Strange things that give you a kind of "ick" in everyday life

[CariahMary]

I don't mean getting the "ick" about a sexual or romantic partner. And I don't mean being put-off by things that are actually pretty grim. I mean random things that you inexplicably find a bit off-putting in everyday life.

For me, I get a kind of "ick" when I read other people talking about food on forums MN I honestly had no idea why. It's so odd, I really like reading food descriptions in books but in forums I find it really off-putting.

In the real-world, I also really hate opening other people's fridges. They always smell weird (different from my own). I have to hold my breath.

Re snogging it’s the noise it makes that makes me shudder, can’t stand kissing in films or tv for this reason, it’s deeply unsexy.

Squeaky eyes 😨

For me it’s a lot of phrasing, like things that sound ‘lazy” like places that have an unnecessary ‘s’ on the end eg.
“Im going Tescos, costas, asdas.” Bleh.

Anything bum. Change his bum, did his bum. Cleaned his bum. 🤢

When someone wears a grey tracksuit I always think it’s dirty.

Yep, hand dryers for me too. In fact I find them positively revolting - I mean, all that air being whirled and swirled around inside the windowless toilets which are never ventilated except maybe via some air-con, who knows how much fresh air even comes in.

Air-conditioned gyms - only bearable b/c they are air conditioned and often kept cold - surely all the sweaty smells are just cooled and air not exactly renewed. I do like the outdoor gyms 🙂

I really dont like it when people stick out their tongue. 😳 It’s especially bad in photos.

Nails. Especially long nails but nails generally.

I get the ick at people getting the ick all the time. Can’t we be a bit more accepting and tolerant

(are you in a constant state of ick?)

Honestly, yes. My list here hardly even scratches the surface 🤣

Loved the one about hairdressers handling your hair in a feeble way. I dislike being stroked in a feeble way too.

Any overly gentle and feeble human contact really sets my teeth on edge. Feeble hair-styling, feeble stroking, limp handshakes, weak hugs etc. All unacceptable!

Why are you on this thread? It’s supposed to be lighthearted. We all have different things, that’s what makes the world interesting. Means one of us wont be attracted to the super hot partner who has long toenails and he wont go after someone who says the word “bum”: 🤣 its all fine.

You’re missing the point of what an ‘ick’ is. It’s one of those things that silently irks you or sets your teeth privately on edge. Nobody is confronting anyone about this stuff. The icker has no idea the ickee is being icked, so the icker is unaffected by any of it. An ick is a harmless thing.

Yes to feeble!!! I hate when youre getting a head massage and they just gentle dust the hair so the hair just rubs your head. its like come on!!

People who put their feet on public chairs, either public transport or work. Ugh.

Same with dogs.

Yes I have dogs and shoes. Neither are permitted on furniture.

And why does a wee crumb feel the size of a boulder on your skin whilst trying to get comfy

People who have sore throats and are talking. Either cough and clear it, or shut up. I have to turn the channel if Sean Dyche is being interviewed. Which is challenging given I live in a house of Nottingham Forest fans.

Gen Z influencers who live alone and post reels about their morning routines and how they get up at 5 am and head off to the gym after just applying some moisturizer, then they come back, make a collegen smoothie, take their vitamins,.make some eggs, eat their eggs while looking out at the London skyline from their high rise flat, then have a shower and do a 25 step skin care routine. The whole thing annoys me.

Vapers in public. They stand out to me because I'm instantly drawn to our ridiculous they look.

Vape shops. They need to be destroyed and removed from the high street.

Those cheap clothes shops which have racks and racks of £5 clothes, usually with techno music playing.

Those overpriced Dessert Shops with the neon pink signage, and the people who go there.

Men who do the school run that look like they've just rolled out of bed - they usually wear tracksuit bottoms and a hoodie and you can tell they havent showered. Linked to this - men who wear sliders or flip flops on the school run.

I hate looking at drivers while I'm waiting to cross the road. I can't stand the thought of making eye contact with any of them. I look in the opposite direction or down to the ground, glancing up once in a while to check if there's a gap to cross yet.

Pre-cut up fruit and vegetables, especially ones in supermarkets that will have been in the packets for days. It grosses me out so much.

Small dogs, especially pale, long-haired ones, that get the brown dribble staining the fur either side of their mouths.

People eating food in enclosed public spaces like train carriages and aeroplanes. It always ends up smelling like a million farts and no one is allowed to open a train window anymore to let the stink out.

Taking the bus on cold, wet days when it’s packed, every window shut. You could cut the air with knife it’s so humid. I guess I’m realising while writing this that any enclosed space full of people without adequate airflow just makes the normal habits of strangers unbearable for me.

Men in long jackets with skinny jeans
Rustling bags in the cinema - adults being so desperate for a sweet. Yuk.
Men ill and wearing dressing gowns for effect - performative 😂
Cheese and meat together
People watching videos in public spaces and without earphones.

Used tea bags. Yuk

Really @BauhausOfEliottthat’s a bit of a contradiction, as your now, you’re trying to argue with me.Thanks for the explanation, glad you got it off your chest.
There is a difference though between having an Ick and being overly judgmental and unkind, apparently it’s ok for @PrayForMyBum to find animals repellent, then actually l really don’t need your permission, to say, that’s not an Ick that’s just demonstrating, that person is unreasonable because it’s none of their business, if someone cares for a domesticated animal.So you disagree with my comments… l’ll say what l want to say, thank you.

People being tight, or being slow to get their wallet out 🤮

People blowing out candles of birthday cakes and then you're offered a piece. Since covid and all those winter flu videos that show how bacteria spread from your mouth when you exhale violently I just can't eat it. I have to make an excuse. Even worse when it's a child and they blow hugely then their younger siblings all get a go. Makes me heave internally now

Musicians/ singers in tight long sleeved tops that are either sequinned or look polyester ish. I can't stop thinking about how sweaty / smelly they must be in them. I really have to concentrate on other things to get it out of my head.

🙄 if you say so @BauhausOfEliott

Bubble tea.
Vaping. You look like a baby sucking on a dummy but you're a grown adult. Oh and your breath absolutely stinks
Anything with pumpkin in it that's not a soup. No drink needs pumpkin in it.

I thought i was a bit odd for being repulsed by this! Turns out im not the only one.

Wooden spoons are absolutely disgusting. They sort of stick in your mouth and the food doesn't slide off them properly

I think getting the ick is often uncontrollable. I tell myself that it doesn't matter if someone wears socks with sandals, and if a man wants long nails that's fine, and some people can't help eating with their mouths open... But they still make me shudder.