The dictionary definition of neatness is: in a pleasingly orderly and clean condition or habitually orderly and clean in appearance or habits. I would guess most people do not follow this definition. But I do, or at least try to as best I can. If you choose to be a slob this means you are constantly messy and a lot of the time you can never find what you’re looking for. Why would you want to constantly be searching for something you need? I know I wouldn’t want to be. In order to be a neat person, everything around you needs to neat and orderly.

When your room is messy you are more vulnerable to stress. I like to everything perfectly organized. This helps me to know where everything is, and I’m never searching for stuff. In my main closet are my clothes that hang, on the top shelf are my boots. Nothing is allowed to be on the closet floor or else I consider it not neat. In my far side closet I keep t-shirts, sweatshirts, and sweatpants. In the other side closet I have memory boxes, photo albums, trophies, and old school work. Luckily I’m able to store purses and shoes in my sister’s room, because she lives downtown. I keep all my shoes in their boxes and have them organized by designer. My purses are organized the exact same way but without boxes. This makes my room a lot neater, because I don’t have to deal with excess items. On my dresser only a few select items are allowed. I have a necklace rack so they don’t tangle and my earring holder has a spot too. But every other piece of jewelry is in a drawer. On my nightstand I have my iHome and a lamp, and on the other

nightstand I have a lamp and three picture frames. My desk is perfectly center between my two windows and it holds some more picture frames and books I would like to read. Then I have my shelves, which hold picture frames and only a select few nick-knacks. On my other hanging shelf rack I have more picture frames and a tennis sign. The only other place to keep things is under my bed, which is a huge no. If you have things under your bed they’re just collecting dust and eventually you don’t even remember what you have under there. Its best to have all your things in plain sight in a drawer or closet. Having a neat room makes me less stressed out, because I know it’s one less task to worry about.

My bathroom is semi neat, which stresses me out thinking about it. I have a ribbon/ headband drawer which is very messy. Every time I go to find a headband I can’t find the desired one, because there are so many ribbons everywhere. Besides the ribbon drawer everything is basically where it should be.

School lockers for some people can get messy, and I honestly don’t understand why. I have my books, notebooks, and my folders in there and that’s it unless I put my jacket or lunch in there. But some people put wrappers and garbage in the bottom which is dumb, because then you’re going to attract ants. If you have a messy locker, you most likely have messy binders, notebooks, folders and a messy pencil case. My folders are all neatly organized by which category the handout falls under: homework or finished. And for my notebooks if I don’t neatly write something out, I usually just rip out the whole sheet, so it doesn’t bother me.
One thing that does bother me is when drivers have messy cars. Now I will admit mine has had a few gum wrappers left in the cup holders, but that is nothing compared to some of my

friends’ cars. I would just feel gross driving in a car with food laying on the floor and drink cups rolling everywhere, wouldn’t you? My purse is another belonging of mine that has to be neat. I keep only the essentials inside: my wallet, and my phone, my keys, and usually nothing else. Because If I have too much in there, then I start panicking thinking I’m going to lose something.
Most cell phone owners don’t put both the first and last name of someone in their phone book, but for me it’s a must. It just looks so much neater and it’s so much easier, or else you have eight of one name and don’t know which one is which. I also have a calendar in my phone, which may be lame, but it keeps me so organized. I’m able to click on the date and see what I have for the day, which is neater than manually writing it on a calendar. My computer programs also need to perfect. ITunes needs to be in order and the playlists need to be labeled, which helps keep my music neater and easier for me to find. AOL has this awesome button that adds groups where you can group names so you can collate you messages. I have one specified for volunteering, NHS, SOS, and all my classes. It helps keep my life in check. Because if I’m looking for a specific email I want to know where to look, I don’t want to look through a mess of junk emails. I also have a file to keep all those annoying college emails. This helps keep my AOL account neat and tidy.
Life is so much easier and stress free when everything is neat. I never have to add extra stress of thinking about cleaning my room, because it’s already in order. I am nowhere near perfect, but I like everything in its designates spot, and I would like for everything to be perfect. Many perfectionists are slobs, which is hard to believe, because how can you want everything to be perfect and yet have a messy room. A neat nick always has everything in place and has


everything organized. Some even take the extra step to color organize their clothing, which I consider a step too far, but for some neat nicks it works for them. Hopefully if you’re not a neat
person yourself, you will soon change your ways, and follow this stress free path. Neatness cannot be defined by a definition but by a lifestyle.