Sept 2

I can't help it. I am a clean freak. I like clean spaces with minimal clutter. So, why then is my office the only room in the house that is allowed to have piles of who knows what in it? It says a lot about me, I suppose that my working mind is cluttered when I won't let the rest of my life be cluttered. Seriously, I'm constantly picking at the rest of the house to the point where I think my family believes I'm OCD. But the office is another story. My desk has a pull out drawer for typing. My laptop sits in a space on that drawer and to my left is a pile of papers topped with a book I'm reading for class and an orange stick for cuticles. The top of the desk has an empty space where I put my computer when I want to stand up. Moving clockwise left to right there is an Oprah Magazine (a gift from a friend) covered by copies of a PowerPoint presentation on characters from school, covered by a dirty dust cloth. (I mean to dust my desk top. Right.) Next to that moving up is a small bottle of children's chewable vitamins. I checked-they have the same ingredients as Stresstabs-go figure. And a nearly empty bag of peanut m&m's lying half on top of an offer for a credit card. On the corner of the desk is a self help guidebook under a book of quotes called, "Quotationary," a trade paperback novel on magicians, two hard covers of JD Robb's In Death series and yesterday's junk mail. To the left is a glass candy dish full of different colored sticky notes, a quartz crystal, a magic knot made out of red ribbon and a tiny laughing Buddha. Beside the candy dish are three paperweights- all gifts from good friends- a silver crown, a red glass heart and a glass dome with a bird inside. Moving clockwise, we get a box of tissues and a friendship angel. Then there is the battery for the laptop which I yanked out when said laptop needed to be hard started more than once. Three framed photos of my kids and a porcelain plaque in a metal holder with a flower and a butterfly and the words "nurture yourself with kindness"-also a gift from a friend. Then there is my big blotter calendar that I write everything on, a picture postcard of my favorite sculpture- entitled "The things I have to do to maintain myself" by artist Roxanne Swentzell. On top of that is a piece of scrap paper with notes written on it and two pens. A giant super bright SAD light to combast my grief at the loss of light. Finally to my right is a second drawer half open and filled with pens, markers, papers, receipts to file, fingernail clippers , glass cleaner squares, CD's and business cards.
My desk is just the beginning of the chaos that is my office. drawers hang open, tops of furniture are filled with random stacks of stuff- mostly books and papers and gifts from friends. It all begs the question, if I so love a clean uncluttered house-why then is my office such a cozy mess? Perhaps because here is where I allow myself to be creative. And creativity of all kinds is messy by nature. Or maybe by the time I get to the office I no longer care about cleaning. :D What do you think?