Ode to the Clutter

My office has been really clutftered lately.  It's the type of clutter, though, that I would describe as an organized mess. 

I have a lot of paper in my office.  Legal things require so much paper.  Sometimes I can't believe how much.  And how much paper does an insurance company need to use?  I could probably save on my premius if they'd use less paper.  Anyway, back to the story.  The stacks of paper everywhere were getting to me.  Badly.  It was cleanup time.  I filed papers here.  I filed papers there.  Now, it looks a little better. 

The bookshelf on my desk is another clutter story.  I have reference books I used to take the court reporting test in '97.  A really old PDR.  A Henry County phone book from 2007.  I doubt anything has changed, don't you?  All these books that I could easily get rid of to free up space.  The Internet has the resources of countless books.  My PhotoShop Elements for Dummies, that may as well be written in another language. But I confess.  I'm a book person.  I like to hold a book in my hand rather than look at a computer screen.  And I'm surprised how often I use the old phone book.  Sorry, clutter, but the books must stay.

There's a really ugly picture frame that folds like a book and has two priceless pictures from a trip to ChuckECheese in 2002.  It was taken with one of those little cameras they have there.  One is a black and  white of Reid, Cam and me.  The other one is Alayna and me.  At the time the pictures were probably just silly trinkets from a day at ChuckECheese.  But I would never have thrown them away.  So I just stuck them in the ugly folding picture frame and here they've been.  On my bookshelf for years now.   And how I love to stumble upon it and open.  The ChuckECheese picture in the ugly picture frame sure makes my heart smile.

So many calendars.  Old calendars from like five years ago.  I cannot throw away my old calendars.  I just won't do it.  I've got several other ones in my kitchen cabinet.  Hidden.  I love to look back through them at the dates that are filled in.  It's a diary of sorts.  Fun  to look at what you were doing then.  I had a 2005 calendar marked full of things my boys were doing.  The Monster Truck Show.  Opening of a Star Wars movie.  Registering for the SAT.  Mark Richt UGA Football camp.  Book fairs.  Report cards.  Ingrown toenails.  The list goes on and on.  Nope, the calendars must stay.  A trip down Memory Lane is worth the space occupied.

Same goes for note pads.  So many pads, but never a piece of paper anywhere on the desk.  But open the pads and you're treated with to do lists, menus for certain events, songs you want on a CD, special scripture, phone numbers of who knows who.  I found the notes I made when I sent the boys' XBox back a few years back.  I found the notes I made when I sent the same XBox back again last year.  Nope, more memories.  The note pads will be staying.

Not much clutter gone.  But thank you, Clutter.  You made my day.

Till next time. 
(Photo courtesy of ChuckECheese
circa 2002)