Creature of habit

I'm a very disorganized person in some aspects. I hate to clean my room, or put away laundry and my car is usually quite messy. But there are somethings that I just can't vary with. Before I had babies and I had time in the morning go to Starbucks and get a cup of coffee. I always went to the same Starbucks and since I didn't have kids I could walk inside and not just shoot through the drive through. I always take a certain road to my destinations. It's not always the fastest but it is the one I like the most. I only shop at one grocery store and on the rare occasion I try out a new one just to be sure I don't like it, I always end up regretting straying from my store. For the most part I've always dressed the same way. Jeans, a tank top and slip on shoes. In fact as long as i can remember there has been at least one pair of Vans in my closet (well up until they got stolen from my locker at the thug middle school I went to).

With clothing sure I've varied, I've had a few different things in my closet but for the most part it's easy to say I don't follow the trends. In the summer for the most part I still wear jeans. They are comfy and go with any shirt.

When it comes to cooking I have one knife that is my old standby. I have one pan for certain things. I like comfort and familiarity.

I think it is because of this that I don't keep a lot of people in my life. Because being a creature of habit means I need stable people in my life. I need people that I can rely on. My husband, Katie and Lisa are always on time. In fact those three also know that I go everywhere 15 minutes early and they figure that in when they come to meet me. My mom and Ginger are always at least 15 minutes late BUT they are reliably late. I know that if I'm meeting them I have a few extra minutes to go to the bathroom or browse the menu before they arrive.

There have been a series of people who have entered my life and then exited. I can give people a lot of chances but as soon as I can no longer rely on them, they have to go. I can't say that I've never stood someone up, but I always call and tell them why, even if the truth is that I just don't want to go. What I don't do is tell someone I will come see them and then just leave them there waiting. Something I really NEVER do is make plans with someone and forget (with that one exception of the time I was pregnant and made plans with both Steph and Ginger, but dude I was pregnant and out of my mind and it all worked out). What I mean to say is I would never ever make plans with a person and then just forget all together and make new plans and then leave my old plans hanging.

Part of this rolls over into motherhood too. If I tell my kids I'm going to do something I do it. That is why I'm very careful what I say to Brandon. He may be 2 but his memory is better then any one of yours. This means if I tell him he can have gum if he eats all his dinner, then 6 hours later Brandon will want to know where his gum is and 12 hours later he is still going to want his gum. That also means if I say I will take him to the park I better be damn sure to have some coffee in me that night, because my ass is going to the park.

I feel like so many people take reliability for granted. People take their word for granted. They think throwing out some meaningless promises and not following through is acceptable. I can't stand people who say sure I'll come this weekend and do this and then never come and never even acknowledge they said they would and then I waste my entire weekend sitting there waiting around for them. And finally when I call them and say hey, gee remember when you said this, they treat me like an alien because I took their word as truth.

I guess it is all of these reasons that my life is always planned far in advance. I always know where I'm going and when, and if Friday approaches and I have no plans, well then my plans are just that, to sit and relax and do nothing.

That's not to say I'm not spontaneous, because Ginger and Lisa can tell you they have been kidnapped for some random spontaneous trips many times. But even those are predictable. You can predict that if I have to go buy something I will call one of them. I hate to shop alone. Mostly because I like a second point of view. I have a tendency to see something I want and buy it. This is usually where Lisa comes in. We can spend HOURS picking out a purse, a knife, a pair of jeans, or something as simple as a rug. We look at it from every angle, we both try it on. I make her try on shoes so I can see how the shoe looks walking. Then we rationalize it financially. Is this something you will love forever Shannon? Usually Lisa can be right on target when she says, hey idiot your going to hate this in a week. This is why one of the most predictable things I do at the grocery store is stop 10 feet from the check stand and take almost everything back out of my cart because I suddenly realize I don't want to spend the money. That means if you are at my local smiths there is a great chance you will see a box of Cheerios sitting in the freezer section because that is where I was standing when I got shoppers remorse.

At work I'm the most predictable. I only use one pen, it must be blue and it must have my little I am loved button on it. I only use one note pad and my mouse has to be just so. If I walk in your office chances are I'm going to rearrange your mouse to suit my needs and yes I will forget to put it back your way when I leave. I like to eat lunch at my desk. I like to eat my lunch with a plastic fork. I prefer my coffee in a mug but everything else in a water bottle or plastic cup. This is why my work always has paper plates, plastic ware and plastic cups. At work I also like things in a certain spot. My stapler has to be right over there, no not there, there to the right a little. My staple remover needs to be over there and for the love of God can you please make my paperclips not visible to everyone else.

I only carry a Coach purse because along with being reliable comes a sense of loyalty. I pick a brand and I stick with it. I tried to buy a Dooney once and I felt like I was having a dirty little affair on all of my Coach purses. I tried to buy a Henkle knife but I could see my Wusthoffs giving him dirty looks from across the knife block. I tried to hang a white picture frame but the black frames all ganged up on him and made me paint him black.

Are you a creature of habit? Are there things that have to be done just so? Do you have to pour your creamer before the coffee for it to taste right? What are some of the things that some would consider your quirks but you consider normal?

Come by and drop me a line. Tell me your funny habits, but what ever you do, do not touch my blue pen or your ass is grass!