Living – Page 18

Living

7 Things to Know When Switching from a PC to a Mac

I pride myself on being fairly intelligent and technologically savvy, however the struggle that was switching from PC to Mac at times made me want to flip a table over and throw in the towel. Switching from a PC to a Mac has to be atop the list of things that has tried every ounce of my patience. I’m sure it’s because I ignored people who said there was a learning curve, because surely I’m more tech savvy than them and I won’t have those problems….until I did.

Surprisingly, I’ve gotten quite a few questions when I post photos or IG stories with my computer in them about whether I prefer a Mac over a cheaper PC brand. I will say the learning curve exists and it’s very real. Nearly a year in, I still find myself googling how to do simple things like making a screenshot or hitting control + alt + del. Despite those hiccups as a visual person who loves pretty things, I don’t think I could ever go back to a desktop PC. If you are thinking about taking the leap, here is a quick reference guide of a few simple PC actions that are totally different on a Mac. If you are thinking about converting, bookmark this post. Trust me you’ll need it!

How To Control + Alt + Delete | On a PC it’s straightforward, simply press the CRTL, ALT and DEL keys together. On a Mac these buttons don’t exist. You’ll need to press Command + Option + ESC or right click the icon on your deck and force quit.

Where are the Apps | At the very bottom of the screen you will find something called the “deck” that holds all of your frequently used apps for easy access. You are able to specify which items you want stored there and you also have the option to minimize/hide it when working. If you opt to hide it, you simply place your mouse at the bottom of the screen and it will appear. For all of your apps that are not located on the deck you will need to use Launchpad to access them.

The Mouse Scroll is Backwards | THIS. MESSED. ME . UP. FOR. WEEKS. You are able to change this in the System preferences. I didn’t find this out until I was used to the backwards way. Go figure.

How to Screenshot | There isn’t a PRNT SCRN key on the Mac. You will need to press Shift + Command + 3. If you are only wanting to screen shot a portion of the screen you press Shift + Command + 4. The pointer then changes to a crosshair, select the area you want to screenshot and release the mouse. The screenshot image will appear on the desktop.

How to Open a New Window | In the upper right hand corner of your screen on the browser there is a little + sign. Press that.

How to Backspace| There are two delete buttons but no backspace button. The larger delete key on the number row is the backspace. The smaller one off to the right of it is the actual delete key.

Converting a Pages document to Word or PDF or any other format | Pages is the Mac version of Word, except it’s not compatible on all fronts. You are able to type an item in pages and save it to a Word format. While in Pages, hover your mouse at the top of the screen select the File option, scroll to export and from the drop down select the format you wish to save it in.

If you’ve ever transitioned from a PC to a Mac share your frustrating moments so I don’t feel alone! If you are thinking of transitioning and have a question I didn’t cover, leave it in the comments and I will try to answer or provide a resource for you.

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Living• Organization

How I’m Planning in 2018

Planning on paper seems to be one of those black and white things, either people love it or they hate it. With so many options from paper to digital planning to classic size to A5 finding what the planner world calls “planner peace” can feel elusive and confusing to say the least. In the grand scheme of things you are simply writing your lists and intentions on paper, so why all the hoopla?

I don’t know.

For me, I love to write. A good pen to a piece of paper is happiness to me. Writing out my day on paper makes me more productive, it gives me a small creative outlet to adorn my mundane tasks with shiny gold stickers. As weeks pass it gives me a sense of satisfaction to go back and look at all that I’ve accomplished and checked off on my hand drawn boxes.

This year, I am using 4 planners in some form or another, with the majority of my obligations and plans living in my horizontal Big Happy Planner. I used a Big Happy Planner last year and I loved the extended amount of writing space, and figured if it wasn’t broken there was no need to fix it. The only con I had about last year’s planner was that it was too colorful for my liking. I was thrilled to find one this year that was toned down in my signature black, white and gold.

One of the main reasons I absolutely love the Happy Planner system is that it is an “arc” system which essentially means it is easy to add and remove pages. I lucked up on an arc punch at the Goodwill for just $3 but they will run you around $35. I use the punch to create the special holes needed for papers to attach to the arc rings. Blog campaign details, field trip forms, bills and grocery lists are all punched and placed in between their respective weeks, essentially keeping paper clutter off my desk and kitchen counter.

I utilize a lot of the Whitney English FREE Day Designer printables. These things are bomb, some you have to pay for but most are free, simple and effective. I have a ton already printed out for things like meals and shopping lists and I punch them and add new ones in each week.

I extended my Happy Planner collection this year with a memory keeping planner. Using my HP Sprocket, I plan to print out our photos from the week and document them in the planner.

Next is my Day Designer. I use my Day Designer strictly for Unlikely Market and blog stuff. The hourly layout sheets make it easy for me to time chunk my day and not get lost on tasks like I have a tendency to do. When the time is up, time is up. I move on to the next task and pencil it in as a circle around once my other tasks have been completed. If you have a hard time staying focused like I do setting time limits for yourself is a great way to ensure you are being productive. It’s almost like a competition with yourself to get things done.

Next up is my TN or Traveler’s Notebook. I am planning to toss this in my purse to write my thoughts and add dates that need to be added to my big planner while I’m on the go. I don’t do good with putting things in my phone, I forget to transfer them so I am hoping this smaller planner serves the purpose I have for it. It has three different notebooks on the inside that consist of a calendar, dotted grid paper, and blank paper. I got this one from Michaels.

The beautiful thing about planning is it is fluid and can change as your life and needs change. There are many different planners on the market and people will stan for their favorite planner. There are goo gobs of Facebook planner groups that I won’t link here lest you fall into the planner world that you don’t know exists and it’s almost best you don’t!

If you haven’t selected a planner for 2018 and need some help choosing, start with something inexpensive and see if the layout and writing space works for you before you invest in some of the more pricier ones. Some things to consider are whether the layout is horizontal or vertical, do you need something that will fit in your purse or work bag, do you like notebooks that fold onto themselves, will the rings bother you as you write, the weight of the paper and the list goes on. Finding planner peace isn’t easy but once you do and you actually use it to get your life together it does wonders for keeping things out of your head and in your line of sight.

What are you planning with in 2018?

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Living

Learning to Relax and Decompress in the Evening

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Eight O’Clock Coffee. All opinions are 100% mine.

One of the hardest things for me to do in the evening is wind down and relax. I often feel like I’m running full steam, physically and mentally until I collapse in the bed and even then I’m still glancing at my phone until my eyes have had it for the day and voluntarily close leaving me to wake some mornings with my phone in my hand.

This year I’m looking to really settle into a wind down routine, if it offers nothing more than watching a show in the evening with my family or reading a book or magazine, I need to figure out how to relax and decompress my day. I am certain it will make me feel more rested and allow me some detachment from the work I do daily on the internet.

I have to find a refuge from the noise. I’m hoping if I’m successful for a few days the actions will evolve themselves into a habit that I can stick with. Clearly I need a little help calming down in the evenings so I’m thinking of starting with dimming the lights and actually tucking my phone away in another room and turning the volume down to avoid the temptation. I’ve been told warm drinks help and while I love the taste of various warm beverages, there is nothing that takes the place of a hot cup of coffee for me.

I know many people don’t understand the purpose of decaffeinated coffee, and I think its correlation with mornings and wakefulness makes it hard for people to grasp the idea of coffee without caffeine. I’m more than certain some people’s obsession with coffee extends beyond its caffeine component and is based strictly on taste.

I won’t tell a fib and say I drink decaf coffee because traditionally I haven’t until I tried Eight O’Clock Coffee Infusions Relax Decaffeinated. Y’all, this blend is so incredibly smooth and has a very light coffee taste for those that don’t like strong coffee. I added a little bit of creamer and left out the sugar and was pleasantly surprised at how the lavender and chamomile meshed really well with the coffee flavor.

The Eight O’Clock Coffee Infusions is a new line of tasty coffee options that have additional ingredients that add more benefits to your daily cup(s) of joe.

Alert Hi-Caffeine: This selection of 100% Arabica beans are medium roasted for a bold, robust flavor and gently blended with caffeine and guarana to help brighten your day.
Relax Decaffeinated: This carefully selected option of decaffeinated 100% Arabica beans are gently roasted for a smooth, well balanced, flavorful finish and blended with cuts of chamomile and lavender to help soothe and relax you. A perfect combination to enjoy as you unwind.
Super Spice: If spice tones are your thing, these gently roasted and blended coffee beans are mixed in with turmeric and cinnamon for a smooth, mild spiced flavor to awaken your senses.
B6 Metabolism: Gently blended with a fruit and herbal blend rich in Vitamin B6, which helps support normal energy-yielding metabolism.
Acai Glow: Gently blended with acai berry for a rich, fruity, vibrant flavor. A lively combination to help invigorate your day.

These Eight O’clock Coffee Infusions give me coffee options and I’m a girl that loves options. Whether I need a little pep in my step in the mornings or a complete chill pill in the evening I can get them both with the coffee flavor that I love. You can find the Eight O’Clock Coffee Infusions in store or buy online and you can save $1 off your purchase with this coupon .

How do you wind down in the evenings?

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Living• Video

Happy New Year Video

H A P P Y N E W Y E A R!!!!!

As the old church folks say we are still in the number. No matter how hard or rough the road has been we are here to usher in another new year full of promise and opportunity.

I hope your festivities went well whether they consisted of being in the streets, watching the apple drop or watching the back of your eyelids. We continued our tradition of a midnight toast complete with Welch’s sparkling cider in wine glasses and watching our neighbors put on a fireworks show that rivaled a July 4th showing.

Instead of typing out what to expect from Unlikely Martha in 2018, I’m starting off the new year with something a little different. Below is a short video about the direction of content, how I need your help and most importantly how thankful I am for your support in 2017 and beyond.

I hope your new year is off to a great start!

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