X Factor, The

I've got a few X factors in my life. One of them is literally (one of) my best friend(s). Literally, because her name is Xelene. She has 3 siblings; the names of each begin with X (they are not my X factors though, literally or otherwise). Xel and I share a unique relationship, the closest example would be that of Meredith and Christina from Grey's Anatomy, or for those who do not watch that show, we're like cats in a pea pod. She would also (hypothetically!) be my one and only choice if I were to fancy a lesbian lover.

Another literal factor I have is my perceived x-ray vision. Perceived, because this factor is currently dormant/ deactivated/ nonexistent. When the doorbell rings (anytime, anywhere I am), people tend to ask me who it is. This is not the same as Who do you think it is? or Who could it be? or Take a wild guess at who is on the other side of the door. It is an extremely trusting, "Who is it?", usually accompanied by mild alarm. I like to think they consider me gifted, but the more plausible explanation is either they think I'm a mutant or they expect me to open the door. The latter nearly never happens, because inertia (but nobody seems to have taken note); as for the former, I can't see or pass through doors/ walls, yet.

Enough frivolity has been indulged in thus far in this post, so I'll move on to the not-so-literal-yet-slightly-literal X factors I have been endowed with. There is, in fact, no such thing as too much frivolity, I think this blog can easily validate that. 

Coming back to my X factors... Quite recently I came across the word Lexophile (lover of words) in broad reference to myself, and this happened twice in a short span of time. The first was when my sister from another mother tagged me in a post on lexophilia (wordplay) on her Facebook wall, and a few weeks later another sister from another another mother sent me the same thing on WhatsApp saying it made her think of me. I've taken the liberty of assuming these as compliments and so my bio on every social account I own now describes me as a Lexophile. That's pretty much all there is to know about me anyway. This is an X factor not just because there is an x in Lexophile (albeit in the middle) but because I'm convinced my love for wordplay puts the X factor in me.

Okay, maybe my lexophilia is not all there is to know about me. I know I'm going off on a tangent (also one of my X factors), but my non-judgmental personality is definitely one of my X factors. This has its own pros and cons, of course, what with dams bursting and people opening Pandora's box oftentimes. I mean, they don't trust just my imaginary x-ray vision, they seem to trust my sensibilities too. This is not your cue to tell me your secrets, by the way. It has been taken for granted that nothing will shock me, which is a weird thing to take for granted, I agree. To be honest, many things shock me when I hear of them from third parties, but somehow when the horse itself does the talking (so to speak) some supernatural grace takes over and behold instant non-judgmentalness! While under this spell I have often caught myself saying things like It is finished, Verily I say unto thee, Have a bite of my Kit Kat Chunky, etc. so keep your ears open for telltale signs of this factor.

The last (yet not the least) X factor is my proficient tendency to flatter myself so shamelessly and get away with it under the guise of humour and good writing. I wink as I complete this post and inch closer to the end of this extremely liberating challenge.

- X for X Factor, The (My A to Z Challenge)

*Title reference: One of my favourite shows on British television :))