Tis' nearing the end of the year, and along with the bling bling streamers, the Christmas trees and the glamourous parties come the printed calendars, the printed diaries, and the Chinese-almanac looking hanging wall calendars with lunar dates and Horse Racing Days smacked right across it.
I'm a diary person- you can well tell- who uses pen and paper to fill in her appointment dates, her special occasions, her relevant information and who doesn't feel embarrassed about it one bit at all.
Why should I?
Diary organizers have always been a part of me since the days when The Parents ran a little (side) business dealing with organizers, table planners, calendars and the like. There was never no shortage for each one of us, and I always got a brand new, hot-off-the-press diary at the close of each year.
To me, that diary was a symbol of new beginnings, a harbor of hope, and as I carefully wrote in significant dates and important information, I wished for the new year to be filled with successful achievements, joyful moments and peaceful days.
And even though the diaries I got were the very adult, corporate-looking kind- the binder consisted of four large rings- I preferred it to the exercise-book type of diary which my school insisted we all buy. Come to think of it, I hardly wrote in the school one except to seek out the dates for School Holidays, CA Weeks, EXAM Weeks, Founders' Day and Sports Day.
It doesn't matter to me that we've got computer calendars and mobile phone calendars now.
Yes, I use them, but because I like my paper and pen, I continue to make a yearly investment for the organizer which I choose very carefully. It doesn't matter if the book is plain- stickers come to the rescue- but it must suit me for the year ahead, and it must be pleasant to the eye. After all, if I'm going to be looking at it almost daily for 365 days, I'd better get one that will make me happy.
The selections vary from year to year.
I don't know what this year's choice will be. Maybe I'll stick to the ladylike floral hardcover as I did for 2019. Maybe I'll go all administrative and C-suite like I did in 2018, or I might just try to embrace (back) the bubbly side of me and go (back) to the bright glitter Smiggle style.