?

Since I was a kid I've had weird little quirks that usually got dismissed as "habits", including a crazy ritual I had to do when I was 9 or 10, where before my evening meal every day I had to do some weird clapping thing and turning my head left and right. Thankfully, this only lasted a few months, but my other tendencies are coming back worse now I'm in my mid-teens.

I took an online OCD test which said that I DON'T have it, and also said that normally people have weird little habits that border on obsessive. So I'm just wondering if what I do is normal.

For example at the moment, I feel the need to touch some surfaces when I go past them/see them for no reason, sometimes several times; I have a nervous tic in my right eye which gets worse when I'm tired or I look at screens (lots of people have noticed this which I'm a bit apprehensive about); I feel I have to do things to prevent bad situations, e.g. touching or blinking at photos of my family to stop bad things happening to them; I tense and untense certain muscles constantly for no reason (the muscles on the inside of my knees are most common).

I also don't like people other than close family touching me because I don't like the clammy feel of other people's hands, and I can get very worried about disease/illness/infection - especially ones that could be serious, e.g. I could get a new mole or freckle and obsessively worry over it being skin cancer or something.

These are just a few, I won't bore you. So does anyone else get quirks like these or do I need a professional test?

I've only recently developed a horrible fear over crane flies/daddy long legs flies. I think there's been a lot more than usual this summer and they keep coming into my bedroom etc and I just find them awful, I can't stand being too close to one, I just start panicking.

I try to explain to people this inexplicable phobia but no one takes it seriously - my friends for example hold the things by the legs and chase me with it, which doesn't exactly help...

So, yeah, I'm wondering how to get over this because I feel like an idiot when I run away from them all the time; I'm usually find around bugs/spiders etc.

Thanks for any answers!

I've only recently developed a horrible fear over crane flies/daddy long legs flies. I think there's been a lot more than usual this summer and they keep coming into my bedroom etc and I just find them awful, I can't stand being close to one, I just start panicking.

I try to explain to people this inexplicable phobia but no one takes it seriously - my friends for example hold the things by the legs and chase me with it, which doesn't exactly help...

So, yeah, I'm wondering how to get over this because I feel like an idiot when I run away from them all the time; I'm usually fine around bugs/spiders etc.

Thanks for any answers!

How could you say "I try to wear as little leather as possible" in French?

I've started with "J'essaye porter..." but the rest seems hard to phrase. Thanks for any help!

If you wanted to say 'He was the first of the glorious kings" (random, I know), could you say "il fut le premier du les rois glorieux" so that you get the "of" in there?

Otherwise it's "des rois glorieux" which is just "he was the first the glorious kings", but I don't know which is actually correct...

Thanks for your help! :)

If people in the military have to address their superiors as "Sir", what do they say to a superior who's female? Is it "Ma'am" 'cause that sounds a bit posh...?

You know, when you write about exam results and previous jobs...what your skills/weak points are etc. I think it starts with 'e', but the word's just gone completely out of my head!

Can anyone tell me how to say this in French? It's for something I'm writing about a girl with a hobby that keeps her going (irrelevant, but oh well). I don't trust google translate ;)

In the context of "young people - as young as thirteen or fourteen"

i.e. "les jeunes - .... treize ou quatorze ans"

Thank you! :)

Can you tell me if I've used the word "degradation" right in this sentence? -

And then I cross the main road a little further down, and watch the gradual degradation of the houses; from welcoming cottages with their lively gardens to run-down terraces with boarded-up windows and stained walls.

Thanks for your help! :)

http://www.wattpad.com/story/4199040-caught-up

This is the first romance story I've ever written, so I want some feedback on the basic plotline. The link is to the "blurb", and I'd appreciate if you could read the first chapter too if possible.

The story is about a 17-year-old girl called Leah whose house gets broken into while she's home alone. The burglar - a boy about the same age as her - threatens her before leaving, and she doesn't want to think about the incident afterwards.

But then he turns up at the respite centre she works at, asking for help; and after they've talked for a few sessions, she finds out more about his life - how his dad was murdered a few years back, and his mother takes it out on him. And soon, she finds that she's falling for him.

When everything seems to be going well, she hears that he's stabbed someone and is on the run from the police. They agree to meet up under a motorway bridge (which is where they met up before it went wrong) and he explains that a few older boys from his area were pushing him around and teasing him about getting beaten by his mum, and they were going to hurt him. He couldn't take it anymore.

So Leah has to try and get them both out of this mess.

It's only a rough idea at the moment, but if you've got any suggestions for improvement, I'd appreciate it ;)

I've played guitar for about five years now, but I've only just started using power chords, and I've found that my little finger gets all stiff after a few minutes of playing.

Is this just a normal part of getting used to power chords?

Thanks for any answers ;)

I'm a 15-year-old girl, and I know for a fact that I don't do enough exercise.

But it's an awkward age to want to exercise, because I feel I'm too young to go to a gym and would feel very out of place, so I'm wondering if anyone knows any good exercises I can do?

However, I'm really not a very social person - I get very nervous and shy around meeting new people, so I'd rather not do any team sports. And I'm afraid people would judge me if I went out running, because I look very young for my age. But running seems to be the only time of physical activity I'm good at...

I appreciate any suggestions :) Thank you

What do you think of the first installment of a short story I'm working on?

http://www.wattpad.com/12068803-the-insurgents%27-...

It's called The Insurgents' League, and it's fantasy/adventure, which is a genre I'm starting to get more interested in writing. Any feedback is much appreciated!

Also, if anyone has wattpad, I'd be more than happy to read your work in return ;D

Without really thinking it would work, I switched my iPhone to the Australian iTunes store to see if I could get an album only available in Australia. Obviously, it didn't, and know I want to buy something else but I can't remember how I switched stores.

I really need to get back to the UK one! (it's an iphone 4S if that's of any use to anyone... o.O)

http://www.wattpad.com/story/2102461-flint

It's my first wattpad book, but I've been writing for a while anyway. I'd love it if you could tell me what you think, and please do read on if you like it!! ;D

I've been getting a bit of writers' block lately, and I fancy writing a short story to overcome it. If you could give me a starting point, that'd be great! Anything will do - I just want a subject to start writing about.

Thanks! :)

Is it 1:1 , 2:1 ??

I understand that 75% and 25% of something is 3:1 but I don't get 50% and 50%. Surely it should be 1:1? Someone please explain!! Thank you :)

Hydrocarbon A - the mass of fuel burnt in heating 50cm^3 of water from 25 to 40 degrees is 6 grams.

Hydrocarbon B - the mass is 13 grams.

Which fuel contains more energy per gram? Is it the one that has used the most energy, or vice versa?

...than a blanket without holes? Why is this? Please explain whether it's conduction, convection etc.