Love My Electronic Calendar

I am ever grateful for my apple calendar. I have always liked calendars. I had a weekly planner in fourth grade before they were a grade school staple. In college I used nature conservancy spiral bound calendars which were only about five by eight inches so they were small enough to carry around in my purse or book bag, but had enough space in each day to makes notes about every possible responsibility I had.

When I started work I adopted a filo fax. It had places for addresses, birthdays and notes and I often had directions on how to reach different customer’s locations in places for which I had no maps. I could relive my whole life by looking back at an old calendar. Work commitments, dates, dinner parties, vacations, everything was notated.

When my work went international I adopted a small electronic calendar that was a little bigger than a checkbook. It was great because it kept track of where I was supposed to be in the correct time zone.

As soon as I got a smart phone I immediately moved to the calendar on my phone that also sync’d to my computer and iPad. My favorite feature is the alarm setting. Now the alarm rings on my watch. Without all these reminders I never would remember exactly where I should be and when.

I know exactly when it became important for me to keep track of my own appointments. I was five years old. It was a Saturday and I was playing in our front yard in New Canaan with my Dad and my baby sister. A car pulled up and a friend of mine and her mother got out carrying a goody bag and paper plate with a piece of cake. Apparently I had been invited to her birthday party and was a no show. They assumed I was sick.

I was so mad, embarrassed and sad that I had missed a birthday party. My mother said she just forgot. I’m sure she did. If I had known I was invited I would not have forgotten. Birthday Parties were a big deal when you are five. They still are. If it weren’t for my electronic calendar I might forget a party or two. I am happy that my current version reminded me that today is my dearest friend David Mac Kay’s birthday. Happy Birthday David. Glad I never missed a party for you that I was invited to.