I suppose this is more of a vent/rant than a well-thought-out post, so if I offend, I want to apologize up front.
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Are you a misplacer - you know: keys, glasses, important papers, etc…?
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If so - does it stress you out? I mean, every now and then, when you have misplaced/lost your keys for the umpteenth time, don’t you just want to beat yourself on the head?
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Is so - what limits the ability to do something about it?
Obviously, I have a context. My wife is a misplacer; very regularly she can’t find every day essentials. Right now, she can’t find her new fancy expensive prescription sunglasses. And while for the most part she calmly finds things, every now and them - between losing things countless times and the buildup of other factors - she just loses it for a bit and needs to check out…
I am a “place for everything, everything in its place kind of guy” - I really don’t misplace things, or if I do I realize it right away and can find them 99% of the time. Further, I am usually able to find her stuff when she misplaces it, often within 30 seconds of her stressing out because she can’t find it - e.g., walk straight to the jacket she wore and pull them out, or go to the car and look under the correct seat…
Please note - I have learned to NEVER gloat, say I told you so, or recommend what she do. I only offer support and try to help find things with a calm soothing voice. Period.
Having said that - it drives me nuts. Pick a spot - or two spots, one in the bedroom, one on the first floor - and those are the only spots where the items can go - period. Also, make sure the spots are out of the kids’ reach - yes, maybe 5% of the time, one of our kids has picked up the item and that led to its being misplaced but that is rare and easily addressed.
Are you a misplacer - how do you deal with it?
Do you live with one - how do YOU deal with it?
I misplace things at times, and will occasionally stress about it. Part of the reason is becoming distracted by something else before I put the object in question into “its spot”. I have a poor memory at times, and so if something I need to do pops into mind, I’ll often try to do it before something else distracts me. Say I’m unlocking the door when coming home, and I realize I have to defrost some chicken for dinner. So before I fall into my habit of putting my things down and checking my E-mail when I get home (which leads to a little websurfing), I put my keys on the kitchen counter near the back door that I just entered through, pull the chicken out of the freezer, and put it in the microwave to defrost. Then I grab my bag and head off to put it and my coat away, leaving the keys on the counter, and usually on a corner of it that I don’t see while cooking. Next morning, I’m wondering “where are my keys?”
I try to develop only one or two spots for some items, and when an idea pops into my head I try to pull out my PDA and jot it down. If it’s as simple as dealing with my keys I try to repeat the intruding thought out loud while stowing them in my bag, then run off to handle that task.
Misplacing things has to be single most frustrating things in life, at least for me it is. It’s lost, wasted time and lost productivity, nothing redeeming at all about it. Losing one’s keys is the absolute worst. Until I find those goddamn keys, I can’t go ANYWHERE! Usually such misplacement occurs at a highly critical time, such as leaving for work, when I have no extra time (and no patience) whatsoever to look for them. Not finding them quickly means I’ll be late for work!
Since keys are such a critical item I have since made it a habit to put them in one designated place. While I am pretty good about doing this 99% of the time, every now and then I’ll set them down someplace else.
For other things, such as envelopes, stamps, CDs, a pen I was just writing with, etc., it’s frustrating to lose something you just had in your hands five seconds ago! There are times I swear there’s some invisible gremlin who just likes to sneak behind my back the moment I’m not looking and swipe things.
What really pisses me off is when, while looking for one thing, I don’t find it, and I also end up misplacing something else in the process.
As for what I do about it, I usually do a lot of swearing and shouting while I frantically overturn papers and other items to look for the damn thing. I’m sure the neighbors just love to hear me shout, “where the FUCK is it?!!” I’m not a very organized person and I don’t have patience to look for things when they turn up missing. Nobody lives with me and I admit that I’d probably be difficult to live with for this reason alone.
Misplacing has been a big issue for my life, and a very frustrating one. I know it is a matter of organization, but even with things I’m very organized with I still lose things (VERY frustrating!)
Right now there are about 17 personal objects that I mentally continuously keep track of. I put these in the same place so if they’re not where they should be I will know it. Despite this I still lose things.
I’ve done horribly forgetful things that have apalled me. The day I had finals this semester I was so busy thinking about my upcoming final that morning I LEFT THE KEYS IN THE IGNITION OF MY CAR when I came back to my car I suddenly realized my keys weren’t in my pocket and to my horror I saw that I had left them in the car. Fortunately one door was unlocked but that means someone could have just taken off with my car. It was very disturbing to realize how careless I was 
Probably the worst case of misplacement was losing two PDAs. The first I got as a graduation present. I kept it on my person at all times, and had it on my dresser when not on my belt. I used it extensively; it was the cornerstone of my organization. One day, it just vanished. My friend, who works in IT, was getting a new PDA and gave me his old one. It was a very nice 500 dollar color PDA that played MP3’s and was SO happy he’d be so generous as to just give it to me. Well, after two months I lost it too! I was devastated and terribly embarassed that I lost it. Its like I’m cursed! No matter how hard I try to keep track of things objects still have a tendency to vanish.
Same as you, WordMan. I rarely misplace anything, and when I do it’s usually because, a) we moved, b) the room/house was cleaned, or c) I was really, really drunk.
My wife misplaces at least one thing a day to maintain her quota. She recently went almost a week without being able to find her driver’s liscense. She loses keys, glasses, IDs - all nearly once a week.
All I can do is shake my head.
AAARRRGGHHHH!!!
Doesn’t it drive you nuts?
Ferret Herder, dwc1970, and Incubus - you all acknowledge how frustrated/stressed it makes you, and that you try to manage it better. Why do you think you have had limited success? Is it just that you get distracted? Maybe, since organization is not your strength, you haven’t laid out a fool-proof enough approach?
Gorgon Heap - don’t you just want to slam your head against the wall? My wife is so down and stressed about these brand new, over $200 sunglasses (glasses were less than $100 but then she put prescription lenses in them). I mean, it has ruined her day and she is feeling like “I spend all my time doing things for others, and end up hurting myself”. It has escalated into an emotional big deal. And here I am, working from home today, completed stressed out - I have looked everywhere for these damn glasses and even I can’t find them, so she has lost them pretty good this time! I had seen them in various places and mentioned something to her a couple of time, but now it is too late - and even the kids are freaked. ARGH!!!
Sorry again for venting. I am hopeful they will turn up and after the furor has died down, I can very gently suggest alternate approaches to keeping an eye on things. I just can’t take this!