R’s Mom talks about ‘managing to lock and unlock the main door a million and one times‘ when RD is away. Well, here’s a confession, I do it too. *more than a little shamefaced* And what’s more, I do even more crazy things like that.
For some reason, I can’t be entirely sure that everything has been locked safely. Β I am the one locking things normally – whether husband is around or not. For instance when we go out, Husband takes daughter and gets her into the car, while I lock up. And every single time, as soon as I get into the car, he asks me if I have locked the house – and I can never say it with confidence that I have! I would have to run back out to check(husband despairs every time I do this)! Every single time! Just for the recordΒ – the house is always locked!
Or locking the house, and then a doubt creeps in – did I really switch off everything? Do I have any option but to go back in – and in the process have to yank off my boots to get inside and check on everything.
Sometimes I have other more dangerous worries. One time I wasn’t sure if I had taken the plug off after using my hair straightener, and we had to go back to confirm. Again for the record – it was unplugged.
Night time checking is by far the worst. I normally do check before going up to bed. But sometimes,Β every night, just before I doze off, I have these massive doubts. Have I switched off the oven? Have I switched off the gas? Have I locked the door. Sometimes I go down, check and come back. Only for a fresh doubt to grow in my mind. And off I go again – checking and re-checking. Sigh! If only I could get this under control.. Sometimes, I end up going to bed about half an hour later than planned, because of all my doubts. One time I sat up in bed, horrified, smelling something burning. It was only after checking the whole house, that I realized that I must have been dreaming!
While most of the time, my worries have been unfounded, there have been a couple of times when I actually left something on. I forgot to switch off the oven once. I was baking some koftas for dinner. I was back within 20 minutes, but it was still too late to save my koftas π¦ All I could do was be thankful that the house did not burn down! And once, I did leave something boiling on the stove – when I rushed out to school in a hurry. That time, there was plenty of water in the bowl, so it was safe, but both these times, I was shaken. That might be why I am so paranoid now.
My affliction increases a wee bit when husband is not around. And now I have come to understand that the only way around this is to have checklists and to check off all my worry points as soon as I have checked it, and, this is very important Β – sign it off with a time-stamp. That seems the only way I can avoid checking again, again and again π May be one day, some one will come up with a mobile app, that does just that π
So tell me, am I the only crazy one? Or do any of you do these as well?
Me first…and yes yes yes to whatever you wrote…I DO ALL THAT!! I seriously do..RD thinks its some disease I have..wait till I show him this post…Muah to you…
Chalo, I am glad π I am not the only one π
me too showing this post to the husband who believes that he married a lunatic π‘
you are not alone my lady.. Just today evening I left the iron box on for almost 3 hours.
π So glad to have company π
Once we were out on a family day trip and after we were around 40 miles I asked husband if he switched off the stove and he replied as “I thought you will switch it off” π¦ I was restless until we returned home late night. I was expecting some fire engines outside our apartment but luckily we had turned it off :).. Check on locked door is quite common at our household…
π I always worry that one day I will come home to fire engines outside my house π¦
Forgetting to switch off stove – I have done it many times while living with the ILs especially while boiling water. Unfortunately every single time the MIL will switch it off after some one hour and inform me π
π Thank god there was someone to switch it off!
I sometimes have these doubts – occasionally – and go back to check whether I have left something on the gas or if I have switched the geezer off. Usually, I switch off lights and appliances in the house in a sequence, so I can usually know if I haven’t switched off something. π
‘ I switch off lights and appliances in the house in a sequence’ – I wish I were as systematic as that!
Luv the idea of that mobile app!;) Every single sound, be it the lightest of them, has to be tracked down to its source, esp. when the husband is nt arnd π I laugh at it myself, but that is how it is π
π I know! I get all edgy too π Are you back in the blog world for good π I certainly hope so! You are missed here -badly!
I am myself absent minded about switching off these things and need to double check. But not always, only when I am careless.
now I have come to understand that the only way around this is to have checklists and to check off all my worry points as soon as I have checked it, and, this is very important – sign it off with a time-stamp.
I do that with reminders on my mobile to make sure I have done what needs to be done π
Reminders – I do that too.. But sometimes I switch off the reminder and promptly forget about the task π¦
Haha, funny post. I used to do this in college, checking and re-checking my bag to see if the hall ticket was there. I would even check on the bus, when I knew it was anyway too late to go back and get it if I had forgotten.
π I do too! I check if I have my house key – all the time. I keep worrying that I would once day drop it somewhere and then have to call the locksmith to get into my house! Horror of horrors!
Oh, i am almost obsessed about checking of doors. And i do it irrespective of whether hubs is around or not.. Almost always I go back home to check if I’ve locked up properly if i step out.. And don’t even get me started on the gas..Its almost like I have OCD about these things..
π So glad that I am not alone π
as we say in our work its good to be cautious and good to doubt .. for then you RECHECK it all .. so its doubly checked …
That certainly makes sense..
SO be in doubt and CHECK again simple .. then the doubt will go away …
Because of work I guess I have got used to double check everything BUT still I once left my front door open for a couple of days , I had gone to london its only when the next door neighbours returned from their holiday they noticed when they came to collect their mail .. so Phewwwwwwww
Oh goodness! That sounds scary! Thank god nobody entered it while you were away! In London, we had a front door which would lock itself when we closed it. The first two days in Leeds, we assumed that it would be the same, only to realize that we were sleeping in an unlocked house! *shudders at the memory*
I have left the garage door open a lot of time he he he ..
so you are much better then me
take care smitha..
π I guess I am π Thanks so much for that consolation π Although my garage never had anything of value in it!
I had this quirk of Straightening the bed sheets but now I have become an expert in ignoring dirt, mess & live happily π
@ Smita: I too want to want to master the art of ignoring π₯
I was nodding my head to all you wrote, I too have done the re-checking countless times (but to my relief or shock I have actually never had any incident to trigger this habit). I am so glad to read I am not the only crazy soul around π
Smitha same pinch i do with the door.Imagine everytime i lock i climb two floors to check if i locked it properly or not.
Once in dubai i didnt come back to check and we left the house unlocked.Had it been in hyd my house have been looted….So i make it a point to check again and again if it is locked properly or not…
checklists seem to be an effective solution π
Half way through I thought i will leave a comment that you should start a check list and tick it off before hitting bed and then I reached the last para π
Smi, you’re not alone. Meet the queen of crazyville-moi. π
Where have you been??? Are you back for good π **Hoping hard**
Btw that margarita is making me all thirsty now!
bahh…why do you show ek jhalak of you and tarsaa tarsaa ke maarofying us eh? wapas aa bhi jaao Don!! π₯ π₯
Ayye! What’s Sakshu trying to show in her avatar? *Soli closes her virgin eyes*
*handing out her Ek Main Ek Tu goggles to Sol* gee am I dressed too decently for your eyes Don? π
Guilty of all that you have wrote π³
Same pinch then π
I hate the fact that the husband can so blissfully walk out of the house without any care in the world π‘ Me?? It takes me exactly less than 5 mins to get ready but at least 15 mins to check and recheck the lights, gas, unplug appliances, TV, phone, the contents of my bag (and err I have this weird habit of keeping back all the things in their assigned spots) π
It is exactly the same here!!! Husband walks off without a care in the world! So so so so very same!
sigh!! but good to know there are many like us out there to make this world even crazier π
I know! How sad the world would be if all of us were sane and sensible π
even I have that weird habit..just before leaving, try and keep everything back to their assigned spots…as if its going to matter! Gah!
I have forgotten milk on gas twice π¦
but luckily nothing else π
π But did you remember on time? Or did you have a lot of cleaning to do when you got back?
I had a cook who left the pressure cooker on the burner and went off. I came home to the smoke alarm going off, and a house full of smoke. Thankfully nothing else was burnt – thank god for that!
ahh no, both the times utensil was destroyed, smoke and burnt milk smell in home…. And here comes the biggest shocker, I was at home both the times but completely forgot….only when alarm went off that I came to check π¦
Ummm..I am obsessive about keeping my kitchen platform clean ,even while cooking…while the pan is on simmer, I simultaneously clean up. Else never forgotten anything or burnt anything yet.