I was amazed to find this forum. I´ve been counting letters in words and sentences since I was in my early teens (I think). I never really noticed I was doing this until a friend of mine in college asked me to help him center a sticker on the rear window of his car. In a split second I had counted the number of letters on the sticker and was able to tell him which letter was in the exact center. He stood there dumbfounded, trying to figure out how I had found a solution so quickly. We then discovered that I have what I consider to be a completely useless but fascinating "talent". Since then, I have shared this with others and am now often used to entertain people when we have get-togethers. Often friends try to compete with me, but it´s impossible for them to come anywhere close to my speed. I usually do words, but can also do sentences up to about 25-30 letters in just a matter of seconds. I also speak Spanish and German and do the same thing in those languages, as long as I know how to spell the words. Another post referred to the City Slickers 2 movie where one of the characters mentions his ability to count letters. I hadn´t seen the movie until one of my friends called to tell me about the amazing coincidence. Then I realized there must be other people who do this as well. When I discovered this forum I started to read more about OCD. I never thought about there being a connection, and counting letters doesn´t normally distract me from my daily life, but I am an extremely structured and organized person and without a doubt a perfectionist. I always have been that way. Anyway, thanks for letting me share. I´ll definitely be back to check out additions of other people´s stories.
