While literally a couple of cats look up to me, my main value is as a bad example.


- I see programs I might like to try, or updates to programs I have, and I think "Gosh! I should get that!" so I download it. Then I DON'T install or try it. And then it just sits in some folder on my computer somewhere, until I can't remember what it was, and then I don't know whether I can delete it.
What I should do - download, use, delete.

- I let things hang around in my email inbox until it gets large and stupid, and then I have to clean a bunch of it out at once. This is not because I'm out of disk space, or because it's slowing the computer down. It's because the damn inbox is a confusing mess.
What I should do - If it's important, keep it. If it's not, get rid of it while you still remember that it's not important

- I let things hang around in my email inbox because there is some small piece of info in the message that I need, and which should be stored somewhere else. I am particularly bad with phone numbers this way.
What I should do - Put the phone numbers into a phone number thing, and then get rid of the message. Stop reinforcing the idea of keeping stupid email.

- Turn off anything that would restrict search results, screen for "offensive" content, keep me from seeing the actual Internet.
What I should do - The same thing. It's just that lately, there are a lot of assumptions being made about what it means if you have viewed bad things on your computer. If this was not my computer on my own network, I wouldn't do things this way.

- I created a junk mail address, purely for junk mail. It was supposed to be disposable. Then it turned out that some of the stuff I used it for I actually wanted. I haven't kept track of what these things are, so now I can't dispose of the address.
What I should do - Every time I receive something to that address that I actually want, I should change it over to a specific address for that service. Over time, I'll eventually end up with nothing but junk coming to my original junk mail address, and then I'll have the option to delete it.

- I read way too many RSS feeds, way too much news, and way too many message boards.
What I should do - More of my own work. I am flirting with addiction to the inconsequential.

- I spend far too much time playing clever Flash games in the browser to get all the other things I need to do done.
What I should do - Reduce the number of other things I need to do!