Forward Planning

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To start, I will sort my diary.

This will give me some Idea of what the kids did and where and helps me sort out the info they need.

I have a program called ACDC, which I use to sort my photos. Ive been using it for years, so I would think there must now be much better progs on the market.

This prog accesses all my pics.

I rummage through all my full size pics and highlight the ones I want.

 

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If I stop over a pic, it gives me the time and date it was taken.

If I manage to update more than once a month, I use this to find the end of the last set of pics I used.

 

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Having highlighted the pics I need, I click print...

Then I set it to print thumbnails, and set the thumbnails to 3 x 5 per page as Im using A4.

I dont bother with photo paper as I need to stick in so many that the extra thickness breaks the diary over the year.

This is the preview of the prints.

 

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I also set the footer to show date and time info for each pic.

When they print, the details are under each photo.

 

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Printing can take a while - especially if you are printing above 50 pics.

The machine must either store the images in memory or on the hard drive while it assembles the prints, so if you print a lot it really slows down.

Mine is still copying to hard drive as its trying to print. Looks like Im printing more than the 30 its happy with.

 

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Because I cut out a lot of pics, I bought this cutter.

It was £1 in the market and saved me hundreds of crookedly cut pics.

I slice them into rows with it

Sorry about the state of the pics. My phone camera has gone blurred when taking pics inside.

 

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I chop up the rows with scissors as its quicker then split the pics into days by doing 3 rows - 0 - 9, 10 - 19 and 20 - 31.

I use the date and time on the bottom to sort them.

 

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Ive got 14 days in Jan where Ive got pics.

Not much for me.

Now they are sorted, I can put them in the days in the diary to store them.

 

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Where Ive been at meetings some of my pages are already filled with notes and doodles.

I will have to share the pics for these pages - if I took pics on them with the surrounding days.

 

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Ive also got nothing for these two days...

...but 10 for the next...

 

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...so thats 3 for each of these...

And the rest spread out to here.

Er.....

Think that may have been 24 pics lol

 

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I usually stick all the pics down the outer edges of the pages.

Reason for this is it doesnt thicken the book as much near the spine that it pulls it apart.

Voice of experience there lol

 

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Er.....

Not admitting that the pic thats in a bit is there because I managed to spill glue across the page while using a pritt stick.

Covering the glue stops it sticking the pages together.

 

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Theres my last pic - not including the missing ones at mums...

Only had 107 to stick in this month as Ive been ill.

 

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Now the pics are in, I can write in the planner just inside the front cover what I did on the days I can get from the photos Ive just stuck in...

I put this together tonight in the viewing area while my kids went swimming.

I can now remember the 7 swimming sessions.

Thinking aboutthe swimming reminds me of the rain and the skinned knuckles when I helpde dchange the wishbone on the ront suspension on my car the other day, oh and two tracking alignments, and the day I replaced my bleed pipes on my diesel engine, and the trips to mums, and the one Sunday I was too ill to go visit her, and the days I saw the wife, and the three trips to pizza hut and the day I got the new fridge.....

 

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There have also been several committee meetings, school meetings, hospital trips, hammock trips, times spent in the park...

Oh and I shouldnt manage to forget the hobo days lol.

 

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Ive now got a pretty good record of what I did each day for the month.

I can now see how much I did with my kids.

I can now see how much I did towards each of the targets we set at xmas.

 

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Ive spent some time sorting out the plans for the new boats.

Ive spent some time with swimming, and building hammocks, and hobos, and navigating, ready for the tip with the pigging canoes in the summer.

Havent done anything towards replacing the out of date passports for the trip to the moon, france and australia.

Havent done anything towards the accountancy cours I want to do this year.

Have spent some time maintaining my friendships.

 

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Now....

At the begining of a new month...

I need to get the toe straps in the sail boat.

I need to sort out the hammocks...

I need to sort out our rucksacks.

I need to start looking at fibreglass and another tow vehicle.

I need to do something about my health.

 

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Had I not done my diary, I wouldnt be getting the jitters now about what I need to get done.

My summer wouldnt be so good.