paperclips

some of my favorite things on earth are office supplies.

there is so much you can do with them. so much potential. and the office supply people have thought of everything. for instance, when i was a kid we only had one type of post-it note. it was yellow and standard sized. but now they come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. and they even have small skinny ones that are perfect for keeping your place in a book!

i love paper as well. all types. lined, computer, notebook, construction, card stock. and notepads can't get enough of. i have three in my purse currently. a steno pad, a plan white notepad, and a tiny memo book.

but the other day i was introduced to something new. it was a staple remover. though not the small kind that you pinch to use. it was stick-shaped with a metal foot at the end that you use to slide a staple out. now what was really cool was that at the other end of this staple remover was a magnet. you use it to pick up the little staples after you remove them!

unbelievable.

anyway this guy i work with was showing me this the other day. and while i thought it was cool i told him that i don't really use my stapler that much. he couldn't believe this. he apparently can't live without his stapler. but i said to him,

"you know, i'm really more of a paperclip girl"


and the truth is that i hate having to staple things. i don't like the feeling of squeezing the stapler in my hands. and that awful punch. i hate the idea of piercing holes in to sheets of paper forever. (i'm getting tense just thinking about it)

perhaps you can already see where i'm going with this.

i have a bit of an issue with finality. getting to the point where something is decided, finished, concluded, done, is a process that takes me a lot of time. i get very nervous at the thought of making the final decision on things. i cannot make a decision like that quickly. i need plenty of time with it. plenty of time.

it took me about a years worth of research to decide on which laptop to buy. i am currently debating over when will be the right the time to invest in a smart phone. (i've been thinking this over for about a year as well so, fingers crossed, we're getting close.) but you don't have time to think with a staple. i feel like stapling is the equivalent to a snap decision. it happens in an instant.

but you know what gives you a little more time?

paperclips.

a paperclip gives you time to think it over. a little while to be sure about things because before you make any final decisions. it literally helps you hold it together while you're deciding. with a paperclip you can try it on for size. you can see how it feels. you can double check. and research for a year to make extra sure that you are making the right choice.

and that's important because more than i hate stapling, i hate un-stapling. i don't like realizing that i've made the wrong choice just because i decided too soon. and i don't like trying to undo something that can't ever really be undone. sure i can take out the staple. but that doesn't mean i undid it. there will always be holes in the paper. it will forever be ripped by the mistake that was made. where as if you had just papercliped it (with one of those mini paperclips that i like best) you could have taken a breath and been that much surer.

and i often wish that in life there were more paperclip opportunities. chances where you could just try something out before you stapled yourself to it. at this point in my life i'm finding myself very fearful of committing to things too soon. and i say that at the risk of sounding flaky. i just know that i need time. call me crazy, but i just can't bear the thought of having to remove one of life's staples.

as you can imagine weddings make me very anxious.

but i'm happy to say that four years later my Toshiba Laptop and i are still very happy together.

i'll keep you posted on the smartphone.