Fileapalooza 2006

I crave order and simplicity. Without it I feel unsettled and scattered. I’m compelled to make order out of chaos, which is one of the reasons I’m often tagged for project management duties. I whip things into shape. It’s what I do. I derive so much emotional energy from putting things right that I even considered changing careers to professional organizing at one time.

However, working and going to school and managing a household and a rental property and taking care of Kimbo while my husband is deployed to Iraq means I sometimes let the paperwork and projects stack up at home. That leads to added tension and, apparently, teeth grinding according to my dentist.

So, in order to maintain my mental and dental health, I have commenced “Fileapalooza 2006” during my fall break from school. The heavy-duty file cabinets I had delivered three weeks ago have been unpacked and put in place in my office. Three hundred manila folders and extra label cartridges are at the ready. Now, after a trip to the chiropractor to get me physically prepared, it’s time to buckle down and get it done.

In two days I’ve already waded through three flimsy file cabinets worth of stuff, filled up a trash bag with old manuals (Windows NT, a broken toaster, etc.), created a huge “to-be-shredded” pile and used up one label cartridge and half a box of folders. I still have a long way to go – I haven’t even started on the enormous mountain that is my in-box – but I can already feel the kinks in my neck and shoulders starting to loosen.

And seeing those rows of neatly labeled files standing at attention in their shiny new cabinets...well that my friends is a Good Thing.