Although I love using a paper calendar to jot down the to-dos for each day and refer to my one-page-per-day calendar all day long, I realized this year that I need to start up next fall using MS Outlook again, and also to use it for special notes I might refer to during the year. The search features in the Outlook calendar make finding key words a breeze and this helps so much when you're trying to recall when you spoke to a parent or dropped off a piece of equipment that no one can find when the hot days of June roll around.
A couple of years ago, when I was still working as a Realtor, I found this book at Goodwill and it was a real eye opener: Take Back Your Life--Using Microsoft Outlook to Get Organized and Stay Organized by Sally McGhee. It's business focused but has applications for anyone who needs to better plan their work. It's also a training manual of sorts for folks who haven't been exposed to managing by objectives. Now, you may find it a little overwhelming so take a chapter at a time and avoid skipping around--organizational nuts like me love this stuff.
Whew, enough of this indoor stuff--back to the garden. For years it has bothered me that the run-off water from my air conditioning unit dripped uselessly on the ground, far away from my thirsty plants. Today I set out an unused birdbath under the little spout that drips the water, creating a little critter oasis. To keep the mosquitoes from setting up an aquatic nursery the pan is angled so excess water will spill over the side. The rock border will keep the pan from shifting around and also provide a cool hiding spot for the frogs and skinks. Keep your eyes open for the shimmering of blue-tail skinks; they're my favorite.
