Everything In Its Place

[Gracey]

... not strange at all, to me anyway.

I will remember what's in a pile of clutter but only if I'm paying attention.

If I'm paying attention I have a photo in my minds eye of the pile.

Come the question, "Has anyone seen my ...?"
I can let them know where their ..... is.

Otherwise no,
There could be all manner of the weird and wonderful in a pile, cluttering up space and I wouldn't notice,
unless it had a scent I don't recognise or don't like.

 

[SusanLR]

That's why I scored 97% in that Pooh test...Rabbit OCD.
Everything is in a certain order that I develop into habit.

 

[Joshua the Writer]

Everything has to be where I last put it, not moved or covered up. If one of my family members move it or cover it up with other objects, I freak out. I got confused and disorientated one time when my Mom came into my room and re-organized everything while I was away. To be fair, it was a bit messy, but it was controlled chaos.

 

[lateundiagnosed]

same here, untidy at home but when i see someone else's untidiness ,i want to help them clean up the place. its reverse something or other.

 

[ChibiChick]

I don't know for sure, but I think this is more common in the autistic community, but I have a strong desire to have everything in its proper place. For example, on the shelf next to my bed I have my inhaler, phone (when charging), hearing aids case, watch, pill bottles, and my clock. My clothes are all folded the same way, my shirts are all hung facing the same way and arranged by color, and so on.

Similarly, I can't use a pair of potholders unless they're a matching pair.

And it's not just physical things, either. There are certain songs or albums that I only listen to at certain times (usually based on the weather). I only listen to Jethro Tull's "Thick as a Brick" in cool, autumn or fall weather; it feels wrong to listen to it in summer.

And part of this also extends to things like not using my My Little Pony coffee mug because it's winter-themed and it's not winter yet. I'll have to wait until October and December to wear my Nightmare Before Christmas shirt. And I refuse to do anything Christmas-related until after Thanksgiving, and it aggravates me to no end when companies (like where I work) decorate early.

Does anyone else have similar rules?

Yes! I didn't know it was an autism trait until recently but I get so stressed when things aren't in their proper place.
And the worst part of it is that I currently live with my sister (who is a slob) and she never puts anything back where it goes.

 

[Soleil]

Yes! I didn't know it was an autism trait until recently but I get so stressed when things aren't in their proper place.
And the worst part of it is that I currently live with my sister (who is a slob) and she never puts anything back where it goes.

I know how you feel; my brother is staying with us for a bit, and he keeps leaving things out...