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It is a truism of American life that we're too darn messy，or we think we are，and we feel really bad about it.Our desks and dining room tables are awash with paper；our closets are bursting with clothes and sports equipment and old files；our laundry areas boil；our basements and garages seethe.And so do our partners—or our parents，if we happen to be teenagers.

This is why sales of home-organizing products，like accordion files and labelmakers and plastic tubs，keep going up and up，from$5.9 billion last year to a projected$7.6 billion by 2009，as do the revenues of companies that make closet organizing systems，an industry that is pulling in$3 billion a year，according to Closets magazine.

This is why January is now Get Organized Month，thanks also to the efforts of the National Association of Professional Organizers，whose 4，000 clutter-busting members will be poised，clipboards and trash bags at the ready，to minister to the 10，000 clutter victims who the association estimates will be calling for its members'services just after the new year.

But contrarian voices can be heard in the wilderness.An anti-anticlutter movement is afoot，one that says yes to mess and urges you to embrace your disorder.Studies are piling up that show that messy desks are the vivid signatures of people with creative，limber minds(who reap higher salaries than those with neat“office landscapes”)and that messy closet owners are probably better parents and nicer and cooler than their tidier counterparts.It's a movement that confirms what you have known，deep down，all along:really neat people are not avatars of the good life；they are humorless and inflexible prigs，and have way too much time on their hands.

“It's chasing an illusion to think that any organization—be it a family unit or a corporation—can be completely rid of disorder on any consistent basis，”said Jerrold Pollak，a neuropsychologist at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth，N.H.，whose work involves helping people tolerate the inherent disorder in their lives.“And if it could，should it be?Total organization is a futile attempt to deny and control the unpredictability of life.I live in a world of total clutter，advising on cases where you'd think from all the paper it's the FBI.files on the Unabomber，”when，in fact，he said，it's only“a person with a stiff neck.”

“My wife has threatened divorce over all the piles，”continued Dr Pollack，who has an office at home，too.“If we had kids the health department would have to be alerted.But what can I do?”

Stop feeling bad，say the mess apologists.There are more urgent things to worry about.Irwin Kula is a rabbi based in Manhattan and author of“Yearnings:Embracing the Sacred Messiness of Life，”which was published by Hyperion in September.“Order can be profane and lifediminishing，”he said the other day.“It's a flippant remark，but if you've never had a messy kitchen，you've probably never had a homecooked meal.Real life is very messy，but we need to have models about how that messiness works.”

His favorite example?His 15-year-old daughter Talia's bedroom，a picture of utter disorder—and individuality，he said.

“One day I'm standing in front of the door，”he said，“and it's out of control and my wife，Dana，is freaking out，and suddenly I see in all the piles the dress she wore to her first dance and an earring she wore to her bat mitzvah.Her journal is wide open on the floor，and there are photobooth pictures of her friends strewn everywhere.I said，‘Omigod，her cup overflows!'And we started to laugh.”

The room was an invitation，he said，to search for a deeper meaning under the scurf.

Last week David H.Freedman，another amiable mess analyst(and science journalist)，stood bemused in front of the heathery tweed collapsible storage boxes with clear panels($29.99)at the Container Store in Natick，Mass.，and suggested that the main thing most people's closets are brimming with is unused organizing equipment.“This is another wonderful trend，”Mr Freedman said dryly，referring to the clear panels.“We're going to lose the ability to put clutter away.Inside your storage box，you'd better be organized.”

Mr Freedman is co-author，with Eric Abrahamson，of“A Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder，”out in two weeks from Little，Brown＆Company.The book is a meandering，engaging tour of beneficial mess and the systems and individuals reaping those benefits，like Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger，whose mess-for-success tips include never making a daily schedule.

As a corollary，the book's authors examine the high cost of neatness—measured in shame，mostly，and family fights，as well as wasted dollars—and generally have a fine time tipping over orthodoxies and poking fun at clutter busters and their ilk，and at the self-help tips they live or die by.They wonder:Why is it better to pack more activities into one day?By whose standards are procrastinators less effective than their well-scheduled peers?Why should children have to do chores to earn back their possessions if they leave them on the floor，as many professional organizers suggest?

In their book Mr Freedman and Mr Abrahamson describe the properties of mess in loving terms.Mess has resonance，they write，which means it can vibrate beyond its own confines and connect to the larger world.It was the overall scumminess of Alexander Fleming's laboratory that led to his discovery of penicillin，from a moldy bloom in a petri dish he had forgotten on his desk.

Mess is robust and adaptable，like Mr Schwarzenegger's open calendar，as opposed to brittle，like a parent's rigid schedule that doesn't allow for a small child's wool-gathering or balkiness.Mess is complete，in that it embraces all sorts of random elements.Mess tells a story:you can learn a lot about people from their detritus，whereas neat—well，neat is a closed book.Neat has no narrative and no personality(as any cover of Real Simple magazine will demonstrate).Mess is also natural，as Mr Freedman and Mr Abrahamson point out，and a real time-saver.“It takes extra effort to neaten up a system，”they write.“Things don't generally neaten themselves.”

Indeed，the most valuable dividend of living with mess may be time.Mr Freedman，who has three children and a hard-working spouse，Laurie Tobey-Freedman，a preschool special-needs coordinator，is studying Mandarin in his precious spare moments.Perusing a four-door stainless steel shoe cabinet($149)at the Container Store，and imagining gussying up a shoe collection，he shook his head and said，“I don't get the appeal of this，which may be a huge defect on my part in terms of higher forms of entertainment.”

The success of the Container Store notwithstanding，there is indeed something messy—and not in a good way—about so many organizing options.“When I think about this urge to organize，it reminds me of how it was when Americans began to take more and more control of their weight:they got fatter，”said Marian Salzman，chief marketing officer of J.Walter Thompson and co-author，with Ira Matathia，of“Next Now: Trends for the Future，”which is about to be published by Palgrave Macmillan.“I never gained weight until I went on a diet，”she said，adding that she has a room in which she hides a treadmill and，now，two bags of organizing supplies.

“I got sick of looking at them so I bought plastic tubs and stuffed the bags in the tubs and put the tubs in the room.”Right now，she said，“we are emotionally overloaded，and so what this is about is that we are getting better and better at living superficially.”

“Superficial is the new intimate，”Ms Salzman said，gaining steam，“and these boxes，these organizing supplies，are the containers for all our superficial selves.'I will be a neater mom，a hipper mom，a mom that gets more done.'Do I sound cynical?”Nah.

In the semiotics of mess，desks may be the richest texts.Messy-desk research borrows from cognitive ergonomics，a field of study dealing with how a work environment supports productivity.Consider that desks，our work landscapes，are stand-ins for our brains，and so the piles we array on them are“cognitive artifacts，”or data cues，of our thoughts as we work.

To a professional organizer brandishing colored files and stackable trays，cluttered horizontal surfaces are a horror；to cognitive psychologists like Jay Brand，who works in the Ideation Group of Haworth Inc.，the huge office furniture company，their peaks and valleys glow with intellectual intent and showcase a mind whirring away:sorting，linking，producing.(By extension，a clean desk can be seen as a dormant area，an indication that no thought or work is being undertaken.)

His studies and others，like a survey conducted last year by Ajilon Professional Staffing，in Saddle Brook，N.J.，which linked messy desks to higher salaries(and neat ones to salaries under$35，000)，answer Einstein's oft-quoted remark，“If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind，of what，then，is an empty desk?”

Don Springer，61，is an information technology project manager and the winner of the Type O-No!contest sponsored by Dymo，the labelmaker manufacturer，in October.The contest offered$5，000 worth of clutter management—for the tools(the boxes，the bins and the systems，as well as a labelmaker)and the services of a professional organizer—to the best example of a“clutter nightmare，”as expressed by contestants in a photograph and a 100-word essay.“Type O-Nos，”reads a definition on the Dymo Web site，are“outlaws on the tidy trail，clutter criminals twice over.”

Mr Springer，who in a phone interview spoke softly，precisely and with great humor，professed deep shame over the contents of what he calls his oh-by-the-way room，a library/junk room that his wife would like cleaned to make a nursery for a new grandchild.With a full-time job and membership in various clubs and organizations，and a desire to spend his free time seeing a movie with his wife instead of“expending the emotional energy it would take to sort through all the stuff，”Mr Springer said，he is unable to prune the piles to his wife's satisfaction.“There are emotional treasures buried in there，and I don't want to part with them，”he said.So，why bother?“Because I love my wife and I want to make her happy，”he said.

According to a small survey that Mr Freedman and Mr Abrahamson conducted for their book—160 adults representing a cross section of genders，races and inComes，Mr Freedman said—of those who had split up with a partner，one in 12 had done so over a struggle involving one partner's idea of mess.Happy partnerships turn out not necessarily to be those in which products from Staples figure largely.Mr Freedman and his wife，for example，have been married for over two decades，and live in an offhandedly messy house with a violently messy basement—the latter area，where their three children hang out，decorated(though that's not quite the right word)in a pre-1990s Tompkins Square Park lean-to style.

The room's chaos is an example of one of Mr Freedman and Mr Abrahamson's mess strategies，which is to create a mess-free DMZ(in this case，the basement stairs)and acknowledge areas of complementary mess.Cherishyourmessmanagementstrategies，suggestedMr Freedman，speaking approvingly of the pile builders and the under-thebed stuffers；of those who let their messes wax and wane—the cyclers，he called them；and those who create satellite messes(in storage units offsite).“Most people don't realize their own efficiency or effectiveness，”he said with a grin.

It's also nice to remember，as Mr Freedman pointed out，that almost anything looks pretty neat if it's shuffled into a pile.

1.Why does the author suggest Americans“say yes to mess”?

2.“Contrarian voices can be heard in the wilderness.”Discuss the meaning of this sentence.

3.What is the purpose of author's mention of FBI and the Unabomber?

4.Why does David Freeman say“we're going to lose the ability to put clutter away”?

5.How much do you agree with the author?What is your take on this mess vs.order debate?

Truism:A statement that is generally accepted as obviously true and is repeated so often that it has beCome boring.注意该词的语气，相当于needless to say。

Awash...bursting...boil...seethe:这几个词属同类，均表示“充斥着”又似有递进之意，它们立体地描述美国人自认的messy生活环境。

Accordion files:手风琴式文件夹。hanging file挂式文件夹，expanding file折叠式文件夹，Manila folder牛皮纸文件夹，filing cabinet文件柜。

Clutter busting:clutter这里指mess，disorder。bust一词在报刊中用得较频繁，与boom相对，如baby boom(er)与baby bust(er)。buster也常置于其他词之后构成复合词，意为someone or something that fights，stops or overComes the specified crime or undesirable activity。本文中就出现clutter buster，又如crime buster，sanction buster。紧随clutter busting之后的clutter victim的意思指遭受凌乱无序之苦的人。

In the wilderness:通常指no longer in an important position，especially in politics，请注意该词组的隐含之意。

Office landscape:原本是一种建筑理念。Office landscape encouraged all levels of staff to sit together in one open floor to create a nonhierarchical environment that increased communication and collaboration.Typical designs used contemporary but conventional furniture which was available at the time.Standard desks and chairs were used，with lateral file cabinets，curved screens，and large potted plants used as visual barriers and space definers.Floor plans frequently used irregular geometry and organic circulation patterns to enhance the egalitarian nature of the plan.Many designs used slightly lower than normal occupancy density to mitigate the acoustical problems inherent in open designs.本文里被借用，所以用上引号，意为“办公室环境”。

Avatar:源自印度梵语，本意是指“分身、化身”(The incarnation of a Hindu deity，especially Vishnu，in human or animal form)。互联网时代，avatar成为网络虚拟角色——网络用户在以图像为主的虚拟世界中的虚拟形象——代名词。这类虚拟角色通常为卡通形象，出现于论坛、聊天室或游戏里。用户可以根据自己的喜好，更换虚拟角色的造型，如发型、服饰、表情、场景等。在与其他虚拟角色交往的过程中，还可以使用各种虚拟商品，如鲜花、礼品等。

Rabbi:犹太教祭司A Jewish religious leader，usually one who is in charge of a synagogue，one who is qualified to teach Judaism，or one who is an expert on Jewish law.

Freak out:口语中常用，意指“react very strongly to something that makes people suddenly feel shocked，surprised，frightened”。

Sir Alexander Fleming:(1881-1955)Scottish bacteriologist.While serving in the Royal Army Medical Corps in World War I，he conducted research on antibacterial substances that would be nontoxic to humans.In 1928 he inadvertently discovered penicillin when he noticed that a mold contaminating a bacterial culture was inhibiting the bacteria's growth.He shared a 1945 Nobel Prize with Ernst Boris Chain and Howard Walter Florey，who both carried Fleming's basic discovery further in isolating，purifying，testing，and producing penicillin in quantity.青霉素(也叫盘尼西林)的发明者亚历山大·弗莱明于1881年出生在苏格兰的洛克菲尔德(Lochfield)。英国著名细菌学家，弗莱明从伦敦“圣马利亚”医院医科学校毕业后，从事免疫学研究；后来在第一次世界大战中作为一名军医，研究伤口感染。他注意到许多防腐剂对人体细胞的伤害甚于对细菌的伤害，他认识到需要某种有害于细菌而无害于人体细胞的物质。

Woolgather:To engage in fanciful daydreaming；an idle indulgence in fantasy.胡思乱想，犯傻，心不在焉。

Closed book:A person or thing that cannot be known or understood； something unfathomable or puzzling.

Real Simple:It is a monthly women's interest magazine published by Time Inc.Real Simple，which was launched by Time Inc.in 2000，features articles and information related to homekeeping，childcare，cooking and emotional wellbeing.Real Simple is distinguished by its clean，uncluttered style of layout and photos.Real Simple made its television debut in 2006，with a half-hour segment airing on the Public Broadcasting Service(PBS).It also launched a show on TLC entitled Real Simple Real Life.其官方网站是http://www.realsimple.com/.

Special-needs coordinator:Special needs is a term used in clinical diagnostic and functional development to describe individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical，mental，or psychological.For instance，the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and the International Classification of Diseases 9th edition both give guidelines for clinical diagnosis.People with Autism，Down syndrome，dyslexia，blindness，or cystic fibrosis，for example，may be considered to have special needs.More narrowly，it is a legal term applying in foster care in the United States，derived from the language in the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997.It is a diagnosis used to classify children as needing“more”services than those children without special needs who are in the foster care system.It is a diagnosis based on behavior，childhood and family history，and is usually made by a health care professional.

Semiotics:符号学。Semiotics is the academic study of the relationship of language and other signs to their meanings.

Peaks and valleys:山峰与山谷。在此转指“cluttered horizontal surfaces”杂物堆放在高低起伏的平面。

Type O-No!contest:此活动主办方Dymo公司定义两人，一是Type O型，另一类是Type O-No!型。A Type O is someone who embraces organization with passion and a plan.Always coordinating and configuring into sensible systems，Type O's elevate organization to an artform.Whether alphabetically arranging kitchen spices or cooking up a new file system at work.A Type O-No!is someone who could use a little help on the organization front.Whether they lack the time，tips，or tools，Type O-No's!have yet to be bitten by the organizing bug.Type O-No's!are outlaws on the tidy trail，clutter criminals twice-over.If only they had the time and resources to get on the organization bandwagon.其公司网站上是这样规定参赛规则的:Upload one photograph that showcases your clutter nightmare.Then，in 100 words or less，tell us what makes you a“Type O-No!”Click on the“Enter Contest”link below to complete the online entry form and submit your photograph and essay.Eligible entries will be judged by an independent judging source and will be based equally on(a)ability of photograph to convey“Type O-No!”style；(b)overall creativeness of essay；(c) humor of essay and photograph；(d)need for organizational help as demonstrated by essay and photograph.One“Type O-No!”Grand-Prize winner will be chosen，along with nine First Place Prize Winners.更多详情见http://global.dymo.com/enUS/Home/default.html。

Emotional energy:文中多次用到emotional一词，是指这些杂物及其清理牵扯到太多情感方面的东西，而不仅仅是体力的消耗，再说很多堆放物本身对物主而言又具sentimental value。

Cross section:横截面(图)A representation of a vertical section across and through a landscape or landscape feature，as in a cross-valley profile—a section of a valley drawn at right angles to the course of a river at a given point.Here means a group of people or things that are typical or representative of a larger group.

Staples:史泰博是全球最优秀的办公用品销售商。史泰博于1986年成立于美国，目前已经在全球拥有超过1620家办公用品超市和办公用品销售中心。史泰博曾被美国商业周刊评为表现最优秀的50家公司之一。史泰博致力于提供品质最优，服务最好，价格最具竞争力的办公用品。通过史泰博网站可以直接订购所有办公用品。创新和提倡对环境的爱护是史泰博永恒的企业文化之一。Staples，Inc.(NASDAQ:SPLS)is the world's largest office supply retail store chain，with over 2，000 stores worldwide in 27 countries.Staples，Inc.sells supplies，office machines，promotional products，furniture，technology and business services both in stores and online via Staples.com.

DMZ:原为军事缩略语，全称为demilitarized zone。最有名的就是朝鲜半岛上的三八线(38th Parallel)作为一个buffer zone.A defined area in which the stationing，or concentrating of military forces，or the retention or establishment of military installations of any description，is prohibited.(这里显然转指无杂乱的中间地段。)

Wax and wane:Increase and decrease，as in size，number，strength，or intensity.This expression alludes to the phases of the moon，with its periodic changes in size.

Off site:It means in another location.It is common practice to store copies of important data off site as part of a disaster recovery program.反义词是on site。

Tompkins Square Park:It is a 10.5 acre(42，000 m²)public park in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.It is square in shape，and is bounded on the north by East 10th Street，on the east by Avenue B，on the south by East 7th Street，and on the west by Avenue A.St.Marks Place abuts the park to the west.

Lean-to style:一种建筑特色，指单坡檐屋，单坡的A lean-to is a building such as a shed or garage which is attached to one wall of a larger building，and which usually has a sloping roof.It can be a free standing structure of three walls and a sloping roof.The open side is sheltered away from the prevailing winds and rains.Often it is a rough structure made of logs or unfinished wood and used as a camping shelter.It can also refer to a shed with a sloping roof and three walls that abut the wall of another structure.This form of lean-to is generally provisional；it is an appendix to an existing building constructed to fulfill a new need.Sometimes they cover external staircases，as is the case with the lean-to building built in the 15th century against one of the walls of the large chapter room of the cathedral of Meaux.Sometimes，they are built to protect entrances or to establish covered markets around certain large civic buildings.

Ergonomics:人体工学Profession of designing machines，tools，and work environments to best accommodate human performance and behaviour.It aims to improve the practicality，efficiency，and safety of a person working with a single machine or device(e.g.，using a telephone，driving a car，or operating a computer terminal).Taking the user into consideration has probably always been a part of tool design； for example，the scythe，one of the oldest and most efficient human implements，shows a remarkable degree of ergonomic engineering.Examples of common devices that are poorly designed ergonomically include the snow shovel and the computer or typewriter keyboard.Ergonomics is the science of designing the job，equipment，and workplace to fit the worker.Proper ergonomic design is necessary to prevent repetitive strain injuries，which can develop over time and can lead to long-term disability.Ergonomics is concerned with the“fit”between people and their work.It takes account of the worker's capabilities and limitations in seeking to ensure that tasks，equipment，information and the environment suit each worker.Ergonomic research is performed by those who study human capabilities in relationship to their work demands.Information derived from these studies contributes to the design and evaluation of tasks，jobs，products，environments and systems in order to make them compatible with the needs，abilities and limitations of people.人体工学，在本质上就是使工具的使用方式尽量适合人体的自然形态，这样就可以让使用工具的人在工作时，身体和精神不需要任何主动适应，从而尽量减少使用工具造成的疲劳。

Unabomber:Unabomber or Unabomer，name given by the FBI(University+Airline+Bomber)to the elusive perpetrator of a series of bombings(1975-1995)in the United States that killed 3 and wounded 23.The targets were mainly academics in technological disciplines，airline executives，and executives in businesses thought to affect the environment.Fifteenbombs—mostmailed，somehand-placed—exploded，and one was defused.In 1995 the Washington Post and New York Times published the Unabomber's long，rambling manifesto after he pledged in return to end the bombings.A year later the FBI，acting on information from his brother David，arrested Theodore J.Kaczynski(1942-)，a reclusive former mathematics professor，at his isolated cabin in Montana.In Jan.，1998，Kaczynski pled guilty to federal charges related to the bombings；later that year he received four life sentences plus 30 years in prison.He attended Harvard University and earned a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Michigan.He taught at the University of California-Berkeley(1967-1969).

Bat mitzvah:成人礼，即犹太女孩和男孩在13岁左右进行的开始承担成年人宗教义务的仪式，女孩的成人礼是bat-mitzvah，男孩是barmitzvah。An initiation ceremony marking the 12th birthday of a Jewish girl and signifying the beginning of religious responsibility.In Judaism，Bar Mitzvah applies to boys while Bat Mitzvah applies to girls.The terms are also commonly used to refer to the ceremony celebrating this coming of age.There is a common misconception that the Bar Mitzvah ceremony causes a change in status from youth to adulthood.The rights and responsibilities vest solely because of age，the Bar Mitzvah ceremony is typically an ordinary Sabbath service in which the boy or girl participates for the first time as an adult.According to Jewish law，when Jewish children reach the age of majority(generally thirteen years for boys and twelve for girls)they beCome responsible for their actions，and“beCome a Bar or Bat Mitzvah”.In many Conservative and Reform synagogues，girls celebrate their Bat Mitzvahs at age 13，along with boys.This also coincides with physical puberty.Prior to this，the child's parents are responsible for the child's adherence to Jewish law and tradition and，after this age，children bear their own responsibility for Jewish ritual law，tradition，and ethics and are privileged to participate in all areas of Jewish community life.

“Her cup overflows!”:源自《圣经》诗篇“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.You anoint my head with oil；my cup overflows.”。(Psalm 23:5)“在我敌人面前，你为我摆设筵席；你用油膏涂了我的头，使我的福杯满溢。”上帝丰丰富富地在杯中倒入他的怜恤和慈爱，而且从杯中漫出。还有第二个含义，也许是以这种手法描写物质上丰富的祝福。大卫曾经欣喜过这样的祝福。他还通过艰难的经历，体会到繁荣和兴隆对于灵性的生命是有威胁的。“最难携带的杯子是……充满到边缘的杯子”。如果有可能，甚至会更难，那就是“满溢”的杯子。这里显然是调侃他女儿的屋子极其凌乱，所以大家不禁开怀大笑。

http://monicaricci.typepad.com/monica_ricci_organizing_e/2007/02/an_empty_mind.html

http://monicaricci.typepad.com/monica_ricci_organizing_e/2006/12/the_misguided_b.html

Time to Resist the Constant Pressure to Be Organized，Say the Authors of a New Book about Untidy People

新闻文体中的委婉语:本文出现的special needs，在一定语境下指残障人士的特殊需求，visually challenged重者指盲人，轻者指视力弱者。sanitation engineer意即garbage collector。这些词或者避讳人们不想听到的直白露骨伤人的表达，或者美化一些不甚美好的事物与行径。前者又如correction center替代prison；sex worker替代prostitute。后者如industrial action替代strike；depression/recession替代economic crisis；inner city替代ghetto等。这些cosmetic expressions在报刊中屡见不鲜。英语中journalese就是指这类浮华、臃肿，刻意修饰美化的新闻文笔。这也正是英国作家乔治·奥威尔(1903-1950)在其Politics and the English Language一文中极力唾弃的。其观点参见http://www.george-orwell.org/Politics_and_the_English_Language/0.html。

Ⅰ.According to the article，determine which statements are true and which are false.

1.American people are generally believed to be messy.

2.Clutter-busters are people who oppose organized environment.

3.Anti-clutters think neat people are humorless.

4.David Freeman likes collapsible storage boxes for better organization.

5.Fleming discovered penicillin neither by design nor by accident.

1.National Association of Professional Organizers helped________.

A.organize files on the Unabomber

B.publish“Yearnings:Embracing the Sacred Messiness of Life”

C.publish“A Perfect Mess:The Hidden Benefits of Disorder”

D.set up January's Get Organized Month

2.David Freeman's mess strategies may include the following except________.

A.some accordion files

B.a mess-free zone

C.areas of complementary mess

D.satellite mess as storage unit

3.The phrase“emotional energy”used by Mr.Springer，the winner of the Type O-No!contest，probably implies________.

A.sorting out the stuff could make you angry

B.sorting out the stuff takes a lot of time

C.sorting out the stuff take more than mere physical time and energy

D.he loves his wife and wants to make her happy

4.The Type O-No!contest________.

A.is sponsored by a label making company

B.offers$5，000 worth of prize to the top contestant

C.requires a photograph and a 100-word essay on a clutter nightmare

D.all of the above

5.Which of the following is NOT true about Marian Salzman?

A.She went on a diet and then lost weight.

B.The author of the article doesn't think Marian is cynical.

C.She co-authored a book with Ira Matathia.

D.She bought plastic tubs to store those organizing supplies.