Everyone has their own weird quirks that they develop as they grow up. They may seem normal to the people who possess them, but other people may find them unusual or confusing. But having weird quirks isn't necessarily a bad thing—they can be unique identifiers or even character builders, so you'd do better to embrace them than try to get rid of them. Keep reading to discover what strange mannerisms these internet users have:
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#1 The Scooby-Doo Step
I have a soft step. Even walking around in heels or boots, I just naturally have a light step. It means people will constantly say I "snuck up" on them and made them jump. It ain't my fault people aren't aware of me; it's not like I'm walking around like Scooby-Doo. I'm also 6'3" so it just adds terror to the situation. I've spooked so many people unintentionally when I was just walking up behind them to talk or tell them something.
#2 A Graceful Mover
I walk and move around my work station (at a factory) smoothly and gracefully, almost like a dance. But I'm a guy, so I catch heck about my highly efficient movements. My wife has informed me that she thinks my footwork is sexy, and that she thinks I move like a fighter. A good support system is important. I just own it.
#3 La La Land
Smiling during random and sometimes inappropriate times or situations. I can't help that my brain goes off to La La Land and I remember something nice or funny! I'll just be sitting there at work and all of a sudden I'll be randomly thinking of stupid names to give my friend's avatar for when he's playing video games.
#4 Quiet, Not Standoffish
I'm very quiet. People think I'm standoffish but actually I'm terrified I'll say the wrong thing. It takes weeks to open up even slightly and by then they've already got an opinion about me. In high school, I was so shy and insecure that I had zero self-esteem and confidence, so I never spoke to anyone. I later learned from the popular hot guy that everyone thought I was being "aloof and snobbish" because I thought I was so much better than everyone else.
#5 Naked Activities
I sleep naked. You don't like it, stay outta my room. It's the best. I also shower right before bed every day. I'll never understand how people can want to sleep in their own filth every night and only shower in the morning. Yeah, I sweat in my sleep like everyone else, but at least it's just sweat and not all the rest of the dirt that's on you after a day of being out, living.
#6 Basically Horizontal
I'm so laid back that I'm basically horizontal. People come to me panicking and flapping and I am just like, don't worry about it, it's not worth getting worked up about. Just chill have a think of what to do. But people think I don't care due to how laid back I am. I'm a manager in an office and my team has fed this back to my manager. So I had to explain to them I did care but there's nothing that can't be fixed, you just need to relax take a step back and think.
#7 Funny Laughs
I've just heard people say that making fun of somebody's laugh is an easy way to make sure they won't laugh around you. People have done it to me. I hate my laugh. I've heard it in videos and I stopped laughing around others for about a week. Eventually, I just realized that most people sound stupid when they properly laugh and insulting somebody over that is just a jerk thing to do. I still hate my laugh but there's nothing to do about it, so I just ignore it.
#8 Conversational Crescendo
My speaking volume increases VERY FAST! It always happens when I'm talking about something I'm excited about. People are always telling me, "You're shouting. Please stop yelling," and I'm like "Oh, sorry, I had no idea... I thought I was speaking normally." It also happens in noisy places, like restaurants. It almost seems like I can't differentiate between background noise and my voice. Other people seem to be able to talk quieter than the ambient noise (or at least at the same level) and still follow with the conversation. But generally, however loud the room is, I often end up talking louder.
#9 In Control
My very flaky and casual friend gives me heck for being "such an adult" because I'm prepared for unfortunate events. I had to change a diaper today on the roadside. Guess who had hand sanitizer in the car? Her car gets a flat battery. Guess who owns jumper cables? Heck yeah, I'm an adult. Adults take care of their problems. I'm in control of my life.
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#10 It's Heartburn
I cough and clear my throat a lot. It didn't seem to be a problem for me, so I dismissed it. "I make a lot of phlegm, whatever." My friends have been giving me heck over this for a couple of years, and finally, I got a "We won't play games with you online in voice chat until you get this checked out." Motivation, you know. Anyhow, I just got back from the doc. It's heartburn.
#11 Eating Sequence
When I eat, I'll eat all of one item first, then move to the next. No switching back and forth. I don't know why it's viewed as weird, but it is. I also have an order of starting with my least to most favorite food. One time, I stood up to get something to drink and my sister picked some of my chicken because she thought I don't like it. I just want to save my favorite bit for last.
#12 Crust First
When I eat sandwiches, I always eat all the crust first in a circle, then I eat the middle. It’s just how I’ve always eaten them, but apparently this strategy is seen as psychotic to most. How I see it is that I'm saving the best of last. The middle is where all the good stuff is. It's the area that's guaranteed to have all toppings. I always get the last corner and never eat it.
#13 The Cranky Clubber
I don't really like clubbing or parties or any loud events. People always take it as a personal insult when I don't want to go, or I want to leave early. Like, I'm leaving when I realize I'm getting cranky from boredom—I'm doing it for the group, otherwise, I'll just drag everyone's mood down! Also, screw you jerks, I can leave if I want to.
#14 A Cartoon In Real Life
I wear the same outfits all the time (I own multiple quantities of specific clothing, mind you). Some of my friends say it's like I'm a cartoon character. I'm a simple soul. I just like jeans, black hoodies, and t-shirts with nothing on them. On the upside, when I do get dressed up everyone says, "Woah, you clean up well."
#15 Touchy And Smelly
I touch and smell things... As in, everything I come across. I hadn’t realized until my significant other called me out on sniffing newspaper and fruit. Also, I HAVE to smell the soap when I enter a public bathroom I've never been to before. There are so many interesting, pleasant scents that we don't have at the house!
#16 Chewing Soup?
I chew soup. As in, broth, etc. that's just completely liquid. I can't help it. Whenever my mouth registers "food" rather than "beverage," it starts chewing and doesn't want to immediately swallow. If I swallow it straight away, it feels weird. It doesn't happen with drinks. Just food for some reason. Everyone laughs at me for it. Fair enough, but it's become instinctive so I can't help it. I suppose I could get some cognitive behavioral therapy, but it would seem kind of insulting to the other people there.
#17 Self-Commentary
I talk to myself. It’s really more of a running commentary out loud of “Nope that’s not a good idea” or "Oh shoot, 10 mins till got to leave." It throws people off a bit. I also have a bad habit of answering questions that aren't necessarily directed at me, even from other rooms, if I notice that nobody around knows the answer.
#18 Short Person Problems
Not so much anymore, but I used to get heck for being short all the time. High school sucked, then dating sucked, then being taken seriously at work didn't really happen. I've got a good amount of experience now though and I think working with mature adults helps. I also grew a beard so I look older now. I'm still short, I just don't get as much heck for it.
#19 A Canadian Habit
I tend to apologize after almost everything I say when out with my mates. In secondary school, I was kicked and beaten for speaking, so when I talk to someone and ask a question, I apologize. A lot of people understand why I do it and try to help me, but there have been few people who have a go at me for it.
#20 Uncontrollable Laughter
One time, I was with a friend eating in a computer lab at school. This teacher (who was well known for being heard through the walls yelling at students) came into the room and said in his deep South African accent, "Oi, you are not allowed to eat in here!" I noticed that he was eating a mandarin while saying that and I just burst out in uncontrollable laughter. He kind of just stood there for a while then left. When I finally finished laughing, I just kept eating.
#21 It's A Comfort Thing
I'm high-functioning autistic, and one way it manifests is stereotypy. I can't sit still and nearly always sway side to side or rock back and forth. I've always been made fun of for it, from people close to me telling me I need to stop because "people will think you're a loony." People always ask me judgingly, "Why do you do that?" It's a comfort thing, I can't help it and am unaware I'm doing it until it's pointed out. Leave me alone, I ain't hurting anyone.
#22 A Hiccup Habit
I hiccup throughout the day. Often followed by a really loud burp. I went to get a doctor's opinion after a character on Grey's Anatomy died from the hiccups. While the tests came back inconclusive, the doctor said it was probably acid reflux and gave me a list of foods to avoid. It doesn't bother me, really, so I threw that list in the trash.
#23 A Quirky List
Cracking my knuckles, using too much profanity, needing lots of time alone, and collecting dice. Also, I'm a tall, 35-year-old male and I still sleep with my stuffed leopard in my arms, even when I sleep at my girlfriend's. Just some of my quirks that come to mind
#24 Perfect Alignment
The sheets on my bed have to be perfectly aligned. Not just neat, but there has to be a perfectly flat base, and any blankets, sheets or doonas have to have exactly the same amount of overhang on both sides of the bed, the top has to align exactly with the bottom of the pillows. My boyfriend is used to it now, but he used to wake up all the time in the middle of the night when I have to fix the sheets.
#25 I Need New Friends
I apparently think aloud a lot and "talk to myself" in group chats. No, I'm talking to you or the group, but you guys cut me off or ignore me. So people give me heck for that, but that's not my "quirk." That's them being rude, which leads to my real "quirk" of staying home a lot. Do you know why I stay home a lot? I enjoy a certain level of it, but I'm also sick of being cut off or ignored. Nothing hurts more than being mid-sentence then everyone looking away for a new conversation. I'm not even a quiet person, so it's not like they can't hear me.
#26 Attention-Seeker
I’ve been called attention-seeking for my sometimes random and erratic behavior. The truth is, I grew up shy and bullied and was terrified to even walk in front of a large crowd when in a line at school. I thought everyone would stare at me and judge me. So, I started acting strange (like making funny faces or running like a raptor) in order to give myself confidence. It worked because now I knew they were looking at me, and often laughing, but only because I wanted them to.
#27 A Giggling Goon
I nervously giggle after saying almost anything. I never realized I did it until my boyfriend told me. I asked my friends if they ever noticed and they all said it’s cute, but I imagine it makes me sound like a goon.
#28 Loyal To Utensils
I use a knife and fork for EVERY meal. Burgers, pizza, sandwiches... you name it. Okay, not soup (obviously I had to clarify that) but you get the idea. It's because I have a slight phobia of my hands being messy or greasy and often I struggle to even watch other people eating with their hands. It's a perfectly manageable OCD trait when I'm at home or a restaurant, but festivals and street food are no fun for me.
#29 The Last Bite
I like the pizza itself more than the crust, so I eat all the crust off my slice first. I then look at the slice, decide which part looks like the best bite, and eat around it until it's all that's left and savor my last bite like the best part of the slice. I know I look gross by the end of it all, but man, I just want to save the best bite for last.
#30 The Rhino Step
Everyone gives me heck because I walk around like a freaking rhino. Clumsy and loud! I don't even get it... I try to be quiet and graceful, but it just flat out doesn't work. It works to my benefit I guess because the last time I was super quiet and tried to calmly speak to my wife, I inadvertently snuck up on her. She screamed thinking I was someone else coming around the doorway and punched me in the chest. Lesson learned. Rhino it is.
#31 Speed Eater
I eat quickly, apparently. I don't take overly large bites (by my standards) and I chew all my food before going to the next bite, so it's not like I'm cramming it all in my mouth like a savage. Still, I almost always finish my meal well ahead of others at social gatherings and someone will usually point it out.
#32 Clumsy Tendencies
I have this weird habit of just dropping things. I'll go to hand something to someone and won't be paying enough attention, so I'll think their hand is right there then drop the item (supposedly into their open hand) but they weren't there yet so it just drops. Also, on the flip side if I'm handing something delicate I wait until they physically grasp it, but then they try to yank it away before I've let go. I get a lot of heck for both. I also just drop things when I'm done with them. I don't know.
#33 Mental Jukebox
Singing. I constantly have one song or another stuck in my head. Constantly. Constantly. Literally, it's never-ending. Right now, my internal jukebox is playing "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls. Then, I'll wake up and immediately hear some random song by Seven Lions in my head. It's all over the freaking place and it spans every possible genre.
#34 The Michelin Man
As a teenager, I used to carry a down jacket in a stuff sack on my bicycle. If I got cold, I'd put it on. They called me "Michelin Man". What gradually stopped it was apparently no one could resist asking me: "Are you cold?" I'd answer, "No, I have a down jacket on. Why would I be cold?"
#35 Super Zen
My wife worries about every tiny little thing. Does stressing or worrying about it change anything? No. Might as well relax and find a solution instead of making yourself sick for no reason. I understand that people are just wired that way but I'm not, so people think I don't care when in reality I'm usually thinking about the best course of action instead of just freaking out.
#36 A Genuine Smile
I’m generally a happy person and I smile a lot in conversation. Especially if I’m nervous. My boss for my current job thought there had to have been some cute girl waving at me in the restaurant when I met him for my interview. Apparently, a tall, bearded guy smiling all the time is weird. I feel like he's weird for thinking being happy is weird.
#37 The Avid Oversharer
I tend to overshare and it seems like I barely have any filter. I often end up in a situation where everyone gets annoyed or weirded out because of too much information I shared. The worst is when I walk away thinking I just had a really good conversation, then realize it was just 10 minutes of me oversharing.
#38 The Customer Service Voice
I change my accent depending on who I talk to. I wasn't even aware of it until I was with some friends and ran into my cousin. They said it was like night and day. For example, my customer service voice will often default back to an Irish accent. Though, I have long since lost most of it living in Canada for so long. People find it hilarious and my staff knows when I'm in customer service mode.
#39 Four Sentences Or Fewer
I often give a lot of unnecessary background information to stories I tell. I like the listener to feel like they were there, or that it helps understand. Someone I used to work with did this as well, so we invented a game called “Four Sentences or Fewer.” A fun game where one of us started to tell a story, we could challenge them to condense it.
#40 Turned-Up Nose
My mom thinks that I "turn my nose up" at people all the time. No, I just don't have anything to say to them. The same thing happened to me at every school I've been to. The only difference is that I was able to fake confidence and could navigate through a conversation decently. When you already have bad self-esteem, it's always great to hear, "Hey, everyone thinks you are a jerk because you never talk."
#41 Rulebook Follower
I like being absolutely clear about things when people are talking to me. It leads to a lot of questions people find frivolous. Similarly, before doing something or working, I want to know the entire plan start to finish before doing anything. What are the end goals and your plan? This drives "get it done" people absolutely livid.
#42 Personal Space
I have a big thing about personal space. If people sit closer than half an arm's length unnecessarily (as in you sit on the couch cushion next to me as opposed to the open cushion on the other side) it wigs me the heck out. It leads to new thinking I have problem with them and makes flirting with women almost impossible.
#43 Seated Twerking
Most people tap their foot or a pencil as their excess energy thing. I like to flex my butt. Not the whole thing though, just one cheek at a time and alternate. A lot of people think I’m trying to twerk just randomly throughout the day.
#44 Buttering Technique
According to my significant other, the way I spread butter or whatever on bread is unusual. I still have no idea what she means and she doesn't either... it just looks weird to her.
#45 A Good Cackle
When I laugh intensely, I cackle. It's loud and makes me seem even eviler. There was a quote I heard once about not making fun of someone's laugh because you make them self-conscious in a moment of joy and you can't ever take that back.
