No More Secrets
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There is something in the human mind that find flaws, quirks, and small insanities interesting. When we see that other people have rough edges as well, we feel better about ourselves. After all, even the poster boys only become interesting when their secrets are revealed on the pages of the tabloid magazines.
Yesterday Shane from Shane and Peter shared his seven secret quirks. And as if that wasn’t enough, he then went on and challenged a bunch of other people to follow the example. Including me.
From this group, Susan (who does 18 loads of laundry but never puts any of it away) and James (who wants to mount a machine gun to his car) have already posted their responses, so now it’s about time I step to the challenge and start bringing my secrets to light.
- I can’t stop asking the why questions: Just two nights ago a thought hit me (I don’t know where it came from, and now I can’t stop thinking about it): Is there a correlation between left-handedness and the fact that some languages such as Arabic and Hebrew are written from right to left? Could it be that the first people writing in those languages were mostly left-handed? I haven’t yet found a good answer, so if you know something on this topic, I’d love to hear more.
- I can’t read quietly: To me reading a good book is an adventure full of enlightenments and a-ha moments. And whenever I learn a new idea, read a well-written passage or anything even remotely interesting, I get the urge to share it with someone. I just can’t stay quiet. My wife and I joke about this: She tells me to only share the best parts, and I say that that’s exactly what I’m doing… It just happens that I find a new best part on every page.
- I love brands: Not so long ago we bought a high-chair to Oiva. After narrowing down the options we had come to two possible choices: a well-known brand - Tripp Trapp from Stokke - and a cheaper copy of it. While Mari was considering the wise things such as safety, all I could think of was that this guy from Stokke had the original idea and now these cheap copycats were trying to make money with it! We picked the Tripp Trapp. After all, it comes with a seven year guarantee.
- I have a favorite psychological disorder: One of the best things in having a wife who studies psychology is that you get to learn interesting bits of information about the human mind. That’s exactly how I found out about the split brain condition.
- I can’t keep secrets: When I buy a gift to Mari, I usually end up telling it to her before I get to give the gift. My facial expressions give me away even before she starts asking questions. And even in general, I’m not a big fan of secrecy: I don’t try to hide any part of who I am online, I trust people and I can’t understand why someone would choose to blog without sharing his name.
- I hum when I think: I’m not sure if I do this at work (I hope not), but at home when I’m with the people I love doing things I enjoy, it happens a lot.
- I have found the perfect ring tone: It’s a rather annoying self-made remix from the Hair Brush Song from VeggieTales that goes “Why do you need a hair brush, you don’t have any hair? No hair for my hair brush. No hair for my hair brush…” And the best part about it? Everyone else hates it, which means that every time my phone rings, it starts some discussion.
That’s it, seven secrets less!
And now it’s your turn: The rule of the game is that I now get to tag a bunch of bloggers and make them reveal their secrets. And even if I don’t tag you, feel free to share your weirdness in the comments!
Here are the lucky ones:
- Deron from Random Jabber
- Adnan from Blogtrepreneur
- William from One Job Two Salaries
- Kim and Jason from Escape Adulthood
- Mark from My Tropical Escape
…and as a bonus: I think aloud, I can fall asleep in the middle of a sentence, and I have no special thing for any number.
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January 30th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
What’s even more interesting about split brains is that children rewire their brains to compensate for this condition. Pretty cool.
January 30th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
I think a symptom of being Insanely Interested is the inability to stop asking the “why” questions.
Now if you’ll pardon me, I have some loads of laundry to go glare at. ;-)
January 30th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
I love brands too. With that in mind & with quirk #1 - “Why ask why?” Does your wife analyze you being into psychology? That could be interesting.
By the way I was going to tell you a secret but…
January 30th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
jarkko,
i think we should be friends. you’re like my ying or yang, which one is the white one?
PEACE!
January 30th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Jarkko, I have made it a personal policy to refrain from any more memes on my blog (I’ve become officially burned out), but I figured I could share one quirk right here.
I wear a lucky t-shirt every time I fly. It is an “Incredible’s Gym” t-shirt (you know, the movie by Pixar) that features a buff Mr. Incredible. I am not particularly afraid of flying, but I guess I think of it as a good luck charm to help avoid any of the almost unavoidable hassles that come with modern day air travel (delayed flights, screaming children, security hassles, long lines at the rental car, etc.) I’m not sure why I picked this particular shirt, but it is comfortable!
January 30th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
Thanks for the comments, everyone!
@James C: You bet! I didn’t know that. I’ll have to ask my wife about it tonight when I get home from work.
@Susan: Yep. I think you’re right. But why is that? ;)
@James D: Hehe, good idea. Some day I’ll have to get my mind analyzed by her.
…What secret? ;)
@michael: Absolutely! Which one do you pick: the dark (yin) or the light (yang) part?
@Jason: No problem. And thanks for sharing your quirk! So, how has your lucky shirt performed so far?
January 30th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
i think i should be the yin (not ying?).
January 30th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
@ Michael/Jarkko - We’re slowly leaning towards toooo much information ;)
@ Jarkko - Watch your wife tell you I have no idea what I’m talking about. In which case I’ll have to go dig up my textbooks and blame my scattered memory. If I am correct, let me know - s’good to know I retained *that* part of Physiological Psychology.
January 30th, 2008 at 11:30 pm
do you really have split brain or do you just find it insanely interesting? Like that guy who was in the car accident and never sleeps anymore. I tried to find it on google but didn’t get lucky.Maybe your gal remember’s the name and you could post the wikipedia link.
January 31st, 2008 at 7:14 am
@Shane: Ah, no… It’s just the most interesting one I’ve heard of so far :)
But actually everything related to our brains are interesting. I’ll ask Mari about this never sleeping thing when she wakes up, and then let you know.
Another brain problem we were talking about yesterday is the hemispatial neglet (here’s a wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemispatial_neglect) in which the patient neglects the other side of the world completely (from what I understood, usually the left side of everything).
Mari just started a new course in neuropsychology yesterday, so I expect to hear many more of these interesting stories during the next couple of months. Can’t wait! :)
@James C.: I asked about this quickly yesterday. She wasn’t quite sure about it but gave me the following, related information:
Split brain occurs when the corpus callosum is split. It’s the most important connection between the two sides of the brain, but not the only one. Therefore it’s possible that if the corpus callosum is damaged as a child, the other connections grow stronger and take its role.
Also, Mari said that at birth, the corpus callosum isn’t really strong yet, so as children we all have been somewhat split brained…
But yeah, my impression is that you were right. :)
January 31st, 2008 at 2:10 pm
@ Jarkko - Oh yeah, I knew that. I learned about split brain way back in my first year of university, and I’m halfway through my second now, which is why I’m not sure of my memory anymore.
Children have more plasticity than adults do, which makes it very easy for them to adapt to a split brain and redo the circuitry, as it were. Most grown ups don’t adapt so well and the two sides of the brain don’t communicate.
Note that you’re not born with a split brain - it’s an operation done generally to control seizures.
What year is Mari in?
January 31st, 2008 at 10:58 pm
@Shane: Mari couldn’t remember the case you mentioned but told me that if the hypothalamus gets injured, that can severely affect sleeping (for example you darkness doesn’t make you sleepy anymore)… But if you happen to find the link, I’d love to read more about this.
@James: You’re right, split brain is done in surgery, but apparently it’s also possible (but really rare) to be born without corpus callosum - so that’s pretty much the same as being born with split brain.
About the year - it’s a bit complicated, but she’s close to finished (thesis done, all the theory courses done, still missing some more practical courses and a practice period).
And about your studies, are you also majoring in psychology?
January 31st, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Yup. Left school after CEGEP (which is akin to about two years of U.S. college, I believe… not quite sure) and regretted that decision for 15 years. When anyone asked me what my dream was, I always answered, “To go back to school.”
I entered university a couple of years ago and elected for part-time distance education (I live out in the boonies in a French province. English education would mean a major move). I’m a second-year student now, going for a BA in Arts with a heavy major in Psychology and then moving onto a Masters in Psychology (required for practice in Quebec). A Masters will require onsite education, but at least I can do that in Quebec, in English. I think. I hope.
I expect to complete my studies when I’m about 110.
The only problem is that I’m considering switching out to take a BA in Editing and Publishing from Simon Fraser. Expensive, though. (but not as much as U.S. education!)
Alright, your turn :)
February 1st, 2008 at 7:01 am
Some great secrets there Jarkko! We’re totally opposites on #2, which I’ll be writing about in my version this weekend. Thanks for the post idea again. Seems you’re my main inspiration for posts here lately! :)
I’ve never participated in one of these before, so it should be fun. Thanks
February 1st, 2008 at 4:22 pm
@James: That’s great! Even if it takes until you’re 110, you’re following your dream.
I don’t know when I’ll get my studies (Masters in Computer Science) finished. I have been doing some slow progress for the past four years, but now it seems the progress has come to a complete halt… Haven’t done a single course this year. :/
@Deron: I’m looking forward to your secrets! :)
February 18th, 2008 at 11:32 am
That ringtone you mentioned… It’s great to have a “purposeful” ringtone. After all, every phone call is an opportunity.
I’ve been thinking about setting some of my own songs as ringtones. I know it sounds a bit too self-hailing, but think about the possibilities - every time my phone rings, it’s a chance to tell someone about my music.