Tip Thursday: Journaling

I am trying to do different aspects of this blog to change things up every once in a while, especially when it is related to my work.  So today is Tip Thursday day.   I am making this quick and easy.

Journaling on Layouts...

I am a big fan of journaling.  To me, journaling is the heart of everything you do on paper.  Whether it is the writing of a young girl telling her diary on how angry she is at a situation that happened to her, or a little journaling block of a mom describe to a future grown boy what he did when he was 2 years old in a scrapbook layout. Journaling help sets the tone for the reader to see what you see at the time.   Consider this example.  This picture is from a recent tour I went on at the Longaberger Home Office.  I could say something in my layout like:

So we all sitting around the table, and one thing came to all of our minds:


"So, who brought the salsa and chips?"





I made it funny and cute.  I could explained that this was part of the tour, or I could have gone the funny, comedian route.  I took the funny route.   I can also explain another picture this way:

"I cannot believe how big you have grown.  It seems like yesterday you were just born, and I was introduced as your Aunt Patti."







This is a picture of my youngest nephew, and I just did a 1st person's point of view.  I could have done this in 2nd person's point of view, but since I was not there at the time the picture was taken, which was at his other grandmother's house, I put it in 1st person.  I also changed up the font a bit.   One word on fonts.  It is nice when you can put journaling in script form when you type on the computer.  Make sure that the font is readable for all.  As we age, it gets harder to read letters where the spacing is too close to make out the word.  So consider who will be viewing this for both the present and the future.   Also make the size big enough for all, but not too big, until it is considered too big for the amount of space you have to type in.

A word about online diaries, blogs and the social media...

I have an online diary that is actually offline.  In fact, I have several and I do not allow anyone to view it, unless they are standing behind me.   The only that I may allow the public to view parts of is my Tripping on Disney fun personal diary.  I have a blog with the same name, and giving people an insight of what I am doing to prepare for my family's trip next year may help someone, and not embarrass me.  Some people feel that they need to tell everyone on Facebook and all the rest what they are doing, where they are going, and who are they are with.  Social media sites like Foursquare even encourages you to use GPS to locate you.   That is fine too, but be forewarned that it might bite you back as well.  What if you are looking for a new job or trying to join a new organization?  Even though it is against the law for companies to discriminate against a person trying to hire, companies have found a way around it.  So be careful what you say, because this is a form of journaling as well.  This is my tip to you.   Make texting and online journaling your friend, not your enemy.  Be well, and stay safe.   God bless you.