The Clutter Corner

Anyone who's ever visited our home knows that I am a neat freak. I hate clutter. I mean I really HATE clutter. I own few knick knacks and tzchokes. My decorating style could be considered minimalistic. Dishes never sit in my sink. Newspapers and magazines never pile up. I am constantly putting away toys that the kids have scattered all over the house. Clean laundry is folded and put away shortly after exiting the dryer. I sort through the mail, while standing next to the recycle bin, tossing the junk and then immediately filing bills to be paid. If Martha Stewart knew me, surely she would be proud. Call me crazy, but I find comfort in cleanliness. Order and organization bring me calm. And yet there is one corner of the kitchen that could be considered cluttered. Martha would not like this corner. See for yourself. Those are Jack's testing supplies: his lancet, his test strips, his blood sugar meter, the napkin on which he wipes the blood from his finger and the log on which we chart his blood sugar numbers for the week. Those items sit out for all to see all the time. (Yes, that napkin, it's gross, I know. It's used repeatedly before being pitched. But only Jack uses it, and really, what's the harm?)

A drawer sits directly underneath those items, and in that drawer, we do store other diabetes supplies, like alcohol swabs, extra meters and our food scale. In theory, we could just toss the counter's contents in the drawer, too. Or we could use a nice basket to hold the items. But to make testing as easy, as fast and as convenient as possible for Jack, we allow his supplies to clutter the counter. And they don't bother me one bit. Go figure...