Okay, so I'm not talking about alcohol or drug habits here, but I am admitting to having a number of addictions. Hugh calls it 'being anal' He's probably right.

First of all, you know I'm absolutely nuts about traveling. Come summer, I feel like I ought to be working on lists of clothes to pack. I need to be studying and planning activities to keep us busy while we're gone. Where are the trails? Where do we want toeat? What historic spots are near the route we'll take? This year, I'm not doing any of that. Last Sunday somebody at church asked me where we're traveling this year Mymood sank like a stone.

“We're really not going anywhere,“ I told him. “We can't afford the gas“ My addiction to travel has been stopped cold turkey. I'm feeling the pain!

Another addiction I have, and I hate to admit this, is eating ... and not the right things I don't really think it's a Southern thing, as a friend suggested to me I think it's just plain loving several different kinds of food...anything with cheese on it. I could live on old-fashioned Mac-and-cheese. I love pizza ... with extra cheese. Hotdogs with cheese on top. Broccoli with cheese on top.

Fries with cheese on top. You name it.. with cheese on top!

I love chocolate. And nuts. Chocolate and nuts together! And crackers (withcheese). And olives. And popcorn, especially cheese popcorn ... or with nuts andcaramel, like Cracker Jacks.

Are you getting the picture here? Slim and trim isn't much in the picture anymore.

And television! For 15 years we didn't own a TV. We read and talked. Now I'm addicted to watching Jeopardy and Law & Order and CSI. I'll even look at re-runs if it's been a while since I've seen the show. We still read and talk (Hugh and I have alwaysbeen chatterers with each other), but it's quick and during commercials.

I'm also addicted to certain authors. I love Sue Grafton and Sue Henry and William Tapply. I've read all of J.A. Jance's books. Someone suggested I start James Patterson's books, but gosh, do I need another addiction?

Hugh and I have been known to contact authors we love. We called Western writer Tony Hillerman once and had a great conversation- I called Norman Zollinger,ended up buying all his books and meeting with him in New Mexico a couple of times.Pulitzer Prize winning author A.B. outline Jr. agreed to meet with us at his home inMontana once. He signed all our books and told us about the actors who starred inmovies made from his books. We wrote to Don Coldsmith, an excellent writer of Western books. We asked to meet him and have him sign our books and were successful, We did meet him and started a wonderful friendship. We've been to his house; he and his wife have been to our house.It's been a fin part of our addiction to authors. Certain things are negative addictions. I almost never eat Oriental food or steak,

Spain, dumplings or sushi (make that I NEVER eat sushi). I hate celery. I never drinkanything alcoholic other than margaritas ... and then only four or five times a year. Beertastes awtil to me. d never drink a beer. I don't care how hot it is!

I like my towels and sheets tblded a certain way. My socks are put away in order of when I wore them last I use exercise equipment at the gym in the same order mostdays. There are others. Addictions Habits. Likes, Dislikes. Maybe that makes me normal. Maybe that makes me, as Hugh says, 'anal.' Maybe I should have called thiscolumn 'Anal Are Us!'

Emily Clements, of Little Mountain, is a columnist for The Newberry Observer. The Bits & Pieces column appears the second Wednesday of each month.