The where-I-left-it notebook

When a shop sends a component out for rebuilding, it writes down where the part went and on what date. Without that slip, the part might as well have disappeared. Homes have the same kind of component: the spare key left with a neighbor, the passport moved into the fire box, the winter coat lent to a grandson, the warranty card filed somewhere sensible that now feels anything but.

A small notebook handles all of them. Keep it in one fixed place, ideally on the tray from callout 02. Every time something leaves its usual home for a less usual one, write a single line: the date, the thing, where it went. "Nov 3, spare house key, with Linda next door." "Oct 28, title for the truck, blue folder, top shelf of the office closet."

That is all. The notebook is not a diary and does not need neat handwriting. Its only job is to answer one question months later, without a search through every drawer in the house.

When the item comes back, strike the line through, the same way the daily sheet gets struck. A page full of crossed lines is a page of things safely home.