not just a notebook

I know I wrote about logbooks recently and a while back, but I'm going to that well again because the heat cooks off all my creativity.

I'm a big fan of adding stuff to logbooks, and not just local flowers. I'm fairly scatterbrained, and one of the best ways to keep organized is to keep everything in the logbook, and that way, I can just grab a single book (and a book that is bright yellow or orange for easy finding) when I get a phone call or need to run and take care of something.

I always spend a half hour or so before going into the field to get my logbook set up:

1. Write project, start date, logbook number, project number, and task on the front cover - and something identifiable on the spine.

2. Tape a business card to the inside front cover. Cover business card entirely with tape so that it's more or less waterproof.

3. Write all of the potential contact information I could ever need on the first page: contractors, project management, field personnel, porta-potty maintenance number...

4. Tape in a map that's been shrunk to fit so that I have some chance of finding the sample/drilling locations

and finally

5. Stuff a couple of critical pieces of paper, like copies of property access agreements, somewhere in the back third. They'll get dirty, wet, and will fly away when the pages of the logbook flap open in a moderate breeze. But I know they'll always be within a couple feet of me whenever I'm accosted by someone in authority.

This is how I pass as a reliable, competent field manager rather than the frazzled mess I actually am.