If you don't have someone you can give work to when there's an unexpected absence, your whole office can be thrown into an absolute tailspin. Don't believe it. I do a lot of consulting with computer programmers and real technophiles, the people who design all of this wonderful technology. They have as much chaos in their offices as the rest of us. Technology is not the quick fix for everything.
Technology is simply a tool.
It is not a panacea for all ills. Organization requires a mind-set, not just a computer. It may be normal, but it's another myth. I bet that if you cleared everything off your desk, you would know that there was still something that had to be done. Even when you can't see your work, you know that it's there.