March 31, 2009. Mexico. Compulsive Behavior.

I first noticed it when carrying mail to the postbox. In fact I did not notice it. Someone who was with me asked me what on earth I was doing? Of course I did not really know what I was doing, but I was arranging the letters in size order. I was surprised to discover when pointed out to me, that my behavior was peculiar, in that the letters were being dropped into the bottom of a mail box and then be all mixed up together with other mail. I was a young adult, probably in my mid twenty's, but until that time I thought just everyone organized everything that touches their hand. It was suggested that my compulsive behavior was odd. It is true too, but it is also a factor in my success at every position in my life.

This fact about me jumped out on Saturday when hanging up my clothes. Ken put my clothes on the bed. I was busily organizing, putting the shirts in the drawers and the dresses and pants on hangers in the closet, when I discovered that the hangers for the pants were intermingled with the hangers for the dresses. Now I wondered to myself if I could allow this to happen, but I really tried to just hang up the clothes, without regard to where they were placed. When I was thinking about something else, without thinking, I organized them properly, and now all the dresses are together and the robes together and the pants together. But I swear I did not do it on purpose, but it is better now.

One day I was visiting my friend Martha in Galveston at her apartment. She had just moved in and was showing me her cupboards and cabinets and closets. This would be 1965. I discovered that her spices were just stuck into the cupboard with no pattern so if a specific spice was needed, in order to find it, all the bottles must be picked up. So I quickly organized her spice rack so in the future no moments would be wasted. She laughed and thanked me, but I did wonder why she didn't do it herself. Now I know that my way of organization is unusual and probably peculiar. But it works for me.