Episode 23: Spring Has Sprung, I Hope You've Got Your Fucking Index Cards Ready

Alisha and Rhiannon check in on their September reset a few weeks late, swap DIY disaster stories, and get honest about sleep, self-care and why "new season, new us" rarely goes to plan.

 

It's officially the first day of spring, and the hosts are marking it with the September reset they promised a couple of episodes ago — with the honest caveat that by the time you're hearing this, it's actually a few weeks later. Rhiannon kicks things off admitting she's behind on the index card system, then immediately proves she's been busy anyway: recaulking a bathtub at midnight, popping a power board with two hairdryers, and getting genuinely stuck under her daughter's bed with a dog licking her and a mystery cat mess to contend with. Alisha, meanwhile, is a few steps ahead with a Cricut-labelled gold box and rose-gold dividers, and has already ticked off washing machine, dryer and dishwasher maintenance before September even started.

Between the chaos, there's some genuinely useful systems talk: how to break big recurring chores into small, movable index cards so nothing feels overwhelming, why monthly and quarterly tasks work better as "whenever you get to it" cards than fixed deadlines, and how something as small as boiling the kettle can become a built-in cue to knock off a two-minute task.

The episode also covers a fair bit of real life: Rhiannon's medication dosage increase and the caregiving load of taking her dad to a growing list of specialists, a very relatable bedding-and-pillow shopping spiral from Alisha, travel admin for two upcoming trips (a Hong Kong Disney trip with friends and this year's Bali flights, booked earlier than usual), and a genuine, reflective shoutout to Alisha's other podcast, No Need for Prince Charming, and how dramatically her life has changed in the four and a half years since her first episode there. It closes on sleep — specifically, why "just get eight hours" doesn't work the same for every ADHD brain, and the hosts' very different optimal numbers.

What We Talk About in This Episode

• Kicking off the September reset and the index card system a few weeks behind schedule (and being okay with that)
• Rhiannon's bathtub recaulking, a mattress-cleaning mishap, and popping a power board with two hairdryers at once
• Getting properly stuck under the bed while reorganising — claustrophobia, an overly affectionate dog, and unidentified cat mess
• Giving yourself permission to sit down and start a system instead of only being productive while physically moving
• Why it's hard to plan or "maintain" a room when you can't even get into it yet
• Building an index card system with labels, laminating, and a dedicated Notes app dump for things to convert to cards later
• Breaking big or vague tasks ("clean the bathroom") down into their actual small steps for a better dopamine hit
• Why monthly and quarterly chores work better as index cards you can shuffle around than fixed calendar deadlines
• Adding a wish list card (Lego, in Rhiannon's case) to curb impulse buying by capturing the urge instead of acting on it
• Booking flights and accommodation for a group Hong Kong Disney trip with friends, and this year's Bali flights earlier than usual
• What's actually behind Rhiannon's recent medication dosage increase, and the caregiving load of taking her dad to a growing list of specialist appointments
• Finding a sense of control through caregiving and admin, even while feeling overwhelmed by everything else going on
• A Fresh Sheet Friday, a mystery stain, and washing the same load of bedding twice in one weekend
• An extremely relatable bedding and pillow shopping spiral neither of them can really afford right now
• A genuine shoutout to Alisha's other podcast, No Need for Prince Charming, and reflecting on how much has changed personally in the four and a half years since her first episode
• Looking back on early guests, a memorable birthday in Fiji, and how the hosts' friendship began
• New season intentions: blocking out one work-free house day a month, and trying to stop cleaning only on weekends
• The only period either host has ever had a genuinely organised home (hint: it involved medication)
• Using natural daily pauses — like the kettle boiling — as a built-in cue to knock off a small task
• "Bookmarking" an unfinished task on a spare card instead of staying up until 3am to finish it
• Finding your actual optimal sleep number, and why eight hours isn't the magic fix for every ADHD brain

Key Takeaways

• A system doesn't have to be finished or perfect to start working — starting with an imperfect, partial index card setup and letting it evolve beats waiting for the "complete" version that never arrives.
• Breaking a vague, overwhelming task ("clean the bathroom") into its real component steps gives you more individual wins to tick off, which matters for ADHD brains that run on dopamine from visible progress.
• A recurring task doesn't need a fixed deadline to be useful — letting a monthly or quarterly chore move from week to week until it actually gets done removes the guilt of "missing" it on a specific day.
• You can't maintain a space you can't physically get into. Decluttering has to happen before any organisational system can actually work.
• There's no universal "right" amount of sleep — some ADHD brains genuinely function better on five to six hours than on a forced eight, and finding your own number matters more than hitting a general recommendation.

Who This Episode Is For

Anyone attempting a "new season, new me" reset and already a few weeks behind on it. Anyone who has ever gotten physically stuck mid-declutter with a pet involved. Parents juggling their own health and organisation goals alongside caring for an ageing parent. And anyone who's ever spiralled into a bedding-and-pillow shopping trip they definitely didn't have the budget for.

A Message From This Episode

You're allowed to start a system imperfect, start it late, and let it change as you go — the goal was never to do it perfectly from September first, it was just to start. Progress that looks messy from the outside — a half-finished index card box, a mattress you're still spot-cleaning, a dad's appointment schedule you're managing on top of everything else — still counts.

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