Order and Method
Like Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot, I practically need my surroundings to be neat and organized. Unlike Poirot, who was meticulous inside and out, I need the outside world to be organized because my brain is not, all too often.
Since childhood, I've been enthralled by anything designed to hold lots of stuff that had a perfect place for everything, like sewing boxes with labelled compartments for notions, flatware organizers, Trapper Keepers, and anything by ScotteVest (it has pockets). In an ideal world, everything has a perfect place, and is in that place. Things being the wrong place completely derails any train of thought, as my brain switches from processing to finding. Once the missing thing is found, my train of thought will have left the station without me.
The craving for order and method extends to finding the very best (most efficient, fewest steps, fastest time) way to do any and everything. It's like having an argumentative set of efficiency experts living in my brain. I can waffle for two minutes half-way up the stairs while deciding on whether to go back to get something forgotten, or if a second trip would be faster.
Thankfully, after renovating the kitchen, there was enough room for almost everything. Tools are placed closest to where they will be used. The whole space is very efficient for baking.
Stollen
I spent years wondering why anyone would eat a bread full of awful fruitcake mix. I'd even pick out the bread around it. Turns out it's not too bad if you use almonds, raisins and currants! It's now become our breakfast of choice for gift unwrapping.
The knife drawer. Daily use knives on the left, special and spare knives on the right. Within the daily knives, straight blades on the left, serrated on the right.