Saturday, June 6, 2009

Those Demons, Those Pesky Demons

To start with, I'd like to direct your attention to the following link. Some guests stayed for a bit, we got talking, this was his response to the question "What other sorts of hotels have you stayed in?" He was quick to point out his trump card was not a hotel. It was, in fact, a MOtel; something that I was to find was different. Maybe it's an alphabetical thing...the Hotel is best, then an Inn, then a Lodge, and finally a Motel. But where does that leave the Suites and Resorts? I'd love to hear of any one's perspective on the proper line-up....

The demon of cleanliness got into my body somehow earlier this week. I originally decided that as my birthday present, I would "gift myself" with a clean room. Clothes had piled up...important papers had disappeared, my favorite ink cartridge drawing pen was missing and any desk activities had taken up a permanent residence on the dining room table.
Now. I'm not saying my room was MESSY, just that it needed tidying.
Problem is, once you start, it's hard to stop. The clean demon doesn't just help you toss clothes in the laundry basket and sweep the desktop clear. It declares that the papers you have now put into a nice, orderly pile must be FILED away neatly. "Oh?" says the demon, "You don't have a current filing system? Well halt it all! Let's make one NOW!"
Five hours later, you find your self cross-legged on the floor with piles of papers around you, a ring of clothes around the files with a plastic tub between your knees. You find yourself upset that you don't carry a good stock of hanging folders in various colors. Creativity now equals being able to come up with as many different categories for the various scraps as you can think of, because the more folders you have, the more organized you are.
I am now very organized.
When I finally looked up and realized that the sky was dark outside, I noticed that A) my room looked worse than it had to begin with, B) I wasn't sure I had storage space for all the new organization I had accomplished, and C) It looked like I was performing some Dresden-like ritual, where instead of circling myself with physical and spiritual circles, I was using clothing and paper circles. (To ward off what? I was already possessed by the clean demon. Maybe the clean demon was trying to protect itself from eviction by the demons of unfastidiousness)
ANYway, so as I was sitting there, I found myself falling into thought. People that are so clean in public ("I always arrange my desk just so!")....are they really slovenly at home? Is that a control issue?
Then there are the "Don't clean it! Right now I know where everything is!" people. What do their houses/rooms look like? And would I now (after deciding to turn over a "new leaf" as I have....ha. ha.) find it necessary to be more unkempt in my workspace after spending all my cleaning energies at home? Maybe in order to present the outward appearance of tidiness, I shall find it necessary to have a messy living area!!
Maybe.....

7 comments:

Mel said...

That magazine article was written almost as badly as the hotel it was describing. Quite a feat.

I like the part about it being the guy's "girlfriend and cousin". Also the motel managers response about crime "that is nothing - everything is under control. all minor". I'll have to use that one!

Mel said...

So the demons you describe are the ones I've lived with my entire life - nope I can't just stop at organizing - you're right - it must be filed and organized and NEAT and TIDY AND NOW I"M GOING INSANE! Ummm...I've made a concious effort in the last year not to let the organizing, neatness part of my take over my life. As a result I'm riding more, enjoying life more, and seeing more of my friends. My house is clean enough to live in, but has messy "corners". My filing system is now a box with a hole in it that I stuff things in. My laundry is not folded, it's "draped" inside of cubbies. I have made myself a rule that under no circumstances will I leave town and leave dirty dishes though - The last time I did that it was a true diastaster (in the "smell" sense and the amount of dishes thrown away).

redgirl said...

Ha. Ha. Ha.
yeah....but you know me...maybe I *do* need a few demons of cleanliness in my life....

lifeshighway said...

The lowest order of rooms for rent (not counting boarding houses of which I have no experience) is the outside door motel. If there is fresh air creeping in around the door seals then I am creeped out.

lifeshighway said...

As far as neatness goes: I have a day a month where I throw away 8 things: could be big, could be little. I find it very cleansing. This does not seem to carry over to my barn locker though.

redgirl said...

Where did you come up with "8"? Not a bad idea tho....

lifeshighway said...

I read it on a website years ago on how to get organzied. 8 is pretty random but the number seems accepting. 10 is harsh and 6 feels a litte lazy.