Product Review: Efficient To-Do List

I have been in a desperate search for a useful to-do list to help keep me organized, and I found it in the Efficient To-Do List program. I have been able to keep track of not only my activities, but my daughter's as well. I like the ability to utilize different colors as well as noting how much progress I have made in my tasks. It has been a much-needed change from my mental to-do lists because I can see how much work I have ahead of me, and how much (or how little) I have actually accomplished. Being a PhD student in the middle of candidacy exams, I need something to help me stay on task, and the Efficient To-Do List has helped me to do just that. Now if only I can get it to write my reading list for me....

Anyway, what else can I say about this product? I like that even the free version has a lot of functionality and isn't a 15-day trial that asks me to pay $50 to a company that I doubt still exists (that was the last program I used, and its full version didn't even have the functionality of Efficient To-Do List's free version). The first sign (for me) that this was going to be good was that the full version is less than $25. When you are priced reasonably, you have my attention. Secondly, the ability to decide what you want to see (i.e. you can change the view to only look at what's due that week or that month, see what is overdue, or look at high priority tasks) so you can further organize your time. I also like that you can set up alerts to let you know when something is due. I've included a screenshot of the product (with the names of people removed) to show you what it looks like and some of its features.

Overall, I cannot recommend this product enough! If you need a product to help keep you organized an on-track (and if you don't, you are a better person than I), the Efficient To-Do List is for you. And if you are a student who lives on your technological devices, I strongly recommend it because it will only serve to help you. And if you are the type of student who has a tendency to not read syllabi and ask their instructors when things are due repeatedly, you need to click on the link below and get this ASAP. On behalf of all instructors and professors, we will thank you for getting this product and making use of it.

Get it here: Efficient To-Do List

Wow. I need to spruce up the place...

Hi everyone,

I am in the midst of working on my candidacy exams, so my posts will again be few and far between (I'm reeeeeaaaaly sorry!), but I wanted to just drop a line and let people know what's going on these days.

I have most of my committee together at this point (3 of 4 people needed) and I am working on my reading list (which is what I should be doing right this minute). The first semester at my University ends tomorrow, but I finished my teaching duties today. I had a great group of students, and I hope that they all got something out of the class. Teaching is no longer the nightmare it once was, but it takes time away from my work, so the balance is very tough. I also did a paper at a conference that was held in town (and I think it was my best presentation to date), and someone approached me about publishing it, but I think I waited too long and I may have missed my opportunity. I will get in touch with them this week because it's worth a shot. I have to stop being afraid of things and move forward, so wish me luck in this and all my other endeavors.

I also applied to the PCA/ACA conference in Washington DC this coming year, and was floored when the paper was accepted within 30 minutes. Normally, this would be a happy occasion, but with my exams, it's just extra work. So, I'm going to write the paper over winter break [It's time to break out the Kristeva] so that I'm not worrying about it in March when the conference takes place.

My little girl is now in preschool!

The first two images are from her first day of school, and the third was the end of the day after the first day of school. I can't believe she's so big at only four years old. My uncle tells me all the time that she looks like my mom, and that makes me happy. It still hurts that my mom and grandma are gone (and that the world turned to shit after their deaths), but I get up and move forward everyday because that's what I have to do. I have to finish this degree for my daughter. I just have to believe that I can do this.

Well, I have to get back to work. If I can, I'll post more. If I ever find the spare time, I need to update the page because there are some digital cobwebs that needs to be cleared. I may also post some other things from time to time (i.e. reviews, manga discussions, etc.), so just know that I miss you all and hope that everything is well for you. And for those of you on the East Coast, you have been in my thoughts and prayers ever since Superstorm Sandy, so keep you head up and know that I am hoping for the best for all of you.

Take care, everyone.

Little Update

I have a little bit of time, so I just wanted to stop in and say hi.

"hi".

Anyway, I am currently working on a one-page proposal to use as my letter of introduction to two people I would like to have on my committee. I'm not sure what I need to say, and my notes are semi-illegible, so as long as I submit something today, I should be in good shape.

As for everything else, I'm in a bind because I have reached my limit on student loans from the government, so from here on out I am going to have to apply for as many grants as possible (and I may have to pick up another job) in order to pay for the rest of my PhD. It was not a complete surprise because I knew that there was a limit,but I had the wrong amount in mind as to when that limit would be reached. If I were in the health professions track, I could access a total of $225,000. Unfortunately for me, the standard graduate school track has a total of $138,000. I would have had two years of funding left if I had never gone to library school, but since that degree is going to help me in getting work in the future, I would not trade it for anything.

I'll not get into the current family drama (mostly because I'd rather not think about it), but I will say that it wouldn't be a typical day in my life if there weren't some bs going on. I will say that my dad is being a dick in the situation, so he should not be surprised as to why I try not to talk to him

I hope things are going well for everyone else out there. I can't blog the way I used to, but I hope that I will be able to do some entries that deal with my PhD work in some way. And I keep promising pictures of my little girl and I will post them as soon as I can find the disk that they are on.

Take care out there.

...Making no Promises

It's been a long time, everyone. Sorry for the disappearance again. I've been trying to get my ... act together since finishing my Master's degree and embarking on the PhD. So what has happened since New Year's?

- I managed to get an advisor for my exams.
- I then got sick in early February which took me out for a couple of weeks. Type-G Strep and a sinus infection one on top of the other is not anyone's idea of a good time. Good drugs, though (however, Vicodin is over-rated).
- I lost my advisor by being dropped via e-mail to the head of my department. Since I was (re)doing my Independent Study with this person the next day (because it was not completed last quarter due to illness), I didn't know how I was going to face her. The result: She didn't mention it, and I didn't bring it up. Ultimately, she has now offered to be my third reader when I get to that phase. I'm glad I said "when". I have to believe that I can do this. I've had enough people tell me that I'm smart enough that I'm almost ready to believe it.
- I now have a new advisor, but I have to prove that I will get my exams done. They had to be completed this year (ruh-ro!), so if I can show that I am making great progress, then I can stay.
- My little D is still doing fantastically well! She's well over 3 feet tall (as many feet as she has years), and it's been a fascinating time to see her vocabulary develop. Now if I can get hubby to get back out there and try and find a job, it might help lower my stress.

I wish I could find the time to do this more, but I won't make any promises that I probably won't keep. I will try to put up pictures of her soon. I have some recent ones that we took for the spring, but the disk is downstairs and I don't feel like getting it at 2:30am. I've also got a lot of work to do grading rough drafts of my students' papers. I'm glad this is a holiday weekend, but I've only graded 3 out of 25 and I need all of the extra time that I can get. It's late, and as much fun as it is to get back into writing again (because real life gets a little lonely), I've really got to get some sleep. Goodnight from "the heart of it all."


P.S. I've got to spruce up the place; this blog needs a change of scenery. We'll see what I'll do when I have time.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2012! I hope that this year brings the best for everyone.

But before I go, I must say this: 2011 saw the loss of a number of great people. Three elders from my church passed away (Isabelle Bucklew, Bill and Mary Riley), and what makes it painful is because Mary passed away the Monday after Thanksgiving, and her husband died a month later (and I missed Isabelle's funeral by not checking my e-mail). I also lost a Singing Angel friend, Erica (Bodrock) Drap, right before Christmas (she died two years and one day after my mother passed). I just hope that with the close of 2011 I see the end of DeathWatch 2011.

I really don't need a DeathWatch 2012, so let's keep death to a minimum this year.

I'm also blown away by the sheer number of famous people who died in '11. However, the tribute done by Turner Classic Movies was beautiful, so I close this entry with their tribute and dedicate it to all we have lost. The song is "Before You Go" by OK Sweetheart. Take care, everyone.