Sunday, October 12, 2008

THE ARW MYSTERY

Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this! I don't have a PDA or anything like that, but I do have a little date book that stays open on my desk at all times. It's the only way I can keep track of my life. It's not that I am juggling numerous appointments each day, like some corporate types. It's just that if I get absorbed in one thing, I tend to forget everything else. So I need reminders sitting right in front of me, of any appointments for the week, deadlines to be met, and things I want to accomplish, etc. The spaces in this datebook are fairly small, so over the years I have developed the habit of abbreviating things, using acronyms, and using colored pencils to indicate importance. In general, this works well for me. But occasionally, I screw up royally.

For instance, take this week. Every day for the next four days, I have the initials ARW written on the page, in red. Red indicates "Don't you dare forget this!" It skips Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and then there it is again the following week on Sunday through Wednesday. ARW. In red. Trouble is, I can't for the life of me remember what ARW stands for. I have been wracking my brain all week, trying to remember why I wrote that. Then I enlisted my husband's assistance, when he arrived this weekend. In the end, he was more obsessed with figuring it out than I was, and will probably stew on it during his entire drive back to Houston.

I wish I could blame it on old age, but I've been like this my entire life. For instance, I'm forever putting something away in a safe place, so I will be able to find it when I need it, but then I forget where that safe place is. People see my lists and think I am a super-organized control freak, but actually they are a much needed coping mechanism for just getting by. If you come to a dinner party at my house, you will probably laugh, as does everyone else, when you see my list on the refrigerator door, of all the things I plan to serve that evening. If only you knew how many times I have been putting things away after a dinner party, only to discover that one of the main dishes was still sitting in the refrigerator, because I forgot to serve it!

So, this isn't the first time I have forgotten the meaning of one of my own abbreviations. They always come back to me eventually, so I'm not too worried. I know it doesn't have anything to do with The Bountiful Sprout, or with the on-line class I am taking, which are the only critical things going on right now, as far as I know. I'd feel better though, if it weren't written in red.

4 comments:

Polly said...

Wow, that IS mystery. 4 days in a row one week, then 4 days the next week. Sounds like a class. Have you signed up for another art class?

I do this kind of thing all the time. I make lists upon lists upon lists. One of the best hints I ever got was in an article by a decorator who used to be on Trading Spaces - Genevieve something. She always carries around a large black artist's sketch book for her notes, lists, phone numbers, etc. I started doing that and it really helps. Everything is there, in one place - phone numbers, schedules, party ideas and menues, quotes, books to read, notes to myself, etc. Its become a kind of *living journal* of my life. I just open my book and make a note. Everything is right there.

Good luck with ARW. Hopefully, its not some event you've agreed to hold at your home!

Polly

Hill Country Hippie said...

Geez guys, I was counting on one of you to figure this out for me! Nope, pretty sure my only class is the one I'm taking on-line right now.

Love this journal idea Polly, especially since I had already decided that I should start carrying a pocket-sized sketchbook with me, so I can practice sketching more. Plus, I'll have my weekly pictorial to-do list right there with me, in case I have the urge to add something to it!

Jessica said...

Here's what the interwebs said about ARW:

1. Advanced Research Workshop. A part of the NATO science program. - secret meetings with the prez?

2. ARW peut faire référence à : Arw peut faire référence à :* Arawak, langue des indiens Arawaks, fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARW.
- parlez vous francais?

3. Web definitions for ARW: air raid warning - did you tick off any small, foreign countries lately?

4. Alternative Reading Week (ARW) is an extra-curricular program based on the foundations of community service-learning, a form of experiential education.
- This is a good option if you can't remember what ARW really is.

5. Annual Recreation Workshop (ARW) began in 1954, through the vision of R.E. “Bob” Fakkema, then Recreation Director at Idlewild Presbyterian Church in Memphis, Tenn. - are you giving a workshop on how to properly recreate?

6. Advanced Research Weather (ARW) Forecasting Model is a next-generation mesocale numerical weather prediction system designed to serve both operational forecasting and atmospheric research needs.
- planning to do rain dances after IKE?

7. ARW. Original name is Alice Rose Williams. - long lost friend?

8. army ranger wing special forces (arw) - maybe you have a small country to take over?

9. Arrow Electronics (ARW), Inc. (NYSE) distributes various electronic and computer products, services, and solutions to industrial and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. - Maybe a good investment opportunity in the economic downturn?

10. Are West Solutions (ARW) - do you need a cable phone?

11. Air Refueling Wing of the Washington Air National Guard - maybe a new career?

12. Sony ARW format for the A300, A350 and A700 cameras -- file extension: ARW - Sony RAW Image File --Maybe you need to download pictures?

13. American Radio Works - is the national documentary unit of the American Public Media -- Maybe your big break!

14. Amorphic Robot Works - collaborative group of artists, technicians, and programmers that create machine sculptures -- want to build a robot army with an artistic flair?

15. Associated Resume Writers - maybe you were updating yours?

16. AUSTIN REPUBLICAN WOMEN - no, that can't be it?!?!? Becky Lane.

17. Arkansas Western Railway - want to work on the RR?

18. Airport code for Arad, Romania - going on a trip?

www.acronymattic.com/arw.html

Anything?????

Now, you can't say your readers haven't tried to help you!

Hill Country Hippie said...

Well, it's definitely NOT #16 or #1. Some of the other options sound interesting, but no, nothing rings a bell. Thanks anyway, Jess!