Friday, February 6, 2009

The Satisfaction that Mild Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Can Create


My daughter, Billie-Mae, sent me a photo of her & her cupboard this evening. I was thrilled. 
Not only is everything organised in neat piles according to their species (e.g. shorts) but she has set up a Clothing Database on her computer which will help  keep tabs on her continually expanding wardrobe. Because she is a Scientific Person (concurrently studying two Bachelor of Science degrees in Psychology & Geology), she loves nothing more than Spreadsheets & databases. I wouldn't know what a Spreadsheet looked like. She also mentioned a rather intricate system of Colour-Coding the Database which I thought sounded Genius, but I couldn't follow. Not that I'm trying to portray myself as dim. Heaven forbid!
All this Serendipitiously (possibly not a proper word, & if it is, certainly not a word I'm spelling correctly ) dovetails into a blog entry I read yesterday in Linda Grant's, The Thoughtful Dresser.
Linda waxed lyrical about this girls gadget that you can get for your iPhone. All you need to do is photograph your entire wardrobe including handbags & shoes etc & then you can arrange everything into outfits. You can also work out how much value for money you get for each item by recording every time you wear it. This is  a concept that was obviously stolen from that great late nineties film, 'Clueless', where the main character, played by Alicia Silverstone had a v. similar set up involving her bedroom computer & an automated wardrobe. I thought it was hilarious at the time. And I still think it is. 
But what a yawn to do it In Real Life. Who, in their Right Mind would be prepared to photograph every item of clothing they own, I ask?
As I type, I uncharacteristically realise how Silly I Sound.  Just about every stitch of clothing I put on my back is obsessively photographed & posted on my flickr site.
But back to Real Wardrobes.
I think that there is nothing quite like the Satisfaction gained from opening a Wardrobe Door & finding everything beautifully arranged. In my case, my mind is instantly tricked into thinking that I've got everything under control ,which is an Absolute Godsend.
 In Billie-Mae's case, I suspect she's observing her own behaviour with some bemusement. She wonders if perhaps  she has a Mild Case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
I just think she is Wonderful.

2 comments:

mae said...

Nice - but you didn't mention that the weirdest part of it all is that my room normally resembles a post-apocalyptic landscape

Darla said...

Lovely daughter, organized or not.

Darla