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05 August 2007

Air where should brains should be. →[More:]
Long, whingy babble to follow.

Last night I discovered I put the sliced ham in the pantry. This morning I couldn't find the coffee I bought yesterday along with the ham.

I also found out that "meet the teacher" day is on a day that I am working. Meet the teacher hours are from 7:30 to 11:30 on one day only. Of course, I am working 6:30 to 11:30 on this day. Husband and kid are going to meet the teacher. Being the control freak mother that I am, I wanted to meet the teacher! I only work two days a week, but it seems I miss important things like this more than not.

I also scheduled myself to work when my husband is going to be in Mississippi.

On Friday I missed a kid's play that I bought tickets for because I had to clean my house and make dinner for my in-laws. Why did I invite them for this day? Because I forgot about the play and this was their last day in town. I feel like an irresponsible teenager that can't get her shit together.

I can't remember two seconds into the future. I don't want to miss out on important things this school year because my memory and organizational skills suck.

What can be done? Strings on fingers? Post-it notes pinned to clothing? Those little purse calendars that have never worked for me? A Blackberry? The PocketMods I linked to a while ago that I seldom use? I'm thinking actual brains with a decent memory would be most helpful.

I have a calendar in my kitchen that is up to date. All of our appointments and commitments are written in, and I still forget.

post by: LoriFLA at: 10:49 | 13 comments

Write a standing appointment on your calendar to look at your calendar? ;-)

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 05 August | 10:52

Buy a Palm T|X or other kind of simple PDA,get into the habit of carrying it around everywhere, use the calendar and set it to make loads of noise as an alarm. That's what I've started doing.

posted by cmonkey 05 August | 11:03

As TPS said, look at your calendar. Make yourself look at it three times per day. 1) First thing when you get up, 2) sometime mid-day, and 3) right before you go to bed.

posted by netbros 05 August | 11:07

Perhaps you're too stressed. Perhaps you have a lot of obligations, too many for comfort, and your psyche is rebelling by forgetting things. Have you made a place in your life/schedule for significant moments of obligation-free serenity and/or catharsis?

posted by treepour 05 August | 11:10

I use the calendar on my cell phone to remind me 30 minutes before I'm supposed to do something. I put all my meetings, appts etc into the calendar the second I get them. It has greatly reduced the number of times I have double booked something. :D

posted by chewatadistance 05 August | 11:13

Hah! I even messed up my title. Coffee would have helped, maybe.

Great ideas and suggestions so far. Thanks people.

I feel like quitting my job. I won't though. I'll feel too bad about quitting and not being able to manage two days of work.

posted by LoriFLA 05 August | 11:23

I have a kitchen calendar that I always forget to check too! I know exactly how you feel. My brain has holes, as big as my brain itself sometimes. I have an iGoogle calendar that sends me reminder emails, but then again I always check my email. The point is to have something that will keep your from double booking. Need to get used to pulling out a pda/apt book or something every single time you schedule something.

Maybe you want to put the wall calendar in the bathroom? ;)

posted by carmina 05 August | 11:26

Maybe you could attack this from the other side: Never say yes to an obligation until you've checked your calendar? Take the onus off yourself for remembering (which is hard) and switch it over to a commitment to check your calendar before responding (which is easier)?

Or, in other words, get in the habit of saying "That sounds great, but I'll have to check my calendar" (and meaning it!).

posted by occhiblu 05 August | 12:19

The Boyfriend recently bought me one of those Moleskine pocket calendars. It's a weekly calendar, with one page for notes opposite each week, and it's 18 months. I really like it, more than any organizer I've ever had, and so I actually use it. It's also pretty small, so I can carry it with me in my purse.

I'm finding I forget less stuff now, or at least able to check dates more easily. Honestly, I've never been good with organizers, but the moleskine is perfect enough that I want to use it.

Maybe you just need to find your own perfect organizer? (I used the pocketmod for awhile, but I found that it was too easy to lose.)

posted by brina 05 August | 12:47

My calendar is hanging right over my phone, so I can glance at it before commiting to anything. But since the phone is cordless, I'm usually not standing there, so that's not foolproof.

I also use Google Calendar to send me reminders, since I check my e-mail a lot.

My fridge is covered with invitations and flyers so I have that reinforcement whenever I go to stuff my fat face.

But my greatest aid in remembering stuff is probably just telling my husband to remind me. He's much more in "business mode" than I am, so adding another item on his mental "to-do" list is no big deal.

posted by jrossi4r 05 August | 12:54

I use Google calendar for scheduled stuff, and I have it email my phone with a text message when I need a reminder.

I had to practice a long time to get to where I automatically say "let me check the calendar" when invitations came up.

For day to day things, I've got a regular old notepad I take everywhere with me. I had a PDA for a while, and it was good for what it was, but I got tired of it - they're awfully fussy.

Also, you sound tired. I do things like the ham and coffee when I'm tired. Let the kid and dad play video games (or whatever) and do absolutely nothing somewhere, preferably with someone to keep you company and do crazy stuff with.

posted by lysdexic 05 August | 13:18

I feel like quitting my job. I won't though. I'll feel too bad about quitting and not being able to manage two days of work.

'scuse me? Housekeeping and kid raising isn't work? Q.'s you don't need to answer here - have your hobbies become work? Are you overpromising to friends/family/whatever and then "shoulding" all over yourself when you under-deliver?

Take that time that a few have suggested and look at trimming your obligations back. Just don't think that the "job" is the only thing you have to do.

posted by lysdexic 05 August | 13:23

Thanks all. I'm going to try the Google calendar. Brina, your Moleskin calendar sounds wonderful. I'm tempted.

I must be tired. I don't think I over-schedule though. Honestly, I don't manage my time very effectively. A little planning goes a long way, and I've been slacking in that department this summer.

Along with the kitchen wall calendar I have another calendar on the fridge. Like jrossi, this acts as a reinforcement. Without it I would miss half of my appointments and obligations. Unfortunately, I still miss things, such as meet the teacher day.

Making a habit of saying, "let me check my calendar" before I give a commitment is great advice.

posted by LoriFLA 05 August | 16:13

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