Things to Do on New Year's Day...

I remember a co-worker who used to spend December 31 madly getting her house in order - she superstitiously believed that the way she ended the old year influenced the way she would live in the new. I wonder if she had her mother to thank for that idea... Perhaps a mother looking to motivate her to tidy up! (The way my mother, trying to get me to go to bed early when I was a teenager, repeatedly said: One hour of sleep before midnight is more valuable than two after 12 o'clock.)

However we try to organize ourselves in the new year - whether by cleaning up in the old, or by resolving to be tidier in the new - here are five things that New Year's Day can remind us to do:

1. Check (or change) the batteries in all smoke detectors.

2. Check the fire extinguisher. It may need to be refilled or replaced.

3. Go through bottles in the medicine cabinet and toss medication that has expired.

4. Vacuum up lint in and around the clothes dryer vent.

5. And (the one I have on top of my to-do list): Make a backup copy of photos and other important information on my computer.

Actually these should all be done more frequently - perhaps on the first or last day of every month. But New Year's Day is a good marker date to remember to do them.