Tuesday, April 4, 2006


The Fobster

The Fobster PDF

The Fobster Open Office Draw File

When my Hipster PDA got left behind, I found myself picking up all sorts of scraps of paper to write on. Now I keep a small stack of planner templates on my keychain. It is small enough not to bother me, is with me just about where ever I go, and includes the stuff I need to stay organized.

Templates:
  • Two Covers with Frames. Add some art and you have a nice front and back cover.
  • Blanks. Includes check-offs for see other side, notes, to-do. Title line.
  • Grids. Includes check-offs for see other side, notes, to-do. Title line.
  • Check Lists. Lines and boxes
  • Finances. Note where the money is coming and going.
  • Contacts. Just the few ones you need to know...or a place for new folks.
  • Quick Fold Cards. Personal notes are always appreciated..so leave a few.
  • One Day Planners. Plan each hour of your day, and keep it with you.
  • Flying Spaghetti Monster Foldable Alter. 'nuf said.
  • Meditation Screen. Take a deep breath and relax....
In addition I recommend:

Don't put in identifiable information in case your keys get lost.

Make a front a back cover out of the clear plastic of a 2 liter pop bottle. Cut along the curve so that it helps keep the papers together.

If you find the paper comes out of the clip, add some more sheets. I've had as many as 30.

A small chain works well to keep the clip on the keychain. If I have a lot of keys and keep taking them out of my pocket, the bulky keys leverage off the clip from the chain. Keep your key bulk small, or wear 'em on the outside.

There are a ton of keychain pens out there. I often find I have a pen in my pocket, car, etc... so don't feel the need to buy one. However, I took a cheap plastic pen whose ink has run down a bit, taken out the back plug, sawed off short the case and ink tube (leaving a bit of air at the end), put the plug back in, and have a loop of string out the pen's cap. Works well so far, but no guarantees it won't explode in your pants!

If you come up with other templates and ideas for the Fobster, feel free to use the Open Office Draw file to customize your own. It is released under a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 2.0 Let me know how it goes, and be sure to stop by the D*I*Y Planner site.

10:01:03 AM