October 21 is Count Your Buttons Day, and they mean the buttons we use for our clothing. You can find some history of buttons right here if research excites you.
As for me, I might have a few, from wee doll buttons to human buttons in many shapes, sizes, colors, and embellishments. I don’t think I’ll be counting them, though.
A friend of mine is button-phobic – that is, she has koumpounophobia. Barking.
I have never heard of this! Now I have to learn more. Thanks for intriguing me!
It’s an actual thing, would you believe? I simply don’t get it. What harm can a button do you – unless you choke on it, I suppose..?
I did a little research. Sometimes it comes from childhood trauma such as choking on a button or seeing someone else choke. Sometimes it’s connected to being germ-phobic, especially old buttons in batches, for example. Sometimes disliking the texture of some buttons leads to a dislike of all buttons. People tend to be more phobic about plastic than metal buttons.
It’s fascinating. I didn’t know that Steve Jobs had koumpounophobia that extended beyond clothing buttons. There’s speculation that getting rid of “buttons” is what led to number pads/smooth surfaces on phones and tablets–I wonder if that’s also true of the mouse and the touch pad?
Friends of my friend (particularly females) will avoid wearing anything with prominent buttons where they see our phobic friend. I’m pretty sure I asked her once, but she has no idea where it stems from.