Do I have OCD?

I used to live in the Pyrenees (I like mountains!) and my daughter spent a fortune kitting her four children out with all the best gear when they came down for the snowboarding. My 14 year old grand-daughter would not have a go at either boarding or skiing because she thought it would be too undignified, so she posed all day outside the cafe/bar in all her lovely ski outfits. The two boys took to snowboarding immediately, and the 4-year old just made her doting big brother drag her luge up and down the slope.
There is something about clean white snow and a very blue sky that lifts the spirits - even just sitting drinking a hot chocolate and watching the expert skiers fly down the slope is exhilarating.

... and, now I think of it, my family have managed to get a lot of very good winter sports gear on Ebay and it would be worthwhile doing this until he is sure he is going to go make a practice of going skiing - maybe snowboarding?

There's a huge Decathlon store in Stockport, Crimson, if he lives anywhere near there.

It depends where he is going, Crimson, some places are much colder than others - obviously the higher, the colder! I walk in the snow and get very hot so I wear layers - bra, tee shirt, zipped fleece, light waterproof jacket, wool longjohns or leggings, thick trousers, proper walking boots and possum socks - these were a present from my grand-daughter in New Zealand and are made 20% of possum fur, which makes them very warm. I invariably end up with my fleece tied around my waist and I am told skiing soon warms you up . I wear a bright pink woollen cap with a big peak as I wear polychromatic spectacles which darken in the sun so I cannot wear sun glasses. The cap pulls down over my ears. The bright colour is so the hunters don't mistake me for a deer! He will need two pairs of gloves, one padded ski gloves and thin ones to go inside them.
For skiing, I believe TKMax has plenty of reasonably priced gear - in France I get all my walking stuff at Decathlon.
If he is not going to be skiing regularly, it might be worth hiring the waterproof salopettes with braces - they keep you warm and keep out the snow.
It is worth buying good ski socks as the boots can be uncomfortable - he must make sure they are well fitted in the ski shop.
For Apres-Ski, his usual casual wear will be fine - there is not much formality around the slopes!
I am sure we have plenty of experienced skiers who can give you better information, or you can google 'What to wear for skiing' - I have just told you what I wear myself.

My son is going skiing for the first time this year. Any tips on what to take clotheswise etc?

Oh the times I sat on Promenade des Anglais and watched the skaters Greatnan The weather in Nice is so good for outdoor activities. The skates I wore were a lot different in those days but I could still dance and spin on one leg.

You are just fabulous greatnan

Do try cross country skiing, greatnan! It's fabulous. If you enjoy walking, you'll love it.

You should persevere, harrigran, it soon comes back. At school, I was always the last to be picked for games - 'We are not having her, we had her last week' and I was a geeky book-worm. I started roller skating because it was a good way to meet boys - in my day (1956) we had to be wait to be asked to dance but you could just skate away by yourself. My ex-husband was an expert skater and taught me all the dances - I can do the tango on skates, but not off theme! We used to skate for about 4 hours on five nights a week, which was just as well as we ate enormous meals.
I stopped when I was pregnant but when the grandchildren came along I started to hire a badminton court at the leisure centre and I taught them all to skate. They were most impressed to see Nana going backwards and spinning.
When I took my teenage girls to live in Monte Carlo, where I worked for an English tax-exile, they bought their skates and boots and we skated on the lovely tiled promenade on Ave. Princesse Grace. Bjorn Borg had a sports shop opposite and he started to stock skates - now you can't move on the Promenade des Anglais in Nice for the skaters.
My only other remotely sporty activity is walking and climbing hills (not rock climbing, I am not quite mad!) but my Swiss friend is determined to teach me cross country skiing and I have had a few lessons. The balance learnt in skating certainly helps.
I paid my dues as a wife and mother and now I am free of all responsibilities and intend to cram as much into my life as possible. Next thrill - white water rafting in New Zealand in December, then snorkeling in Thailand.

Greatnan just had fab idea !!! if you ever are bored with house sitting you could alway's work at one of the Europeon supermarkets ie Carre- Four as an order picker,they can really move around on their skate's

Respect Greatnan I used to spend my youth on skates but when I tried to do it in adulthood I nearly broke my back, I had completely lost my balance.

Crikey! I am impressed beyond measure...

Greatnan what a fabulous way to keep the floor's polished,and a good way to keep fit when too foggy to go out,as my DS2 alway's say's "adapt and overcome"

Wow! As someone who has clung desperately to a window ledge when trying to balance on a skateboard, you have my admiration Greatnan.

I've got this vision of a back view of Greatgran careering down that tiled corridor on her roller skates....

Greatnan You are a constant source of surprise and delight.

Don't most of us turn into our mother in some ways? I hear myself using some of her odd little sayings that used to make me smile.
I must say it is very easy to keep my flat tidy - as I travel so much I can't have a pet or even a pot-plant, so when I go away I just have to close the shutters and turn everything off.
I am currently house/pet sitting for a friend whilst she visits her family in England. Her house is huge and rambling and is crammed with 'stuff', as both she and her husband inherited large houses and have not been able to bring themselves to throw anything away. It would drive me mad if I had to live here permanently, but I am quite happy to stay for a couple of weeks.
In fact, I have brought my roller skates (honestly!) and have been skating up and down her very long, tiled corridor when it has been too foggy for a walk. I met my ex-husband in a roller skating rink and we used to do all the dances- it helped when I took skiing lessons, as I had the balance.

You know, Greatnan, since I retired I have taken such pleasure in keeping an orderly home. I've surprised myself! My office was tidy, and my classroom too, but when I worked home was clean but needed a massive tidy every few weeks. It now feels calm. I may be turning into my mother....

That's OK Greatnan ...I was just curious and !!

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - sorry I didn't spell it out but I have got used to the initials.
As many people have pointed out, it is a form of mental disorder which can be no more than a dislike of changes in plans, or so severe that the patient is unable to leave the house and has a panic attack if someone puts something out of place.
I have always had a very logical mind - I love numbers and word puzzles. My own mother was very warm and loving but totally disorganised so our home life was chaotic - school uniform never ready on Monday morning, gas bills not paid on time, food cooked but table not laid. I suppose this might have made me feel the need to have control in my life, and as a working mother, full time head of a large remedial service, studying for an MA, and doing the usual middle-class good mother bit (Guides, PTA, Pony Club, swimming, skating, etc) I just had to have a system.
Perhaps one of my daughters reacted against it, but the other , who also studied for a degree whilst working full time and looking after six children, seems to be perfectly well balanced. Perhaps it is nothing to do with your upbringing but a function of your brain chemistry.

It's only OCD if your behaviour is dictating and spoiling your life, and you keep doing things obessionally or compulsively because you fear someone will be harmed if yoiu don't keep to the rituals. If you get out of bed and make it once, then go and organise other things, it's not OCD. However, if you strip the bed, wash the bedding, make it lots of times and keep going back to check for any untidiness or specs of dirt, that's turning into OCD when it becomes your daily ritual - and the same with other ritualistic behaviours that you don't need to do more than the once.

silverfoxygran ...me ...tend to go back and check the front door's locked ...and invariable check that car's locked as I walk away in a car park!

Jacey it stands for Obsessional Compulsive Disorder and Carol has described it very well. I heard of someone once who checked repeatedly to see if the electric heater had been turned off. The only way she could be sure was to unplug it and take it with her in the back of the car.

OK Greatnan ...have read all the posts on this thread ...have come up with various words that could/might fit OCD ...some not repeatable ...so ...please will you enlighten me?

No, you don't describe the symptoms of OCD, such as obsessional hand-washing, house cleaning from top to bottom to stave off fearful consequences, continuous counting or tapping out patterns around things like light switches, going back again and again (and again ad infinitum) to checks doors, gas off etc. You are exceptionally organised - I am the opposite end of the spectrum - please come and stay with me until Christmas, and everything will get done!!!