by Eileen Roth
When should you go? A convention comes with a set date, but do you want some extra time before or after to visit the city? For a vacation, consider what’s the best or most economical season for your destination, when getting away from work is easiest, and whether you need to consult school break schedules for kids.
Who’s going? Are you traveling alone or with a business associate? Will your partner or children come along? This can affect how you choose to travel and where you want to stay.
How to get there? Planes can save time, driving can save money, and the train or bus is a cost-effective way to let someone else handle the driving while you relax. A quick analysis of your transportation options can help you make the most of any trip, and Table 21-1 provides a view of the variables.
Table 21-1Transportation Options Ride (Train or Bus) Drive Fly
Eco-friendly Not fuel-efficient if Fuel-efficient for long
you’re alone trips and/or large groups
Most cost-effective Most cost-effective for a Most time-effective for
for a single rider group; often more time- long trips; getting to and from
effective than bus or train airport may make it a draw
for short ones
Time for relaxing, Time for listening to music or Time for relaxing, sleeping,
sleeping, thinking, spoken audio, thinking, or thinking, working
working chatting with passengers;
can’t sleep, read, or work
No traffic on the train; Traffic! Traffic on the way to and
someone else worries from the airport
about the traffic on
the bus
Not mobile when you Mobile when you get to Easy to rent a car or
get to your destination your destination grab a taxi or limo
Power packing
Having the right things with you when you travel can make the difference between comfort and misery, making a great impression and a poor one, getting a good night’s sleep or staying wide-eyed all night, sorry that you left your jammies and toothbrush at home. When you get organized, packing the right stuff is painless, and the pleasure of having everything on hand and in its place will pay off throughout your trip.
Dealing with luggage
Most luggage today is made with wheels, which is definitely what you want for easy handling and taking a load off your back. The drawback? All those darn rollaways look alike! Distinguish your luggage by tying a brightly colored ribbon or piece of cloth around a handle or pasting on a sticker in a prominent place. The second step to tracking your luggage is to put a tag on the outside and a business card inside, so you can check to make sure you have the right one. The piece can be returned to you if it gets picked up by someone else, lost, or delayed in flight.
If your luggage was lost, what would you go nuts without? That’s what you should carry on. A change of underwear, medicine, cosmetics, a shaving kit, and something to sleep in may make your carry-on list. A travel alarm clock and small flashlight can also be helpful. You never know when the power may go out, and if you have an important meeting, a plane to catch, or a wedding to attend the next day, time is of the essence.
Many hotels provide basics such as toothbrushes, shaving cream, hair dryers, and irons. Call ahead before you count on extra amenities.
Packing list
I recommend a 1-2-3 packing process to save space and time and maximize your traveling appearance and attitude: (1) Choose two or three colors of clothes to mix and match for the entire trip. (2) Run through each day of your trip and what outfit you’ll be wearing when. (3) Make a list! See the one in this chapter for an example, and customize it for your own wants and needs.
Set up your packing list on the computer, in a word-processing table or spreadsheet. Print the list any time you’re heading out; write in specific items after each category; check things off as you pack; and you can hit the road without reinventing the wheel!
Clothes
___Underwear
___Socks
___Nylons/tights
___Sleepwear/loungewear
___Robe
___Tops
___Shorts
___Pants/jeans
___Sweatshirt
___Skirts
___Dresses
___Suits
___Sport coat/pants
___Dressy outfits
___Sweaters
___Shoes (dress, gym, daily)
___Boots
___Jackets
___Raincoat
Accessories
___Jewelry
___Watches
___Hair ornaments
___Scarves
___Belts
___Ties
___Tie clips
Toiletries
___Toothbrush
___Toothpaste
___Comb/brush
___Shampoo/conditioner
___Soap
___Shower cap
___Hair dryer
___Curling iron
___Deodorant
___Makeup
___Nail polish/remover
___Razor
___Shaving cream
___Cologne/aftershave
___Suntan lotion
___Medicine
Other necessities
___Airline tickets
___Passport
___Itinerary
___Hotel/car papers
___Organizer/planner
___Glasses/sunglasses
___Driver’s license
___Money/checks
___Traveler’s checks
___Charge cards
___Airline cards
___Travel alarm
___Luggage keys
___Umbrella
___Camera/videocamera/film/tape/batteries
___CD or tape player/CDs or tapes/batteries
Office supply and drugstores sell plastic envelopes that are a little bigger than #10 envelopes and are just right for carrying airline tickets, hotel papers, and car-rental papers all in one place. Add the receipts you need to track for expense reports or charge-card reconciliations, and you have one-stop record keeping while on the road.
Trip tips — before and after
Travelers know it’s not the trip that’s stressful and difficult — it’s the day before you leave and the one after you get back. Here’s how to put everything in order so the world will keep turning while you’re gone and welcome you back upon your return.
The day before: Pull it all together
You know the feeling — you’re supposed to leave tomorrow and you couldn’t possibly have more loose ends. Use this list to tie them up.
Tell clients, customers, and friends/associates you’re leaving the day before you really are to give you time to get ready.
Pack clothes, accessories, and business materials.
Arrange for transport to the airport if needed.
Stop mail and newspapers, or arrange for a neighbor to pick them up.
Make three copies of your itinerary for you, your assistant/boss, and your spouse or another primary person.
Change your voice mail message (office only).
Give instructions to an assistant, family members, or housesitter.
Confirm arrangements for plant care, pet care, and snow or lawn care (set up a week in advance).
Prepare documents you need, from passports to expense forms.
Complete or delegate work.
Compile a To Read File for the trip.
Assemble files, books, magazines, and tapes.
Put together your laptop, power pack, batteries, and lock.
Set light timers.
The day after: Buy some recovery time
Home sweet home! Unfortunately, the pressures of returning after time away can sometimes sour your arrival. Here are some hints for a soft landing.
Tell everyone that you’re returning the day after you r
eally are so you can get back up to speed.
Unpack and refile.
Pick up animals and plants.
Open mail, read e-mail, and review phone messages.
Follow up on trip-related business.
Complete expense reports.
When you’re good and ready . . . return phone calls.
Footloose and fancy-free — organized is the way to be when the road calls your name. Add order to your movements, and you can go mobile at the top of your game.
Part VI
The Part of Tens
In this part . . .
O rganized people love lists, and here are five to make your life easier. Whether you’re squeezing more storage out of a small living space, moving without tears or fears, clearing out clutter with a garage sale, picking and caring for a pet, or dealing with what even the best organizational systems can’t entirely prevent: emergencies, each of the following chapters provides a ten-point litany of tips for a high-impact organizing issue. These quick references are handy when you’re in a hurry and make great reading when you’re on hold. Hang ten!
Chapter 22
Storage for Small Spaces: Apartments, Condos, and Compact Houses
In This Chapter
Making the most of vertical space
Hiding or displaying household items in a space-efficient way
Doing double duty with your furniture
O kay, so you’re space-impaired — that’s no excuse for not putting everything into its place. Tight perimeters can provide the right motivation for cleaning up your act: More room to breathe. This chapter offers ten tips to help all of you apartment, condo, and small-house dwellers find space in unlikely places and peace in your compact abodes.
Purging Like You Mean Business
Just as one of the best ways to make money is to save instead of spending it, nothing creates space more efficiently than protecting it from the attack of clutter. Review the P-L-A-C-E section for each room in your home as described in Chapters 4 through 13 and purge like crazy. Ask the five W-A-S-T-E questions (outlined in Chapter 3) of every item that crosses your threshold. If you grew up in a big house, now’s the time to resize your mind and trim your possessions to fit your current space.
Stacking and Tiering
Think vertical. Most people naturally perceive on a horizontal plane, but that could represent half or less of your available space. Stacking up cans of tuna fish and tomato soup in the pantry is the way to start. Then get advanced with the stacking and tiering systems described in Chapter 5 and Chapter 6.
Stackable trays and racks offer shelves to stack items so that you can pull things from lower ones without having to unpile everything on top. (See Figure 5-3.) Stacking solutions are great in kitchen and bathroom cupboards, which often have feet or even yards of unused vertical space. Tiered layers or steps raise each row higher than the one in front of it so you can see everything (the same way it’s supposed to work with seating at the movie theater). Tiering works well for canned goods and spices in the kitchen, as you can see in Figure 5-5. The same principle applies to tiered hangers for skirts, shirts, or pants in the clothes closet. (See Figure 6-3 for an example of tiered shirts.)
Shelving It
Another way to think vertical is by adding shelves on walls and in cabinets and closets. From the front hall and bedroom closets to under-sink cabinets and empty walls waiting to hold books, entertainment media, or collections, every additional shelf is that many more square feet of space. Use wooden shelves instead of coated wire racks to aid balance for small items. Even short shelves can help expand floor space, as shown by the shoe shelving in Figure 6-5.
If you’re not particularly handy but have a wall to spare, purchase a freestanding shelving unit. It’s self-installing.
Tucking Under: Space Beneath the Bed
Make space while you sleep. There are a number of containers, cardboard and plastic, designed for storing things under the bed. This is the place for off-season clothes and other infrequently accessed storage items. Want even more under-bed space? Use risers to lift the bed higher, as pictured in Figure 6-6.
Using Countertops Constructively
Space-impaired people are the only ones to whom I grant the right to leave things out on the counter. If you have more appliances than cupboard space in the kitchen, put them on counters according to the rule of access. In a drawer-deprived bathroom, you could arrange cosmetics on the countertop, or create even more space and prevent a cluttered look by using freestanding pullout drawers instead. See Figure 7-1 for an example of countertop drawers.
Containing with Cabinets
One simple solution can do a lot of containing: cabinets. With the space-expanding properties of shelves and the aesthetic advantages of closed doors, cabinets can spruce up and expand the space of any apartment or condo. Install one above your desk for all your office supplies. Add a freestanding unit to the living room to hide your CDs and videos.
Decorative screens can hide all sorts of things and separate a room into different functions.
Hanging with Hooks
Thinking vertical again, you really can’t have too many hooks. Install them in your closets to hold purses, hats, recycled plastic grocery bags. Put a big one on a patio or balcony wall to hang a bicycle. Hooks on the back of the bathroom door can keep robes, clothes, or towels off the floor, while small hooks screwed into the bottom of a cupboard shelf can suspend cups and mugs above your stacks of plates and bowls.
Behind Closed Doors
Speaking of the backs of doors, there are a number of coated wire racks designed to hang on the back of doors and double up their function as storage space. This might be a shoe storage system inside your bedroom closet door, additional food storage space on the back of pantry doors, or a holder for sponges or a trash bag hanging from your under-sink cabinet door in the kitchen.
Carting and Rolling
Every apartment resident should know the art of carting — containing things in a mobile unit that rolls with the punches. Try a microwave cart in the kitchen, a filing cart in the office, or a set of rolling drawers in the bathroom.
Double-Duty Furniture
Who can afford single-use furniture when space is at a premium? Look for drawers, doors, and shelves in every piece you buy so it has a second use as storage. Your night table might have a drawer for reading material and a cabinet beneath where you can stock sweaters. An efficient end table includes enclosed shelves to hold photo albums, CDs, or your current craft project. Sourcing a computer workstation? Seek one that can hold the fax machine and files along with the basic equipment.
Chapter 23
Ten Moves to Make Your Move Hassle-Free
In This Chapter
Fighting moving panic with a plan
Asking the movers the right questions
Tossing out that zebra-patterned humidor
Eating your edibles in advance
Getting your new home ready
P erhaps the ultimate organizational challenge, moving has a way of mak-ing you wish you’d organized a long time ago. Not to worry. There’s no time like the present. I’m moving across the country while I write this, so these tips are guaranteed hot and fresh.
Making a Plan
The minute you know when and where you’re going to move, make a plan per the detailed instructions in Chapter 18. Remember to work the plan backward from your target (move) date. If you do everything according to the chapter, you’ll end up with all the checklists and dates you need.
Choosing a Mover
Nobody moves alone, so decide who will be on your team well in advance. The decision of whether to lean on friends or go pro probably depends upon how far you’re going and whether you’re moving items from a small apartment or a huge house. You also want to consider whether you have a lot of heavy furniture to move, the number of stairs on either end, and your friends’ muscle power.
If you’re going to hire out, call sev
eral movers and ask about
Pricing: Does the quote cover packing costs, mileage, and time? Are there additional costs for special items such as pianos?
Insurance coverage: Is insurance automatically included, and is it enough?
Packing charge: Does it cover the whole place or just the fragile or large items?
Transport time: If you’re moving out of town, how many days will it take the truck to arrive?
Holding charge: If you’ll arrive after the movers, what is the charge to hold your shipment before unloading?
Closing the Old Place
Call all utilities — electric, gas, telephone, water, sewer, and garbage — and stop service the day after you plan to leave. Also stop other services, such as newspaper delivery, lawn or snow care, bottled water delivery, and so on, with adequate notice.
Fill out the postal service form to have your mail forwarded and send change of address notes to all people, business and personal, who you want to have your new address. Check with the telephone company about relaying a message with your new number.
Begin using up food in the refrigerator and pantry at least two months in advance. Cut back to the bare minimum when grocery shopping and plan your meals around food on hand. Don’t plan on packing any perishables, and limit other food items as much as possible.