Do the words ‘database’ and ‘spreadsheet’ baffle you or fill you with fear, or maybe just give you that sinking feeling that many of us get when we have to deal with mountains of information? Facts, figures, names, addresses, dates…I could go on, but I won’t (because I am one of those who goes a bit funny when exposed to too much data at once!). Today has been a spreadsheet day for me. Six hours of data entry so far and I am still smiling (maybe not actually grinning from ear-to-ear, but definitely not frowning).
With such a big area to look after—so many parishes, schools, universities, etc—I have to organize a lot of data and keep it formatted in an easily accessible way. And so, enter the SPREADSHEET. Formerly I have been more of a ‘write-it-on-a-tiny-piece-of-paper-or-a-napkin-and stuff-it-in my-overfilled-address-book ‘ kind of person; I ran the office at Lancaster Cathedral this way for much of the past decade. This is not a good way to run an office—I can remember days when the priests actually applauded when I managed to locate something in the filing system (which in all fairness I did not set up myself, but inherited…). However, I am now following the new job = new Caroline principle that I instituted after the time management seminar I attended earlier this week. Now I am organized and systematic. Surprises will no doubt occur, but they will be serendipitous and overwhelmingly good because they will arise out of my superbly organized systems of information collection and NOT (definitely NOT) because I completely forgot to order more Communion wafers or extra toner for the photocopier in the run-up to Holy Week (common problems in the Cathedral Office!). I expect to be held to this, so please feel free to call me out on this future if you notice that my organizational resolve is slipping…
Mike Cowie, Area Secretaries Co-ordinator and general wonderworker, keeps track of all of the Area Secretaries, so those lists are sent to me already assembled (hurray!), but everything else I have to do myself (a bit like a huge flatpack from Ikea!). Last week I, with the help of my eldest son who is home from Uni and at a bit of a loose end, assembled a list of Orthodox communities in the North West (see my earlier post)—this was a challenge as the information is not in a single place so we had to be very cunning and dig around various websites to try and piece things together. Today’s work has been easier. I am mining each of the five relevant diocesan directories to try and isolate those special interest groups that might be interested in a talk/appeal/merchandise stall, etc. I am amazed at the number and breadth of Catholic organizations out there. So far my favourite is the Achille Ratti Climbing Club (go, climbing Catholics!), but the competition is still wide open as I am not nearly finished with this. I like a good country ramble—and I could certainly walk and talk, but I don’t think that my presentation skills (and fitness level) stretch to talking about ACN and the persecution of Christians while scaling a vertical rockface. Maybe this is something to work towards, or, maybe, if some committed Catholic climbers (I am fond of the letter ‘c’) hear about us, they might think about doing a sponsored climb. You never know—after all, we have enthusiastic supporters who are running in the 2014 British 10K London Run to raise sponsorship funds for ACN. There are still spaces left, so if you are a keen runner and are available on Sunday 13 July, why not get in touch? In fact, as soon as I finish my spreadsheet, I think I might don my new running shoes and see what I can manage…probably not quite 10K!
I wish you all a happy and healthy Eastertide. Please pray for those whose Easter celebrations are fraught with physical danger and potential threats; may they too come to worship as freely as we are able to here in the UK.
Thanks for reading! Caroline
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