I’m supposed to be doing something, but this wasn’t it
Saturday 08.30.08I was supposed to be doing something else, but I forgot what it was, and the computer has such a pretty shiny monitor that I find myself blogging. So pretty and shiny.
September. Almost here. Like that visit from friends or relatives that you knew was in the distant future, but you didn’t have to think about because it was so far off, and yet now it’s midnight and you find yourself at WinCo at midnight buying a toilet scrub brush because you don’t own one, and while you and your roommate don’t mind the ever-growing brown ring around the toilet because it kinda matches the decor of the bathroom, your visitor might turn the CDC on you.
I.E. I’m not ready.
What’s really killing me is getting organized. Correction: organizing how I will get organized. Yes, that’s dumb. Or rather “complicated” if you’re supposed to be fasting from negative words (which I’ll get around to, one of these days, Dr. Nedley). What’s the best way to try and manage my day-to-day stuff? What about stuff for the long term, like budget and life goals? How can I anticipate things that keep coming up every year, and every year I think, “Stink! I forgot about that! Next year I’ll do *so* much better about remembering.” Heh heh: notsomuch.
I have notebooks scattered around the house: some blank, some planners, some for food, some for grocery lists, some for random lists. I have Google Calendar and Remember the Milk profiles. My feed reader sends me all sorts of stuff from Organizing Junkie and Zen Habits and Lifehacker. I know Flylady says I need to let go of my perfectionism, but how can I do that when she has an entire home management binder I should fill out but get overwhelmed at the thought and also recognize I could do it if I didn’t have children and house stuff and life stuff to organize, but then I wouldn’t need to organize anything at that point?
So, what helps you get things done? How do you manage not to look like a deer (well, in these parts, it’d be more accurate to say possum, but then that brings back some bad memories - woot NHS class of 93!) in the headlights?
August 30th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Having only one notebook and one calendar.
I have a month at a glance calendar because while I may only have one or two time specific appointments per day, my life is such a jigsaw puzzle that I have to figure out where I can fit in a trip to the dentist or the library in between carpool runs, etc. I only write in it in pencil.
Only one notebook at a time means I go through them faster but I always have the “right” one with me. Mostly I have used regular lined notepads, but lately I have been using a hardcover 8 1/2×11″ book from the art supply store for my notebook/journal/listmaking needs, and it’s been pretty useful and will look less raggedy when I’m done with it.
I just started using a tickler file -it’s actually an accordion folder with sections labeled for each month and I’ve started putting notes to self into each month - the things that I think I ought to do, but not now. Like I put “register for summer camp” in the March pocket and the note about Christmas cards into the November pocket. I’m thinking right now I ought to put a list of all the family birthdays/anniversaries into each month’s pocket so that maybe I could mail all the cards in the right month at least. But really, I just set it up about a week ago, so I don’t know how well it will work in the long run.
I started reading the Flylady site, but she lost me at the point where she says to wear shoes in the house. I don’t want to wear shoes all day. But I am always amazed at how much much of a difference it makes when my bed is made and the sink is clean. Big bang for my buck, housecleaning wise. Much more so than vacuuming or cleaning the toilets.
I like the Unclutterer blog. One of the editors is even a Quaker.
September 1st, 2008 at 8:52 am
Well, I am a neat freak but I also suffer from deer in headlights syndrome. I’ve learned (though not totally successfully) to do just do one thing at a time. If I think about each thing that needs cleaned or organizing, I will pass out from being overwhelmed. So, if I ever DO make a list, I also just have one list and if I ever get to mark even just one thing off, I feel like super woman! I feel like Jim would still describe me as crazy-worried-can’t relax woman, but whatever. I try.