The Compulsion to Finish a Book You Stopped Enjoying Long Ago
There is a particular kind of stubbornness that emerges somewhere around page 180 of a book you have already stopped
The Reluctance to Sit in a Chair Someone Has Just Vacated
There is a chair, still warm. The person who occupied it has just stood — to get coffee, to take a
The Compulsion to Read a Message Twice Before Deciding You Understood It the First Time
There is a particular hesitation that happens after reading a message. Not before, and not during — after. The words have
The Urge to Narrate a Journey to Someone Who Wasn't There
There is something humans do on the way home. Before they have even arrived, before the bag is set down
The Instinct to Tidy Up Before the Cleaner Arrives
There is a behavior, common enough to be unremarkable, in which a person spends thirty minutes cleaning their home before
The Tendency to Soften a Refusal by Pretending You Lack the Ability Rather Than the Willingness
There is a small dishonesty that hides inside politeness. It goes like this: someone asks for something you won'
The Impulse to Warn Someone About a Film You Have Already Ruined
There is a particular kind of person who, midway through describing a film to you, will pause and say: "
The Habit of Reading Tone Into Punctuation That Was Never Meant to Have Any
There is a period at the end of a text message that has, in certain circles, come to mean something
The Urge to Prepare a Room for Someone Who Has Already Left
There is something particular about the urge to prepare. To buy the good soap before the guest arrives, to fold
The Need to Acknowledge a Mirror Before Walking Past It
There is a behavior that seems almost universal, and it is this: upon passing a mirror, most humans look. Not
