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Dear readers, I must confess that I miss school supply shopping.  Not this nonsense of being told what brand and color of everything to buy I usually experience when buying school supplies for my elementary age children, but the high school and college experience of selecting binders, notebooks, pencils, pens, and whatever other glorious items would help me soak in all the amazing knowledge that was soon to be imparted upon me.  Too much?  Perhaps for some classes, but not for others.  Many of those classes with amazing knowledge to be imparted included reading books and chatting with people about them, which I also miss so very much.  I don’t miss writing papers about books though.  If this sounds like you, please join us for all talk and no papers at our next Virtual Book Club where we’ll discuss Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin. It’s YA fantasy, with magic + francophone setting + witches, and we’ll be chatting about it on Friday, September 18 at 7:30 CST. Registration is open HERE.

Regardless, my love of school supplies has not stopped even though it’s been more than a decade since I’ve been in a classroom.  I love a good, sharp pencil with a quality eraser, and I ADORE a new notebook like I love few other objects.  What else do I love with such passion?  A SHINY NEW PLANNER!  Yes dear readers, about this time last year, I found myself in Barnes & Noble searching out a new notebook (because Ashley and I NEEDED it), and then having a leisurely tour or three through the planners too, and I fell madly in love.  A year later, the only thing I don’t still love is the number of months left in my glorious planner, so I did what any reasonable adult does in 2020 (who’s quarantining so her kids can go to Granny’s for the weekend) and I found the updated version on Amazon, made sure it was Prime eligible, and ordered that new planner faster than I’ve ever ordered a planner before!  I’ve only written one thing in it so far (who knows what, but it was in 2021 so I had no choice), but I’ll get there and in the meantime, it’s staring longingly at me from the table by my desk, and I’m staring longingly back!  

A word about planners, y’all, they are DEEPLY personal things!  Do I think all adults need a planner they use and love?  100%!  Do I think all adults need paper?  0%  Do I NEED paper?  100%  I also need weekly/monthly, and different sections in the work day.  That’s why I love this planner so much!  And the ample note section (even though I rarely use it because I also LOVE a nice legal pad), and the folder at the front (that still has Ashley’s birthday card I purchased for her and forgot to give her in JANUARY, yes that’s my level of struggle bus), and it’s just pretty.  Are these things on everyone’s list?  Nope.  You have to name what matters to you before you pick your planner (insert Ashley rolling her eyes at me because I cannot stop talking about The Lazy Genius Podcast or The Lazy Genius Way).  Ashley also passionately loves her planner, which would overwhelm me.  Do I judge her for this?  YES!  And I judge that she’s a grown woman who knows what she wants and goes after it!  GET IT ASHLEY!  Will I judge you for using a system that no longer serves your needs?  NO!  I will lovingly, and probably with some sass, tell you to stop wasting your time, start naming what matters, and then pick a new tool to try!  Trial and error got me to the formula that works for me, and it’s not pretty, or fast, but it works, and it (mostly) keeps me together (enough, because Ashley got her present even if she didn’t get her card).

Back to school supplies, it makes me sad I didn’t even get to hang out in the school supply section this year with a nice beverage, and visit all the fun things, but perhaps I too will break out a new pencil soon, and I did order a pack of my favorite pens recently (when I needed a floor lamp because Zoom + online school) and OF COURSE more sticky notes!  If you enjoy writing in pencil (and I DO NOT like writing in my planner with anything else unless it’s birthdays – and those go in blue ink – yes, I am aware I’m quite particular), you are missing out if you’re not using nice pencils.  While I do appreciate the pre-sharpened Ticonderoga pencils my children are required to get, I find joy in using my Skjoldungen 400 Office Pencil and my Edelweiss F Pencil by Caran d’Ache, both with Papermate Arrowhead Rubber Eraser Caps.  But if I had to pick a favorite pencil, it would definitely be my Koh-i-Noor Dry Marker Highlighter Pencils (I have green and yellow).  Is it ridiculous that I order pencils from CW Pencil Enterprise (who is not a sponsor, I just love their pencils) in New York City? (NEW YORK CITY?  Am I the only one that thinks of the Pace commercial every time?  It’s fine, really.)  Yes, it is.  Do I care?  NOT. ONE. TINY. BIT. Because, it matters to me that I enjoy the experience of using my planner, because when I enjoy it I do it more, and when I do it more, my life is better organized and therefore easier for me to move through and it’s easier for me to be present.  If pencils or using them don’t matter, should you order fancy pencils?  Maybe once if you’re intrigued, maybe not.  Your call.  I was curious, and I found it worth the shipping fees (which I usually split with a co-worker who also values a nice pencil, and yes, the rest of the office thinks we’re quite amusing, and we don’t care one bit).  I know you’re wondering what the most ridiculous part of my love of nice pencils is?  No?  To bad, it’s that this love also falls under the category of #blameAnne because I was introduced to the company through Anne adding the products to her gift lists and her podcast episode with Caroline Weaver, also known as the Pencil Lady, and owner of CW Pencil Enterprise.  

What’s a ridiculous school/office supply you love, and how did you come to adore it so?  We’d love to hear from you in the comments or on social media!

~Nikki

Dear sweet readers as apparent from our August theme, it’s back to school season. Regardless if you have needed to go shopping for littles, for your home office, or just Amazon one click anything you desire to write with, most people have opinions on the types of writing implements that get used during their daily life.

I’m a pen person myself, with the occasional mechanical pencil thrown in for times when an eraser is needed. I’ve got favorites, but the writing tool I choose is dictated by the paper upon which I am writing. A typical spiral notebook like the one I hand write my portion of the blog posts in, or any loose leaf paper, I usually choose the Pilot G2 gel pen in a myriad of colors or the Pilot G2 mechanical pencil. I choose the gel pen because of my cursive writing and the smooth delivery. I’m also right handed so that makes a difference. I know many lefties (Adam included) prefer an ink delivery method that dries faster than gel. My highlighter of choice, since high school, has been chisel tip markers with clear bodies and visible liquid ink. Sharpie is an excellent choice and worth the extra cents especially for those late night text book highlighting sessions. And, besides the need for a permanent Sharpie marker for addressing packages, I have a black retractable ultra fine point Sharpie marker and myriad colors of the fine pointed Sharpie Pen to use in my planner.

Things that I wish existed back in high school and college for me… a fabulous planner that I could personalize to fit my every need. I finally found that in late 2016 and am on my 5th from plumpaper.com! For those parents trying to balance the #workfromhome life and that #schoolfromhome life PlumPaper just released a Distance Learning Planner for Parents. If you’re interested in a new planner, one that you can personalize on the page before it’s printed AND by choosing the month in which it begins and ends, send an email to heartwantsbooks@gmail.com so I can send you a link that will give you 10% off your first $30 order! Oh, and you’d be helping me keep up my planner and sticker habit you’ve come to expect every month in the Reading Life Review. 😀

I’ve chosen a different planner layout every year trying to find my favorite, and I’m definitely going to be returning to the one I chose in 2019, which is the vertical priorities layout. I, like Nikki, need a paper planner and I’m not remotely ashamed at my particular, some might say bougie, habit. It brings my Enneagram Type 1 heart so much joy. The paper inside my planner needs a fast drying ink, and after years of having the Pilot G2 smear on me, I’ve invested in the colorful Sharpie Pens I mentioned above. (The retractable permanent Sharpie is for writing on the stickers, it’s a different paper, too!) Nikki might not realize it, but birthdays are written in my planner in BLUE, too! I swear we don’t plan these things – unlike our book club attire.

Besides planners and pens and pencils, oh my! There are several other items that make my #realtorlife function. These are, in no particular order, my whiteboard and expo dry erase markers…and my collection of pins for my corkboard. I keep all the things that bring me joy in my line of sight as much as possible, to make working FUN and enjoyable. If you’re not enjoying what you’re doing for employment, come talk to me, I have some books to suggest you read, but that’s a post for another day…oh wait… I already handled that some in my books for grads post way back in April. Start with Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin then we can talk and get you on a path that brings you joy in your work and funds the lifestyle you want. 

We’ve talked about the items we use in our day to day and work life, which as adults we all know are one and the same and I hinted at items I view daily that keep the joy in my heart while I do work I love. That’s a bit of a teaser for next week, where we will be discussing the loves of our lives…books! And how we arrange them on our shelves. You’re not ready, and neither are we probably. Let us know in the comments if you’re trembling in antici…

~Ashley