Getting Organized With Mr Beams Lights

This past week has been a whirlwind--we returned from vacation on Saturday night and by Monday morning, we had to have our first-grader ready for his first day of school (who planned that??). Between laundry, grocery shopping, back-to-school activities ("where's my bookbag?", "my shoes don't fit") and the general craziness that engulfs our home, I made a resolution to get organized as quickly as possible.

A quick Google on "organization" revealed shocking results: there are thousands (literally) of professional organizers out there at our disposal. These people proudly display before and after photos which demonstrated their talent for whipping households into shape. Some of the "befores" really cheered me up while others neither shamed nor embarrassed me. The point is, regardless of your particular stage of disarray, there is help out there.

While I was hunting for do-it-yourself tips, it occurred to me that a lot of these professional organizers specialize in maximizing small or awkward spaces. Once there is some semblance of organization in those areas, you'd want to be able to see what you've got, right? My point is, projects like these need lights. Pantries, closets, cupboards, under stairs--places that may be effectively utilized for storage may not be optimized for hardwired lighting. The solutions are either to call in an electrician, which means additional cost and time to your project, or you can pop in a Mr Beams Anywhere Ceiling Light or a Stick Anywhere Night Light. Two different levels of brightness, but both would satisfy the need for additional lighting without the aggravations or costs associated with professional installation. Further, the lights are temporary and portable--if you make modifications to the storage area or closet, simply move the light.

After this epiphany, I reached out to some professional organizers that I'd located on the web, just to gauge the interest level on the Mr Beams products with that audience. Guess what? A simple e-mail (yes, you can call it SPAM or cold-calling) was met with dozens of "more information, please" responses. Pleasantly surprised, I've spent the past few days shipping samples and additional product information to various organizers in Northeast Ohio.

Alas, the window of feeling panicked for lack of organization has passed for me (like it usually does). But I take comfort in the fact that I have put my own needs behind others' (that is my justification for staying unorganized) in bringing light to newly ordered space, than I'm OK with that.

To contact a professional organizer near you, check out www.napo.net. The National Association of Professional Organizers exists because of people like me who don't have an eye for organization. I guess I'll shove the wrapping paper back under the bed and try again next year. Sigh.