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In This Issue:
- A Word From Monica
- Easy Ways To Organize & Remember Passwords
- Declutter Your Life With Freecycle!
- Simplify The Seasonal Clothing Switcheroo
A Word From Monica
We're wrapping up the third quarter of 2004 and this has been the best and worst year of my life. I lost my mother to cancer in January, which was horrible and trying to say the least. Yet, since the beginning of 2004, every other area of my life has gotten better. I am in a wonderful marriage to an amazing man, I have incredible friends and colleague relationships, I'm healthy and I am enjoying more business success than ever.
It's been a bittersweet year so far, but I am thankful for all of it, as all change facilitates growth and learning. I hope as you move through your own organizing and growing process that you have much to be thankful for as well.
Easy Ways To Organize & Remember Passwords
If you're like me, you spend time on the Internet seeking information, reading, learning, communicating with friends, viewing photos, playing games and much more. Many web sites that you visit require registering and creating a user profile. The trouble is that with so many sites requiring registration, how on Earth can you remember all your user IDs and passwords?
Here are three easy ways to keep your passwords handy. Whether you're at home or at work, regardless which method you choose, be mindful of keeping the information out of the hands of unauthorized persons.
1. On Your Hard Drive: Create a new document in your word processing program or spread sheet program. List all your user IDs and passwords in the new document and title the document something innocuous such as "Jane". Then, save it in a folder called something like "Christmas Lists" or "Chicken Recipes", where a nosy person is unlikely to find it.
2. Off Your Hard Drive: Keep a spiral notebook near your computer where you can log all the web sites that require registration. List your user ID and password next to the name of the web site and indicate to yourself if it is case sensitive. Of course, you will want to keep that notebook in a safe place.
3. On The Internet: Kim Komando (America's Digital Goddess®) is an unbelievable resource for computer and techno questions. Find her at www.komando.com . She recommends a free download called Roboform, which works with Internet Explorer to save your user IDs and passwords. Roboform will also generate random alphanumerical passwords in an instant if you choose to. Download this small free program at: www.roboform.com
Note: There are other free downloads out there that will do the same thing for you as Roboform will, however, be aware that many downloads come bundled with spyware. To check a piece of software BEFORE you download it, run it through http://www.spychecker.com/ and it will tell you if it has adware or spyware bundled with it.
Declutter Your Life With Freecycle!
Decluttering your life is a wonderful way to rid yourself of the things that no longer give you value and a great way to help someone else in need at the same time. All over the world, people are helping others and decluttering their lives by giving away the things they no longer need, through FREEcycle.org. This means that fewer items are going into the trash and filling up the landfills of our planet.
It's so simple to join! You just sign up through the web site, and you'll begin getting the emails that people in your local FREEcycle group send out either seeking free items, or offering free items. It's as simple as that! Just go to www.FREEcycle.org to sign up!
Number of cities FREEcycling last month: 1141
Number of cities FREEcycling this month: 1372
Number of people FREEcycling last month: 308,767
Number of people FREEcycling this month: 460,971
Check it out and let me know what you think of the idea. If you've received something or given something away through this wonderful concept, tell me about that too!
Simplify The Seasonal Clothing Switcheroo
As we move from the warm seasons of the year to the cooler ones, (except for readers in the Southern Hemisphere of course!) many of you will be switching your clothing to accommodate the changing temperatures. Before you dive into those closets and drawers, take a few minutes to plan your attack and use the following four tips to make the transition a smooth one:
1. Choose two easy-to-remember dates to switch your clothes out each year. Perhaps it's the official start date of spring or fall, or maybe it's your birthday and another major holiday. If you pick the same dates each year to do this task, it will be easier to remember and you can plan for it accordingly, just as you plan for other fixed calendar events, such as holidays or birthdays.
2. You will not be packing away everything you own, because many pieces are appropriate for both warm and cool weather. However, even if you are only packing away a small number of items, be sure they are clean before storing them. As each item gets laundered or returned from the cleaners, remove the plastic cleaner bag and turn the hanger around backward. This will be a visual cue so you can easily spot which items still need cleaning before being stored away. Speaking of hangers, a caddy will help keep those wire dry cleaner hangers from going crazy in your closet.
3. Did you know that most dry cleaners will store your out of season clothing for FREE? Yes, it's true! Most cleaners will store your clothing for only what it costs to have it cleaned. So you drop it off, they clean and then store it until you pick it up the following season. It could be a fair size investment, depending on how many items you're storing, but it's one that could be well worth it if storage space is at a premium where you live.
4. If you choose to store off-season clothing in your home rather than at the cleaners, be sure you choose containers that are insect and rodent-proof. Clear plastic bins (either the tall kind or the flat under-bed kind) with cedar blocks inside them is one easy way to store your clothing. The bins are terrific because you can stack several of them and only take up a small footprint on the floor. Also, garment bags, cedar chests, and storage trunks are another good option for clothing storage.
5. Another option for keeping clothing stored away is Space Bags. These are large, sturdy plastic bags that you place clothing into, then you hook the bag's special valve to a vacuum cleaner hose and suck out the air. By removing all the air from the bag, the clothing stays pest-free and it shrinks dramatically in size, allowing you to store many more items in a smaller space.
6. When sorting your wardrobe to choose which items to store, evaluate each piece of clothing before you pack it away. If it's old, faded, pilled, torn, doesn't fit you, or is out of style, donate or throw it away now. Why waste valuable storage space on something that gives you no value? If you do get rid of essential pieces such as khaki pants or that old faithful little black dress, make a note to replace them before you need them the next year.
Here are links for the products I mentioned above. I am in no way endorsing these companies but am simply providing links so you can see photos of the products I referred to.
Hanger caddies:
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?PRODID=66260&CATID=64331
http://www.organize-everything.com/hanhanhol.html
Clear plastic bins:
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/product183_0.htm
Under-bed bins:
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/15004_underbed-storage-iris-box-with-wheels.htm
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/55061_underbed-storage-box-32-quart.htm
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/20009_underbed-storage-chest.htm
Cedar blocks:
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/20522_cedar-aroma-blocks.htm
Garment bags:
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?PRODID=59807&CATID=151
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?PRODID=59796&CATID=150
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?PRODID=59802&CATID=150
Cedar Chests:
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/8611_chest-cedar-small.htm
http://www.stacksandstacks.com/html/6275_trunk-cedar.htm
Storage trunks:
http://www.trunkoutlet.com/
Space Bags:
http://www.myspacebag.com/
Monica Ricci is an Organizing Specialist, and the founder of Catalyst Organizing Solutions, an Atlanta based company. You can see Monica this fall on the popular HGTV show,
MISSION:Organization.
She is the immediate past president of the GA Chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers and was recently named to the Editorial Advisory Board of Atlanta Home Improvement Magazine. To schedule Monica to speak to your conference, team, department, or association, or for an on-site organizational evaluation, contact her at 770-569-2642 or Monica@CatalystOrganizing.com
(c)2004 Catalyst Organizing. All Rights Reserved.
