Are you feeling "Listless"

​I love dictionaries. I love words. But listless has me stumped.
Webster's New Dictionary defines this as "indifferent because of illness or dejection". Well Mr. Webster, you and I will have to agree to disagree. I feel "listless" when I look at my kitchen counter and I can't find my list!( or lists) i.e better check living room, dining room table, purse, etc.
You see, I am a list maker.

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I admit..
I wasn't born organized and when the kids started to come as an almost yearly event, I knew that the only way to survive the onslaught was to put the house in order ( literally).
I read books on organization. I made systems; some that worked and some that didn't.
40 years ago we didn't have the advantages of computers with instant information at our fingertips. It was trial and error and an occasional chat with a friend to compare notes.
More on those systems in posts to come, but the handy tool that was always at my side was.....
THE LIST!
When my kids were small I made lists for the week, lists for the day, grocery lists, cleaning lists, cooking lists, vacation lists, lists to learn, lists to read, lists of which lists I needed to make,  and even lists of the lists that I thought I lost!
And the canvas for my list - lined paper, backs of envelopes, napkins, the back of last week's homework, cute little notepads, the sides of electric bills.....
Nothing was safe or sacred when I gleefully got to work with my pencil (or pen, or crayon- why were there only crayons when you needed a pen?).

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Exhibit A
This valuable antique is a real "handwritten" Shabbos shopping list that I made over 30 years ago and kept for some unknown reason.
( What do you think this could sell for on Ebay?)
At the time, I saw that since I basically bought the same things every week, why waste  time making a new list?​I went through the items I bought on a regular basis and wrote them down.
I took this beauty to kinkos to make 20 at a time. They were open all night and that worked really well with the schedules of my colicky babies.
Then I could pull out a fresh copy each week and mark off what I needed.

 

Fast forward - This is 2016, almost 2017. Make yourself a regular shopping list and keep it on your phone, i pad or computer. 
It takes an initial investment of a few minutes of time, but you can add and subtract items as the weeks go on. 
( Then you can decorate it with colorful borders and dancing emojis and share it with your friends on facebook. ) It could go viral!

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But what is the magic of the list? I've often thought about why it works. 
And I think that the simple act of writing something down makes an imprint in your mind. For every list I made, another one got lost between the seats of the car. But I always remembered things what I had written down before and if I didn't, it probably wasn't very important anyway. A few minutes at night or in the morning to put to paper or type in your phone those scattered bits and pieces of "to dos" will go a long way to organize and control your day.  

 And there is almost nothing more satisfying than CROSSING OFF AN ITEM FROM THE LIST!!
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Of course there are daytimer daily diaries and great apps out there for list making and reminders.

There is the Cozi Family Planner thats available on both Iphone and Android. Its a free app that has lots of cool note taking, list making and organizational features.

Evernote is another free app that has similar features and I am sure there are more and newer ones out there.

Check them out and see if one works for you.

As for me.... Like a Chicago Cubs fan forever, I'll stay loyal to my paper and pen...

Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?

Write them below or PM me 
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More to come................ 

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