The Symmetry of Boxes

I'm a box freak! :D

I like to have everything nicely kept inside a box, case or some kind of container. It doesn't matter if it's a camera, equipment or something else, I just like boxes.

I do find this unusual in that I have always had the mentality of, "out of sight, out of mind."
If I can't see it then I assume we don't have it or I've run out of it.

My wife will stuff food deep back in the freezer and since I don't see it when I open the door I assume we need some and buy more. I'm not about to dig out everything in the refrigerator to verify if it exists. That would just be silly.

Often I'll put something in a box then forget that I put it there and go looking for it. Looking through box after box to no avail. Or I lose the box I put it in and therefore can't find it or anything else that was in that box.

One would think I would hate boxes. I hate when things are not open and displayed so I can quickly glance and know how many or what all I have, such as groceries in the pantry and food in the refrigerator. This drives me mad when things that should be up front are pushed back to the very depths of the frig!

A nice container that everything fits in perfectly is it's own sublime reward. The perfect box. I have cases for my cameras that hold them in order. The cases are metal with nice clasps and can be locked. They have foam padding to protect the camera. Everything inside has symmetry. Everything is displayed within the case and in order.

Boxes let you make order of chaos. Organize and fit everything into a nice package where it's easy to find and you always know it's protected. Things scattered all over the place frustrates me yet my desk is often in a state of disarray. There is a constant war going on within me between having everything organized in a box or displayed openly where I can see it and get to it.

Some things should be displayed and easy to see, others should be neatly tucked away in a box but the box should be easy to see and get too. I'm not quite a hoarder either but I do not throw anything away I think I may need one day. This is usually equipment and things even if they are antiquated.

Using this point of view over the years I've collected a few "little shit" boxes. Things that are small and would easily get lost or thrown away have gone into countless boxes over a lifetime. In time these boxes do get thrown away but not until I've transferred the essentials to another box if it warrants keeping. I once found my fathers pocket knife in a little shit box and a deck of thumb nail size playing cards.

However I do have boxes of junk and these get thrown out now and then. It's a process of elimination, transferring from one box to another until only the important stuff remains. Some little reminder of a moment in my life are in boxes scattered throughout the house and in storage. And there are boxes I have no idea what is in them.

Recently I've been feeling the need for another great purge. This is where I go through boxes and throw some things out. Looking around my office I see a few that can go right now!
But we carry our boxes around with us in our head, I know just by looking at a box the contents of that specific package. It's when I don't know that I determine it's time to explore the box and get ready to let some things go.

Yes, I feel a purge coming on. ;)