From the Desk of Janet Barclay

I often comment on how organizing has become such a hot topic that nearly every magazine published contains at least one organizing tip. Despite that, I was pretty surprised last week when I discovered that even The Beer Store is getting in on the act! The current issue of Chill actually includes a couple of articles on the subject.

First, "The Car Office" by John Bordignon. Although not technically an article about organizing, it does feature a cool product called the Auto Exec Gripmaster Car Desk. Designed to securely hold your laptop, PDA or briefcase, it also has a pull-out writing surface as well as space to store maps, pens, and other accessories. I was happy to see that Bordignon recommends pulling over before actually using it - I once heard a salesperson discuss talking on her cell phone and looking up information on her laptop while driving, and it nearly scared me off the roads for good.

The second related article is "Organization Nation: Getting it all together… and keeping it there" by Allison Dempsey. In this article, Dempsey recommends organizing tools ranging from Post-It Notes to Day-Timers to Personal Assistants to help you "get organized and give yourself more time to relax, kick back and chill."

If you live in Ontario, look for a copy when you are picking up your holiday libations. Otherwise, you’ll have to watch for the issue to be archived on the Chill website.