As a right-brainer, I rely very heavily on notes to myself. Pinning down each floating thought on paper is the only way I’ve managed to get by as a semi-functional adult. Whether a grocery item or a marketing idea, each item gets documented in a single, hard-to-lose notebook. For years in the fast-paced workplace, I used steno pads with a line down the middle to separate high-priority tasks from low-priority ones. Now as a working mother, I use the margin to divide professional life from home life. The thin, red boundary is a laughable formality, really, since tasks mingle and cross over with frustrating frequency. For example, items on a short list titled “Things to ask Papa Choe about” include “Thoughts on Granny Choe’s new home insurance policy” and “Testing GrannyChoe.com’s new shopping cart plugin.” It doesn’t help that Little E loves to snatch the precious notebook whenever the opportunity presents itself so that she can imitate mom writing these important notes (sometimes juggling a play phone and pretend laptop for full effect).
So… this is life as a work-on-the-go mom. I can either be resentful of the interruptions and ambiguity… or I can embrace the juggling act and be grateful that I have flexible (albeit, irregular) schedule. Remembering to do the latter requires superhuman effort and constant reminders–in the form of written notes, naturally.
