Getting High on Recovery

Mess is comfortable and can sometimes be creative. But our mess can hide a few landmines. 

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A little mess is nice, but a lot of mess can be a disaster. I am comfortable with a little mess: My hair, my desk, my books. They are all messy. I try to look presentable because that’s what adults are supposed to be. But inside, I am a Messy.

How about you, any Messies out there?

9 Ways that Mess can be Fun and Helpful:

1. It keeps your stuff close by. No need to walk great distances, to other rooms or open doors. Boom, you got it.
2. You can mix ideas, you have Idea Sex. James Altucher got me onto the the Idea Sex concept: you have a book on parenting next to a Star Wars figure. Then you come up with an idea for a blog post about Darth Vader as a parent, trying to change a messy baby.
3. All around you are time capsules. You keep stuff from this decade, last decade and yesterday. It all blends together and you never know what you will find. Yesterday I found old family photos, some items from the Source that I returned for $11.96 (after 1.5 years of sitting 4 feet from me).
4. You can keep projects ready at hand. You have what you need ready and nearby.
5. Your room is like a brain scan. If your doctor orders a brain scan, tell him to come home with you and it will save the healthcare system thousands. Your room is like a brain map.
6. The mess can hide a few landmines. Some people like a little mess and others can tolerate it. When it is in the corner of your bedroom, it can be the wrong place for a mess. Take it outside if you want peace at home.
7. Other life forms love mess. Leave a yogurt in the corner for six months and then investigate. You will discover a whole new world.
8. It will bring you joy. You get to discover all of the things that you left in your piles. It is a little bit of Christmas day (or a break from self-imposed Alzheimer’s).
9. It lets you be. Sometimes, you need to stop the organizer-get-things-done self and just be. Go ahead, step away from the broom and sit in your back yard. You have earned it.
10. Never let people touch your junk.

Keep it Real.

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Photo by Ryo Chijiwa