When I was a child, one event I looked forward to every year was school supply shopping. There was nothing like trolling the aisles of Staples in that blessed air-conditioning (my house growing up was not air conditioned) with my mother and brothers and the large shopping cart, while my mother pondered over the detailed list provided by the school as to what we would need to start the new year.
To this day, office supplies make me happy. The smell of a new box of crayons, the fresh crisp pages of new notebooks and the sharp corners of folders that had yet to see the inside of a backpack. The most important purchase however, was the planner. This little book was to be my home base, my compass for the next year. It had to be big, but not too big, have enough space to write assignments, and a calendar to keep track of upcoming events. Bonus points if I could customize or decorate the cover. This was a decision not to be taken lightly, and I would spend a long time considering the pros and cons of each design offered.
When I was in university, I spent the summer living with my boyfriend, whose mother was a CPA. One day, a Franklin Covey magazine came in their mail. One look and I was hooked. HERE was the Cadillac of planners. Everything I could ever need, neatly and stylishly contained in a leather binder, and each year I could order pretty new pages to replace those of the year before. Those pages could have pictures of flowers, or inspirational quotes or even comic strips! These planners and their pages were not cheap, but by God, they were gorgeous.
I've been a devout Franklin Covey user for roughly 9 years now, but lately, my stylish planner has been replaced by a friend I didn't have to pay anything for: the Google calendar. Not only does Google not take up any of my desk space, it is available online, I can access it from anywhere in the world and I don't have to lug it around. And it's green! No paper being used, no leather being stitched into pretty binders and no ink on pages. Brilliant! Freecycle, here comes my Franklin Covey.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
Oh god. Office supply stores do the same thing to me. I mostly just stay out of them now.(Anywhere that sells stationary really)
It's my one true weakness. Glad you found a good substitute for your paper planner.
Oh yeah, office supplies are tempting. They offer the promise of finally getting organized, always being on time, and just having life in order. Somehow, though, they don't do the actual work. LOL!
A planner worked wonders for me in my college years but never has since. I finally realized that and gave up on them. I do admit to buying a new small wall calendar every year to keep track of my bill due dates.
I was routed over here by crunchy chicken and I'm glad I came. Love your writing style as it made me smile a lot. I'm still working on my green-ness and my boyfriend is not too sure about me either. I'll be keeping up with you and cheering you on!
Count me as one who loves office supplies and paper as well. I love notebooks and pads of paper, writing lists of all sorts of things. Now, I'm trying to get used to putting it all on my computer or iphone.
good luck with your challenge and if you need ideas, just ask, i am BURSTING with them. :o)
as for boyfriends who don't care.... try piling the garbage on his desk or something to make him think about waste. ;o) what i do with my partner is just nag, and keep on about it. eventually he just gives in to stop hearing about it, which is good enough for me. hehehe
Post a Comment