hand-shaking

I don't like shaking hands with people and would much prefer a fist bump. People's hands are so dirty and one of the biggest culprits to passing on germs and bacteria. After witnessing so many people playing with their feet in public, I especially hate hand-shaking.

that extra flavor

It makes my stomach churn when I see people eat food that had fallen on the ground or a public table...

potlucks

Potlucks are a germaphobe's nightmare. Some people have no qualms grabbing community/shared food with their fingers. People sneeze and breathe into the food. I guess potlucks are not too much different than a buffet but some potlucks don't have enough serving utensils so the chances of people grabbing food with their fingers are high AND potlucks don't have sneeze guards to protect me from the coughing and sneezing of others. At least buffets have the illusion of a sneeze guard to help me sleep easier at night. Two of the worst things I ever witnessed at a potluck had to do with toes and hands. In one incident, I watched someone massage her bare feet with her hands and then reach into a bag of chips. At another potluck someone had dumped out a bag of chips into a bowl. After the potluck, she proceeded to grab the chips in the bowl and put them back into the bag, handful by handful. She then brought this bag of chips for a second potluck... Lesson: Never eat from an opened bag of chips that you haven't been watching like a hawk.

restaurant dos and donts

Don't leave utensils and a stack of plates on the table for customers to help themselves to. It's pretty disgusting to imagine that the previous ten people who sat at the same table you did touched the plates and utensils too... or maybe even inadvertently (or purposively!) spat on it.

Do make sure to put toilet paper in the dispenser! It's always so disgusting to see the toilet paper rolling around on the bathroom floor or sitting somewhere inside a stall, like on top of the dispenser, so that everyone's filthy hands have touched the entire roll. Maybe I should starting bringing my own toilet paper..

shoes inside the house

I know a lot of people don't care if people wear their shoes inside the house.. but WHY?? Shoes drag in so many disgusting things.

buffets

I like buffets as long as people follow buffet etiquette, and if I see someone violating buffet etiquette, I avoid those select items. If you're wondering what buffet etiquette is, most signs read: Don't eat in line. Don't ever touch food with hands while in the buffet line. Always take a new fresh plate when going back for more.

That pretty much sums it up. I very clearly remember an experience at the buffet where I heard a man scream, "Get your goddamn fingers out of the food!!!!!" I looked up to see an older woman sheepishly pulling her fingers out of a dish. That was SO NASTY.

getting arrested

I would never want to get arrested. As I was driving by an arrest being made over the weekend, I saw that the police had the guy on the ground. That is so disgusting. The ground is filthy; the bottom of people's shoes are so dirty and transport so much bacteria. I don't even want to imagine what it would feel like having to lie face down on the ground.

street foods

There are so many reasons why I would not buy food from a street vendor but the biggest reason is because there is no where in that vendor's booth for him/her to wash his/her hands, and that makes me very nervous.

wash your hands

I'm not the only one who has people wash their hands when they first come into my home! Granted, the other person who does it has a toddler in the home..

I feel much better when people wash their hands first. I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that they're leaving outside germs/bacteria at the doorstep (or I guess, down the drain).

interview with a germaphobe

After discovering that a fellow germaphobe had committed a germaphobe code violation, I conducted a one-question interview with him by asking him how he became the germaphobe that he is.

His response: "I used to get sick a lot and I used to wonder why. Ever since I became more mindful I rarely get sick. After those humble beginnings I evolved into what I am today, which is someone who is almost hypersensitive to displays of bad germ etiquette. When people cough in my direction, I momentarily hold my breath."

While I didn't become this way due to frequent illness, I have noticed that I get sick a lot less since I also became hyperaware of those committing germ violations all around me and then avoiding them.

resolution

My New Year's Resolution is to continue to spread the gospel about germs and how we can all play a role in helping others with proper germ etiquette. Please remember to wash your hands with soap for at least twenty seconds before you eat!

2011

Wishing you all a New Year full of good hygiene, proper germ etiquette, and cleanliness! May you continue sneezing and coughing into the inside of your elbow and washing your hands with soap for a full 20 seconds!