Veronica Bettencourt

Archive for December, 2009

I was reading an email someone sent me that I thought would be worth sharing since it is both odd and interesting. The following is the exact email message that was sent about how to prevent yourself from getting the flu virus:

ONIONS FOR COLLECTING THE FLU VIRUS

In 1919 when the flu killed 40 million people there was this Doctor that visited the
many farmers to see if he could help them combat the flu. Many of the farmers and
their family had contracted it and many died…

The doctor came upon this one farmer and to his surprise, everyone was very healthy.
When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different the wife replied that
she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home, (probably only two rooms back then).
The doctor couldn’t believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions
and placed it under the microscope. She gave him one and when he did this, he did find
the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the virus, therefore, keeping the family
healthy.

Now, I heard this story from a hairdresser in Arizona . She said that several years ago
many of her employees were coming down with the flu and so were many of her
customers. The next year she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop.
To her surprise, none of her staff got sick. It must work.. (And no, she is not in
the onion business.)

The moral of the story is, buy some onions and place them in bowls around your home.
If you work at a desk, place one or two in your office or under your desk or
even on top somewhere. Try it and see what happens. We did it last year and
we never got the flu. If this helps you and your loved ones from getting sick,
all the better. If you do get the flu, it just might be a mild case..
Whatever, what have you to lose? Just a few bucks on onions!

Just last week, I was going through my daily agenda and realizing that the year is almost up..I wondered if I should by a new one. I noticed how I always stuff paper in there either at the back or front of the agenda like coupons or take-out restaurant ads. My agenda was quite messy but I wanted to keep some things on hand that didn’t quite fit into the agenda itself.

So I decided to create my own system.

I went online and found some great templates for calendars,shopping lists,and the like. However, I wanted to customize mine just the way it would work for me. So I created my own templates using Microsoft Word.They aren’t anything fancy but they are practical and customized to my own needs and liking.

It took me about a whole day to do them but now that I have them in an organized  notebook (actually a binder), I can’t tell you the sense of mental freedom I have gained. I also know that I can’t get lazy or put something off for another day. If my weekly routine says I have to do laundry on Thursday, then I have to do it. It keeps me accountable.

Now I know for some people having a structured life doesn’t sound like a good idea. However, this is not really the case because I leave my Sundays completely free to do as I please and even my Saturday afternoons. This could not be possible if I didn’t keep my other days productive with a timely schedule of tasks that need completing.

I know that I have provided you with some helpful info on time management in the past, however, this one is a biggy in my books..pardon the pun. Below is a list of sections (in order) that I included in my home management notebook:

• Routines (Weekly/Monthly/Occasional) (I don’t include daily but some people do)

• Cleaning Routines (Weekly/Occasional)

• Master To Do List
  

• Master Things To Buy List (these include Shopping Mall items-not groceries or necessities)

• Grocery Master Checklist (a plastic cover & a dry erase marker to check off things as I need them)

• Weekly Planner (I first write in my routines on certain days of the week as mandatory)

• Monthly Calendar Contact List (phone numbers & emails and includes a section for personal contacts and another for business contacts)

• Birthday List
  

• Gift Ideas
  

• Books/Movies I Would Like to Watch
  

• Other Notes
  

• Coupons/Flyers (I put this in a plastic sleeve that is open at the top and closed on the bottom but still fits within my binder)

You can search online for some templates or just create your own. If you are not very computer savvy, you can simply use lined or blank paper for some of the sections you want to create. I simply used lined paper for some of the sections such as the master to do list and the master to buy list, and just inserted it into the binder.

I also created an inbox for any incoming mail that arrives and I have scheduled as a routine to only go through and empty the box and pay bills on Fridays. Knowing that, I actually save myself some time and distraction and only check the mail on Fridays. It works for me.

Incorporate some of these ideas to help alleviate some stress and give you some clarity, focus and value the time you have. Free up more time to spend it with those you love.

Feel free to leave a comment.

Happy Housekeeping:)