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Thursday, February 24, 2011

Lost Filofax pages drive me crazy!

A  few days ago I searched everywhere for my Move section I used in my Filofax last year when I was preparing for my move here to Scotland. The section contained pages of lists like what to pack in my carry-on bags vs. luggage vs. air shipment; house-hunting info; school searches, and more. Much of that information (especially the packing lists) would be extremely useful right now as I'm preparing to move again and am packing all the same stuff.

I can't find those pages ANYWHERE.  The entire section is missing!

I know I removed the whole section from my Filofax after we moved, because I like to keep only currently-relevant pages in my main Filofax. But normally I file removed pages into the current-year archive binder.

The pages from the Move section aren't in my 2010 archive binder. They're not in any of my other Filofaxes. They're not randomly floating around in my drawer where I keep Filofax inserts and extra pages.

Is it possible I threw them away in my joy of thinking I would never need them again?  (If that's the case, how silly was I to think I wouldn't be moving again???)

I'd be shocked if I did throw them away, because that is just not like me.

Before I consolidated my Move information into my Filofax, I had been keeping that information in two separate notebooks. I had one notebook for this local area, where I wrote notes on what towns were preferable to live in, which schools were the best, lists of things to do after we arrived here, etc.  The other notebook had lists of things to do before the move like update insurance, sell our cars, arrange packout etc. as well as those all-important packing lists. These lists were in their infancy when I moved them over into my Filofax, but the basics are there and are still helpful.

This has answered a question I've had for a long time: should I write important lists and preparations into a Filofax, or into a bound notebook?  The answer (which I've known for awhile now but this experience sealed it): my lists are safer in a bound book. It's so easy to move Filofax pages around, put them someplace else, or lose them altogether, they are not secure enough to be referenced again later. I never seem to remember where I put certain pages, and after they are removed from the working Filofax they are difficult to find out of context.

The exception would be if I use a designated Filofax only for moving (which is something to consider). Adding pages and creating sections is useful, but the only way this would work for me is if I do not remove pages.  (This is what I'm doing with my Medical Filofax, which you can read about here.)

When I write in a bound book, that information is safely captured unless I lose or throw away the book (which almost never happens).

So my method for this move is to write all my lists and moving information into a hardcover blank-pages pocket size Moleskine notebook, which lives in my glorious Renaissance Art leather cover (which you can see here in my last post).  It's small enough to carry with me everywhere (which is important to jot down things before I forget them) and it's pleasant to use which encourages me to use it often.  When I'm finished with it, I'll take the book out of the cover (and continue to use the cover with a new notebook), label the outside of the book with a silver Sharpie, and put it on the shelf.  In the future if I need to reference it, I'll know exactly where to find the information I'm looking for.

What about you? Are you more diligent than I am at archiving Filofax pages so you can find them again later? Or do you have to write things into bound notebooks for easy future reference?

3 comments:

  1. Hey, Laurie!

    Yes, my unease with the lack of binding prompted my three-days-ago change-up of my planning system. I am now using a teensy, At-A-Glance spiral notebook for weekly appointment tracking. The front cover tucks inside the inside left slot of my pocket Filofax.

    All my loose filofax pages and index cards that are written on go in a rectangular box designed to store index cards.

    Recently I've taken to using LISTER on my Blackberry to track lists of any kind. I love it because these lists are nothing something I need to look at all the time and the flexibility is infinite, of course.

    More on all this at my blog later tonight.

    Nancy

    P.S. I enjoyed your post at Philophaxy on medical pages today, too. I am also keeping records of what was done to whom in my blackberry in the notes section of each person's doctor. This does not allow for planning future events, of course. I'm starting to use this method a lot, i.e., under my stylist's phone entry I enter the last time I had a cut; under a friend's entry I enter the last time we got together... very 21st century "The Year of Living Dangerously"... remember the character who kept files on her friends?!

    Oh, also, remember I mentioned a custom stamp for my x-small Moleskine? I posted pix on my blog on that topic: http://senseofgravity.blogspot.com

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  2. When I have vital information - or something that would be just inconvenient to lose - I've gotten in the habit of scanning and emailing it to myself. This would work great with any loose-leaf page.

    I've also started using a Livescribe pen (also for work!) that captures text and audio and allows for easy download as a PDF or an equally easy "pencast." It's hilarious to hear myself talking to me, but sometimes it's pretty useful, like when I want to capture *the noise* that the car is making. I can just record with my comments and play it back when I need to. It's weird, but fun!

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  3. Nancy I've left a couple of comments on your blog. :)

    Robin that is a great idea for important information!

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