Monday, December 20, 2010

Holiday Grand Plan

There's only one problem: right now, you're living in domestic chaos. Looking around your home, you don't know where to begin.

Cluttered counters, crammed closets and out-of-place possessions pile up everywhere. Dust bunnies and ceiling cobwebs announce that deep-cleaning is long over-due, and the guest room? Forget about it! It's home to moving boxes, unfinished crafts and last winter's stained jackets and unmatched mittens.

To have the holiday of your dreams, you need more than just a gift list and good intentions: you need the Holiday Grand Plan, a tried and tested roadmap to Christmas in a clean and organized home.

Written by Katie Leckey with contributions from the Prodigy Homelife Get O group in 1992-1993, the Holiday Grand Plan is the Web's oldest Christmas organizing plan.

By breaking down all the tasks needed to clean and organize the house and prepare for the holidays, and dividing them into weekly assignments, the Holiday Grand Plan will help you reach the season calm, centered and ready to celebrate from a clean and organized home.

Holiday Grand Plan 2010 begins on Sunday, August 29, and continues throughout the holiday season. Based on Katie's companion Spring Cleaning Grand Plan, the Holiday Grand Plan combines holiday prep, home organizing and cleaning components.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Digging Out: Helping Your Loved One Manage Clutter, Hoarding and Compulsive Acquiring

Your parents or your child or your sister or your brother or your best friend has a home that is stuffed to the gills with stuff. The dining room table is covered in piles, the kitchen is full of dirty dishes and garbage, even the sofa is piled so high with junk that nobody can sit. Perhaps some of the exits are blocked, and if there are stairs, chances are that there are even little piles of junk there. Maybe the paths through these rooms are narrowed down to "goat trails." Perhaps the furnace is broken or the plumbing is leaking or the appliances need servicing because nobody can come do the necessary work because of the clutter.


You worry about what will happen if someone gets sick or injured in the hoard, or BECAUSE OF THE HOARD. How will the paramedics get in? What if there is a fire, how would people escape when

the junk goes up like a tinderbox? Maybe there are kids who are forced to live in the mess and you need to figure out how to help them.


You want to do something to help, but what do you do?


The sad fact of hoarding is that so many people who hoard are extremely resistant to help and change. We, the family and friends, are either shut out from helping entirely or we jump into the EXHAUSTING process of dehoarding a house, only to watch the situation return to the way it was and even get worse, in

what seems like the blink of an eye.


We feel impossibly torn – we hold ourselves responsible for our loved one's wellbeing and safety and yet it seems like we are powerless to change the problem.


To make matters worse, until recently, there wasn't a lot of guidance on how to help someone with a serious hoarding problem.


But now, there's a book that speaks directly to us, the family and friends of people with SERIOUS hoarding problems:


Digging Out: Helping Your Loved One Manage Clutter, Hoarding and Compulsive Acquiring, Book Link: http://amzn.to/gFA9PI


In the words of the publisher "Many people who hoard understand the extent of their problem and are open to help. This book is not for them. Digging Out is for the concerned and frustrated friends and family members of people who do not fully accept the magnitude of their hoarding problem and refuse help from others. If you have a friend or loved one with a hoarding problem and are seeking a way to guide him or her to a healthier, safer way of life, this book is for you."


Digging Out gives specific harm reduction strategies to help anyone with a hoarding problem to live safely and comfortably in their home or apartment. This is not a book that promises to magically make the hoarding go away. Instead, it offers direct, specific strategies to:


• Manage health and safety hazards

• Avoid eviction

• Manage child protection issues

• Motivate your friend or relative to make longer-term lifestyle

changes


Learn how to:


• Handle a spouse or roommate with a hoarding problem

• Work through special problems faced by frail and elderly hoarders

• Heal strained relationships between people who hoard and their friends and family


If I could recommend just one resource for people who are living with the anxiety, shame and frustration of their loved one's hoarding issue, it would be Digging Out.


You can purchase Digging Out from Amazon: http://amzn.to/gFA9PI


Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Discomfort With Silence

We as a human race are very uncomfortable with silence. Just check it out for yourself. 

Sit in a quiet room, with a clock or watch that has a second hand. Of course the clock must be clearly in view, with no distractions. 

Don’t say anything for thirty seconds. Just listen and be present with the silence permeating your presence. Notice how long that small duration of time feels when there is total silence.

How did it make you feel? What did you notice? Where did your mind and thoughts go?

What would happen if you extended it to one minute of silence? People who regularly meditate often do it for thirty minutes to one hour a day. They claim it clears the fog in their mind and creates renewed energy. After doing this exercise, I think it will be come increasingly clear to you that it takes discipline to sit still in silence. I think the benefits to people with ADHD can be significant but learning to sit still with a physically and/or cognitively hyperactive mind is quite challenging. You might want to start with learning to feel comfortable with silence.


Click here to watch this video. Afterwards, ask yourself the following question? How will I begin to integrate silence into my life?

(Written by David Giwerc, ADDCA)

Sunday, November 28, 2010

It's New Calendar Time!



This is the time of year when those of us who rely on paper planners need to think about purchasing our new planners for the New Year.

Purchase your calendar based on your personal needs. Do you need a one day at a time format or week at a glance? Do you need a specific size, to fit into your backpack or purse? I personally like a loose-leaf format, so you can easily add accessories, such as address/phone book section, planner guide tabs and pages, etc.

A favorite of mine is Frank Covey: http://store.franklinplanner.com. There are so many different styles, formats and options to choose from, you're assured a planner for your specific needs. Another favorite of mine is Day Timer: http://www.daytimer.com. I used Day Timer as my time management system, before the invention of PDA's. Now my iPhone is my time management choice. Whichever calendaring system you use, be sure that you use it consistently. Otherwise, it is useless.

Monday, October 11, 2010

My blog & I

If you've come to my blog to get the latest information about the work I do, the clients I serve or the hottest topic of the day, week or month, well it might not be posted on here at this time.

The reason is that I'm very fortunate to have a very busy professional organizing business. And rather than hiring someone else to write my blog, which might never happen in my lifetime (never say never), I decided that I need a bit of a hiatus from this wonderful blog to continue to serve my clients needs to my fullest capacity & mine (to get a good night sleep).

If something inspires me to write, well write I will. Until then, if your checking my website out & seeing if I'm the kind of organizer that will suit your specific needs and you wind up at my blog, understand that there are only so many hours in a day & what kind of organizer would I be if I spent all my time blogging & not serving my clients needs???

You can now safely go back to my website, check out my contacts page & go from there. If you have a specific question about my services, I'll look forward to receiving an email from you.

Until then, happy blogging...

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Hoarding in Manhattan

This wonderful New York Times article mentions my dear friend & colleague Kristin Bergfeld's business (Bergfeld's Estate) and the fantastic work she does in New York. Here is her information and the link to the New York Times article:

"To mark our 24th year of successful business, we have established a new program, “BERGFELD’s Partnerships for the Elderly™”. Our purpose is to serve elders who choose to “age in place” but whose home is at risk because of hoarding. We coordinate with social service organizations that identify qualifying elders from among their clients. We then collaborate with them, their elder client and related professionals who contribute at no cost all products and services necessary to clear, repair and reconfigure the qualifying elder’s home.


Our very first “Partnerships” project is the subject of an extensive article in The New York Times, 26 August, 2010."

Saturday, August 7, 2010

Is anybody out there?

Do you ever wonder if anyone is really out there reading these blogs. I do. I know that I haven't been a great blogger over the last few months, but what I have learned is that there is so much to write about that might or might not be important to the reader. What I have found out is that my clients are brilliant and creative and I honor each and every one of them.

How lucky to be welcomed in to so many homes, helping my clients realize their goals and dreams. My dream is to be able to do the work I do for a long time to come. That will mean that I can never stop working out, to keep my aching back strong. Tomorrow is another day to find out if there is anyone out there, who really cares about what is being said here.

I will work on blogging more often. How about you?

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Best Buy Recycles

I'm a devoted Best Buy shopper and love hearing that they have included other customer services. Here's some good news to all of us that have anything electronic, including TVs, DVD players, cell phones, audio and video cables, computer monitors and more. No matter where you bought it, what brand, or how old it is, bring it to Best Buy for recycling. They will make sure it's properly and safely recycled. It's all part of their Greener Together™ program.

Most things are recycled absolutely free, with a few restrictions. Each state has their own restrictions, so look-up your states info before you visit a store. In Texas, you can bring three items per household per day to recycle. If you are recycling a computer, the hard drive must be removed before you recycle it. Best Buy charges a fee of $9.99 for the Geek Squad to remove your hard drive. Best Buy charges $10 to recycle televisions and monitors, but you receive a $10 Best Buy gift card good toward a future purchase. Check out their website for additional info: http://www.bestbuy.com


Thursday, June 24, 2010

Warning Signs of Tech Overload

From a very interesting NY Times article, here are "The Seven Signs of Tech Overload:"
Sign 1- Do you always check your e-mail before doing other things?
Sign 2- Do you frequently find yourself anticipating the next time you'll be online?
Sign 3- When you're online and someone needs you, do you usually say "just a few more minutes" before stopping?
Sign 4- Have you ever lied about or tried to hide how long you've been online?
Sign 5- Have you ever chosen to spend time online rather than going out with others?
Sign 6- Does going online lift you from a depressed or nervous mood?
Sign 7- Do others in your life often complain about the amount of time you spend using technology?

This doesn't sound like me. Does this sound like you?

To read this article, go to: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brain.html?pagewanted=1

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

WatchMinder2 for ADHD Time Management

I have suggested using the WatchMinder2 (www.watchminder.com) to a number of my clients with ADD and have challenges from ABI's (Acquired Brain Injury) & TBI's (Traumatic Brain Injury) to name a few of their time management and life management issues. For more info on ABI's or TBI's check out: http://www.biatx.org. More to be written about ABI's & TBI's in future blogs.

One client in particular has a number of cognitive challenges from an illness that left her with short term memory loss. She wants to use the WatchMinder for herself before she buys additional ones for family members that have ADD. She is trying to figure out whether the WatchMinder would be more helpful on her wrist or hanging around her neck. Around the wrist might be uncomfortable for her. I look forward to finding out how this tool will work best for her and why. I'll be sure to add her input into this blog.

If you are currently using a helpful tool like the WatchMinder or any other device to help you with focus, attention, positive reinforcement or anything else, I'd appreciate it if you would share that info with me. Thanks.


Monday, June 21, 2010

iPad & Beyond

So, I didn't end up buying an iPad for my brother for his birthday. He would have gotten the iPad way after his birthday, which wouldn't have worked at all. But what I did find out was the usefulness of the iPad for one of my clients. This client has cognitive and memory issues. So, how does the iPad help her.

Well, she wanted to use the iPad like she used her iPhone, with the all important alarms that are built into the iPhone. She came to find out that the iPad didn't have alarms as part of the operating system. Instead, she had to find an app of an alarm, which didn't work for her. The app alarm wouldn't always work. So, she had to contact the programmer that designed the alarm to find out if the alarm could work independently, when the phone was on or off. This didn't work, so she now has to program the app to make sure it is on all the time. She is talking to the designer of the app to find out if there is a way that the app could work better for her needs. She is also contacting Apple to request that the alarm/timer app be included as a part of the operating system of the iPad, to make the alarm useability seamless.

Besides that, she loves the iPad for all the wonderful things that it can do for her. Have you had any experiences with the iPad that you would like to share. Thanks!!!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

An iPad as a gift.

I've been a Mac user since the 80's, so I have been sold on Apple products for a very long time. As a rule, I'm not a person that purchases the latest tech product. I have to research it, review how it does in the marketplace, understand the advantages or disadvantages of a product. Essentially, I take my time before making such a purchase.

This is not the case with the iPad, since I'm purchasing one as a gift for a family member. Apple calls it "A magical & revolutionary product" & I can understand why after visiting the Apple Store. It's personal & business functions are exceptional. Very impressed by it's ease & comfort of use, especially the touch screen functionality. I'd recommend this product to high & low-tech users.



Sunday, May 9, 2010

WatchMinder2 for ADHD Time Management

I am always checking out different types of gadgets & this one looks like a winner. It is called the WatchMinder2. It is an easy way to help you to set and use alarms as a tool to work for you to track and manage your time.

Here is the information from their website: The WatchMinder2 is a programmable vibrating reminder watch that looks like a standard sports wristwatch - the watch vibrates and a reminder message discreetly appears!

• The WatchMinder2 was invented by a licensed Child Psychologist with over 30 years experience working with children, teens, and adults with ADD and AD/HD...

• The WatchMinder2 can be programmed to discreetly cue or remind yourself to do various things throughout the day...

• Preprogrammed messages include PAY ATTN, MEDS, BE POS, and RELAX or program your own unique messages. For more information go to http://www.watchminder.com.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Do just a little bit.

This afternoon, I received a call from a potential client that had physical and cognitive challenges from a brain injury. She said she was really overwhelmed with paperwork. She explained that she didn't think that she had the funds to afford my services, even after I offered to give her a reduced rate to assess her needs and get her started with some simple strategies.

I was driving when she called, so I pulled over and proceeded to have an in-depth conversation with her. I was able to ascertain that she was auto-paying many of her bills, which was really helping her manage some of her mail. But she still received a large amount of mail that was really causing her anxiety. She loved her catalogs, but she hated the management of all that paper.

I suggested that instead of looking at all of the piles of paperwork strewn around her apartment, how about if she just focused on a small area of the dining room table, just a 1' x 1' space. What if she just concentrated on attacking that small space, and processing the papers just in that area. She loved that idea. She said that it made her feel more in control of just that small doable space. She could work on that space and then have a feeling of accomplishment for taking care of one area at a time.

She had mentioned in our conversation that music helped her stay on task as she was working. So, I suggested that she put on her favorite music, which could help her to stay on task and motivated to complete the area she agreed to work on. I also asked her to email me after she accomplished her task and let me know how it went. What worked and what didn't.

A few hours later she emailed me that she was able to clear off an even larger area then we agreed upon. She was really elated and said that she was looking forward to working some more on the dining room table tomorrow. She would use the same technique of just doing a little bit at a time. Slow and steady won the race, just as the tortoise.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Me & Cherry Vanilla Blue Bell Ice Cream

At the beginning of the year, my husband George found out that he had Type 2 diabetes. This turned his world upside down, as it would anyone. He was very mad at himself for letting himself get out of shape and not take better care of his health by eating all kinds of stuff on the road, etc. He travels a lot for business. I respected and felt his pain, but I kept saying that he did not give himself diabetes, he was predisposed to it genetically. Does someone give themselves diabetes? I don't think so, but if you are diagnosed with Type 2, you need to take that diagnosis seriously, cause your life and health are really at stake.

My mom was a Type 1 diabetic since her late 20's early 30's. Even though she took her insulin as needed, she fought that disease tooth and nail. She did not eat healthily, didn't exercise, smoked till her final days and lived her life by her rules. Because of this, her diabetes took her at 68 years old. She had to have her legs amputated, quadruple bypass, congestive heart disease, and that is what finally took her down, her heart and all of the other organs that just couldn't take it anymore. My mom was an incredible fighter and one of the bravest people I know. She went down kicking. There is not a day that doesn't go by that I don't miss her. Life without her is different, a little less colorful in many ways. But the good news is that there is still a huge rainbow of colors that follow me around on a daily basis.

What does this have to do with Cherry Vanilla Bluebell ice cream? Well, since George was diagnosed with Type 2, I quit my Curves membership, cause it was really not a workout, and we both joined Anytime Fitness (http://www.anytimefitness.com). This is a place where I get a really good workout. I have been going religiously (like I can't believe). I am feeling so strong and feeling in pain from the workouts, but it is good pain, not my back aching like hell. So, the thing that is bumming me out is that I have to cut down on the amount of food I eat each day. That is the hardest part of all of this. I have to get myself to really be better about what I am eating, so that I can start to lose weight, not just tone-up. Let's see how this goes. I have got to get serious, and maybe by writing it here in this blog, it will be a good kick in the ass for me to be serious. It's not that I eat ice cream all the time, but whenever I do, I feel really crappy about it, not ever good. The ends doesn't justify the means. Well I have gotten this message loud & clear. See Blue Bell Ice Cream, do not buy it, do not be tempted by it and that goes for Cheetos too! I can sign off now.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Disconnect Between Brain Regions in ADHD

Here is an interesting research article about two regions of the brain that fail to connect when children with ADHD attempt a task that measures attention, according to researchers at the UC Davis Center for Mind and Brain at the M.I.N.D. Institute.


Here is some of the information from this very interesting article.

"This is the first time that we have direct evidence that this connectivity is missing in ADHD," said Ali Mazaheri, postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Mind and Brain. Mazaheri and his colleagues made the discovery by analyzing the brain activity in children with ADHD.

The researchers measured electrical rhythms from the brains of volunteers, especially the alpha rhythm. When part of the brain is emitting alpha rhythms, it shows that it is disengaged from the rest of the brain and not receiving or processing information optimally, Mazaheri said. "The brains of the children with ADHD apparently prepare to attend to upcoming stimuli differently than do typically developing children," he said.

Children with ADHD did improve their reaction times when properly cued, but they don't seem to allocate resources as efficiently, Mazaheri said.

This is the first evidence from brain electrical patterns for a functional disconnection in cortical attention systems in ADHD, he said. Current definitions of ADHD are based only on behavior.

Check out the rest of this article at your convenience. Happy reading!

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Reducing Your Stress - Part 2

Here are additional ways to decrease your stress:


Music. Playing music is good for the soul. Play something upbeat and fun to dance to when you’re cleaning house or need to work on a project. Check out Lady Gaga’s The Game, a dance record that gets you moving. There are times when you have to dance. If you need to relax, put on something dreamy and relax.

Find Your Funny Bone. One way to reduce stress is to stop reading newspapers and watching TV news. This is really true. Escaping the news headlines and heading for pure fun and escapism is a great way to reduce stress. Also, do not watch the news before going to sleep. This will cause you stress. Turn off the T.V. and turn on the calming music with chimes in the background.


Laughter is definitely the best medicine, and it’s okay to laugh even in bad times. Humor is a good thing, and find your humor wherever you can find it. Here are a few suggestions:

  • For political types, check out http://www.cagle.com/. They feature the best political cartoons from around the world.
  • TV is a nice short-lived escape. You don’t have to think about anything. Just let those TV rays wash over you. Watching old T.V. series that I grew up with in the 60's & 70's is a real way to escape anything bad. "I Love Lucy" reruns are always good for a laugh.
  • Watch your favorite new or old shows on Hulu.com, a FREE website. Check out The Simpsons or the latest Saturday Night Live clips. Need a blast from days when life seemed simpler and less chaotic? Check out The A-Team, The Facts of Life, and Miami Vice. The website adds new series and movies all the time.
  • For jokes, check out www.ahajokes.com. Under the one liners category, the site even features gems from Jack Handey’s Deep Thoughts.
  • The Fruitcake Lady was a frequent, straight-talking guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Search for her clips on YouTube.com, but a warning – the lady is very, very frank and swears a lot so check this out at home without the kids.

Reduce Clutter. Truthfully, reducing clutter and getting more organized does reduce stress. Being able to find things (and not buy a replacement), getting what you want to get done, and having a clean, organized space all makes you feel better about life. By ridding yourself of old things that drag down your energy and spark bad emotions, you are preparing yourself for a brighter future.


Find Some Friends. Spending time with friends is a great way to brighten up your day. We all need time with friends and family, and having face time is much better than bent over your computer screen, scrolling through Facebook every night. Stop hiding out, and get out. Each city has free activities, such as free nights at local museums. The important thing is to spend time together.


I hope that these ideas help you in some way. Any comments?

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Reducing Your Stress - Part 1

I received a brochure in the mail the other day, tauting the virtues of taking care yourself. In addition to getting regular check-ups, the brochure advised that one way you can take care of yourself in these challenging times is to “reduce your stress.” I turned the brochure over. Nothing else was written there. That was their advice. Just "reduce your stress."


In fact, where ever you turn these days you hear how we need to reduce our collective national stress. Well, okay. How do you do that when you’re lying awake at 3 a.m., worrying about your job, your home, your bills, your future, and your world in general?


Research shows companies undergoing layoffs and other financial problems have a dip in productivity. You think it would be the opposite with people trying to act the model employee, but the stress, uncertainty, and depression take its toll, turning people into anxiety-ridden zombies for a while. Everyone walks around with a shocked expression, waiting for the axe to fall and for small signs of hope.


People under stress react in different ways, including anger, insomnia, eating more, fatigue, and moodiness – just to name a few. Stress can cause you to blow up at the smallest thing and later wonder why you were so angry. Was it really about the issue or was it the stress talking? But you’re supposed to reduce your stress, remember? So how do you do that? Here are some solutions for you.


Exercise and Eat Right. Exercise is a great stress reliever and helps you sleep better. By eating better, you can save money by bringing your own lunch and snacks, making your own coffee, and making better choices at the grocery stores. Don’t forget to treat yourself once in a while. You don’t have to adopt a healthier lifestyle by yourself. Sparkpeople.com and Livestrong.com (Lance Armstrong’s organization) are two sites offering FREE help with creating new habits, such as losing weight, eating more fruits and vegetables, and exercising more.


Get Enough Sleep. In my ADHD coaching class we were given an assignment to get eight hours of sleep every night. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to actually get eight hours of sleep but I found that it made a real difference in my life. Try it. You might really like it.


Just Breathe. Meditation and breathing deeply can help relax your body and lower your heart rate. There are wonderful CDs and books out there on meditation and yoga classes focus on breathing. If you get worked up about something, step away from the situation and just take a few deep breaths and you will find that it might help settle your state of mind. Changing your focus is usually helpful.


Try these simple suggestions and let me know what worked and what didn't.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Are You as a Professional Organizer Working with the Right Client?

Please do not kick me off my own blog for blogging so infrequently in 2010. My excuse is that I have entered this New Year with a booming business. My business has fortunately grown steadily over the past 9+ years, and I have counted myself very fortunate that all of my hard work with and for my clients continues to keep my business "rockin & rollin." With the fact that our country is still experiencing such difficult economic times, some of my colleagues have had to change professions and get out of the organizing business.

That has been an unfortunate loss for our industry in some cases. Some of those P.O.'s were really talented, but came into the business at such a difficult time.
Anyone that knows the type of organizing I do, knows that my wonderful, challenged clients have more issues than simple space management problems, or what kind of container to purchase to match their family room furnishings. Their organizing issues are sometimes life threatening. Do not interpret my last comment to mean anything negative against the many different types of client needs and our diverse organizing profession. The beauty of our organizing industry is that there are countless client needs and really well-trained organizers to fill those needs. Those P.O.'s, like me are well-trained by our professional associations such as NAPO (Nat'l Assoc. of Professional Organizers, napo.net) and NSGCD (Nat'l Study Group on Chronic Disorganization, nsgcd.org)

It's when professional organizers step out of their field of knowledge and think that because they watched a program or two about hoarding, that they too can get in on working with hoarders. It has all of a sudden become "vogue" to work with hoarders, as if this is a new phenomenon.
That is a dangerous way to think. Do you, the person that has never done any study or research on hoarding have the knowledge base to work with this very wonderful and challenging population? We as organizers that abide by the code of ethic of our industry know that we do not want to cause our clients any type of harm for any reason. I have heard too many horror stories from my hoarding clients that worked with a professional organizer that had no specialized training, or a clue as to how to work with them. The organizer was hell bent on purging the clients possessions with the zeal of a 19th Century missionary, with no regard for the long-term detrimental effects that this action would have on their hoarding client.

Let's work with the clients that are best suited for our skill set. We as professional organizers have a huge responsibility to all of our clients to protect their best interests above all else.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Four Gadgets for Keeping Track of Things

Here are four new gadgets to help ADD'er (and anyone else) keep track of their stuff. Which one will work for you?


The Find One, Find All

($24.95; FindOneFindAll.com)
This Finding Essential is a battery-powered, radio-controlled homing device that you attach to the two items you never want to lose — your keys and wallet.

Put the fob on your keys and the credit-card-sized device in your wallet. When you press a button on the locator, the devices ring like a cell phone (as long as they’re within a 10-foot radius).

The EZ-Find! 25 Item Wireless Locator

($66.50; at amazon.com)
Have lots of items you tend to misplace? This consists of 25 colored fobs and a remote. Hook the fobs to things you need to take with you — or have trouble finding around the house (you can even hook up your pets or a small child).

The Dane Elec 4 GB Capless USB Drive

($19.99; at buy.com and target.com)
Want to keep track of valuable computer data? This allows you to keep your files with you at all times, and the sliding-top design means there’s never a cap to lose.

No larger than a fingernail clipper, the flash-memory device can carry up to four gigabytes of data/files, and it comes in a variety of colors, for those who like to make a fashion statement. Bonus: It doubles as a key chain.

Remote Play’s TagAlert 200

($59.95; remoteplay.com)
If you lose things outside your house, you may be the answer. Attach the "monitor" fob to your belt loop or key ring (or keep it tucked into your pocket) and attach the "alert" tags to two valuables (such as your wallet and cell phone)

Monday, January 4, 2010

Happy New Year!

I can hardly believe that another year has flown by. On this New Year, I had the pleasure of celebrating with my darling husband and my two brothers here in New Jersey. We enjoyed a fabulous party at my youngest brother Peter's really good friend Brian's gala New Years Eve party.

I am not a believer in New Year resolutions. I am more comfortable making resolutions throughout the year that are more realistic ones that I will stick to. So far, I have not made any new resolutions to date. One that I feel compelled to write about now is that I will write more blogs in 2010 that will be useful to my readers.

I look forward to working with many of my regular clients and working with new clients and their organizing challenges. This year will hold many new and exciting challenges for all of us.

If there is an organizing challenge that you have, please post it here and we will discuss it. If it is private, please email me at: rlyman@ahelpinghandforyou.com.