Several years ago, I read an article in Cosmopolitan magazine that outlined the things you should or should not do in front of your boyfriend/husband.   One that I remembered was you can brush your hair, but not your teeth in front of your guy.  Makes sense.  Brushing your hair is more romantic and sensuous but brushing your teeth is not a pretty sight.  But after 45 years of marriage, it’s not a deal breaker for us.  

I was intrigued by these observations and stumbled upon a recent list from Cosmo that declared that your daily habits reveal your personality.  Hmmm.  For instance, a body language expert claims that the way you walk reveals a lot about you.  Another study by therapist, Dr. Gilda Carle, suggested that the way you hang your toilet paper says a lot about your personality.  She surveyed 2,000 men and women about whether they hang their toilet paper in the overhand or underhand position. According to this Cosmo article, Dr. Carle’s results suggest that those who prefer the “overhand” method are more dominant, while the “underhanders” tend to be more submissive.  Who knew?  And who really cares?

We all likely spend too much time on our phones.  I personally cannot leave the house without my phone.   According to an earlier study in 2015, scientists noted a strong link between a person’s attachment to their cell phone and their “emotional stability.”  I’m certain if the study were repeated, it would be even more disturbing about our attachment to this device.  

Yet another study published in the Journal of Research in Personality suggests that analyzing a person’s time of arrival indicates that those who arrive on time were more “conscientious and agreeable” while those who are chronically late are more “laid-back.”  Which are you?  How about your friends?  You know the ones that arrive early and are pacing by the time you arrive.  Or the ones who keep you waiting and are just “running a few minutes behind” because they had one last thing to do before they left their home or office.  

The trait that I really found interesting was about analyzing your handwriting.  I feel that my handwriting has changed through the years.  Remember in first grade when you had to learn how to print the alphabet.  Then came cursive writing, for those of us old enough to have been required to learn to write in that lovely flowing penmanship.  You learned by repetition.  Over and over again. 

I remember even years after, I would “doodle” and find myself practicing my penmanship.  I would try to be exacting about the formation of each letter.  But then, when I put the letters all together, I tended to put my own mark on my penmanship.  And my writing has morphed into differing styles it seems. 

Now, my arthritic fingers certainly affect my writing.  And I’m less patient with how my writing looks.  Think about the way you sign your name.  I bet that has changed over time.  Mine certainly has.  And when I do have to sign my name to a document, card, or letter, each iteration is different it seems.  

According to this article, people “who write large are people-oriented and attention seeking, whereas those with small handwriting are introverted.” It also suggests that “writing with a slight right slant means you’re friendly and impulsive; a left slant means you’re reserved and individualistic. No slant suggests you’re logical and pragmatic.”

So, I know you’re going to get the pen and paper to check out your signature and your writing style.  Don’t be too quick to accept that you are “attention seeking” or “impulsive.”  Remember this is a Cosmopolitan article and not a scientific journal.

 

Bonnie Brown writes a weekly column for The Oxford Eagle. Contact here at bbrown@oxfordeagle.com