I like to keep it spicy … by organizing my spice cabinet. When my husband and I bought our old house, I was drawn to a tall, slim kitchen cabinet, perfect in every way to accommodate spices, herbs and loose tea. So, in an organizational fit, I went to The Container Store and piled my cart with a miniature plexiglass mountain of small containers. Once home, this Brother P‑Touch devotee/kook labeled each little box and filled them accordingly, with everything from Aleppo pepper and cloud forest cardamom to French thyme and marjoram. Then I arranged the boxes on their slim shelves — not alphabetically because that would be really nuts. As I did this, the words of the great poet William Blake rang out in my head, ​“I must create a system or be enslaved by another man’s.” True, Blake may have a flair for the dramatic. But you can’t deny his passion and drive. And every time I swing open my cabinet of tasty aromatics, I feel damn good — and a little freer and more in control of my destiny.