Bing! Reminding you

Over the last week when I've been at work, I've discovered a truly depressing fact. I can't function without automatic reminders.

It all started with Microsoft Outlook, which is What We Use at work. And I found that there's a task manager, into which you (surprisingly enough) enter tasks that you need to do. Give the task a Due date, and then set the automatic reminder to go off in your face at a time of your choosing.

In the space of a week - one week, mind you - my memory has disintegrated because I'm relying on these too much. Now anytime I find out about anything at all that I need to do, at any point in the future, it either goes on my Outlook calendar with a reminder set to go off, or on my Outlook tasks with a reminder set to go off. At the appointed time an irritating dialogue box pops up, and I usually spend the next hour or two clicking "Snooze" at five or ten minute intervals.

All well and good, but unfortunately my memory has evolved to meet these conditions. Because I've noted down what needs doing and I know that it won't get past the appointed time without my being reminded, my memory has taken this to mean that it can just obliterate the task from my mind in the meantime. The only thing I remember is the fact that there are things that need doing in the indefinite future, but not a word as to what they might be.

I have become all-dependant on Microsoft Outlook, which is surely not a good thing. One reminder that's in there at the moment (which, by the way, I know about only because I made a note of it) is set to go off next Tuesday morning, and says "Buy bus tickets", next Tuesday morning being when I calculate I'll have run out.

It gets worse than that. There's also a reminder for Monday afternoon telling me to email myself to remind myself to bring enough money with me the next day.

I have a rather peculiar memory. Little details, I can remember. Even things like my 7-digit staff number, which I was only shown once last week. But tasks? Things that need doing? If there are things I should remember, of the sort that could go onto a To Do list, I use the list as external memory. I constantly write notes to myself.

Incidentally, there's a note that I found it necessary to write myself last week that reads: "Work emails... Must. not. use. smileys."