my short term memory is shot. maybe it's the MS, maybe i'm just getting old [34, in case you wondered] so i've been gradually finding ways to make my memory card replace my memory. the key to this obviously is my pocket sized point and shoot camera. spare batteries and ridiculously inexpensive memory cards help a lot [dealextreme is my preferred camera accessory store and they don't pay me to say that]
oh, you want me to get to the meat of the subject? ok, here's a few of the ways i use digital memory in place of my organic one.
you may have already read "hard working fridge" in which you see my continuously updated dry erase shopping list. or you can just see it here
so i write it up there as i find things i need. then right before i head to the store i snap a pic. yes, my camera has a zoom on the display.also for shopping is the picture of my pantry right before i leave. yes, i know have a grocery list. but maybe i don't need chipotle tabasco right now. but i see it at the store on super sale! do i ignore it because i have three bottles at home from the last sale? i can't remember, oh noes! so i pull up the pic of my pantry. huh... i don't see any chipotle tabasco on my shelf. must have forgotten to put it on the list when i opened the last bottle. time to stock up at a low price. but clearly, regardless of the price on parmesan cheese, i do NOT need to buy any.
now i don't know about you but i have definite preferences not only for some brands, but for certain fragrances. i don't sit around thinking "wow, that fresh scented deodorant is really tolerable. i should get that again" - i just know that i was ok with that one, whether i can remember the name of the fragrance or not. and if the store doesn't have original scent i can pull up my pics and see which ones i would be ok buying.
and of course there's the matching thing. i know i bought a dress to wear to weddings and stuff. i don't wear it often [i just don't wear dresses often anyway] but i might need to look for shoes or a wrap that don't look awful with it. like i'm going to remember what it looks like when i randomly see a pair of shoes that i think might match it .... or not. crap, since i can't tell from memory, i just use the other memory and pull up the stored photo of the dress.
also i tend to keep current pics of my diabetes durable medical equipment closet.
a] for when i am sitting at work on my lunch break and think "do i need to reorder glucose test strips?" or at my doctor's office "do i need to ask for a new prescription?"
b] in case of fire. the contents of that closet are worth nearly $8k!
and the one that works for me and for the hardware store is when i take pictures of broken things or things i don't know the name of but need to repair or replace. i take a picture, show my camera display to someone who does know and i get what i need to fix my house without a lot of "it looks kind of like this thing only maybe smaller but longer and in black" this photo of my busted drain got me a plumbing associate helping me assemble the repair parts right in the store [where i took a picture of it for reassembly at home]
speaking of reassembly, when you need to replace something with wires, for example, a dryer timer, take a pic of it BEFORE you remove the old one. think of it like the top of the jigsaw puzzle box in that the replacement job needs to match the picture.
the thing is, cameras are getting more affordable, smaller and lighter. or your cell phone camera is right at hand if the resolution is good enough. memory cards take up negligible space and weight. perhaps you have enough space on one card for a separate folder for the long term things you want to watch out for or maybe you want a separate card just to keep those pics instead of mixing them up with your kids' pics and that silly video of your cat. personal preference of course
some of the other things i could see this being used for:
picture of your sofa to match cushions/drapes/paint to the upholstery colors
shoes you saw that one time at the store for several hundred dollars and you want to keep an eye out for the knock off.
i've also used it to take video of that thing my cat was doing when it turned out she had a blade of grass stuck up in the back of her soft palate so i could show the vet for diagnostics, because they never make that noise/do that thing while AT the vet, right?
it worked, the vet figured it out. but i'll spare you the video
larger pics with notes here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/catastrophegirl/sets/72157625095652135/detail/
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