Office Supply Fetishists Unite

One of the things I like best about running the southwestern branch of the Real Office is the fact that I'm responsible for procuring my own office supplies.

I've long had a problem with office supplies. As a small child, I would scrape together change from under the davenport cushions and run down to the local Agway (yes, I grew up in a very small, rural town where the center of commerce was, in fact, the Agway Farm and Supply Store) and buy myself notebooks. I would agonize over the display of small and medium size notebooks, trying to make the right choice. Side or top binding? Red, blue, black cover? Maybe a stenographer's notebook? Spiral or sewn? What about the composition books?

Once the choice was made, I'd take it up and give Mrs. Overturf (that was really her name) my gritty handful of change. And the search for the perfect pen to write with would begin.

Now, I can go to Staples any time I want and because I have a reasonable amount of disposable income, I can select the office supplies that make my heart sing. Color coded folders and matching labels? Done! Post-Its in various configurations? Check! Sharpies, Sharpies, Sharpies! And my latest addition: plastic-coated paper clips that make every grouping of papers hum with vibrant togetherness. Yes!

Do I have a problem?

Or maybe I should write that "Do I have a problem!"