As you know, I have no memory. Thank god for this blog, because without it I would have no idea what I did yesterday. Remember that movie “Memento”? Yes, I was one missed appointment away from tattooing shit on my arms.
So I embarked on a quest.
A quest to find the appropriate gadgetry with which to outfit myself and thereby end the misery of forgetting that it’s our turn to bring snack to preschool AGAIN. fuck.
I checked out Treos, BlackBerrys, software for my computer, fancy cell phones, and hiring a serf. I was willing to suck it up and spend the money, but it turns out that all these options would have driven me crazy.
Pre-kids I loved figuring out electronic gizmos, tinkering and fiddling them to get everything set up the way I wanted it, writing scripts to integrate them into my calendar, databases, excel spreadsheets.
But now my brain is retired.
Since having kids I have no spare mental energy, and just the thought of all that work is enough to make me scream and realize that I’d end up driving over my BlackBerry with my minivan on my way to first drop off the boys at gymnastics and then go “Thelma and Louise” off a cliff.
So I was back to square one.
I started thinking about non-technical solutions, and then I did one of my favorite things in the world. I went to one of those huge office supply stores and just wandered around for over an hour. I am a total dork, and this is somthing I LOVE to do.
I looked at every paper-clip holder, desk storage unit, tabbed paper folder, colored marker set, and binder with 7 pockets that they had.
And then I invented the MomPDA.
It is so simple that even I can use it. All you need are half-sized index cards, a pen that fits in your pocket,
and a wall calendar that has ample room in the square for each day. (This month we were all sick, so our schedule was very minimal. But the large squares really help in busier months!)
That’s it. Every morning I put a half-index card and the pen in my pocket. During the day I write down things I need to remember to do and ideas I have. When I change out of my clothes at night, I write it all on my calendar.
Every morning I glance at my calendar to see what is going on that day. Every night I cross out that day and check what is coming for the next couple of days.
The pen I like is the Fisher Bullet Space Pen, because it is small, smooth, and feels great in my hand. Mine is purple, but I suppose it would work if you chose a different color. In fact, Mr. Plain thought this was a pretty decent idea as well, and so I also present to you…
The DadPDA™
Now if you can’t find half-index cards, you could either cut or fold regular ones. But I love the smaller sized ones because they aren’t lumpy in my pocket.
I’ve been doing this since November, and I figure with the cost of electronic gadgets this trick has saved me hundreds of dollars. I hope you find it useful too!
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