The notes app is the most public diary I would ever dream of keeping (even though most of my notes are locked), and I really only use it because it truly is so convenient. While I do have a normal journal, the notes app is for quick, disgruntled, never-to-be-said-aloud thoughts, to-do lists, and everything in between. HerCampus isn’t the best place for oversharing, so I’m strategically picking and choosing what will see the light of day from the depths of my notes, but I hope it is enjoyable and pushes you to start jotting down whatever comes to mind in your notes.
TO-DOs
Thrown throughout all my notes are incomprehensible lists of … maybe groceries? Or things I have to do? On February 19, I wrote “thrift leather jacket, raz ice cream, halloween costume, The Metamorphosis,” which gives absolutely no insight into what I was doing on this random Monday. Some to-do lists are more clear, like my sister’s shared and detailed note with a full itinerary for Black Friday, detailing which store we should be in down to the minute and when we could have a bathroom break. I highly recommend making a to-do list in your notes app every day, and then checking the tasks off the list as you accomplish them. As a college student who feels like I need to be doing five things at once or else there won’t be enough time in the day, to-do lists have changed my life. I can’t be held accountable for keeping up with my planner, but looking at my phone is something that I definitely can do — and I fear I do too much of it.
Dreams
When I wake up gasping for air after having the most petrifying, bone-chilling nightmare, I’m not going to go grab my journal and work through it. No – I need something quick and convenient to jot down my dream. One of the dreams I have written down that I like depicts me biting into a taco and my tooth falling out, gushing blood. I couldn’t get the tooth out of my mouth, so then I walked down into my unfinished basement, but it was flooded and there were frogs everywhere. This is exactly the type of stuff that just has to be in my notes, so I can annoyingly show my great-grandkids as I’m on the verge of death, because this is the only way they’ll truly be able to understand me (no it’s not, and this dream has absolutely no meaning that I can decode).
Pros and Cons
Everything, and I mean everything, can be solved with a pro and con list. Never doubt their power – and this is coming from a very indecisive person. I’ve worked out where to go to college, friend drama, if I should go out or not, and where to get food with friends all with a trusty pro and con list. Some lists are less helpful; as on October 16 my list just said, “Pros: would spice up the plot, Cons: terrible idea.” Basically what you will find as you scribble down notes is that they never turn out to be useful, but in the moment they are helpful and maybe even humorous to look back on.
Poetry and Yearning
If you are not writing the most god awful poetry in your notes app, are you even living? It’s liberating and exhilarating to write down your truest thoughts and feelings. For this section no examples will be given, because one has to keep some amount of personal ambiguity. All I’ll say is that my best yearning is done late into the night and in emotional distress. Being dramatic is so much fun and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Just for Fun
I’m not saying I pirate a lot of movies, but if I were to pirate all the movies I watch, whenever I need to grab a snack mid-movie I just jot down the time I paused at. That way, I could close the tab while I get a snack and not worry about losing my place. The notes app is just so multifaceted in this way. For example, when I am ordering something, or just generally talking on the phone, I write a little script for myself so I know what to say. The final thought I’ll leave you with is one of the intrusive thoughts I jotted down: “Every time I see a mole that is like risen above the skin and it’s like sticking out I want to get scissors and cut it off.” This is an intrusive thought, so I would not actually act on this. Let’s just get that out there. Now, this is a judgment-free zone because I know you all have thought worse or have worse written in your notes app, so no side eyes please.