This will be short, because I should either (a) finish working on my talk or (b) go to bed, but instead, I find myself blogging. I'm reading a book called "Perfecting Ourselves to Death" by Richard Winter. Somewhat dry, as any good book by a perfectionist should be. Anyhow, if you're anywhere near as immature as I am, I'm sure you'll enjoy this selection from the chapter I read last night (p.118-119):
"Freud believed that perfectionism and obsessive-compulsive tendencies are caused by what he called a "fixation" at the anal stage of life (18 mo to 3 yrs)... when the parents are anxious that the child should be potty trained. In the anal stage, children begin to realize that they have some control over when and where they empty their bowels. Freud believed that the characteristics of the obsessive, retentive, miserly type of person were rooted in the child's ability to control his parents by holding everything in while on the pot."
Hence the origin of the phrase "anal retentive." So, if you're any degree of perfectionist (like me)... be sure to ask your parents about that. :-) Or you can just throw it off as Freudian crap... pun totally intended.
I love that I find myself funny. I apologize profusely if you do not share that sentiment.
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3 comments:
this had me laughing a lot. thank you!
your fellow anal retentive friend,
jenn :)
I gotta admit snorting pretty loudly when I read that part.
priceless.
ps I finished the book last night. you?
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