Less of A: Let's Keep It That Way

Like the way I set out these matching jars in the kitchen?  They look so clean and neat...just the way I like it.  He he.  I'm not as type-A or OCD-esque as I used to be, but occasionally the organizational spirit within moves me to do things like this.  Afterwards, as I admire my work, I feel strangely refreshed.  It's a good feeling.

But nothing's a better reminder of the joys of recovering type-A-dom than when I witness other type-As in action.  Faces scowl and blood pressures rise.  It gets uuuuugly.

This past fall, one of these ugly incidents took place at a local food pantry where I was part of an assembly line packing hundreds of bags full of cranberry jelly, canned veggies, and other Thanksgiving foods.  There were dozens of other volunteers including a group of first and second year law associates (counted towards their pro bono hours).  One frigid young lawyer pursed her lips for the entire four hours after mandating that we should use up our supply of 14-oz. bags of stuffing mix before the 16-oz. ones.  When one of her fellow colleagues unknowingly tossed a single 16-oz. bag into a dinner package instead of a 14-oz. bag, she icily pointed out, "JUST TO LET YOU KNOW, THAT WASN'T A 14-OZ. BAG."  And while several of us standing in the assembly line tried to decide if she was joking or not, she reiterated, "I'M JUST SAYING: WE WERE GOING TO USE UP THE 14-OZ. BAGS BEFORE USING THE 16-OZ. ONES."

And then daggers shot out of her eyes.  And we all turned into stone statues.

Yeah, um, hi.  Second year type-A poster girl?  (1) You're annoying me.  (2) Calm the frick down.  (3) An extra 2 ounces of Pepperidge Farm cornbread stuffing is a good thing for a hungry family that's getting their Thanksgiving meal in boxes and cans from a food pantry.

There was a time when I could totally understand where this girl was coming from...but since I had long ago lost the stick up my bum, I inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly as I heard the girl who made this earth-shattering mix-up stutter an apology.  And then I reached for not one, but two 16-oz. bags of stuffing mix to include in the next package.