What's unique about you?

[Katzenmusik]

Let's see...

I was a member of an all-accordion orchestra for two years! Fun times.

I LOVE urban exploration--as in, exploring abandoned buildings such as mental hospitals and defunct factories or transit systems. This hobby is actually what led me to get interested in the field I'm now hoping to pursue (history of the urban built environment/historic preservation).

I have fantasies of supporting myself by growing crops in the yard and working in Antarctica for a few months each year.

Edited January 10, 2010 by Katzenmusik

[Serric]

Let's see...

I was a member of an all-accordion orchestra for two years! Fun times.

I LOVE urban exploration--as in, exploring abandoned buildings such as mental hospitals and defunct factories or transit systems. This hobby is actually what led me to get interested in the field I'm now hoping to pursue (history of the urban built environment/historic preservation).

I have fantasies of supporting myself by growing crops in the yard and working in Antarctica for a few months each year.

Totally agree with the urban exploration part. My favorite thing to do whenever I move to a new city is to try and get myself lost, so I find stuff getting back that I never would have otherwise. A good sense of direction makes this a challenging task, but it's a blast spending three hours walking around somewhere new and finding a couple small curio shops or bistros you wouldn't have otherwise.

I'm a heavy metal drummer (Devildriver's an inspiration for drums, and I'm trying my best to surpass his speed), but have an inordinate weakness for cute animals (note: I'm also a guy). One of the things I'm looking forward to about grad school is moving out of my current place and being able to have pets (i.e. a lionhead bunny).

I'm off-white (half Puerto Rican, quarter Italian, quarter Irish), but I have foot-long dreadlocks that I often use to hit the crash cymbal when I drum.

I have synesthesia. My particular version of it is that words have a physical shape and texture to me--'emerald', for example, has a soft, almost cotton-candy-like feel.

[melusine]

Totally agree with the urban exploration part. My favorite thing to do whenever I move to a new city is to try and get myself lost, so I find stuff getting back that I never would have otherwise. A good sense of direction makes this a challenging task, but it's a blast spending three hours walking around somewhere new and finding a couple small curio shops or bistros you wouldn't have otherwise.

I'm a heavy metal drummer (Devildriver's an inspiration for drums, and I'm trying my best to surpass his speed), but have an inordinate weakness for cute animals (note: I'm also a guy). One of the things I'm looking forward to about grad school is moving out of my current place and being able to have pets (i.e. a lionhead bunny).

I'm off-white (half Puerto Rican, quarter Italian, quarter Irish), but I have foot-long dreadlocks that I often use to hit the crash cymbal when I drum.

I have synesthesia. My particular version of it is that words have a physical shape and texture to me--'emerald', for example, has a soft, almost cotton-candy-like feel.

(hope my bf isn't reading this but..) you sound HOT! lol

I say it in all my unbiased/anonymity-protected/spatially-distant earnestness!

[Emilee]

I am deathly afraid of wrists and ice cream men! No joke! I know this sounds weird, but it is very true. When I was little, I watched the movie The Ice Cream Man and every since then, I have been horrified of ice cream men. Luckily, I live in the country and there is no ice cream trucks driving around with that creepy music playing. Once while at a public pool swimming, an ice cream truck pulled up. Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I broke some sort of record for holding my breath under water. My fear of wrist is 1,000,000 times worse, however! My wrist are small and I can see the blue veins and that really freaks me out! I am afraid of accidentally cutting myself and dying. My friends back in high school knew about this and were always pretending to cut themselves and I would always gag and get real light headed. If I see something gross in a movie, my wrist and arms begin going numb and I get real weak. When I wear a watch and bracelets, I keep them pushed up on my arm so they don't touch my wrist and when I wear clothes with long sleeves, I make sure the sleeve goes past my hand in length. I don't like people talking about wrist or touching mine. I don't know how I got this way, but just typing this stuff makes me feel nauseous.

I can sorta of sympathize with your fear of wrist. I have huge veins on my feet that stick out and I'm always afraid that I might accidentially cut them or someone may step on them and then I'll bleed to the death. Although it has not gotten to the point that I won't wear shoes.

However, I am more afraid of automatic glass doors (the kind at grocery stores). I am afraid they will not open for me and avoid them when I can. This probably stemmed from an incident in my childhood when I repeatedly ran into a glass pane door that was sooo clean that I did not realize it was there.

[starfish]

I was in the Navy for six years. I learned Chinese, had a top secret clearance and worked in an underground bunker in Hawaii. Then I decided to study modern French art history, go figure.

I also hate synthetic fabrics, adore marshmallows and always try to drive the speed limit.

[Pamphilia]

I have synesthesia. My particular version of it is that words have a physical shape and texture to me--'emerald', for example, has a soft, almost cotton-candy-like feel.

Me too!! Words, numbers, letters, and tones/music notes have shapes and colors. The note A440 is and always has been RED. If you play an A on the G-string of a violin, it is a burnt-orange triangle. Seven is yellow. The numbers/letters and colors thing make Sudoku and wordfinds really easy.

Have you ever talked about this stuff with another synesthede? It can be really annoying if another person says that one concept is a different sense than the way you experience it. It would be like someone saying, "the sky is green" instead of "the sky is blue," or "2+2=5." Things that are just so clearly not. Haha, for me, when I read your experience of the word "emerald," I was like, "Um, NO!" But I no doubt have annoyed your or someone else's sensibilities with my experiences.

I didn't learn about synesthesia until I was about 14, and when I did, I was really confused. I thought, "But doesn't everybody see/feel that?" It was very strange and more than a little unnerving to realize that not everyone else experienced the world the way I did.

[socialpsych]

Synaesthesia here too. That's what I always say when I get the "what's unique about you" question in real life, but...I figured it would be far from unique around here (:

[cheesethunder]

I was hit by a bus when I was sixteen. Coma, memory loss, fractured every bone in my face and skull, had to say bye to my silly girlish modelling dreams. (perhaps a good thing, in retrospect lol) But anyway.

You know all those funny movie moments, like the Mean Girls ending, or expressions like "get yourself hit by a bus" or whatever.. Yeah. I hate those.

I mean, I actually *was* hit by a bus. And I'm still scared of the damn things whenever I have to walk too close to the road.

i am glad you are okay!!!!

those things huge! my worrrd.

look at you now though applying to grad school! ambitiion!

[natsteel]

I taught myself to play six instruments (guitar, bass, keyboards, harmonica, mandolin, and lap steel) and sing. I am also a songwriter and taught myself audio engineering and production and recorded two indie records on which I played every instrument.

I write a blog that follows the English football club, Arsenal. Hence, my avatar.

[iCyborg]

Wow you are all so special.

I've just realized I don't have anything unique.

[luar de ouro]

Everyone is so damn special, and reading all of your posts make things like Synaesthesia seem more real (and more amazing) to me.

Here's what I came up with for myself:

I'm have some benign hyperflexibility, which means I'm super bendy without any training. For example, I can do full splits, bend my body backwards into a doughnut, and twist my wrists 360˚ etc. The downside is that my joints are really loose, and I'm more at-risk for dislocations.

I've gone to 4 different elementary schools in 4 different cities.

I can remember melodies from music really well, but could never remember lyrics at all.

[rogue]

Would it be totally weird to admit that I'm jealous of you synaesthetes? Ever since I heard about synaesthesia, maybe 10 years ago, I've secretly wished I had it!

[LifeIsGood]

Rogue, I'm with ya. I read an article in Scientific American about it 20 years ago and immediately wrote a letter to Stephen King suggesting that he use it in one of his books. How awesome would that be?

[ma7eb4i]

Last Friday, through work, I got to play with baby otters. They are extremely curious animals and will crawl all over your body...up on your shoulders, down your shirt, on top of your head. I almost had a cuteness apoplexy. I must've been a Catholic in a past life because I feel guilty about applying to graduate school when I have such a unique job.

[UnlikelyGrad]

Last Friday, through work, I got to play with baby otters. They are extremely curious animals and will crawl all over your body...up on your shoulders, down your shirt, on top of your head. I almost had a cuteness apoplexy. I must've been a Catholic in a past life because I feel guilty about applying to graduate school when I have such a unique job.

How cool!

I used to teach a class on light search and rescue techniques (for civilians--wish I could have had the training to do the heavy stuff). I would love to do it again; I only gave it up because I moved.

[Zamis]

Hmm...

I'm a ninth grade teacher, all subjects. Next month, we're starting a unit on zombies. Interdisciplinary education ftw!

Nevertheless, ma7eb4i, I want your job. As we all know from youtube, etc., baby otters > interdisciplinary education

[jlee306]

I'm have some benign hyperflexibility, which means I'm super bendy without any training. For example, I can do full splits, bend my body backwards into a doughnut, and twist my wrists 360˚ etc.

If you read my thread, you will understand when I say I nearly threw up when I read the part about your wrists.

[jambromr]

arg~ I'm jealous of so many people here!

I always wanted some artistic or musical talent

and synaesthesia - ever since I heard about it in one of the psychology classes I took..

The only thing I can think of about my uniqueness is that I am an Asian who grew up in Africa (mauritania), received a European (French) Education and now wishes to study in America !

(I think I actually used this sentence in one of my essays lol)

[jlee306]

Me too!! Words, numbers, letters, and tones/music notes have shapes and colors. The note A440 is and always has been RED. If you play an A on the G-string of a violin, it is a burnt-orange triangle. Seven is yellow. The numbers/letters and colors thing make Sudoku and wordfinds really easy.

Have you ever talked about this stuff with another synesthede? It can be really annoying if another person says that one concept is a different sense than the way you experience it. It would be like someone saying, "the sky is green" instead of "the sky is blue," or "2+2=5." Things that are just so clearly not. Haha, for me, when I read your experience of the word "emerald," I was like, "Um, NO!" But I no doubt have annoyed your or someone else's sensibilities with my experiences.

I didn't learn about synesthesia until I was about 14, and when I did, I was really confused. I thought, "But doesn't everybody see/feel that?" It was very strange and more than a little unnerving to realize that not everyone else experienced the world the way I did.

This is soooo weird...I had this a while back and didn't even know it was a condition! I would feel certain sensations and then see numbers. Each number had a certain color and shape to it. For example, every time I was touched on the knee, I would see a neon green 7 that was super long, skinny, and scribbly. And when I was touched on the back, a chubby orange 9 came to mind. When I read these posts, I did some research on the term synesthesia. From things that I read, it seems that most people who have this condition have had it since they were little and still have it when they are older. For me, I started having when I was 20 and had it for like 6 months and now it is gone. I wonder why I got it so late and only had it for a short time. I thought I was going crazy when I started seeing the numbers and had only told my fiancé about it. I was annoyed with it at the time because it was highly distracting, but now that I know it is a real condition, I wish I still had it.

[Serric]

(hope my bf isn't reading this but..) you sound HOT! lol

I say it in all my unbiased/anonymity-protected/spatially-distant earnestness!

Well, thank you. I'll let you be the judge:

http://s49.photobucket.com/albums/f253/Enresshou/?action=view&current=Avatar-1.jpg&newest=1

http://s49.photobucket.com/albums/f253/Enresshou/?action=view&current=102_2094.jpg&newest=1 (Bottle-feeding kittens)

As for what else that's unique...

-I have an eidetic memory for useless trivia (really, anything not related to the current coursework I'm working on). I can't recall it at will, but stick me in front of a half hour of Jeopardy! and I will out-score 90% of the contestants. This also applies to comics, science tidbits, quotations, lyrics, and drumbeats. I've gotten to the point where I can recognize virtually any song I've heard before simply by its drum-beats.

-I'm like a real-life Stretch Armstrong. I'm roughly 5'10 or 5'11, but my arm-span is 6'2". I also never quite grew into my hands and feet, since I have size 13 feet and from wrist to fingertips my hands are more than 8 inches across (which has led to an ever-increasing amount of, "Oh, you should play guitar/piano!" over the years)

-I've actually been trained to use/fight with nunchaku, so it's always a neat party trick to make impromptu nunchaku and give a demonstration.

[Beck]

I'm unusually non-buoyant. I need two pool noodles to hold myself up - if I just use one, I slowly vanish downwards in a stream of bubbles. My dad is even denser than I am. He constructed a super-pool-noodle for himself out of four normal-sized ones and cable ties.

I can create clothing from scratch - like, starting with a sheep.

I did most of a degree in astronomy before deciding what I really wanted to do was gender and cultural studies.

I once dislocated my knee in my sleep and to this day, my doctor doesn't believe me that "sleeping" wasn't a euphemism.

Edited January 12, 2010 by Beck

[socialpsych]

I'm unusually non-buoyant. I need two pool noodles to hold myself up - if I just use one, I slowly vanish downwards in a stream of bubbles.

Do you scuba dive? If so, that must come in handy...most of us need to wear weights to get the right buoyancy.

[piccgeek]

I'm unusually non-buoyant. I need two pool noodles to hold myself up - if I just use one, I slowly vanish downwards in a stream of bubbles. My dad is even denser than I am. He constructed a super-pool-noodle for himself out of four normal-sized ones and cable ties.

That's funny, because I am way more than usually buoyant. I can cross my ankles and fold my arms around my chest, be vertical in the water, and not have to even wiggle my toes to keep my head above the water. I feel like my true calling might have been something like water polo.

[Beck]

No, don't scuba-dive. Once upon a time I swam competitively - primarily backstroke, cos to this day, I can't dive, but also butterfly. But the extra energy that went into not sinking rather than propelling me forward counted against me in the long-run. Now I cycle and skate.

And wow, piccgeek, that is REALLY bouyant. My mum, in salt-water, can get into a position like you'd assume in a beanbag and bob up and down all day, high enough in the water to read a book. I'm pretty sure this is what saved me from my dad's four-pool-noodle fate.

[NEPA]

i know the lyrics to the russian national anthem.

"Slav'sya, Otechestvo nashe svobodnoye!" Sorry, couldn't help myself. I'm a bit of a national anthem buff, and the Russian anthem is one of my favorites.