It's very difficult, or so I've found, to stay within a daily routine while in college: dinner plans are made on the fly, a random volleyball game begins, and things come up naturally. Though I, for one, have not stayed on the path toward regularity since my junior year of high school; this is a start to begin anew.
Routines, not necessarily daily, are our Western society's form of rituals. It is perfectly normal to wake up at the same time every morning from the same side of the bed and continue the same tasks within a timely manner. I do not have such. I sleep in quite often (as often as possible) and take certain liberties with hygiene practices which seem so taboo in the States.
Here, the forever-jointed line between anthropology and psychology arise yet again. The differences of learned and inherent behaviors are boldly distinct. Yet, they are one of the same in this case. Waking up at 7:34 am is an inherent behavior as set by your circadian rhythm (biological clock). Habits are formed within 7 to 12 days of the exact same behaviors. However, most of the tasks included in said daily routines are founded learned behaviors. Brushing one's teeth or washing one's hair are strikingly obvious examples. Phrases like "squeaky clean" help bring further imagery as a visual stimulant to trigger the processes of the upcoming task.
Regarding showers: if a person's b.o. gets so disgustingly putrid, please encourage them (even if it might be yourself) to take action and TAKE A SHOWER! On the biological side, what about pheromones? If mates are attracted to each other through a sense of smell, would suggestive shower taking introduce a larger number of interested mates to one another? Or should such action take place only while the animal is at peak or "in heat"?
These are just some of my anthropological daily musings about the society we live in today. . .
