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Compartments
Dec. 7th, 2012 12:39 pmUnless you are completely and totally disorganized, chances are that you have found a way to develop some system that helps you find things in your home. Looking for that extra-large platter? Oh, that is kept in such-n-such cabinet. Where would you find a bottle-opener? Oh, that would be in the third drawer down. Matches? Another drawer or cabinet. But then, there are those random things that don’t typically get their own drawer. Leftover birthday candles, or paperclips or pens, or magnets or rubber bands, etc., etc., etc., typically end up on a catch-all drawer often affectionately referred to as a “junk drawer.” While not necessarily “junk”, the junk drawer is more often than not the drawer most frequently rifled through in order to locate that one sought-after item.
As odd a comparison as it might seem, drawer and cabinet organization makes for an interesting metaphor for your life and your interactions with people. Specifically, whether we do it on purpose or not, many of us find a way to compartmentalize our relationships. You all know the adage, “I don’t mix business with pleasure.” Well, that is a fancy-schmancy way of saying, “I don’t talk about business with my friends, and I don’t go out with my co-workers.” But to what degree does this go? I guess that depends on the person. Some people keep groups completely separate. There are work associates, and family members, and then social circles. But even social circles don’t always get lumped together. You might have a group of people that you hang out with when you go dancing, but another group that you associate with through church, or another group that you associate with through a hobby. And like it or not, there are often some strange and disconcerting moments of discomfort when overlaps occur.
I notice this most often with things like Facebook. When one creates a Facebook page, one is effectively opening up a window for various people to view. Do you let everyone look in? And if so, do you carefully make sure that you are always covered when they do?
For me, I lean towards making my life a fairly open book. No, I don’t share everything with every group or every person, but I am who I am and that’s the way it is. Friends that I know from gay social circles know that I’m into some weird history club (Team Bonnet, as one of my dear buds says). My SCA friends know that I’m a flirty gay man who loves to hit the bars and go dancing. My family – well, I think they think I’m just a wackjob (and maybe they are right). But for me, it just seems easiest to put it all out there. Why? Not because I think that is what everyone should do or that it is the right thing to do or whatever – rather, that is just what works best for me. I am me. It is too complicated for me to behave one way with one group, and another way with another group. I prefer to just be myself, relax, and not worry about who might find out what. So I guess in terms of kitchen-organization, I keep the vast majority of my friends and acquaintances together in one huge drawer. It may be confusing and chaotic at times, but hey – it seems to work for me.
How ‘bout you?
As odd a comparison as it might seem, drawer and cabinet organization makes for an interesting metaphor for your life and your interactions with people. Specifically, whether we do it on purpose or not, many of us find a way to compartmentalize our relationships. You all know the adage, “I don’t mix business with pleasure.” Well, that is a fancy-schmancy way of saying, “I don’t talk about business with my friends, and I don’t go out with my co-workers.” But to what degree does this go? I guess that depends on the person. Some people keep groups completely separate. There are work associates, and family members, and then social circles. But even social circles don’t always get lumped together. You might have a group of people that you hang out with when you go dancing, but another group that you associate with through church, or another group that you associate with through a hobby. And like it or not, there are often some strange and disconcerting moments of discomfort when overlaps occur.
I notice this most often with things like Facebook. When one creates a Facebook page, one is effectively opening up a window for various people to view. Do you let everyone look in? And if so, do you carefully make sure that you are always covered when they do?
For me, I lean towards making my life a fairly open book. No, I don’t share everything with every group or every person, but I am who I am and that’s the way it is. Friends that I know from gay social circles know that I’m into some weird history club (Team Bonnet, as one of my dear buds says). My SCA friends know that I’m a flirty gay man who loves to hit the bars and go dancing. My family – well, I think they think I’m just a wackjob (and maybe they are right). But for me, it just seems easiest to put it all out there. Why? Not because I think that is what everyone should do or that it is the right thing to do or whatever – rather, that is just what works best for me. I am me. It is too complicated for me to behave one way with one group, and another way with another group. I prefer to just be myself, relax, and not worry about who might find out what. So I guess in terms of kitchen-organization, I keep the vast majority of my friends and acquaintances together in one huge drawer. It may be confusing and chaotic at times, but hey – it seems to work for me.
How ‘bout you?
