, I follow the same pattern (sit, key in, buckle, ignition, release parking brake, change gears) every time. When I don't, the difference is distracting. Likewise, when I finish I use the same pattern. I've been known to set the parking brake just so I can unset it, when leaving my mechanic's. If I need to take something other than my purse, I go around and get it via the passenger door.

Walls on drawings MUST be drawn to stud width. I've been known to redraw Arch plans to show 5.5" walls rather than 6".

Layers etc must be done correctly (color/linetype by layer).

Notably, I do not have an issue with cleanliness unless I am on cortisone, which kicks my OCD into overdrive. At that point I clean ALL the things!


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## Master slacker (Aug 28, 2013)

TP after HSD.


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## Supe (Aug 28, 2013)

Crooked paintings/mirrors/shit on walls.

Three pocket check for wallet, keys, phone.


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## Capt Worley PE (Aug 28, 2013)

Master slacker said:


> TP after HSD.


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## csb (Aug 28, 2013)

I must always touch the outside of a plane before I board, lest it go down in a fiery ball of death.


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## Supe (Aug 28, 2013)

Even if its on a treadmill?


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## csb (Aug 28, 2013)

Especially if it's on a treadmill!


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## YMZ PE (Aug 28, 2013)

Supe said:


> Three pocket check for wallet, keys, phone.




Me too! Except it must be wallet, phone, keys in that order.


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## Road Guy (Aug 28, 2013)

I do The same thing CSB


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## Flyer_PE (Aug 28, 2013)

I try to never go outside without a house key.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 28, 2013)

I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.


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## envirotex (Aug 28, 2013)

&lt;---Goes to search Dex' 13,739 posts for incorrect usage of their/they're/there.


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## Road Guy (Aug 29, 2013)

Tempted to change the title of thread to CDO so that letters are in the correct order


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## Supe (Aug 29, 2013)

YMZ PE said:


> Supe said:
> 
> 
> > Three pocket check for wallet, keys, phone.
> ...




That's actually the order I do it in. If its a work day, it's wallet, phone, ID badge, keys.


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## Supe (Aug 29, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.




"Ensure" vs. "insure"


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## ventilator (Aug 29, 2013)

I tend to take an even number of steps between anything even if I have to stutter step just to make it even. Or if I'm on a sidewalk I have to make sure each section gets either an even amount of steps or that two consecutive sections will add up to an even number.


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## Capt Worley PE (Aug 29, 2013)




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## Ble_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Supe said:


> Dexman PE said:
> 
> 
> > I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.
> ...




The first one's a drink for old people, right?


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## Judowolf PE (Aug 29, 2013)

^and the second a little lizard tries to sell ya


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## Ble_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.






Now, now they're, your going cause some posters to get there feelings hurt and their going to come after you.


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## goodal (Aug 29, 2013)

I have to spit in the urinal everytime I use one. I don't know why. I feel weird if I don't. When taking a shower, I start at the hair and go south. Anything else is just gross.


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## Capt Worley PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Ble_PE said:


> Dexman PE said:
> 
> 
> > I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.
> ...




Their ewe go misspelling ewe.


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## csb (Aug 29, 2013)

ventilator said:


> I tend to take an even number of steps between anything even if I have to stutter step just to make it even. Or if I'm on a sidewalk I have to make sure each section gets either an even amount of steps or that two consecutive sections will add up to an even number.




Oh, I used to be like this. If I didn't do it, something bad would happen. I also refused to step on the joint between sidewalk slabs, even if it meant making a weird little small step. I also still tend to gravitate towards even numbers- on the gas pump, pausing in a book, dates.


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## Capt Worley PE (Aug 29, 2013)

I like to do everything in threes, just like the Ramans.


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## MA_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

csb said:


> ventilator said:
> 
> 
> > I tend to take an even number of steps between anything even if I have to stutter step just to make it even. Or if I'm on a sidewalk I have to make sure each section gets either an even amount of steps or that two consecutive sections will add up to an even number.
> ...


Everyone knows

"Step on a crack. Break your mother's back."

I don't need that guilt hanging around my neck.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 29, 2013)

We have a fair amount of 2-way light switches in my house. I can't turn off a light by flipping the switch up. I will seriously go to the other side of the room to flip the other switch so that they're both down when the light is off. When we first moved into our new house, one of the switches was "upside down" so that one was always up when the light was off. I didn't make it until the end of the day before I pulled out a screwdriver and flipped it over.


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## MA_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> We have a fair amount of 2-way light switches in my house. I can't turn off a light by flipping the switch up. I will seriously go to the other side of the room to flip the other switch so that they're both down when the light is off. When we first moved into our new house, one of the switches was "upside down" so that one was always up when the light was off. I didn't make it until the end of the day before I pulled out a screwdriver and flipped it over.


I do that too.


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## engineergurl (Aug 29, 2013)

MA_PE said:


> Dexman PE said:
> 
> 
> > We have a fair amount of 2-way light switches in my house. I can't turn off a light by flipping the switch up. I will seriously go to the other side of the room to flip the other switch so that they're both down when the light is off. When we first moved into our new house, one of the switches was "upside down" so that one was always up when the light was off. I didn't make it until the end of the day before I pulled out a screwdriver and flipped it over.
> ...


something simlar to this, but the pair of switches on each wall have to be the same direction.


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## Mike in Gastonia (Aug 29, 2013)

I am really not enjoying this thread at all.......

(see myself in too many of the posts!)


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## knight1fox3 (Aug 29, 2013)

YMZ PE said:


> Supe said:
> 
> 
> > Three pocket check for wallet, keys, phone.
> ...


+1



Dexman PE said:


> We have a fair amount of 2-way light switches in my house. I can't turn off a light by flipping the switch up. I will seriously go to the other side of the room to flip the other switch so that they're both down when the light is off.


+10

- I can't be in the presence of a non-functional (or poorly functional) computer. I will literally sit down at it and work on it (within reason) until it is running properly.

- Desk organization (home and work) and just organization in general.

- Landscape lighting, I check these probably once per week to make sure no bulbs are burned out.

- PC system back-ups and junk file maintenance/organization.


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## engineergurl (Aug 29, 2013)

I write lists... for everything. Sometimes I even write out a list of lists I need to make. Even for something that I do on a regular basis, like cleaning the house gets a list, and every day has it's own list, that includes when I should wash my face and brush my teeth and what I am wearing for the day and what I will be eating etc etc etc they are often color coded

If I make a mistake while writing a list in pen, I have to restart the list on a new sheet of paper.


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## MA_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

If a light bulb is burned out, I won't relax until it is fixed/replaced.


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## Capt Worley PE (Aug 29, 2013)

MA_PE said:


> If a light bulb is burned out, I won't relax until it is fixed/replaced.




I wouldn't really call that OCD. That's normal.


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## Ble_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Man, you guys are weird.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 29, 2013)

Capt Worley PE said:


> Ble_PE said:
> 
> 
> > Dexman PE said:
> ...


It's only irritating when others do it, but I can't do it at all.



envirotex said:


> &lt;---Goes to search Dex' 13,739 posts for incorrect usage of their/they're/there.


Don't forget the ~5k posts that are still out there from before I was deleted...


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## YMZ PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Supe said:


> Dexman PE said:
> 
> 
> > I can't use the wrong version of their/there/they're.
> ...




And "assure".


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## YMZ PE (Aug 29, 2013)

YMZ PE said:


> Supe said:
> 
> 
> > Dexman PE said:
> ...










(Usher)


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## Sapper PE LS (Aug 29, 2013)

My coffee must have three cubes of ice if ice is available, if not, then 1.5 inches of cold water if a regular coffee cup or 2 inches if a travel mug, preferably from a water fountain or fridge faucet. This is really more functional than OCD, because it burns my mouth otherwise and I don't want to sit and wait for the coffee to cool off.

Toilet paper hangs from the front.

All bills sit in my wallet with the president's face toward the front, front being the part with all the cards when it is opened and their heads up, up being toward the opening of the bill pocket, and all bills in order with dollars closest to the front, fives behind the ones, tens behind the fives, then twenties and so on. And absolutely no dog ears or crinkled bills go in my wallet, ever. If it's ripped and taped, it gets given to the next homeless person I see or is used first for next purchase.

Pennies hit the "take a penny" jar or donation box and will never be found in my pocket.

Keys and change in the front right pocket, wallet in the back right, phone in the front left, back left is reserved for loose sheets of paper that every once in a while get handed to me like at meetings or whatever, where they are folded in half twice and immediately removed into either a trash can, recycling bin, or file cabinet if it really needs to be saved.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 29, 2013)

Sapper said:


> Keys and change in the front right pocket, wallet in the back right, phone in the front left, back left is reserved for loose sheets of paper that every once in a while get handed to me like at meetings or whatever, where they are folded in half twice and immediately removed into either a trash can, recycling bin, or file cabinet if it really needs to be saved.


This, except my phone goes in the right leg pocket of my carpenter jeans (or cargo pants) and my left front pocket is for my pocket knives (I have 2), a mini-leatherman, and my chapstick. Left rear is for my business card wallet and company ID card. When I get ready for bed, I put my wedding ring into my left front pocket, and leave everything else in the pants overnight even if I don't plan on wearing the same pants the next day. Only exception to this is when Mrs Dex does laundry, in which case all of my pockets are emptied into a small bowl next to my bathroom sink.


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## goodal (Aug 29, 2013)

Question: Are any of you seeing therapists about these strange urges? I see my quirks as, well, quirks. Some of the issues mentioned take up a lot of energy and time.


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## cement (Aug 29, 2013)

Sapper said:


> My coffee must have three cubes of ice if ice is available, if not, then 1.5 inches of cold water if a regular coffee cup or 2 inches if a travel mug, preferably from a water fountain or fridge faucet. This is really more functional than OCD, because it burns my mouth otherwise and I don't want to sit and wait for the coffee to cool off. Toilet paper hangs from the front. All bills sit in my wallet with the president's face toward the front, front being the part with all the cards when it is opened and their heads up, up being toward the opening of the bill pocket, and all bills in order with dollars closest to the front, fives behind the ones, tens behind the fives, then twenties and so on. And absolutely no dog ears or crinkled bills go in my wallet, ever. If it's ripped and taped, it gets given to the next homeless person I see or is used first for next purchase. Pennies hit the "take a penny" jar or donation box and will never be found in my pocket. Keys and change in the front right pocket, wallet in the back right, phone in the front left, back left is reserved for loose sheets of paper that every once in a while get handed to me like at meetings or whatever, where they are folded in half twice and immediately removed into either a trash can, recycling bin, or file cabinet if it really needs to be saved.


change mixed with keys? what kind of barbarian are you?

you can avoid the hot coffee problem by living at altitude. My coffee is never hotter than 198 degrees.

http://www.csgnetwork.com/h2oboilcalc.html


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## knight1fox3 (Aug 29, 2013)

badal said:


> Question: Are any of you seeing therapists about these strange urges? I see my quirks as, well, quirks. Some of the issues mentioned take up a lot of energy and time.


LOL. I doubt any of these issues would be considered "a problem". Time-consuming, sure. And I would go as far to say that's why we became engineers. We have exceptional attention to detail. Or at least that is what I'm going to keep telling myself.



engineergurl said:


> I write lists... for everything. Sometimes I even write out a list of lists I need to make. Even for something that I do on a regular basis, like cleaning the house gets a list, and every day has it's own list, that includes when I should wash my face and brush my teeth and what I am wearing for the day and what I will be eating etc etc etc they are often color coded


LadyFox does this almost verbatim! LOL


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## Wolverine (Aug 29, 2013)

Capt Worley PE said:


> I like to do everything in threes, just like the Ramans.


Obscure reference not wasted.



Sapper said:


> All bills sit in my wallet with the president's face toward the front, front being the part with all the cards when it is opened and their heads up, up being toward the opening of the bill pocket, and all bills in order with dollars closest to the front, fives behind the ones, tens behind the fives, then twenties and so on. saved.


Wait, is there some other way?

Walking out the door in the morning, it's pat - pat - pat - "wallet, pager, keys, check". No, I don't have a pager, but I started the routine when I did have one and it stuck. Now the cellphone occupies the "pager" slot.

Sitting in a meeting, I occasionally take a moment to properly align and aesthetically balance all papers, water bottles, pens, - whatever may be on the table in front of me. I was chatting with a psychologist one time who explained this is a move to express control over surroundings. He said you should see it when disordered kids come in and immediately start rearranging things in his office. Tells him right away what part of the problem is.


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## Supe (Aug 29, 2013)

A kid I went to high school with used to have all bills in his wallet inserted sequentially by serial number.

I'm happy if I stick my hand in my pocket and pull out a wad of twice-washed singles.


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## Flyer_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

I do work for nuclear power plants. 'Nuff said.


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## Supe (Aug 29, 2013)

I do to, but my desk looks more post-Fukushima than pre.


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## Ble_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

Supe said:


> I do to, but my desk looks more post-Fukushima than pre.




Same here, but no nuke work.


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## Mike in Gastonia (Aug 29, 2013)

Wolverine said:


> Walking out the door in the morning, it's pat - pat - pat - "wallet, pager, keys, check". No, I don't have a pager, but I started the routine when I did have one and it stuck. Now the cellphone occupies the "pager" slot.




I used to work with a guy who said he would say, "Testicles, spectacles, wallet and watch." prior to leaving the house in the morning. And I assume check to ensure everything was there ......

How many of you try to perform your lane changes so as not to hit any of the reflectors on the pavement? You know, these kind:


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## csb (Aug 29, 2013)

1. That's an old joke...the wallet and watch one.

2. Where do you live that the snowplows don't just rip those up? 

And I did see a therapist, which is why I can now walk down the sidewalk normally.


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## ventilator (Aug 29, 2013)

MA_PE said:


> If a light bulb is burned out, I won't relax until it is fixed/replaced.


I've had a light burned out in my kitchen for about 2 years now. There is enough light w/o it so it may never get replaced, at least not until one of the others burns out and the lighting is low.


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## MA_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

csb said:


> 1. That's an old joke...the wallet and watch one.
> 
> 2. Where do you live that the snowplows don't just rip those up?
> 
> And I did see a therapist, which is why I can now walk down the sidewalk normally.


I think it might have been here that I first saw this. Love it.


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## MA_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

ventilator said:


> MA_PE said:
> 
> 
> > If a light bulb is burned out, I won't relax until it is fixed/replaced.
> ...


We bought our house from relatives so we knew it for a long time. There was a flourescent light fixture in the bathrrom that didn't work on the switch and the lamppost light didn't work for a good 10+ years before we bought.

The first week we were there I had them both working. The ballast was gone on the bathrrom fixture and the wire terminals on the lamppost fixture were corroded. Replaced the ballast and the fixture and behold....there was light.

Also, there was a pocket door to an added on room in the back of the house that would not open all the way. We were told by the previous owners that the first year they had the room, they stuck newspapers in the door jamb ot prevent drafts and the papers got in and the door wouldn't operate after that (again had been a good 10-15 years). I had that fixed wihtin a week too.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 29, 2013)

Mike in Gastonia said:


> How many of you try to perform your lane changes so as not to hit any of the reflectors on the pavement? You know, these kind:


CSB beat me to it. Snowplows make those reflectors go away very quickly, so we don't install them at all.

But when I do drive in places that have them, yes I try to dodge as many as possible, sometimes swerving just a little harder than I should.


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## knight1fox3 (Aug 29, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> Mike in Gastonia said:
> 
> 
> > How many of you try to perform your lane changes so as not to hit any of the reflectors on the pavement? You know, these kind:
> ...


In WI they install them as recessed in the road instead of sticking out above the road. That way the plows don't kill them. They just rip up the road in other areas instead. LOL


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## mudpuppy (Aug 29, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> Mike in Gastonia said:
> 
> 
> > How many of you try to perform your lane changes so as not to hit any of the reflectors on the pavement? You know, these kind:
> ...




Same thing around here... except when I'm in GA I try to hit them as much as possible....


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## csb (Aug 29, 2013)

I first drove over them in California and I said, "Are your drivers so bad out here that they had to put them in?"

We're spending $7M a year in striping...I don't think we'll add recessed pavement markers to the mix.


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## Exception Collection (Aug 29, 2013)

engineergurl said:


> MA_PE said:
> 
> 
> > Dexman PE said:
> ...


Yup. One reason my apt drove me crazy was that there were four sets of two switch lights, with five panels... Three of which were single switches. I would have to "chase it down", flipping switches on at least two panels every time.


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## wilheldp_PE (Aug 29, 2013)

MA_PE said:


> the wire terminals on the lamppost fixture were corroded.




Good thing you fixed that...I see a lot of fires that start from resistance heating on corroded wiring. Also, make sure your power cords are fully seated in outlets/power strips...that also causes fires.


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## mudpuppy (Aug 29, 2013)

The leftmost tab in my browser is the weather, the next tab is facebook, then EB, then flyertalk.


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## Mike in Gastonia (Aug 29, 2013)

I was reading these to my wife and she was laughing like crazy at all of you. OK, and laughing at me too......

Oh, and I'm supposed to tell you that I always rearrange the dishwasher before we run it so that it is fully and efficiently loaded.


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## envirotex (Aug 29, 2013)

csb said:


> I first drove over them in California and I said, "Are your drivers so bad out here that they had to put them in?"
> 
> We're spending $7M a year in striping...I don't think we'll add recessed pavement markers to the mix.




We call it driving by braille...


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## csb (Aug 30, 2013)

Mike in Gastonia said:


> I was reading these to my wife and she was laughing like crazy at all of you. OK, and laughing at me too......
> 
> Oh, and I'm supposed to tell you that I always rearrange the dishwasher before we run it so that it is fully and efficiently loaded.


I don't think that makes you OCD. I think that makes you my mom. We didn't even try to load the dishwasher after a big meal, because we wouldn't do it "right."


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## cement (Aug 30, 2013)

envirotex said:


> csb said:
> 
> 
> > I first drove over them in California and I said, "Are your drivers so bad out here that they had to put them in?"
> ...


WYDOT has braille! I used the rumble strips to find my way thru a ground blizzard west of Laramie on I-80 once


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## csb (Aug 30, 2013)

I also like to play delineator hide and seek during ground blizzards. "I'm on the road, I'm on the road, OH SNAP!" as one shows up in front of the car.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 30, 2013)

wilheldp_PE said:


> MA_PE said:
> 
> 
> > the wire terminals on the lamppost fixture were corroded.
> ...


My daughter burned her finger earlier this week because one of the batteries in her Wii controller had somehow corroded and she installed it backwards. It heated up and started to melt the controller...


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## engineergurl (Aug 30, 2013)

Wolverine said:


> Walking out the door in the morning, it's pat - pat - pat - "wallet, pager, keys, check". No, I don't have a pager, but I started the routine when I did have one and it stuck. Now the cellphone occupies the "pager" slot.




spectacles, testicles, wallet and watch

Edit: How did I miss nearly an entire page of the conversation...


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## wilheldp_PE (Aug 30, 2013)

Dexman PE said:


> wilheldp_PE said:
> 
> 
> > MA_PE said:
> ...




Yeah, you aren't supposed to run Alkaline batteries down past 1.2 VDC. If you do, they start leaking corrosive electrolyte, and producing heat. This is especially bad if they are rechargeable, and you put them back on the charger when they are too low.


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## Dexman PE PMP (Aug 30, 2013)

They were rechargeable, and I'm pretty sure they ran them all the way down multiple times before recharging...


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## Capt Worley PE (Sep 3, 2013)

Wolverine said:


> Capt Worley PE said:
> 
> 
> > I like to do everything in threes, just like the Ramans.
> ...




I wondered who, if anyone, would catch that.

I think of the last line of that book every time I do something in sets of three.


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