The quirks of living alone.

Image via holliefernando on Flickr
I have a rather scanty list of "Things that make me go hmm" this week, so I'm also going to use this post to expound on one particularly interesting article I found last week: "One is the Quirkest Number: The Freedom, and Perils, of Living Alone" from the New York Times. (And be sure to read my postscript for an exciting announcement!)

I have lived alone since mid-January, and I absolutely love it. I lived on my own once before, for seven weeks in the summer of 2010, and I remember everyone telling me I would hate it and be lonely. Wrong! In fact, I even blogged about it on my old (and short-lived) Wordpress blog. The freedom to be my quirky self without needing to worry about the comfort is others is (selfishly) refreshing. I can type obnoxiously loud, fill the refrigerator with abnormal amounts of iced tea and egg salad, and watch Law & Order marathons on Netflix without worrying about if my roommate is trying to sleep or won't like the smell of egg salad or wants to watch something atrocious like Jersey Shore. 

Now, I realize none of these things are especially "quirky;" they're simply habits that might annoy roommates. But, the first page of the NYT article does list several "quirky" habits I've developed during my new-found freedom: I rarely wear pants in my apartment. I leave things in the dryer until I want to wear them. My desk chairs and futon double as closets because I don't have enough hangers for all my coats and cardigans. I never close the bathroom door. I scrapbook and/or do ab workouts smack-dab in the middle of the floor during television commercials and basketball games. Although these things would obviously be annoying to a human, I believe even a pet would cramp my solitary lifestyle. Any self-respecting cat or dog would jump out the window at hearing my (oft-performed) rendition of “two-four-six-oh-ooooooooooooooooooone!”

And that's basically my take on being quirky while living alone. Have you ever lived alone? What were your quirks? Or if you haven't, what things would you be able to do living alone that you don't do now?

And of course, here are things that made me go "hmm" this week:

• Be careful when urinating in your front yard. You might end up on Google Street View!
• Rest easy, American travelers. Apparently we’re better tourists than the British!
• The best St. Patrick’s Day celebrations outside Ireland.
• Social media’s newest gift to travel: Picking the perfect seatmate.

P.S. - I've decided to turn my new Travel Tuesday series into a link-up! I welcome you to write about anything travel-related, but just so you know, I'll be writing about the art of packing this week, including my secrets and preferences. I hope to see you on Tuesday! (Also please feel free to link to any old travel posts you've written that you're particularly fond of. I can't wait to read them!)