Languid Person, Meet Languishing To-Do List

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There's a fine line between laid back and lazy, and some days, I'm living on it. Between the 2 1/2 feet of snow that fell on Saturday and the two back-to-back snow days that resulted, I've been living in pjs and sweats for almost a week now. Tomorrow promises to be a rude awakening.

Snow days are like a reset button. Because they're found time, I feel as though I can do what I want to do instead of what I should do, but the truth is, I usually blend the two, taking on projects that have languished at the bottom of my to-do list. That pile of papers from last semester waiting to be filed? Done. Not only that, I cleared out the file drawer to make room for the inevitable influx of new papers.

The bottom drawer in my office that's in a prime location, but storing non-prime stuff? Empty except for two small file boxes with contact information (which will probably be streamlined into one on another day), and waiting for something to fill it. There are plenty of items on my desk and the counter in my office jockeying for position.

So, why are they there, creating clutter, rather than inside the drawer? Because, to paraphrase Elaine from Seinfeld, I'm not sure they're drawer-worthy.

Empty drawers hold so much promise.

Space in my little office is, as I've said before, at a premium. If new storage opens up, I need to be strategic about how to use it. One entire empty drawer simply cannot be taken for granted. Instead, it needs to solve a storage problem.

Yes, I know I sound a little crazy. But the whole idea behind organizing by STYLE is choosing solutions that work for us not just today, but for the foreseeable future -- leading us from existing successes to easy upkeep.

The prime contender for the drawer is the paper clutter that accumulates on my desk, taking it from clear to catastrophe in no time flat. But I'm an I need to see it girl, so stashing it away in a drawer requires a plan so the drawer doesn't become a dumping ground, but instead, creates easy access to the things that land on my desk because they're important and need my attention.

I'm working on it. And since another snow day requires more snow (which I don't want), I'll keep chipping away at it. Just writing about it, in fact, sparked some ideas I want to try. I know that subdivision (an I need to see it style staple) will play a role, and I think I might have just the containers to make it happen.

Stay tuned.