Our DS doesn't pick or break things as you described. For him, it manifests more as putting things down in odd places or putting on his clothing incorrectly (like his jeans before his undies).

He will do this usually when he's talking to us about some grand idea. Sometimes, we let him follow through and then point out what he did while he was talking and he just busts out laughing. We chalk it up to the "absent-minded professor" syndrome.