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How to Never Forget Anything Again 157 Comments
Systems allow stress-free productivity without wasting mental RAM. (Photo: Fotopakismo)
The human brain is a wonderful thing, but it's a bit faulty as a tool for remembering things. Luckily for us (and for our frazzled brains), technology has stepped in to help out.
With the proper habits and the right tools, you and your brain won't have to remember a thing again.
There are a host of tech tools that can help with taking notes, managing projects and to-dos, and manage your email and calendar needs just fine. Though I'll include the best choices below, these tools are just one piece of the puzzle. There are more elegant methods (ever scheduled something in Google Calendar via voicemail?)…
To really never have to remember a thing again, you have to combine a few tools in smart and comprehensive fashion, and even more important, you have to develop specific habits that will ensure that things don't slip between the cracks … because the cracks just get bigger and bigger with more time and more data.
In this post I'll look at some of the requirements of a "Never Forget Again" system, along with 4 key habits for using that system. I'll include my setup, as well as some other tools you can use to develop your own setup.
A Comprehensive System
What are all the things you need to remember? There are many types of data, from phone numbers and emails to tasks and projects, from follow-ups to status reports, from errands and appointments to websites and photos, and from random ideas to notes for class or about a book, etc..
A comprehensive system will handle all these things and allow you to save them, access them, and be reminded of them with ease. There shouldn't be a lot of fuss.
Sound about right? Let's take a look at the system and tools — then the habits — needed to do all this.
My Setup
This might sound a bit complicated to some, but I assure you all of these tools are simple, easy to use, powerful, fast, and fun to use. Those are my criteria. I use a setup the includes Evernote, Gmail, Gcal, Anxiety and Jott. These tools allow me to capture any information, at any time, and retrieve the information quickly and easily.
Let's take a look at how:
- Evernote: This is a great app for storing just about any information you want. In fact, if you wanted to simplify your setup, you could almost just use Evernote to remember everything. It can hold notes, clip web pages, store photos and audio notes, and more. Really cool feature: snap a picture of something on your camera phone, and send it to Evernote … then Evernote will scan the image and you can search for words within the note. This makes sending yourself notes really easy — you can take pictures of business cards, menus, receipts, documents and more … and it's automatically searchable. Evernote is available on PCs, Macs, on the web and on mobile devices such as Blackberries and the iPhone … and it syncs very easily across all these platforms, which makes it available from anywhere. Need to find a note while on the road? Just access Evernote with your mobile device and do a quick search. It really works well for just about everything.
- Gmail: My favorite email app, Gmail uses archive and search (along with labels if you like) to quickly store and retrieve any information you need. I also send quick emails to Evernote from Gmail, allowing me to turn emails into notes that will be retrieved from anywhere. I also use a Firefox plugin to combine Gmail with Gcal (see below) so I can see emails and my calendar in one view.
- Gcal: Also known as Google Calendar, Gcal is accessible from anywhere and just works really well. I set up reminders if I want to make sure to remember something, and it'll send me an email or text message. Need to remember to follow up on something? Set a reminder in Gcal for one week from now. Get used to setting up reminders quickly in your calendar, and you won't have to remember anything.
- Anxiety: I actually play around with lots of to-do apps, but my current one is Anxiety. It's very lightweight and very simple, and it sits right on my Mac. I don't like to keep actions in my email program, so when I receive an email that requires an action, I just quickly add a to-do item to Anxiety (it just takes a quick keystroke to do that). There are lots of other great to-do apps that can be integrated with the other apps on this list, but I don't need anything complicated — I like my apps to be light and fast.
- Jott: This handy app ties everything together, and is very valuable for when you're on the go. Just call Jott from your cell phone and leave a message, and it'll be sent to your email … or to another service you specify. For example, I've set up Evernote as one of my Jott contacts, so that when I send a Jott message to Evernote, it's automatically added to my Evernote database and is searchable later. I've also added Gcal so that I can easily set up appointments and reminders while on the road. Other to-do items go to Gmail, where I'll process them later to add to my to-do app.
Finally, I use Quicksilver on the Mac to make everything faster. I can easily send an email from Gmail, add an appointment in Gcal, or send a note to Evernote, by using the fast keyboard magic of Quicksilver — with a few keystrokes, the information is entered and sent, with no mouse required, and no apps required to be opened.
4 Critical Habits
If you want a system to work, you've got to develop the habits to make it work. It's that simple — without the habits, the system will fall apart — always. You've done it again and again, and so have I: set up a great system that works for a few days, maybe even a week. Then it slowly falls by the wayside.
Focus on developing these habits for one month. If you can do that, the habits should stick.
- Make a note, immediately. This is perhaps the most important habit. If you can teach yourself to make a note of things right away, immediately, without putting it off, you're halfway there. Someone give you some contact information? Make a note and save it, right now. Receive an email that requires an action? Put it on a to-do list, right now. Want to remember this website, or have a receipt you need to save? You get the picture. Don't put it off.
- Use your lists and tools, consistently. The next most important habit. A list, a calendar, a note-taking app … none of these are worth anything if you don't use them on a consistent basis. For some of these tools, that means checking them daily. For others, it might be 2-3 times daily or even more often. Tie these actions to something already firmly established in your daily routine: for example, check your calendar and email list right when you get into work, check your email before you leave work, or check your notes right when you get back from lunch. Find what works for you, but you get the idea.
- Make it quick and painless. If it's difficult to add a note or save information, you'll put it off sometimes. Same thing with retrieving the info — you don't want to go digging through folders or waiting on a slow application to load just to get something. You want it fast and easy, or it won't work.
- Archive and search, don't file. Along the lines of the above item, it's better to use a quick search function than to have to remember where you saved something. If it takes too long to find, you will stop using your system. Archiving stuff (instead of filing into folders) and then searching work fastest — Gmail is one of the best examples of that in action.
Alternative Tools and Set-ups
The tools I use are just some of the great options available. See below for other apps I recommend.
Note-taking Tools
1. OneNote: This is the default note-taking tool for anyone who uses Microsoft Office, and it's very powerful. Unfortunately for some of us, it only runs on Windows I believe.
2. Yojimbo: A Mac-only program, Yojimbo is beloved by its many users for its power, flexibility, and easy of use. It's super fast to add things into Yojimbo, which is a great selling point.
3. Backpack and Packrat: One of the best of many web apps for collecting info, Backpack is versatile and easy to use. You can store notes, text, images, links and more … and send items via email and SMS text messages. It also has a calendar and reminders. For Mac OSX users, there's also a desktop application, Packrat, that works well with Backpack for off-line needs.
4. Text files: The simplest method of all — and one that I've used with success. Create a series of text files for different needs, and copy and paste your notes into the appropriate text files. I have text files for ideas, to-do items, errands, notes and shopping lists. Small and fast. Works very quickly if you use a program such as Quicksilver for opening the appropriate text file or even adding text to the end of the file without having to open it.
Email Apps
1. Mail.app: Mac OSX users love their Mail.app, a program that comes with Macs and that has some very powerful filters for manipulating emails and to-do items. Can sync with different computers if you use Apple's online service.Webmail: If you don't like Gmail, there are many other types of webmail, including Yahoo or Hotmail. I just think Gmail's the best.
2. Outlook: Of course, Outlook is the default mail program for PCs, and it's actually a pretty good program for capturing most of your data, including calendar and to-do items, although I won't list it in the categories below because it's already listed here.
1. iCal: Free, simple, but great calendar program for Mac users.
2. 30 Boxes: Good online program, but not as good as Google Calendar, in my opinion.
3. Sunbird: Open-source, cross-platform calendar app from Mozilla, the creator of Firefox.
To-do Apps
1. Things: Awesome Getting Things Done app for the Mac. Simple, easy to use.
2. Omnifocus: Another GTD program for the Mac, maybe the most powerful there is.
3. iGTD: Yet another great GTD program for the Mac. It's hard to choose between these three.
4. RTM: Remember the Milk is probably the most popular online to-do app, and it's extremely flexible — you can integrate it with Gmail, Twitter, Jott, text messages, email and more. Other good online to-do apps include Nozbe and Vitalist.
On-the-go Tools
1. Mobile devices: the iPhone, Blackberry and various PDAs are all good choices for capturing tasks and information on the go.
2. Pocket notebook: You can also go retro and use a small notebook (or index cards) for capturing data. I use a Moleskine pocket notebook. Enter the data into your computer when you get home.
This guest post was written by Leo Babauta.
Read more from Leo Babauta at his blog, Zen Habits, or check out his effort to raise funds for humanitarian causes, Train For Humanity.
Posted on September 17th, 2008
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157 Comments
I use Outlook synchronized with a Palm Z22. Plus some sticky notes and a pencil. This setup has replaced my Franklin planner for a major savings of space. Together with my cellphone and my sketchbook I have an office that fits in a couple of pockets.
I'd like to like Google Calendar but Google is pretty stupid about synchronizing calendar and contact items with other apps such as Outlook and Yahoo!
Data is periodically offloaded to backup USB drives and Yahoo.
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again [...]
I completely agree that it's absolutely crucial to make a note IMMEDIATELY.
Not only is it the only way to make sure you don't forget – it's also very freeing, because your brain is free from trying to remember the stuff that you wrote down.
i use google notebook as my gtd collection bucket. It's very simple to use and allows my notes to be organized
Gmail is the best thing since sliced bread!
"1: Make a note, immediately"
This is always key. The second I put something down, it becomes swallowed up by the chaos of life.
This post is filled with some great apps and ideas. Great job and it's good to see you, Leo, in the house of Mr. Ferriss.
Some nice ideas, Leo. And thanks for the links to Anxiety, Jott, and Things. I don't read lifehacker as much as I used to so I miss out on a lot of these apps.
BTW, awesome picture.
Right now I am simply using txt files on the computer (with quicksilver) and a small notebook (not moleskine… I know, I know.. I'm sorry). But I will look into a few of these ideas.
What a great blog post and I absolutely love Zen habits. I remember things by writing down notes when I know I need to remember it. That is the easiest way to remember things because you can always come back to your little notes. The hardest thing is when I am laying in bed and I think of something I need to remember but I do not want to get out of bed to remember it. But the best thing is that you usually remember it in the morning. It is kind of like when you study late at night. It has been proven that we all remember things if we study right before bed. So if we are laying in bed and remove a think about what we want to remember you will most likely remember in the morning. It really works for me, I'm sure it will work for other people also.
Hey Leo,
I too love the moleskin notebook. I take it with me as I'm traveling around the world filming and can use it to record thoughts- in kind of a Hemingway sort of way. I also like the Omnifocus program but have found the "Things' program way better especially as an app for my iPhone. Either way terrific post as always.
Rob -
Mail.app also lets you create notes. And it organizes to do by the week. I love it.
Thanks Rob! Yeah, there's something really pleasurable about using a Moleskine notebook, and that in itself has a lot of value. If you love using a tool, you're more likely to use it.
I've also found Things to be pretty great, but I've opted for simplicity in using Anxiety.
Btw, thanks to Tim Ferriss for publishing my guest post … it's an honor to be here!
As for the Moleskines, I have them as well but my favourite for sticking in a back pocket are the "Pentalic Modeskin" knockoffs which have similar but heavier paper and soft leather covers bend to fit my butt. You have to patch the Modeskins a bit after some use but they're a third the price of Moleskines.
Thanks for all the great comments, guys! I love to hear about how other people implement their own systems. Do what works for you!
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again [...]
Things now has a version for the iPhone that will sync to-dos and whatnot automatically via WiFi. Enter on the Mac, check off on the iPhone, and vice-versa.
Great for having your to-do list with you at all times, and, unlike some of the other options mentioned, doesn't require that you always have a WiFi/3G internet connection.
Off topic for this item Tim but an interesting heads-up if you hadn't come across it. (I can't recall a post about it, and there's nothing on Search.)
You recommend ProfNet for PR. Well Peter Shankman of http://www.helpareporter.com (aka HARO – help a reporter out) has usefully similar service for free. Peter is very contactable too.
Worth researching for your readers, I'd suggest.
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again [...]
I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned it yet, but rainlendar is a great calendar application. It helps me keep track of things in a really easy manner.
Check it out – http://www.rainlendar.net/cms/index.php
I use just about the same habits, only I am using paper instead of technology. I know it's less environmentally friendly, but since my life goal is to save the planet, and I recognize the fact that I'm using the paper, I think it's a small sacrifice in the long run.
What I do is I put a blank index card in my pocket every day, with a pen, and whenever I think of anything I have to remember, I write it on the card. Then at home I have a looseleaf sheet of paper I use as my to do list, and a week-by-week calendar for longer-term duties. I also have a very detailed weekly schedule make up using the facebook application, and I have it printed out and set up in my study area. I also have an index card with the names of books that I want to buy in my wallet, and an extra copy of my weekly schedule in case I need to add anything new.
It's a relatively new system for me but it works! and it's cheap! I don't have to remember ANYTHING anymore, and my brain can finally relax.
Don't forget backup, especially for gmail. Worth the effort to set it up so if something bad does happen you can be back up in a snap.
Hi Mike,
How do you backup gmail?
I searched the settings but I couldn't find any "backup" option
with Regards
I was a bit disappointed coming to this post only to find its not about actual memory improvement, such as the methods taught by Harry Lorayne, Tony Buzan , or my favorite author, Dominic O'Brien. His methods for having a mental diary have helped me IMMENSELY and I now can instantly remember any phone number given to me without hassle. I even can memorize a deck of cards in under 3 minutes!
Although I will concede there is certain advantages for these online apps.
Fine, remember that deck of cards. Now memorize another one. Now play back the OTHER deck of cards you memorized last Thanksgiving.
Many of Harry's tricks (Harry was a magician) work for remembering certain sequences, but not for sets of identical sequences. And even if you forget a couple of cards, hitting 50 more or less in a row is still impressive.
But forget a mortgage payment or job interview or to finalize the Jackson contract… and the consequences might be just a little different.
I have a better idea…just disconnect from the web. It's much easier than it sounds.
Great post! Started using RTM a few weeks ago and find it extremely helpful. It's hard to get into the habit of checking it constantly, but it saves me time.
Also, just finished the "Eliminate" section of 4HWW and applied an e-mail auto-responder this afternoon. Received 10 e-mails since then and no complaints thus far. Felt instant relief as I knew everyone would now know when to expect my response and not hassle me to provide one until then.
Now it's back to homework…(I'm a college student in charge of our Engineering Student Council and these tips have allowed us to become more productive while reducing my time commitment.)
Fancy tools are great, but simplicity has its place too.
I hope it's "cool" to share this. It relevant and free so I hope I am not goofing it.
I put out a nifty free ebook recently that tells the story of how Otto Lowei almost lost the idea that won him the Nobel Prize becuase of a bad capturing technique.
It also provides:
4 Fantstic ways to develop and ignite your personal creativity.
2 ways for overcoming the things that stifle your creativity and imagination.
1 tip I personally learned from Donald Trump for obliterating the fear of failure.
1 technique used by creative intellects like Salvador Dali and Thomas Edison for capturing the powerful insights from the dreaming mind.
Great stuff from all.
I've been aggressively trying to remember to take a note immediately when I think of something. It's been helping a ton!
@Israel: Lol. How are you posting this comment while disconnected from the web?
Seriously, though, I agree that disconnecting from the web can be a very productive habit, for at least a few hours a day … but the reality is that for at least part of the day, most of us are connected and we need habits that will keep our information organized without hassle.
@Jezza: The beauty of these tools is that while you can certainly work on your memorization skills, you don't *have* to do that … these tools take the burden off your memory, and free your mind for more important things. You can worry about creating your masterpiece, instead of all the little details of life.
I like the Stickies application on the Mac. It's the PostIt Note application and it's nice because I've got notes right on my desktop that don't seem to fit anywhere else. I can look at those when I open up the computer and remember to take care of them right away.
U're awesome!! thanks for these useful n great tips,,")
Hey Leo,
Great to see you posting here! As I imagine there will be other suggestions from folks. . .I'll chip in. One of my absolute FAVORITES is FuseCal.
One of the trickiest and most tedious things I've had to keep up with over the years are event calendars from groups I'm involved with in some fashion. I used to have my admin check out the calendars each month and then add things manually until I find this program. Essentially, it allows users to copy the URL from the calendar page of whatever group they're in, or wish to monitor, and then seamlessly adds it to your gCal, Yahoo, Mac or whatever calendar you're sporting. It's free. . .yeah! And super-a$$-sweet.
I even have Tim's EventBrite calendar in there so I'll know if he's comin' to Chicago!
Doc -
I use several of these, and in fact, use Google Docs for quite a number of things related to business management. The "to do" list suggestions are a missing piece, and the habit of doing it all immediately and integrating it all are both key.
Great post. I'll give some of these a try. Nice notes on which are for Mac and which not.
You're on target with your Four Critical Habits. I used to save emails in different Outlook folders … and still have trouble finding things. With Gmail, you can save everything, add tags (optional) and then search. That's much easier.
Remember The Milk makes task management very easy. I've using Outlook and other tools (even paper!) but RTM works extremely well. I love being able to email tasks to RTM when I think of them, and getting a daily email reminding me what's due today.
I haven't found the right tool for storing stuff. I want something that's online for ease of access and painless backups. I want something that's on a USB flash drive for offline use. I'm currently testing a very interesting tool called PersonalBrain (http://thebrain.com) which allows nonlinear linking to items. It runs off a USB flash drive and the basic version is free.
Great article – as usual. I use a combination of notepad on my desktop, notes on my Blackberry and http://www.centraldesktop.com at the office (I can access it from anywhere and share it with my colleagues and clients). It works great.
Thank you for the writeup on Evernote – wonderful idea!
Here's a big question: Evernote helps you search for things you want to remember… but what about things you forgot? You wouldn't know to search for them – you don't remember that you ever knew them!
For example, I might be researching a way to build a treehouse, while completely forgetting that my friends brother owns a treehouse building company.
I see two solutions to this.
1. Always check with EverNote on everything, just in case.
2. Make a Google add-on, so that for every Google search I do, EverNote matches are displayed on top.Thoughts?
Jott now charges for the privilege. I used to send my text jotts to evernote for free, but now there's a fee for jott-to-text emails and older users aren't grandfathered.
Still a great tool, one of my favorites. But FYI to your readers. -
Dang. Now I'm lost in getting the GCal and Gmail extension to work together. Hmm…..
But its a great list of web tools to let us improve in productivity and remembering things better.
Thanks Leo (and Tim for publishing this)!
Dear Tim,
Thank you very much for this amazing post. If it's not too much trouble, please do add a plug in that allows one to share your posts on Facebook.
Wishing only the best,
Yaser Anwar -
While online tools have their place I find that being around a computer / internet connection only around 33% of the day makes them out of reach most of the time you need them. This especially applies if you are working and office-bound only a few hours a week (like Tim) or only a few months a year (like Me).
What's worked for me is to religiously carry a PDA – it doesn't really matter which one as long as it has an address book, calendar, todo lists, and notes. For a while it was a Danger Sidekick, but for the last 18 months it's been a palm TX. Very basic software can do everything you need as long as you are religious about carrying it, entering data, and backing it up!
If for whatever reason that doesn't work – like you are out rural where you can't charge batteries or everything gets a regular soaking of water – then I advise carrying a pen & small pda-sized notebook, pre-populated with the most important contacts, lists, etc.. It's also a good place to write the most common language phrases that you'll encounter where ever it is you are traveling.
– Greg
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss (tags: zenhabits trick tools productivity tips performance organization technology) [...]
Great suggestions, but what about the new Pulse smartpen from Livescribe? I've been using it for the last few weeks and it rocks. its at livescribe.com.
Great for capturing everything you write and hear, and you can search for words within your notes so you can actually find what you were looking for.
Excuse me Mr. Ferriss,
But I see some contradiction.
One of your main pieces of advice is to: "throw away your Blackberry"This post recommends a Blackberry.
So which is it? Throw the Blackberry away and be "decidedly low tech" as you once professed; or buy one as this post advises?Thank You Mr. Ferriss
Has anyone tried Live Scribe? http://www.livescribe.com
It is basically an electronic pen that works with a proprietary pad of paper to record voice and notes by touching "icons" on the pad of paper.
I could see how this would be great for college students.
Looking for feedback, is this just another piece of technology that ends up sitting around your house instead of being used?
Hi All,
First off, thanks to Leo for the great and thought-provoking post. It appears that Jott now charges for some services, but I'm eager to test out the Jott –> Gcal connection.
@Mr. J,
I don't own a Blackberry and would throw mine away, but others have the self control to keep e-mail checking to set times. I don't, so I avoid the tool that is prone to abuse.
Thanks. Actually, the "share this" button allows you to share on Facebook. I wish I could put up a Facebook icon as well (and I might), but I don't want it to get too crowded.
Thanks all for the great comments!
This is for everyone;
Has anyone noticed (or is it just me?), that the iPhone app for Google Docs is terrible? Or I am missing something? Once activated, there is an edit feature. It is a plain white screen and with the Apple keypad works real nice. Once you upload to Google Docs, it looks odd; letter a re spaced out. Has anyone else noticed this?
Thank you so much!
@MrJ: Just to clarify, I wrote this post, not Tim. But I think the two pieces of advice can be combined:
1. Don't use a Blackberry to check email and browse the Internet all the time.
2. But, you can use it (or other tools) to send yourself notes on the go. Again, you don't need to use a Blackberry — a simple cell phone or pocket notebook will do.@Greg: Great points … not everyone is connected all the time. You can and should use the tools that work for you — my setup is just one example. But the key habits are still the same.
@lisan7: Yes, you're right … Jott was free and now has moved to a paid plan. I signed up for the paid service — it's only a few dollars a month.
@Oleg: Great idea — if you could have a plugin to search Evernote when you search Google, that would rock! Someone should create that.
You should also check the http://www.rememberthemilk.com for task management. I've been using it for couple of weeks and I'm loving it!
No need for mouse anymore; you can do everything by using the keyboard!
Nice post. I've been searching for 'The Way' on personal memory management for about 20 years and have tried ever gadget going. I do find personally that the best thing for me is to simply carry a small notebook and pen around, but I'll be trying the suggestions here too.
When I saw the title of the blog I thought it might be valuable, it seems it was written by a person who is conversant with how human memory and human brain works.
Instead, I found that it is quite a cheap article written by an average project manager kind of person who struggles with his daily bits and pieces of work.I wasted my time.
I change to do apps more often than my socks but the enduring one has been Thinking Rock. It supports Windows (and Mobile), Linux and Mac. The only problem being that it has no client for the iPhone yet. As soon as is has that, my assimilation will be complete…
Chandler is very raw at the moment, but is worth check out as it has online calendar integration and a web client that acts as an online store for your tasks/cal information therefore enabling online/offline syncing.
Great collection of tools.
I would also recommend http://www.gtdagenda.com , not only it combines some of these features (it has projects, tasks, calendar, GTD contexts and next actions, etc), but with it's "Priority 1 line", that separates priority 1 tasks from the rest it could be very useful for Tim's book advice of starting the day with focusing only the 2-3 most important tasks.
I agree – simple and effective are key. I'm a fan of text files.
My most powerful tool has been yellow sticky pads. I try to capture one great point or one key action per note. I can arrange them or stick them wherever, whenever. I bring my sticky pad with me to meetings, movies, you name it.
Great post Leo. I like both Gmail and Mail.app and combine the two using Gmail's IMAP facility by forwarding all of my emails (from my five different accounts) to my one Gmail account (giving great spam protection into the bargain).
When I'm at home, I access my Gmail account via Mail.app and deal with messages within that application. Mail.app's folders mirror my Gmail labels.
When on the road and away from my home laptop, I access all of my emails via Gmail webmail.
This gives me the best of both worlds. At home I have the functionality, ease-of-use and desktop app strength of using Mail.app while on the road I can access all my emails via Gmail (and send emails so that they appear to come from any of my five accounts).
It also gives me a double on- and off-line backup: I have all my emails in Gmail if my laptop gets stolen and I have all my emails in Mail.app if my Gmail account gets hacked.
More on Gmail IMAP setup here: http://5thirtyone.com/archives/862
Saw a couple of comments on this (great) post that relate to using multiple to-do lists for work, home etc., http://www.reallygoodtodolist.com runs online so you can keep all your tasks in one place whilst splitting them in to seperate categories.
Alex. -
Thanks to Leo for the interesting post.
As for me, – right now I am simply using DEVONthink Pro to organize files on the computer, and a pocket size Moleskine notebook with small voice recorder on the go. Synchronization between cell phone, iCal and gCal through BusySync and gCal's text messages works fine as well. -
Guys, I am actually surprised and I apologize if this ha been mentioned in any comments and I didn't notice but Gosh Tim, how could you forget the best calendar/Address book EVER: PLAXO.COM. Let me tell you, these guys should pay me money not only do I pay them even though the tool is free but brag about them everywhere…. So #1 feature of Plaxo is synchronization of your offline addressbook + calendar with your online one meaning if I update my info on my Plaxo profile, EVERYONE in my address book sees updated info without ever needing to ask for it or plug things in manually. Why is that important? TIME SAVER. So Try it….NOW. it also comes with Pulse which is their AMAZING social tool allowing to feed your tweets and others! LOOOVVVVEEE IT. And considering Tim did not include Linkedin which keeps someone's info online for you….I'm thinking he's getting some kind of payoff for the list of less known
Great Post Leo!
Unfortunately Jott doesn't work in the UK. There are some other services such as Spinvox.com and dial2do.com that could possibly be set up to do something similar.
Anyone know?
Think I'll research these and post when I've got more info.
Geez, talk about overcomplicating the simple. Keeping all those things up to date must make life a nightmare.
The easiest method is to use the basic 'to do' list on your mobile phone to track the big, upcoming things (appointments, birthdays, etc) – with alarms so you don't forget – and, each morning, write down what needs to be done that day (and that day only) on a piece of paper or card and put it in your back pocket. Voila – stuff gets done, and it's so simple it'll make you cry with pleasure.
I would have thought a lot of stuff in here goes against many of your principles, Tim. Seems to require an awful lot of time for the user to spend behind a PC or Mac, updating his or her life. Who wants that? Nightmare.
@Sheamus: I think you raise an interesting point. This could be looked at as a sort of conflict of interest, but I think it's more of a broader set of options that we can pick and choose from.
I use and iPhone and find it to be incredibly useful. And yet there are times I feel it can be a time waster as well if I abuse my 'connectedness'. So I think there just needs to be a balance. One that is right for the individual.
I do agree, though, that a lot of these productivity apps can be easily turned into a productivity mess. It's just all in how you use them.
This may have been posted…but those of us with Blackberrys, Google calendar and other apps will sync very easily with your phones net browser.
I just use the calendar, but there are other apps. -
I dunno about this; some of the suggestions seem, at least to me, so be more complicated than they really need to be.
For instance, using Evernote to send notes to your GMail account sounds like a two-step process to do one thing. Why not just cut out Evernote and stick with your GMail?
Now, I understand that you're offering different options and readers are encouraged to pick-and-choose which system works for them personally, but like you (Leo) mentioned in the post, in order for an organizing system to work, it's got to be quick and relatively angst-free. I don't see how using synching two programs to do one thing simplifies the process.
For me personally, I only use two apps to keep all my stuff organized – Outlook and Gmail (I'd do without Outlook if possible but the organization I work for uses it) – and given that my job is 90% keeping things on track, less = more.
I do agree, however, that cultivating the habits are more important than which app you use. Should not the habits come first, then decide which apps to use?
One tool I just learned about is drip.io. (http://drop.io/) Very simple and very powerful. So simple, I can see having some trouble comprehending what all you can do with this tool. A good article on it can be found here http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080715-hands-on-drop-io–private-easy-file-sharing-with-a-twist.html
I've been using http://www.iwantsandy.com for about a week now and I really like it. Just another one to throw out there….
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again [...]
It would be great to see this type of write up for personal finance. I often wonder what others are doing to organize their finance, whether that is in terms of mobility or just getting the most out of the money you come in contact with.
Anyways, this is a great post. I will definitely be experimenting with some of these technologies.
To take easy postit notes, allowing you or your partners to share (or not) them in your network (LAN) please try BriNotes, our award winning freeware utility for Windows:
Never forget anything again, just post it to your desktop.
Excellent! Jott sounds awesome… some of my best ideas come when i'm in the car with nothing to write with.
I've just have to find a way to stay consistent with new apps i begin. For some reason I always wind up back with the good old pen and paper method.
Great Post! So much useful stuff here. As I was reading through I noticed that all of these things are external manifestations, as in " intermediary devices " that are similar to when we want to change the channel on the TV we use a remote control. It may be interesting and timely to synthesize the use and exploration of these gadgets with a good dose of understanding our own human " Internal Remote Controls ". May I suggest the writings of Dr. Joseph Murphy ( Late 1880′s, but the material still stands strong today ). Murphy and Buckminster Fuller had similar views and beliefs, and they applied their visions in interdisciplinary ways. Murphy's theories on the activation and use of the subconscious mind are seriously effective. Anyone can google his name and find all the info they may want. I feel it is complimentary to this post, plus it empowers us to know that we are far more than we think we are.
Thanks for the post! -
Concerning the gCal and Outlook combination — has anyone tried GooSync? I've been using it for a while with a Outlook/IGoogle-gCal/PalmTX combination. The technology is working well, better if I'd keep the calendars updated more often!!
Great post and comments — thank you all!!!
Great article Leo. Very useful.
Quick question: do you use the free or premium version of Evernote?
@Sheamus, one of the nice things about a getting things done app like Things is that it can show the next three things (or 2, or 5, or…) you need to do in any category, or things scheduled for that day. Complete one, and the next item pops up on the list.
Writing something down on a single card may seem simple, but if your life has any level of complexity to it you're going to need to remember more things than will fit on a card. So now you're going to need a master list, or lists, which now implies that each and every day you're going to be copying stuff from one list to another, updating master lists with stuff checked off yesterday's card, recopying uncompleted items from yesterday to today, and so on.
I have better things to do.
With Things on my Mac AND on my iPhone, maintaining lists for multiple projects/clients is easy, doing those types of synchronizations is handled automatically, and I have my entire set of to-do's with me at all times.
I've got the same setup as you Tim (minus Anxiety). I have a Notebook setup in my Evernote labled "Todo" and that has been working well for me. You can also split the notebooks into something like "Todo @ Home", "Todo @ Work", "Todo @ Internet" , etc which I have been thinking about doing.
@Kris: I use the free version of Evernote, at least for now. It's been working well for me.
@everyone else: Thanks for all the comments! A couple people have said that my setup seems complicated … and that's fine — it's just one possible setup among many. The key is to have some kind of system that will hold all of your information, and develop the key habits for using the system. Each person's needs will differ, and the tools you use should suit those needs.
However, I don't feel my setup is complicated. I just have different tools for different types of information — knowing which tool to use is pretty intuitive, and calling each one up is just a matter of a few keystrokes. In actual practice it's very fast, and calling up information is very simple.
[...] this post on Timothy Ferriss' blog titled "How To Never Forget Anything Again", written by Leo Babauta [...]
Have you done a post on how to remember things that you must actually use you brain for? Such as memorizing new words or math concepts, for example. If not I would be interested in one, or if you could simply direct me to somewhere that discusses this that would be great.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks for the to-do list recs, I am such a to-do list person and have never heard of many of these. I need a to-do list on my Blackberry. I hate the to-do list they give with the device. Which of your recommendations has a Blackberry version. Thanks.
How to remember everything…
If you juggling with many hats in your business as well as personal life then remembering things becomes the first casualty. Most people quickly attribute this problem to lack of proper attention but this is not so. When you have to manage multiple tas…
[...] The Blog of Time Ferriss has a plan to help you Never Forget Anything Again. [...]
Thanks for a great post! And thanks for pointing out Evernote – I haven't heard of it before but just gave it a try and it looks very useful.
I am a bit of a BlackBerry addict myself and so far have been using this BlackBerry GTD software application from http://www.kartamobile.com called Vera.
Vera does a great job of storing down everything you need to remember and classifying it in a way you can quickly pull it out later. Give it a try, you might find it handy.
[...] time to read Tim Ferriss' latest blog this week by a guest poster, Leo Babauta, about "How to Never Forget Anything Again." Not because I'm really all that forgetful, but because as I read the article, it [...]
Gcal is wonderful and I won't resist an iphone much longer, but as a Mum as well as a solopreneur my cool quotient is already so low that nothing else can hurt; I use a cheap steno pad for my to-do list! I've tried load of others, on and offline, but nothing else has worked well for me since my trusty Palm got juiced (other parents will understand this).
My indulgences are vintage fountain pens and Clairefontaine notebooks, but a 4 quadrant list on a steno pad keeps me in line. Crossing out completed stuff is satisfying, and each new weekly list is a good planning exercise; time spent planning is saved 10fold. (Brian Tracy). I track work and home – left and right – and urgent vs important – top and bottom. Urgent stuff is rarely important.
Thanks for the great post, Leo
Using all those aids, you can correcting the misleading title to "How to Never Remember Anything Again".
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss (tags: tips lifehacks gtd performance productivity learning) [...]
Great article Leo. I am an Outlook enthusiast. All of the tools in the program work so well together as well as with the entire MS Office Suite. Calendar, email, contacts, task list — it's all there. I synch to a Palm Tungsten e. I do carry a small spiral notebook in which I keep notes (it's easier for me to write with pen and paper than in my PDA). I also carry a cell phone. I've not joined the Blackberry bandwagon because it's just not what I need right now. It may happen in the future though!
Almost all my bills are emailed to me these days and I pay online. I have Adobe Professional on my computer so I no longer print out payment confirmations from online bill pay. I just right click on the confirmation and convert it to a PDF, then save it to the appropriate folder on my computer. This one change has probably been the biggest time saver for me this year. I can electronically search for statements, check when they were last paid, etc. Plus I don't have all that paper to file!
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss (tags: business tools how-to lifehacks productivity timferriss todo memory timemanagement) [...]
Thanks Marcie, just want I wanted.
Thanks for the post Tim.
This is a great post. I have struggled over the years with a method of keeping track of related performance issues for a number of restaurants that I supervise. When in the restaurant and taking notes on the visit I use my phone and either Jott a note to myself which goes to my outlook tasks, calendar, or email draft. This system is very smooth. Once the information is in OUtlook, I am able to drag it from task to email, email to task, task to calendar, and so on. The point is to capture.
Additionally, I have a small app that is HotKey. It allows you to establish standard text and using "ctrl X" or any other shortcut, insert the text into emails, tasks, or any document. Saves a ton of time and encourages getting capture of information. I use it for inserting date and time that I update task followup with my managers. -
Remember the Milk (RTM) is a great GTD site. Very flexible too.
What I have yet to find is a calendar with a section for general to-dos. My daily schedule is usually comprised of 80% "loose" items (no set time) and 20% of items that occur at specific times. What system works with this? Any ideas?
Used a Moleskine for a few years. This year tried a Ciak for the first time and I prefer it. Similar retro low tech look as the Moleskine, also Italian. The elastic is horizontal and not vertical, which works beter if you like keeping loose bits of paperwork in your diary.
I read 4 hour work week not too long ago. Its hard to put into effect in a corporate job, but some things are changing for me and I did find the book very encouraging.
Great to see a cross post from Leo. I read most of Leo's posts and will read more of Tim's posts now.
I use my blackberry for todo lists and quick notes on the go. I've just posted a blackberry shortcuts key list today on my blog, shortcuts can make any application twice as productive.
I use windows notepad to jot down quick notes with timestamps using the F5 Date/Time stamp shortcut key.
I archive my notes to a tiddlywiki file for fast searching and review.I'll check out some of the apps Leo mentioned. Thanks for the great post!
Well considering I forget almost everything, these ideas are just fabulous. I should definitely start using my Outlook to remember things more often since I am always on it.
Hmm, I use GTD methods every day at work but my private life is not as neat.
Part of the trouble is paper clutter. Has anyone tried just photographing all the bills, letters, etc, that come in and used something like Evernote that does character recognition, and done away with paper records and mail that pile up? I'd like to know if there are any pitfalls to watch out for as I consider going for it myself.
Great article.
I'd like to add some tools. You mentioned text files, those are what i use, i live in the command line in both linux and mac os.i use the todo.sh from lifehacker to keep a test todo list and i wrote my own simple calendar for the command line that keeps everything organized on a simple text file. you can get it (free, open source) at http://www.geocities.com/urifrid/calendar.tar.gz
for note taking i use quicksilver (mac) and gnome-do (linux) simple text files.
Hi Leo,
nice post. I have more or less the same setup and Evernote seems to be the central hub for me. I have even used it in a class as the only source of presentation material.
I am interested in your setup for using Quicksilver to add notes to Evernote; how do you do that? I could imagine sending an email from Quicksilver to Evernote or is there some other clever usage? -
Excellent list! I would add that along with Remember the Milk, the one I have chosen is Toodledo at http://www.toodledo.com. They have more features than RTM (they have a comparison table) and support the iPhone with a webapp for free (RTM requires payment to get iPhone friendly version). I've paid for a Pro account myself, and if an iPhone webapp isn't good enough, since they have a full API, third party Appigo has created Todo and Notebook for the iPhone that sync with the Toodledo service (Appigo Todo also syncs with RTM if you prefer, but only Toodledo has support for notes that Notebook syncs with). I tried RTM and others first (www.todoist.com is another good one, especially if you like the keyboard!) but Toodledo is what I settled on for better or worse (so far better).
There were a few things in your list I hadn't seen before, thanks for the new info!
Thanks for sharing Anxiety. It's a great app !
You can get all the online-apps together in one desktop-app with thunderbird (except evernote). Just install thunderbird the lightning extension for a calendar and then the googe-calendar-extension and the rmilk extension. so you habe a nerve-centre with the advantage to access your data offline.
here the links:
thunderbird: http://www.mozilla-europe.org/de/products/thunderbird/
lightning: https://addons.mozilla.org/de/thunderbird/addon/2313
google-calendar provider : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/4631
rmilk provider : https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/7125
check out luminotes–it's my new favorite organizing tool online.
thanks a list for the apps. Like never forgetting you keys. FInd on place to keep so that if you forget you at least know where to start. What has helped me not to forget is to think of the action this way, "You are going to have to do it either now when you have the time or later when you don't have the time. So do it now because the payoff is going to be a whole lot more than waiting."
A fantastic free tool is NetRocket at http://www.bookmarks.com. You can bookmark a site, and it is always there online, so all your nicely organised, tagged and scheduled bookmarks are available to you 24/7 on any online device wherever you are. I have NetRocket send me scheduled email reminders to take me straight to the sites I need, exactly when I need to reach them. Scheduled payments, bill reminders etc. etc. I never have to think about remembering them. NetRocket reminds me exactly on time..
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again [...]
Hey Tim, great stuff. Been using Gmail and Gcal for a while now, will try Evernote, so far I've been using Diigo to keep track of things.
It won me over because it's a social bookmarking site and I can easily find people with similar interest to mine, but Evernote has a truly phenomenal search interface, so I'll look into it:) -
[...] I was perusing Tim Ferris' blog and found my way onto this post on how never to forget anything again (is that a split infinitive? I never got the hang of them). [...]
Great post! I'm very surprised that I didn't see mention of VooDooPad, which I find much better than having a bunch of text files. Think "wiki" but in a desktop program. All of my projects have their own VooDooPad. I can just barf whatever I want into them, and transfer the info to another, more structured device, if I choose. It's an incredible app: http://snipr.com/3tlki
I absolutely love Jott as well, and I don't fault them for finally charging a fee for a great service.
But for those looking to ride the free beta bandwagon, reQall is a great similar service: http://www.reqall.com
Question for Tim-
Not sure how else to get this to him & it is kinda applicable….
Have you heard of InfusionSoft?
[...] application on Tim Ferris blog by an entry written by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits titled "How to never Forget Anything Again". Leo shows us his technique to store information and delivers also alternatives to that. I [...]
great to see you two finally connect- brilliant!
long overduemoleskin, postITs and HABITs make
it/you workit's not the brush it's the artist
however, having said that – the right brush helps a lot -
Tim, great little guide. I already use GCal GMail and Evernote so found it very interesting to read. A great tool for those with iPhones is nuevasync. It allows automatic syncing between ur GCal and iPhone calendar. Works unbelievably and incredibly well and you don't even know its doing its job until you realise that thing you just updated in GCal is now on your iPhone or vice versa. Very handy especially when out of coverage areas to have your GCal on your iphone. One of the best features is that GCal automatically sets a 10min reminder that will show up as an alert on your iPhone. So instead of your computer getting bogged down with alerts (or you missing alerts while away from your comp) your iphone will give you them. And you can even change alerts in GCal to 1hour for example and your alerts on your iPhone will come 1 hour prior to the even. Changed the way I organise my life. I'll often also put phone#s or addresses in GCal and then its on my phone next to the event for reference or if I search my calendar.
wooooooh technology rules
[...] Tim please tell us how to never forget anything ever again…This might sound a bit complicated to some, but I assure you all of these tools are simple, easy to use, powerful, fast, and fun to use. Those are my criteria. I use a setup the includes Evernote, Gmail, Gcal, Anxiety and Jott. These tools allow me to capture any information, at any time, and retrieve the information quickly and easily. (via four hour work week) [...]
I use Spanning Sync to make my GCal and iCal talk to each other. Amazing stuff for something so cheap.
My new favorite GTD, task tracking tool is Vitalist. Its clean and simple. I also use Jott in conjunction with Vitalist. These
Iam going to help y'all out here a little bit. Now when I read "4hr workweek" I was real impressed with Tims minimalist approach to maximum output. This post seems to violate this concept.
My method of keeping notes and such involves using 3 impliments and doesnt involve complexities like, batteries, pda's and cellphones all of which add more possiblilities for problems.
First, I have a well inked, collapsable pen that "telescopes" into itself and makes it that much more portable. Second, I have a regular date book, you know the ones with the cute puppies, mountainscapes etc. the cheesier the better, Lastly I have sticky post it notes that I put in the back jacket of the date planner. Now my system is REAL simple. First thing I do in the morning is take my post it note pad and write my to-do list for the day and I post it on the inside leaf of the planner.
Now I take another post it and put it on the inside of the front leaf. This is my "bucket" where if I have random thoughts, need to remember items etc. I just open the planner and jot it down.
End of day, I take "bucket" memo sheet and organise components accordingly. Appointments are jotted down as I make them directly into date planner. To do items are maked off as done.
This whole set-up fits in my back pocket comfortably (easier than a check register). Its highly portable, reliable, simplistic, cheap and extremely effective which makes it more likely it will be used.
How about this system. First buy yourself a "telescoping" collapsable pen, a $5.00 date planner and a packet of 5″x3″ sticky notes.
Compile to do list on sticky note, paste on front leaf of day planner. Put second sticky note on back leaf for random thoughts, ideas, memos etc. for future organization, this functions just as a "memory bucket". Check off things on front leaf to do list as done, use date planner to record appointments and "bucket memo" for memory aid.
This whole system fits in your back pocket like a check register, costs about 10 bucks, never breaks down or runs out of batteries, gets stolen etc. If you really want to go high tech. get one of those digital voice recorders that attach on your key chain and use that as your "Bucket".
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again. In this post, the author lists some tools to help you to take notes, track projects, and make your to-do lists. All to use technology in your favor–Interesting. It's a system to "Never Forget Again"! [...]
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again An exhaustive post from Leo Babauta on the Four-Hour Work Week blog with tips and pointers to tools that can help you remember to-dos and get things done: "The human brain is a wonderful thing, but it's a bit faulty as a tool for remembering things. Luckily for us (and for our frazzled brains), technology has stepped in to help out. With the proper habits and the right tools, you and your brain won't have to remember a thing again." [...]
I've cobbled together a little system that works well for me:
I use Jott (now Dial2Do since Jott went paid) to call iwantsandy.com . Sandy sends an email with my to-do to my Gmail account. Using the Firefox extension GcalAgenda and some filter tweaks, appointments get automatically added to my Gcalender. And using the RTM gadget for Gmail, tasks get added to my RTM. Both my Gcal and RTM are displayed in my Gmail, or I can go to their websites. Or using Gears I can make them stand-alone on my desktop.
In addition, Sandy compiles a daily agenda for me that I can print out and take, or have texted to me. This is why I don't just send an email to myself using Dial2Do. I want Sandy to go ahead and compile my agenda for me.
I'll have to check out sending things to Evernote. I didn't realize I could do that.
Great write-up, Leo. Thanks for the Evernote suggestion… that's definitely one to look into.
I hope that you and a friend to pay, but also the hope that you will be able to come to Hangzhou – a really beautiful city to visit
Outlook is a life saver i would forget every meeting at work and i would probably never leave my desk if it wasn't for that program. Great article these seem like some cool alternatives i will check them out
Great post Tim! Glad to catch up with you at Blogworld. I agree that Gmail is fantastic, and I also agree with most of the hlist here. Stay well and I'll keep reading.
Great post! I didn't even realize some of this existed. If you're like me and have a zillion ideas coming through your mind every second, it is important to find an organized place to put them. I deal with many different projects at the same time and my mind is extremely creative so there is a lot to keep up with! Trying to do this with paper just doesn't work. I'd never keep up with it. My memory is overtaxed anyway plus with some physical limitations that I have, remembering just doesn't work for me! That's what my iphone and laptop are for!
[...] link is a guest post by Leo from ZenHabits.com on the Four Hour Work Week blog. The post is titled How to Never Forget Anything Again and it is a great post that goes through some of the great tools that are available for running our [...]
Hi Leo,
Windows users may like to try TaskMerlin. Regarding the critical habits you mention, it's quick to add notes, and has a fast search capability. It also integrates with Outlook e-mail. To apply GTD within TaskMerlin, see http://www.taskmerlin.com/gtd.aspx .
I'm with Wendy and Seamus – the simpler, the better. Plus, if I lose a paper to do list I haven't lost an expensive device that I'll have to remember to replace!
JLibbey, on the one hand, it's true that if I lose my iPhone I've lost an expensive device I'll have to replace… on the other, it's my PHONE, which I'll have to replace anyway! (grin)
i use tip one, make a note immediately, most of the time. it seems to help
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss (tags: zenhabits toread tools todo tips timemanagement technology productivity trick timferriss timferris) [...]
I've read all the comments here and Leos system and I honestly think mine is FAR better than all of them.
I use a simple text file application on my iPhone called Magipad and I organize my to do list on it by context.
If something comes up I need to do I just type it in.
My calendar is in a text file.
Your systems sound really, really complicated to me.
Even pen and paper is alot more complicated because you can't easily edit lists and notes and the notepads take up a lot of space. -
[...] How to Never Forget Anything Again – The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss Systems allow stress-free productivity without wasting mental RAM. (Photo: Fotopakismo) The human brain is a wonderful thing, but it's a … (tags: ping.fm) [...]
I second the mention of reQall (www.requall.com), which is awesome, especially using it from both iPhone & Jabber.
Try infoaxe. With infoaxe every page that you see on the Web gets added to your personal web memory and is now searchable. So you no longer need to bookmark/email links to yourself to remember a page.
you can also access your web memory across multiple machines/browsers.
Its a search engine for your personal slice of the web.
disclaimer – am a founder of infoaxe.
[...] The first requires good, easy-to-use tools. If it takes work to collect tasks, you won't do it. Tim Ferriss, author of the four-hour workweek, recently talked about how he does it. [...]
[...] especially when writing guest posts for other sites. (Note: check out some of our guest posts at – FourHourWorkWeek, ProBlogger, ChrisBrogan, SuccessfulBlog, [...]
[...] Within a few days I was instantly feeling more organized by an article I found on his blog – How To Never Forget Anything blog post. This blog post gives tons of examples on tools and systems you can use to get more [...]
The archive and search method is the one I use for email, but I make it one step simpler. I keep all my emails in my inbox and use spotlight on my Mac to search them. Mail.app allows me to create search folders which are automatically updated with emails based on definded search criteria. In this way, all my emails are also available on my iPhone as well. As a backup, I forward all emails to my gmail account.
Things on the iPhone is a great on-the-go to-do list which syncs with my Mac. Don't need anything else.
[...] software (SVN is free) for document management, and a tickler/productivity system like Tim Ferriss never forget anything again – is an inexpensive and workable solution. The downside is that like any D.I.Y. project, it just [...]
I can't believe nobody's mentioned Ultra Recall. Sounds like Evernote won't support a full GTD because it's not an unlimited crosslinking database. That's why you need separate to-do list apps.
I went with individual task items in UR for a while but switched over to a daypage system. Cut and paste into each next day, summarize as you go and review periodically. Then you can link out into task or project items if it expands. Works for me, plus it's easy to capture your accomplishments at the end of the week.
I use an At-a-Glance paper calendar with daily vertical lines. Then I mastered the unbreakable habit of:
1. jotting down in an available time/date every thing I must do or go to with file numbers, phonenumbers, addresses and the like that is relevant to the activity.
2. looking at my calendar every day to see what I had to do and then do it.
The advantage is that this method will survive a computer crash or palm pilot failure and the activites to be accomplished are always on time (usually finished early). Moreover, I can't over book and, most importantly, I don't have to remember anything. All I have to do is look at my calendar.
Sorry about not using the latest innovation and software to replace something which only requires discipline and habit.
I've recently released a similar program capable of tracking virtually any personal and data (the url is assigned to my name above). It is build on the concept of sections, items and properties; you might wish to include it into your review.
Best wishes,
[...] wrote a guest article on 4 different applications you can use in tandem to help remember everything you have to do. [...]
A note on text files: I originally did that. But that quickly blossomed to about 1.1 gigabytes of text files, as I regularly generated 1-5MB of text per day. And alas, Vista's tagging doesn't work as well as it could (it hardly works at all).
So I installed a wiki on my machine. A wiki running on localhost is fairly simple to set up, and it's like a text editor on crack; I can categorize all my doodles, people's info, etc., and each page can be in multiple categories and fairly simply link to others. It's hardly harder than Notepad, and when I'm at home, I can access my notes from anywhere on the network without having to set up complex network sharing.
My first computer running a wiki, I set up IIS and OpenWiki by myself, just so I could legitimately say I had practical experience with IIS and wiki software. On every computer after (or when I'm asked to install a wiki on someone else's computer), there's software packages available like BitNami that make installing and maintaining a one-computer wiki dead simple.
The only downside is that it's harder to back up, but there's bound to be a workaround for that too.
This is great! I'm getting Evernote right now. -Roger Ost
[...] help you remember things, many of the tools I use daily and my favourite is probably evernote. The post also offers some tips on the best way to create notes – a good read check it [...]
Evernote: I am about to buy a new printer/scanner/all-in-one. I want to start with Evernote too. Anyone can please tell me whitch all-in-one (brands, maybe models) are capable scan and directly send to Evernote, just with one single set-up or app or push button?
Gratefully, Urs -
great to see you two finally connect- brilliant!
long overduemoleskin, postITs and HABITs make
it/you work -
I have successfully reduced my 20+ storage mediums into one, Evernote.
Maybe Siri from Apple's iPhone will now make sure we never forget
For task management and to do list purposes we use http://www.kpi.com which offers integrated solutions of different tools
Anxiety is only for Mac users.
For Windows, is there any relative app?
Thanks in advance for your time
Ummm, Tim? I thought Jott was dead! How're you still using it as part of your workflow? http://www.nuance.com/for-individuals/by-product/voice-to-text/index.htm
I have heard about Evernote and I have been using Google Calender for remember stuffs. What about Asana task management?
How to Never Forget Anything Again? I thought this article is about how to remember things with your own brain with right methods, relying too much on technology will make our brain retarded -_- If you've a habit of jotting down everything you need to remember, you won't survive without a notebook lol…
I never realised that there are apps that can help you to remember something. Thanks. I always create a "what I need to remember" list, and I read this list every day until I can remember everything.


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Lincoln, Neb.//September 21, 2011//Ameritas Retirement Plans, a division of Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. (Ameritas Life), signed formal agreements with Pentegra Services, Inc. (Pentegra) and Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc. (Mesirow Financial) to market the Employers 401k ELITE Retirement Plan. Employers who join a multiple employer plan (MEP) are not required to be related.
Each company brings its special expertise to this multiple employer plan.
Ameritas Retirement Plans is responsible for all recordkeeping services and the basic investment platform.
Pentegra serves as the MEP sponsor and the Board serves as the plan administrator.
Mesirow Financial's Investment Strategies department selects the investment options and performs the duties of the 3(38) Investment Manager.
The Employers 401k ELITE Retirement Plan is being distributed by Ameritas Life and in New York by First Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. of New York (First Ameritas).
"The Employers 401k ELITE Retirement Plan brings a new dimension to Ameritas Retirement Plans' suite of programs, products and services," noted Jim Schulz, senior vice president of Ameritas Retirement Plans. "For business owners wanting to offer a qualified retirement plan, the Employers 401k ELITE Retirement Plan combines simplicity with outstanding value. It relieves the business owner of many of the time-consuming duties and responsibilities required of plan sponsors."
Pentegra President and Chief Executive Officer Robert C. Albanese added, "We bring more than six decades of experience in managing multiple employer plans to the Employers 401k ELITE Retirement Plan. We are proud to join Ameritas Retirement Plans and Mesirow Financial Investment Management, Inc. as a key player in bringing this plan to the marketplace."
Non-registered group annuity contracts are issued by Ameritas Life or by First Ameritas in New York.
For more information, contact:
Jessie Waller
Director of Marketing
Ameritas Retirement Plans

subset: commoncrawl


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Hey! No need to make fun of me, now, is there?
why are hybrids so bad looking tho?
Nah not making fun, but I really havent seen any that I thought looked good
The Honda Cr-Z is pretty nice.
edit: also the Fisker Karma aint too bad.
The M1 would be powered by a 163-hp 1.5L 3-cylinder and two electric-motors producing a total of 356-hp and 590 lb-ft of torque. Mated to a dual-clutch gearbox, the M1 should go from 0 to 60 mph in less than 5 seconds with a top speed governed at 155 mph.
ohh are you talking about cars?
i thought you were talking about mating animals with people
Melo Gang All Day


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Comments and Discussions
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Firewall-Hook driver is a completely unknown method to develop simple packet filtering applications. With this article, I want to tell you how this driver works and what you need to do to use it in your applications.
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Protein is from normal mouse epithelial cells in culture. I loaded 30ug protein on a mini gel and probed for p53 (FL-393 from santa cruz) 1:500 and all I get is non-specific bands. I do not see a band where my protein should be, 53kD. Will increasing (1:1000 ) or decreasing (1:100 or 300) dilution help? I have no problem detecting B actin or other proteins. Any recommendations on troubleshooting? Could it be low levels of p53? p53 degraded? Bad antibody, (does not make sense as it's a highly referenced antibody)?
Submit your paper to J Biol Methods today!
Western Blot: only non-specific bands and not protein of interest
Started by Epigeneticist, Mar 21 2013 06:59 PM
Western Blot Primary Antibody p53 Mouse
3 replies to this topic
Posted 21 March 2013 - 06:59 PM
Posted 22 March 2013 - 12:25 AM
p53 is normally pretty low expression and very very quickly degraded (30 min half life). Try UV irradiation (100 mJ in a stratalinker will work, look for p53 within 8 hours) or drug induced for a + control.
- Epigeneticist likes this
Posted 22 March 2013 - 05:21 PM
I actually UV treated my cells yesterday and the western is incubating overnight. Hopefully I see p53 this time.
Posted 23 March 2013 - 06:49 AM
p53 induction by UV Treatment: After my cells were confluent I removed the media then kept lid off and placed the dish in the center of the hood. I closed the sash and turned on the germicidal UV light. I did this for 5s, 15s and 30s. After treatment I replaced media and harvested protein after 4 hours. I also had a control plate with no UV treatment. Control had no p53 expression, 5s UV had low p53 expression, and high p53 expression for the 15 and 30s treatments. I am glad it worked and now I know my antibody works too.
Also tagged with one or more of these keywords: Western Blot, Primary Antibody, p53, Mouse
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because YOU said so... Ok? Here you go. Where do you get these anyways???What is you opinion on: Abortion: 100% pro-choice. Death Penalty: Undecided.Prostution: For, as long as it is between two CONSENTING adults. I do think it's kind of nasty, I mean, I personally wouldn't do it (BIG SHOCK) but it's their choice. Alcohol: For.Marijuana: Well, I don't smoke pot now, stopped when I was 16. I think the government should legalize it and tax the shit out of it. HA!Other Drugs: Depends on what drugs your talking about. Gay Marriage: FOR!!! If people love eachother there should be no reason why they shouldn't be allowed the right to be a family. Illegal Immigrants: ????Smoking: For. It's your lungs.Drunk Driving: Definately AGAINST.Cloning: Uhm.... didn't they clone a sheep once? Racism: AGAINST!!! My Biggest pet peeve next to sexism. Premarital Sex: For. It's your body, you know the risks, protect yourself. Religion: I'm for it, but I was raised catholic so I'm kind of against organized religion. I think it's just another way to seperate people. Who are you to say that one religon is right and others aren't? Believe the way you want to believe. The War in Iraq: Against.......Bush: Idiot. Downloading Music: For. I think it helps alot of smaller and more unknown bands get their name out there. seriously. The Legal Drinking Age: AGAINST. Why is it that we can send an 18 year old boy off to die for "our country," but he can't have a beer? Come on now.Porn: For, why not. On the whole I think Porn is cheesy. It makes me laugh. But if that's what floats your boat then go for it buddy!Suicide: No comment.***** Hope this makes you satisfied.
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Eudora Welty
From Wikiquote
Eudora Welty (April 13, 1909 – July 23, 2001) was born in Jackson, Mississippi, United States.During the 1930s, Welty worked as a photographer for the Works Progress Administration.
This People article is a stub. You can help Wikiquote by expanding it. |
- If you're so smart, why ain't you rich?
- "Petrified Man", 1941
- A good snapshot stops a moment from running away.
- Write about what you don't know about what you know.
- Life is lived in a private place; Where it means anything is inside the mind and heart.
On Writing[edit]
- The story and its analyses are not mirror-opposites of each other. They are not reflections, either one. Criticism indeed is an art, as a story is, but only the story is to some degree a vision; there is no explanation outside fiction for what the writer is learning to do.
- I am a writer who came from a sheltered life. A sheltered life can be a daring life as well. For all serious daring starts from within.
- All serious daring starts from within.
- Since we must and do write each our own way, we may during actual writing get more lasting instruction not from another's work, whatever its blessings, however better it is than ours, but from our own poor scratched-over pages. For these we can hold up to life. That is, we are born with a mind and heart to hold each page up to, and to ask: is it valid?
- The first act of insight is throw away the labels. In fiction, while we do not necessarily write about ourselves, we write out of ourselves, using ourselves; what we learn from, what we are sensitive to, what we feel strongly about--these become our characters and go to make our plots. Characters in fiction are conceived from within, and they have, accordingly, their own interior life; they are individuals every time.
- The novelist works neither to correct nor to condone, not at all to comfort, but to make what's told alive.
- Great fiction shows us not how to conduct our behavior but how to feel. Eventually, it may show us how to face our feelings and face our actions and to have new inklings about what they mean. A good novel of any year can initiate us into our own new experience.
- Every writer, like everybody else, thinks he's living through the crisis of the ages. To write honestly and with all our powers is the least we can do, and the most.
- Making reality real is art's responsibility. It is a practical assignment, then, a self-assignment: to achieve, by a cultivated sensitivity for observing life, a capacity for receiving impressions, a lonely, unremitting, unaided, unaidable vision, and transferring this vision without distortion to it onto the pages of a novel, where, if the reader is so persuaded, it will turn into the reader's illusion.
- Human life is fiction's only theme.
One Writer's Beginnings[edit]
One Writer's Beginnings, by Eudora Welty
- Long before I wrote stories, I listened for stories. Listening for them is something more acute than listening to them. I suppose it's an early form of participation in what goes on. Listening children know stories are there. When their elders sit and begin, children are just waiting and hoping for one to come out, like a mouse from its hole.
- All experience is an enrichment rather than an impoverishment.
- It had been startling and disappointing to me to find out that story books had been written by people, that books were not natural wonders, coming up of themselves like grass. Yet regardless of where they come from, I cannot remember a time when I was not in love with them -- with the books themselves, cover and binding and the paper they were printed on, with their smell and their weight and with their possession in my arms, captured and carried off to myself.
The Optimist's Daughter[edit]
The Optimist's Daughter, by Eudroa Welty
- Laurel could not see her face but only the back of her neck, the most vulnerable part of anybody, and she thought: Is there any sleeping person you can be entirely sure you have not misjudged?


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Design Principles
Governors Island offers a world apart from New York City, an extraordinary vantage point on New York Harbor and its icons, and the chance to experience the sounds and smells of a green Island surrounded by water. The Governors Island Park and Public Space Master Plan accentuates the special qualities of this unique place, and transforms Governors Island into a destination and landmark. The design delivers new hills with heart-stopping views, an oasis for car-free bicycling, and a sense of play in the elements, experiences and sensations of the new park and public spaces.
Five core principles are the foundation of the Park and Public Space Master Plan:
• Transformation Through Topography
• An Island Like No Other
• Carefree Island
• A Sustainable & Feasible Design
• Ideas From New Yorkers
These principles are rooted in a deep understanding of the Island's inherent attributes and its potential as a resource for the entire region. And because Governors Island has become a summer playground for New Yorkers over the last several years, the design is informed by an appreciation of how real people experience and enjoy the Island. The principles reflect The Trust for Governors Island's design imperatives and goals for the project and the collaboration between The Trust and the West 8 Team.
Transformation & Topography —
An Island Like No Other —
Carefree Island
— -
A Sustainable & Feasible Design —
Ideas from New Yorkers —
What Happens Next? —
Comments (30)
Comments —
How about a municipal pier with floating docks for recreational boaters, sailors and HPVers?
By Ed Bacon on April 24, 2010 10:02 am -
Governor's Island is beautiful. I hope it remains that way.
A Nature Haven away from the hustle and bustle of the other Boroughs of NYC. A quiet place to enjoy, read a book, ride a bike, picnic and just be at peace for a day. Central Park is nice but not like that.
New Yorkers need more quiet space. Please keep it quiet.
By Gloria Bynoe on June 13, 2010 7:37 am -
Can I bring my own bicycle to the island? If not, why not!
By Bob Jones on July 9, 2010 7:02 am -
You can indeed bring your own bike! Currently, you can rent one while here (we have more than five miles of car free biking) and bikes are free on Fridays.
By admin on July 13, 2010 6:56 am -
Hi, In 1958-59, I worked as a secretary for the Military Personnel Dept, a building located to the left as I walked off the ferry. I also recall walking past a bldg where soldiers attended a movie and another where we could eat lunch alongside the soldiers. Are these buildings still there to view.
By Onelia Warren on August 6, 2010 4:56 am
Onelia -
Took our first family visit to the island today. What a great place! We are excited by the future plans for the island. Please don't throw away this opportunity to leave one great place that is truly "for the people" out of the hands of over zealous developers.
By Michael Cosmai on August 6, 2010 2:36 pm -
Yes, this building is still on Governors Island and currently houses our security offices. This building, like the other historic buildings in the National Historic District, are landmarked and will remain on Governors Island in the future. They are available for adaptive re-use and will be home to a mix of uses.
By Ellen on August 8, 2010 11:23 am -
We should put the UN HQ there.
I think (i heard it also from other people) that we can offer the united nations to rebuild there HQ there, this will solve a lot of problems at once.
It will free up primary space in NYC
It will solve the parking problems in NYC,
and much more….Thanks
By Adardesign on August 20, 2010 9:16 am -
How about seasonal events like for Halloween or Christmas ?
By John on September 11, 2010 7:06 pm
Great place for a respectable Haunted attractions for all ages and other holiday events..
The revenue it would bring would help preserve the Historic District. -
To start off i will say I LOVE GOVERNERS ISLAND! I've only been once but i told everyone what a great day we had. We will be returning before the season is finished.I agree with John. Some holiday events would be superb. Easter egg hunts, Halloween, Christmas etc. I would also love the island to remain car free to the public, keep its historic vibe and keep QUIET! Except for the odd event. Please, no high rises or filling in the greenery with buildings and knocking down the old ones. My favorite thing on my day trip was looking at the old buildings and thinking of what it would of been like to live there. I would LOVE to see more photos of the old days and what used to go on. A ranger was very informative when we asked about the fort. Another thing i would love to do this is CAMPING!!! Many people don't get to do this in NYC and i think here would be a great experience for every age!
By julia on September 21, 2010 4:35 pm -
I served on Governors Island in the U.S. Coast Guard in the early to Mid-90′s. We were among the last families to transfer when the Coast Guard shut down operations in '96. What I remember most is the tranquility. We loved going into the city to work, shop, catch the Knicks, etc, but when we'd had enough of the hustle and bustle, we'd jump (or drive) onto the ferry and return to the quiet tree-lined streets of the island. The bright green ball fields, the 9-holed golf course, the tennis courts, the annual cook-outs – the springs and summers were awesome! From the living room window of our 5th floor apartment we had a priceless view of Lady Liberty standing across the harbor. From other vantage points on the island we had daily looks at the twin towers, the Hudson and East Rivers, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Additionally, there was the convenience of a primary school, a commissary and a gas station. We even had a one-screened movie theatre. It was a small quiet town on the edge of a metropolis. It was very family-oriented. Sounds like it still is. I'm glad that New York recognized the treasure in its possession and didn't allow commercialization. We're back home in the Carolinas these days. Can't wait to go back and show my son his first home. He was 1 when we left – he's now 15.
By Kevin Morrison on December 30, 2010 6:48 pm -
I love the plans for the historic district and Liggett Terrace. I am not so wild about the Hills and Liberty Terrace. First they seem like a lot of work for what they are. Second they won't seem so great when compared with the rest of the harbor. The hills will look puny and unimpressive compared with hills in Staten Island and Brooklyn, and hilly sections of parks are rarely very popular. Sorry to be a cynical NYer, but the "shell" looks like it will quickly become little more than a public urinal (oh yeah — where are all the bathrooms anyway?). Instead, consider a wetland, which will attract more conspicuous wildlife (like the great blue heron you illustrate with the South Prow) and is more in keeping with the maritime flavor of the island. As an example, consider the nature walk / wetland recently added to Randalls Island. And instead of a "shell" that looks like a weird kind of cave, how about a simple amphitheater? Also, the Great Promenade could be greater — wider, that is. It looks much narrower than what is there today, which already fills up with pedestrians and bicycles. And consider some way of separating bike and pedestrian traffic, perhaps with a double walkway — one paved in bumpy stones for peds, and another with nice smooth asphalt for bikes.
Thanks, its overall a very exciting plan.
By Peter Greenberg on March 18, 2011 3:19 pm -
How about making it a small airport, same as london city airport. serving the regional flights and easing the traffic of our 3 busy airports.
By Braun on March 21, 2011 9:20 am -
[...] 7. The Trust for Governors Island views the project as a long-term effort that will be developed in phases. The project budget — estimated pre-crash — is $200 million. Construction is tentatively scheduled to start in 2012. SeeGovernors Island: What Happens Next. [...]
By The New Public Landscapes of Governors Island: An Interview with Adriaan Geuze | Urban Choreography on April 8, 2011 1:37 am -
I lived on the island for 4 years in the 1970′s. My father was in the USCG. My brother's played little leaugue baseball on what looks like now "the play fields." Great memeories including spending July 4, 1976! Getting to see all the tall ships and fireworks from that island is now considered to me to have become a part of great history. It was a family oriented island and I am glad to see it becoming more then a dump. I look forward to a visit back there.
By Michelle Cobaugh Fowler on April 21, 2011 9:09 am -
My kids and I love the ferry it makes the trip special and reminds us that we live on a an island surrounded by water, it's like taking a vacation, it also adds security. It would be a tremendous mistake to replace the ferry with a bridge or tram, recently proposed by the MTA/NYC DOT. Growing up in New York, I remember when it was in vogue to "widen streets to reduce traffic" the traffic increased and was not reduced, more people were killed in traffic accidents and the quality of life went down for the people who live here. I think New Yorkers should get to vote on that idea, we pay the taxes. I think it is only fair that visitors who do not live and pay taxes in NYC, be asked to show their ID and pay for their ferry ride. As New Yorkers we are asked to pay admission to beaches in Connecticut, New Jersey, Long Island, Westchester, etc. because we are not residents, there should be some benefit for paying all those taxes to NYC. I have had to paid $7 a day per person to go to the beach in New Jersey because I don't live there. The money raised could be used to improve the Island. The Ferry and Parks Department personal deserve a lot of praise for the excellent job they do everyday, they keep the Ferry and Park running smoothly and safely, they are helpful and polite, they are the best.
I also think the artists who contribute to making the Island a special place deserve praise, every time we play miniature golf or interact with the sculpture I think how lucky we are to experience there things for free and how important it is to provide a venue for local talented up and coming artists to reach out to the public, and for the public to be uplifted by them. Historically in New York culture and prosperity have followed in the low rent areas where artist work, and visitors have been drawn to those area. At one time SoHo was a vital home to artists, now it has been completely commercialized, and the artists have been pushed out.Let's keep that aspect of the Island going for the future. Please don't lose sight that the island provides one of the few affordable oasis's for the families who live here. For example the MTA one day get aways cost about $45 per person, for a family of 4 that's $180. for the day, that's not affordable for most working families especially in light of the current state of the economy, we need this park. The private exclusive expensive events that are sometimes featured in recent times at Governor's Island can afford to find other venues in New York City they have the money, and it should be a park for all the people who live here. Thank you for providing this forum.
By E. Cohen on May 28, 2011 7:55 pm -
Water access. Think Zach's Bay at Jones Beach. And unstructred playfields. Baseball fields are not needed as much as open fields where pickup football games can happen without the permit nightmare. If this is destined to become another structured Bloomberg tourist attraction, I'll root for a hurricane/global warming to wash all the garbage off the island.
By L. Katz on June 10, 2011 10:12 am -
Noisome NYC Invades G.I. – Friends and I visited Governors Island on Saturday July 16th, almost a year since my first visit. The first trip was very pleasant with a comfortable number of people picnicing, biking, and walking. This time we were greeted by ugly disco thumping from huge speakers, crowds jockeying space with bikes, pedestrians, and service vehicles packed in. We managed to get away from the noise and had a reasonably good time, but we could see from the mob coming to the rock concert that you had better time your visit. Otherwise, you will encounter all the NYC you got on the ferry to avoid.
By Martin on July 18, 2011 6:41 am -
I watched the documentary spearheaded by Bloomberg on TV this morning. My thoughts:
When I first heard that Governor's Island now belongs to NYC my immediate thoughts were: Refuge, Contemplation, Inspiration, Art, Drama, Health and Fitness. Mostly, Governor's Island should become a place to embrace and share thoughts, creativity, learning, and expression. An embracement of the freedom we were promised and fight to defend, but also freedom from the confines of a City of Steel and Mortar. We have an opportunity for a revitalizing breath of fresh air during these tough economic times in our great City, Nation and the World.
Therefore I propose that the name of the Island be changed from Governor's Island to "Freedom Island", a name written in the Island's and the City's past, present and future. It is the embodiment of a unique and special City and its inhabitants; our City which we lovingly call "The Big Apple". The Island must become what we love about the Big Apple and not what we hate, disgusts us, stresses us or makes us upset about The Big Apple. Not taking a positive and proactive mental approach will confine us to the shackles of unhappiness.
We should "put on our thinking caps" and propose ourselves to change our views to the possibilities. The answers are much more difficult and challenging than the questions but we New Yorkers, I believe, are up to the challenge; as usual.
By Rafael E Alfau on July 31, 2011 9:53 am -
What a waste of money. Spend the money on parks where people live.
By VoiceOfTruth on November 3, 2011 2:30 pm -
Hey I enjoyed walking true the park this summer and i was thinking how about adding some of the rarest stuff that we have in the world and bringing it to the park and making the park one of the wonders of the world and adding some of the largest trees in the world like the coast redwood and adding some rarest and in danger species of animals like the panda bear and more, HEY THIS NEW YORK PEOPLE WE HAVE TO THINK BIG:)
By RONALD on January 13, 2012 7:12 pm -
Add: Wild flowers, naturalizing bulbs, a butterfly garden and a nature center.
By Courtney on March 19, 2012 10:26 pm
Leave some naturally wooded areas.
Thanks! -
Add a vistor's orientation center with changing exhibits, historic video displays, a cafe, and bathrooms.
By Courtney on March 19, 2012 10:30 pm
Thanks! -
I was stationed on the island from 1970-1974 and the most I remember is watching the Twin Towers climb into the sky. We would go to sea for 30 days and then in port for 30 days and I was amazed at the progress of the Towers. It was quite a shock to see them come down. Something should be done on the Island to help the visitors remember what used to be there.
By Mike Packer on April 3, 2012 5:48 pm -
It's a shame the island will be closed on Fridays. I would go every Friday with my kids for the free bikes and picnic. This place is one of a kind, the way it is right now. I wouldn't change anything except to give people more access to more places all over the island, and to add more hammocks to the picnic area
By Sylwia on June 7, 2012 6:25 pm -
This is probabaly the only project that the Bloomberg administration ever did for the good of the people of NYC. Especially the working class, who is the 99% & who make this City run and Who also cannot afford to go anywhere. LI is nice but it takes forever to get there. Riverside Park is OK except too many tourists. This a nice day trip without the hassle of the LIRR and stress-out of needing to leave by 6am to get a day of relaxation. Only to get stressed out going home. I am trying to get there this summer. It might actually happen this time.
By eleni Papageorge on July 5, 2012 5:02 pm -
I just visited Governor's Island for the first time today and was very impressed with this lovely, unspoiled space. I will definitely be back soon. I just hope that it doesn't change beyond recognition under the new development plans.
I agree with the poster above who says that it's probably the only good thing to come out of the Bloomberg administration for the 99%. For the good of the people of New York, this unique space must be protected from private business interests so that it continues to be a lovely, relaxing place that we can all enjoy for free. The last thing I'd want to see on the island is any further commercialization – there are more than enough places to buy stuff practically everywhere else in the New York Metropolitan Area. The bike hire, food carts and vending machines are more than enough.If money is needed to cover restoration and upkeep – though we certainly pay enough in taxes, and should be getting something back which isn't primarily of benefit to Bloomberg's cronies – some suggestions for unobtrusive fundraising are outlined below.
Really, a little maintenance on some of the buildings – especially those with historic value – is the only thing that's really needed to enhance the place. Perhaps individual buildings could be turned into a series of museums where artifacts from throughout the island's history are combined with information and photographs? This approach would allow visitors to tour the island visiting each in turn if time permits, or take an a la carte approach to exploring the in-depth history of the structures that interest them most.If funding is needed for this, perhaps an optional guided tour could be offered for a fee, but please keep access open to all for free if they want to explore without a guide.
Finally, as a runner I was surprised at how few joggers I saw there, especially since it's obviously a popular spot for cyclists. How about organizing a handful of races on the island throughout the year? Most races have entry fees – keep the cost reasonable and plow the proceeds back into the upkeep of the island. Also, it would be better to hold them on days that the island is not normally open to the public, if possible, since a clear path will be needed and usual public access should be obstructed as little as possible. This would help raise runners' awareness of the island. Free shower facilities and locker rooms would also enhance the island dramatically for runners, since running is inevitably a sweaty activity (I'd suggest a refundable coin- or credit card-operated deposit system for the lockers so that keys will be returned).
By Alli on July 22, 2012 7:23 pm -
I remeber living on Governors' Island from 1985-1991 because my father was in the USCG and taught at the electronics school and shut it down too. I remember living in Building 877 on the 2nd and 5th floors and going to the primary school there on the island and wish to come visit the island sometime in the future.
By Virginia Bragg on August 11, 2012 3:16 pm -
I served in the US ARMY from 1963 to nov. of 1964. I would visit the island some time next year
By Ricardo on September 16, 2012 6:45 am -
I really like the new park, eslleiapcy the plaza and the idea of the furniture. The specific design of the chairs I'm not crazy about because of the backs- they have a very high head rest with a big hole between that and the seat. The first (and only!) time my two-year-old climbed into one he tried to lean back and ended up falling right through the hole in a pretty scary way.I love the garden on the west side. On the east side, I thought the plan included doubling the width of the sidewalk so that there would be more room to walk around the farmers' market without walking through the grass? It is already becoming clear that there is too much foot traffic to maintain the grass on that stretch. At first I was sad at how many trees were cut down, but now I'm really liking the space. It still feels shaded, and the extra grassy areas provide more usable space.Thanks!
By Faty on December 29, 2012 2:58 am