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I was simply curious as to what you all think makes someone odd, it is hard for me to think of a clear cut definition. Is it the few strange habits people have or is it that they'll do things in a way you wouldn't consider to be normal?

Well discuss, I'm curious as to what you think.

you are odd if you are in any way like me.

person % 2 != 0

Like those "choose the odd one" games, you're categorized as odd if you are different from the ones that are around you.

You can say that everyone is different, though, after all we aren't all clones of each other bar the odd ones.

What is normal anyway? Who defines what/who is normal and what/who isn't?

87654321 wrote:What is normal anyway? Who defines what/who is normal and what/who isn't?

When you think about it, it is incredibly hard (read: practically impossible) to make an all-encompassing description / set of rules for a 'normal' person.

87654321 wrote:Who defines what/who is normal and what/who isn't?

Fashions, per example?

Sockmonkey wrote:You can say that everyone is different, though, after all we aren't all clones of each other bar the odd ones.

Mmm, true.

Let's say you're in a group and you're the odd. Why are you odd? Because the others of your group say so. Why aren't the others, odd? Because each group has its "requirements" or "standards". You don't have/meet those.

Age is a big categorizer

so is what you do.
if you have similar interests to someone, then they are not odd. if someone has different intrests than you, they may be odd.

Oddity is in the eye of the beholder.
Who's to say that someone is odd when they think they are normal through their views?

OMG, as soon as I saw this thread I though exactly what deltainferno said: if you're in any way like me...
but seriously, I don't think anyone is odd, because everyone is different. I recently read a book about a society in which everyone is, on a basic level, the same. This is because they had chosen to get rid of the smart people, and anyone else who was different. It is set in the future; all anyone does is watch TV and the like. It's called Fehrenheit 451. Read it.

well, answering the initial question, if more than 20 people call a person wierd in 10 minutes, than they're odd perferably wierd (which would be me)

faemir wrote:

87654321 wrote:What is normal anyway? Who defines what/who is normal and what/who isn't?

When you think about it, it is incredibly hard (read: practically impossible) to make an all-encompassing description / set of rules for a 'normal' person.

Exactly what I meant.

I'm normal. You're odd if you disagree.

peace.

thats my oddity of hope
Forget people who stereotype and categorize

haha, chang chang baby

Oddness is merely a comparison. Someone who lacks similarity in a particular group could be labeled as 'odd' (e.g. A non-smoker among a group of smokers). This can be used to tag anyone who is non-conformist. There is no real set definition.

found on http://forum.therealn.com/memberlist.ph ... =&start=75

George wrote:Oddness is merely a comparison. Someone who lacks similarity in a particular group could be labeled as 'odd' (e.g. A non-smoker among a group of smokers). This can be used to tag anyone who is non-conformist. There is no real set definition.

I'm with George here. "Normalcy" is with respect to your environment.

Yeah, we can basically agree that oddity varies with context, although the example George used was perhaps on too small a scale.

Basically if someone doesn't fit with the societal norms I'm accustomed to I consider them odd.

wolfgang wrote:Yeah, we can basically agree that oddity varies with context, although the example George used was perhaps on too small a scale.

Basically if someone doesn't fit with the societal norms I'm accustomed to I consider them odd.

I wouldn't call it Societal Norms - I'm a lot more accepting than my society is on average, I'd reckon. I think it depends on a balance of societal norms and your close community.

I'm oddly attractive. Does that count?

Take me as an example of an "odd" person. I personally consider myself odd because that's how I try to be sometimes. I run circles around people until I can't run anymore. I just got home from school, and I was carrying my bookbag on my head since the bell rang. Two weeks ago on Thursday, I walked around school the entire day with a paper saying "ZERO" taped to my chest. Everyone says "You're weird/odd/awkward/crazy/a crackhead." And that's fine by me. That's funny to a lot of people. That's why I do that. To make people laugh. And I'm not always like that. Sometimes, I'm "normal". And people are also alright with that. And so am I. That's how I'm still able to have friends. By not being crazy and trying to make them laugh all the time. And it's not like I don't know other people like that. A lot of people I know are usually acting crazy and shit, and are normal a minute later. Most of the time, when people say I'm weird, they're just joking. From my experience, the ones who are considered truly "odd" are the ones who are completely different from everyone in a society. By society, I'm talking about my school. The people who everyone in this society would seriously consider odd are the people who follow all of the rules, do whatever the teacher says, won't hesitate to tell an adult if someone is chewing gum or has their phone out, etc. I'm pretty sure you know the kind of person I'm talking about. Those people are in the small region of "odd" that's in between "funny" and "annoying".

When they aren't even. Duh.

I subscribe to a theory my brother has developed over time...
Basically, "every person gets [a pass for] one 'weird thing'." Beyond that, the person is an actual weirdo.
It's difficult to tell exactly what qualifies as a "weird thing," but as a general rule it's something that you can't help but be weirded out by, which puts a solid lower bound on how weird it can actually be; behavioral quirks don't count, but being a furry definitely does (in fact, my brother counts being a furry, owning a fursuit, acting like an animal, believing bizarre spiritual crap about your relationship to animals, and borderline bestiality as separate weird things, so a good deal of furries have far more than one "weird thing").
So when you meet someone and he seems like a pretty cool person, but then he pulls something weird out of nowhere, just nod and let it go; he's used up his one free weird thing (because "everyone gets one weird thing"). If he managed to exhibit other weird things, he's over his allowed limit and is actually a weirdo.