UPDATE: Since sending out the e-mail version of this post, I've added a poll to ask which way you peel a banana. Do click to show your preference, and I'll report back in a future post! 😊
Love this Rebecca. 👏 Pleased to report mine are all *mostly* title down as is custom. But. There are a few that have the little perfection of titles printed on the spine like this:
One.
Word.
At.
A.
Time.
So you can read them perfectly without the head tilt. And then just to mix things up, Hamnet is printed one letter at a time down the spine. I really don’t know what to do with that. Anyway, I remain, your intrepid field researcher.
I despise bananas and still found this fascinating and hilarious, Rebecca! I am a strong proponent of the text on book spines being top down, to the point that I will put my French language books upside down on my bookshelf so they match the English ones. Top-down is best, I can live with bottom-up if they all go the same way, but I simply cannot abide mixing both on one shelf!!
So enjoyable. I think it is fascinating to ponder the "hmm...never thought about that before." I am a: Title up, stem-opening banana soul. The beautiful thing for me about your pondering here is that they take me out of my mind and into observing (which I guess one could argue is, in fact, "in the mind"). Observing is such a portal to questions, discovery, observation, and sometimes conclusions.
Okay so I checked, and our books are top down BUT...now I’m aware of it I realise that’s uncomfortable for me and I very much want them to be t’other way up. And now it’s annoying me. So thanks 🤣.
Mind blown 🤯 but I don’t like “the feel” of the other end so I’ll have to do tree branch end for ever! My son used to just snap one in half - has to be just the right ripeness for this though!
I immediately looked over to my bookshelf and notice all my books oriented the UK way - except the one book I bought in Quebec. This one has the text on the spine printed in the opposite direction, and I remember being in that bookstore wondering qu’est-ce que la ***k was going on 😂
Well that made me take a fresh look at my bookcases! A few books I found had the titles written across the spine starting at the top. One had the title written from the bottom up but on closer inspection was found to be UPSIDE DOWN! This worried me that the words might be falling out. I’ll just have to go and turn it the right way up but maybe I’ll eat a banana instead. (Did you ever do the trick of inserting a pin through the skin and rotating the banana? Do this several times along it’s length and then peel, from either end, a ready sliced banana)
I’ve never seen a spine that was upwards that I can remember . To me , that would just be weird. I have seen people eat bananas both ways! I think the more fascinating thing is the study of what we perceive to be odd because it’s not our norm
All I have to say is, I am over the moon to have found a community of people who think about things like this! Where have you been all my life??? Do you all have children? My teenage daughter needs friends who think about things like this, too! :)
Also (so, I suppose the above was not ALL I have to say, just the most important bit):
- I open bananas the wrong way for the same reason your nephew does - read about the monkey thing and then couldn't unsee it, so just went with it. I do find it a nice way to eat a banana, but that might just be because I've been heavily influenced by the monkey information. Monkey see, monkey do, monkey enjoy?
- I'm fine with my spines being negative if it means they face the correct way when lying on the table. I wouldn't be able to stand the upside down spine text when the book was just lying about. It would make me feel physically uncomfortable. 😵💫 But I'm kinda persnickety about things like that.
Thank you for giving me something other than my impossible project to think about this morning! I was stressing and now I'm laughing. Off to bring this conversation to my husband and daughter. xoxo
Hi Rebecca. It's been a crazy few weeks so it's really nice to sit down and read one of your posts at leisure. I'm about ready to start peeling bananas from the bottom because I often seem to turn the top tip into mush so maybe this way makes more sense.
As for books and spine text orientation, I agree with another reader, I think it's all about personal preference or perhaps how you were raised. Although at one point I thought the German method was to shelve books upside down, so it's good that I read all of the way through.
Side note: I know half of this post was about bananas, but orange you glad that February is half-over?
Thank you for addressing this issue. I still remember my friend’s older sister who peeled a banana from the wrong end. She was beautiful and insane. Case closed.
UPDATE: Since sending out the e-mail version of this post, I've added a poll to ask which way you peel a banana. Do click to show your preference, and I'll report back in a future post! 😊
Love this Rebecca. 👏 Pleased to report mine are all *mostly* title down as is custom. But. There are a few that have the little perfection of titles printed on the spine like this:
One.
Word.
At.
A.
Time.
So you can read them perfectly without the head tilt. And then just to mix things up, Hamnet is printed one letter at a time down the spine. I really don’t know what to do with that. Anyway, I remain, your intrepid field researcher.
I despise bananas and still found this fascinating and hilarious, Rebecca! I am a strong proponent of the text on book spines being top down, to the point that I will put my French language books upside down on my bookshelf so they match the English ones. Top-down is best, I can live with bottom-up if they all go the same way, but I simply cannot abide mixing both on one shelf!!
I can't believe I'm spending Saturday morning commenting on a post about bananas. Still:
1 I admire your ability to eke an article out of ANY THing😂
2 if it's any consolation, I peel bananas the wrong way too. I know cos I read about monkeys a few years ago
Another delightful post, Rebecca!
So enjoyable. I think it is fascinating to ponder the "hmm...never thought about that before." I am a: Title up, stem-opening banana soul. The beautiful thing for me about your pondering here is that they take me out of my mind and into observing (which I guess one could argue is, in fact, "in the mind"). Observing is such a portal to questions, discovery, observation, and sometimes conclusions.
Okay so I checked, and our books are top down BUT...now I’m aware of it I realise that’s uncomfortable for me and I very much want them to be t’other way up. And now it’s annoying me. So thanks 🤣.
Mind blown 🤯 but I don’t like “the feel” of the other end so I’ll have to do tree branch end for ever! My son used to just snap one in half - has to be just the right ripeness for this though!
I immediately looked over to my bookshelf and notice all my books oriented the UK way - except the one book I bought in Quebec. This one has the text on the spine printed in the opposite direction, and I remember being in that bookstore wondering qu’est-ce que la ***k was going on 😂
Well that made me take a fresh look at my bookcases! A few books I found had the titles written across the spine starting at the top. One had the title written from the bottom up but on closer inspection was found to be UPSIDE DOWN! This worried me that the words might be falling out. I’ll just have to go and turn it the right way up but maybe I’ll eat a banana instead. (Did you ever do the trick of inserting a pin through the skin and rotating the banana? Do this several times along it’s length and then peel, from either end, a ready sliced banana)
I’ve never seen a spine that was upwards that I can remember . To me , that would just be weird. I have seen people eat bananas both ways! I think the more fascinating thing is the study of what we perceive to be odd because it’s not our norm
I have tried eating a banana from the bottom (non-stalk end) and it is better ... but I still start with the stalk. Habit.
All I have to say is, I am over the moon to have found a community of people who think about things like this! Where have you been all my life??? Do you all have children? My teenage daughter needs friends who think about things like this, too! :)
Also (so, I suppose the above was not ALL I have to say, just the most important bit):
- I open bananas the wrong way for the same reason your nephew does - read about the monkey thing and then couldn't unsee it, so just went with it. I do find it a nice way to eat a banana, but that might just be because I've been heavily influenced by the monkey information. Monkey see, monkey do, monkey enjoy?
- I'm fine with my spines being negative if it means they face the correct way when lying on the table. I wouldn't be able to stand the upside down spine text when the book was just lying about. It would make me feel physically uncomfortable. 😵💫 But I'm kinda persnickety about things like that.
Thank you for giving me something other than my impossible project to think about this morning! I was stressing and now I'm laughing. Off to bring this conversation to my husband and daughter. xoxo
Hi Rebecca. It's been a crazy few weeks so it's really nice to sit down and read one of your posts at leisure. I'm about ready to start peeling bananas from the bottom because I often seem to turn the top tip into mush so maybe this way makes more sense.
As for books and spine text orientation, I agree with another reader, I think it's all about personal preference or perhaps how you were raised. Although at one point I thought the German method was to shelve books upside down, so it's good that I read all of the way through.
Side note: I know half of this post was about bananas, but orange you glad that February is half-over?
Who knew that bananas and books had anything in common?! There is absolutely a right way to orient books (lol)! I don't care as much about bananas.
Ps-that wallpaper is gorgeous! Even if the spines are incorrect.
Thank you for addressing this issue. I still remember my friend’s older sister who peeled a banana from the wrong end. She was beautiful and insane. Case closed.
I hadn't thought about the direction of my shelved books, but (after checking) they run title down. I'm right-handed, btw...
As far as bananas go, I'm a stalk kind of girl, although I might experiment with using my feet just for 'kicks.' :)