So back in the day, the (now-ex) spouse came home from work and said, “I have a question for you–don’t think about it! Just give me the first answer that pops into your head.”
“Okay,” I said, mildly interested–I think I was washing the dishes, and it’s usually pretty easy to get me to stop doing housework and pay attention to something else instead.
“Okay–” (drumroll!) “–which part of your body do you wash first in the shower?” He looked at me with bright, expectant eyes.
I hadn’t actually ever thought about that before, so I pondered it, frowning–”Don’t think too hard about it!” but I ignored him–I gotta be accurate here, dammit–
“Left arm,” I said finally. “Yep. Unless I’m washing my hair too, in which case I wash the hair first, and THEN the left arm.”
He looked utterly crestfallen. “Really? Seriously?” he said.
“Um,” I said. “Yeah…is there some reason that’s a problem..?”
“Well, I was listening the radio driving into work and they had this guy on and he said that most people, in the shower, wash their left arm first and I thought that was total bullshit!” He was getting fired up again. “I mean, what’s so frickin’ special about your left arm?”
“Well,” I said reasonably, “your arm–your shoulder, where your arm starts–is right at the top of your body, and most people are right-handed so it’s going to be normal just to reach across yourself with your primary hand and start washing from the top down–”
“I don’t wash my LEFT ARM first!” he shouted. “That’s LAME!”
I couldn’t help it; I had to start laughing. “Well jeez, you don’t HAVE to! What do you wash first, your penis? ’cause it’s the most impor—” He nodded. I blinked at him. “I was joking–!”
He gave me a shamefaced smirk. “Well it IS the most important!” he said cheerily. “I even wash it TWICE–once at the beginning and then again at the end.”
…the things you find out about other people.
See, I’m pretty sure I wash my breasts first, but I figure that’s what people’ll look at first on me, so I want it to be nice.
Hair, face, then left armpit. From there it varies, I think.
This is a great idea for a pseudoscientific personality analysis book.
I always lather up on my torso/abdomen. Then left arm for sure. Never thought about it . . .
Definitely right arm before left. I hold the shower gel bottle in my right hand and squeeze some into my left hand. Surely that’s common?
I may create a poll.
I definetly start with my right arm for the same reason as Andrew. This is actually really interesting but how bored do you have to be to start thinking about what you wash first in the shower?
Left calf, then left thigh, so left leg overall. Always. I finish with shampooing my hair, so it just makes sense to me to start at the bottom and work up, and since I’m right handed, reaching across to the left is just easier.
get wet, including hair, lather up soap, simultaneously armpit scrub with soapy hands.
I may be an outlier
Hair first, then torso/abdomen, then skim some soap from the abdomen and transfer to left arm, then right, then left leg, then right. Hmm, I think I wash my testicles more carefully than my penis. Why does your spouse wash his penis twice – is the water very dirty where you live?
I’m same as thirstygirl…
Honestly, I think he washes it twice because he thinks it’s the most important part.
Create a poll! I do face, then hair, then everything else.
Chest, then left arm, scrotum longest because it’s so rugose and sweaty, buttcrack last because then I can hang up the washcloth and it will be miraculously cleansed of all association with the buttcrack by the time of the next shower.
And yes, set up a poll.
Lurker here. Hi!
Hair first, then neck, then left arm, for the same reason LK stated. Except I start with the forearm and go up.
Okay people: I hereby challenge everyone to intentionally do it in a different order tomorrow. I predict that it will give you a brief, but real thrill. Ah, the little joys of living!
Well the groin DOES tend to accumulate the most sweat/oil/dirt, since it’s closed off by clothes most of the time and also typically has a lot of dirt-collecting hair, plus a waste orifice…if there’s one thing to put the most effort into cleaning, the groin has to be it!