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I’ve become somewhat of a connoisseur of small spaces, not merely because I’m building one, but more because I thoroughly appreciate them. I love tiny spaces that are huge on benefit, utility and beauty. Design matters when you build small. Materials matter. Finishes matters. All the details matter.

With that in mind, I’d like to share a few tiny space concepts that I’ve recently discovered that have not yet reached WickedBlog’s pages:

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I started watching the TV series October Road today. One of my favorite quotes from the pilot (loosely translated) is: Only a fool will fail to return to the place of his last happiness. I agree. (more…)

This morning, I woke to a blaring alarm clock. It doesn’t matter that I went to bed uber early last night to try to recover from the cold I caught from the kids (my best friend is calling me “squeaky” this week).

I didn’t wake up on my own.

When I killed the blaring of my iPhone alarm, I heard a siren, overlapped by a car horn, the whirring of traffic and domestic unrest next door. I hate living in a townhouse. I also hate living in the city. (more…)

The most amazing thing happened during my work at the cabin last week. I bought a beautiful bathroom sink and cabinet. It has clean lines. It’s simple. It makes me happy. It’s nothing like the ugly one I thought I’d have to install to “get by” until I could find what I really wanted. (more…)

My son has now been diagnosed with mono to go with the strep he’s just recently had. So now, he’s off school for an additional two weeks. He was off for several days with the earlier diagnosis of strep.

I’m worried about him losing this much time in school. Tomorrow I’ll need to go down to the school and try to set up whatever needs to be done to keep him on track. As a senior, it could impact his graduation if he doesn’t get back to class soon. (more…)

I tripped across a detailed, well-written and researched article by Naomi Wolf. It’s also an alarming article entitled Fascist America in 10 Easy Steps.

I’ve read through the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights recently, and would like to share a few of my favorites with you here. (more…)

I can’t imagine the daily horrors visited on people facing foreclosure now. The numbers continue to climb and the economy plummets. I’ve been told I like to worry. Maybe that’s true, but I think the current situation is worry-worthy. (more…)

I am thankful. I’m working on my farm today. I’m getting my cabin ready to move it. It’s a long, arduous process. It refuses to meet any of my self-imposed deadlines, but it is progressing.

How many people can honestly say that the house they inhabit is paid off? How many people own a mortgage — or are owned by one?

My little cabin is tiny, it’s true. It doesn’t have many of the amenities considered “essential” in the modern world of the USA. It has everything I need. It’s warm and weather proof, it has places to go and be alone — with doors to close. It has a good sized gathering-place kitchen that dominates the whole first floor (which isn’t that big, so don’t be too impressed). (more…)

Thanksgiving is going to be rather non-traditional at my house this year. Byron, Alex and I will be at the cabin working. My father and mother will be there with us during the day, retiring to their own cabin on the lake in the evenings. (more…)

At this point, I’m actually looking forward to renting an office and NOT having the Internet at home for a few months. I want to know how it feels to NOT be able to run and look up whatever flits across my mind at any time of the day or night. I have no self-control when it comes to learning. I will get up out of a dead slumber to run downstairs and look up something if it occurs to me in the middle of the night.

I’m spoiled.

I want to know the answer NOW to any question I have. I’m a ‘net baby. I need to break the habit. It needs to be more purposeful and less automatic. I need to read more and search online less — at least while I’m at home. (more…)

I just tripped across the latest in a series of ebook reader devices. This Kindle ebook reader from Amazon seems to be a bit more thoughtfully designed than previous incarnations from other manufacturers. For instance, I like the wireless (and free) access to download ebooks and periodicals, to look up things in the Oxford English Dictionary online, and to view the world of Wikipedia without cell phone charges from any location. (more…)

Tonight, when I revisited Joseph-Beth for the third time in as many days, I found a surprise waiting. Author Greg Iles was holding a book signing for his latest book Third Degree. Now, in all honesty, I’ve never heard of Greg Iles before tonight and the thriller genera has never held much attraction for me.

With that said, I must admit that I lurked above the scene as Greg talked to the seated guests at his signing. I leaned over the railing, looking down and found myself eavesdropping with great interest. (more…)

I’m not sure what I need to do to prepare. I have the clothes. I have a suitcase. That’s not the problem. I don’t seem to be able to determine what I’ll do with my time while I’m away. Will I read? Will I sleep to an exceedingly late hour? Will I get seasick and wish I’d stayed at home? Will I get up early, run around all day, participate in events and excursions and fall into bed exhausted late in the evening and get up the next day to do it all over again? (more…)

A recent case in Washington DC may have some long-reaching ramifications for constitutionalists and gun rights activists alike. Read more about Parker vs. District of Columbia.

Byron’s Art Club took a trip to the Cincinnati Art Museum Saturday. Some of the parents went and I took Alex and Brittney along with us just for kicks. It was a wonderful day. The museum was enjoyable and when we returned to town we went to Joseph-Beth Booksellers and enjoyed a Mocha Latte and browsed the stacks. (more…)

Ok, the poem that launched my major in English (alongside Chaucer, Milton, and of course Shakespeare) made it to the big screen in a release tonight that I found quite amazing. The digital animation was simply wonderful and to have it “jumping out” at me in full-color, big screen 3D was quite an experience.

A bit on the gory side and a little less than a completely accurate rendition of the original epic hero poem, it was still a good way to spend a Friday evening. An excellent way, in fact.

I’m sure the standard version was good too, but I don’t think anything can quite beat the 3D effects on this one. Kids loved it, I loved it, and it was nearly sold out — so others were anticipating a good time too.

If you get a chance to check it out… you should!

I’ve had some pretty unproductive days in recent weeks. It seems that I spend much of my time chasing my proverbial tail. I start to work on a project and find that I have to go do a couple other things to finish that project, and then one or two more things for each of those things — and so it goes. (more…)

When you work for yourself, there’s seldom time to make your office as enjoyable as it is productive.

Organizing, streamlining and “shoveling out” your office can be the key to internal peace as well as improved productivity but finding the time and the energy to handle these tasks is never as simple as clearing surfaces or filing papers.

Creating an optimum office environment requires considering the physical comfort of your office, the “virtual” as well as the physical clutter that invades your space and developing systems that keep you happy and productive.

Physical files

As a remote worker, you probably don’t have to juggle as many physical paper files as a traditional office. You do, however, posess some important papers that you will need to keep.

Banks of physical filing cabinets are opressive. I use a single file drawer for my “finger tip” files. All the other files are archived away from my office. Keeping my physical space clean and clear helps me to think.

At the end of each tax year, I clear out the information that relates to the previous tax year and move it to storage in a less convenient location (my attic). I place these files in plastic bins and label them accordingly. If I ever need the files, I have them, but since I implemented this system, I’ve only had to access my archives a couple of times.

I don’t need more than one drawer to keep my current client files, legal files, tax information, receipts and billing information. Old client file are archived. Current client work (completed during the previous) is archived along with tax information, billing and receipts from the previous year.

I’d like to say I found my perfect filing cabinet solution — but I haven’t. I currently use an open-top bin that slides under my desk. Eventually I will find (or build) the perfect one-drawer file cabinet with two index card drawers at the top and a slide out shelf for my thesaurus with a dictionary on top and a printer cubby. I’ve made several sketches, but I’ve not finalized the design yet.

Desk Clutter

If you don’t have a clear place to work, you don’t work effectively. I find that I’m easily distracted if I let the top of my desk get out of hand. If you can’t dust your desk in under a minute, you have too much stuff there.

• Get rid of the knick-knacks
• Eliminate the “piles” of paper
• Pay the bills and file the stubs
• If you haven’t had time to look at the magazines and catalogs lounging on your desk by now, you probably won’t — so discard/recycle them
• Handle the things on your desk ONCE – and put them where they belong — don’t merely “shuffle” the papers

Computer Clutter

Inside and outside of many computers dwells a mire of mess. Outside you have cords, cables, peripherials, connectors and other things that you may or may not even need anymore. (Anything that you haven’t used in the last six months, probably doesn’t need to be taking up valuable space.)

During my recent string of moves, I’ve noticed I don’t really use the flatbed scanner as much as I thought I did, and that thing is a beast! Ditto for several other external devices. I’m paring those down in favor of an all-in-one printer/fax/scanner.

Get rid of any wires you can. Bundle and tame the ones you must keep. (I use a label maker to tag my cords at both ends so I don’t spend time “following” the cords to figure out where they go.) Also, if you aren’t using a good UPS (uninterrupted power supply) or a high-end surge protector, now is a good time to invest in one.

Virtual Clutter

It’s easy to believe that if you don’t have to physically shuffle the files, that they don’t exist. Computer files that aren’t well-organized are time-sucking annoyances. It not only takes more time to find the files you need, but you spend more time (and money) on your full system backups.

(NOTE: Before you start cleaning out computer files, be sure you have a full system backup. If you are running a Windows system, force a restore point.)

If you want to recapture some space quickly, start with the software programs you don’t use. Getting rid of those will clear up space quickly and easily. If you haven’t used a program in the last year; chances are you won’t. Some of the programs you have used in the last year may be just as easily handled by another program you use regularly. Check. Don’t keep anything installed that you don’t use.

Put the old program disks with your archived paper file folders if you think you may need them again. If not, then donate them to someone who will use them (like maybe a VA that’s just starting out and could use the boost!)

Find a logical way to organize the data files you need on a daily basis for quick access. Whatever works best for you is what you should use. I use custom desktop icons to “visually” organize all my primary files. I find that I can absorb a visual icon quicker than I can read a folder name/description below a typical file icon. I even have mugshots of my clients on their individual folders under my master “clients” folder. It makes it super-fast to find what I need.

I keep all my essential “use them all the time” files under a master folder called “Wicked” — with a witch’s hat icon. This shows how things are organized under that folder:

For files that you may be needed in the future, archive them to an external drive. If you have archived client files on your machine, burn them to a CD or DVD and slip them down in the paper file for that client so you can find them quickly if needed. (You can get stick-on sleeves for file folders at any office supply store to make it easy to retrieve the DVD if/when you need it.)

Organizing your files, eliminating duplicates and archiving old information will make your time in front of the computer a more enjoyable and productive undertaking.

It will take some time — probably more than you realize to get things in shape — but you will regain that time investment in just a few weeks. It’s worth it. And… if you begin this process now, you will be completely organized as the new year begins and your year-end tasks (and taxes) will be easier. Now wouldn’t THAT be nice?

Next time, I’ll cover ways to improve your physical office environment in ways that go beyond merely clearing clutter.