I don't know anyone who doesn't use sticky notes.  I have sticky notes at the office and at home - I'm sure you do too.  They're pretty much an essential part of life.  They come in a variety of shapes and sizes and lots of different colors - you can get squares, rectangles, flowers, hearts, stars, brights, pastels, etc.  Lots of fun options!

This week is a great time to stock up with a quick deal.  

Our world is built around technology.  Twenty years ago the "must have" items for business professionals were Palm Pilots (remember those?) or a Blackberry.  Now, just about everyone has a smartphone, tablet or laptop computer and we take them everywhere we go.  Today's Product Quick Take is a great item for today's business lifestyle - the Lorell Mobile Laptop Caddy.  

If you work for a company that requires you to swipe an ID badge to obtain access to various parts of the building, you understand the importance of having that badge easily accessible.  You need it within easy reach and visible to others.  The solution?  Lanyards or badge reels - that's what everyone uses.  

Lanyards are more common, but they do present a safety issue for some job positions.  They are very loose-fitting, swing around a lot, and can easily catch on something - potentially causing serious injury.

Thieves get more ingenious every day.  When we find a way to foil them, they come up with a new scheme.  Does that mean we should stop being careful?  Quit locking our doors?  Not watch when we're in a dangerous area?  Of course not.

In the area of identity theft, thieves no longer need to steal your actual credit card - all they need is an RFID scanner and they can steal your credit card information just by walking past you if you aren't protected.

Here's a simple product that can help thwart those attempts - the Quality Park RFID Blocking Credit Card Sleeve.

The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals is a worldwide initiative to promote standard criteria for classifying chemicals according to their health, physical and environmental hazards.  It uses pictograms, hazard statements and the words "Danger" and "Warning" to communicate hazard information on product labels and safety data sheets in a logical and comprehensive way. The primary goal of GHS is better protection of human health and the environment by providing chemical user and handlers, emergency first responders and the public with enhanced and consistent information on chemical hazards (www2.epa.gov).

Spring has sprung, trees and flowers are starting to bloom!  The grass is growing - and so are the sneezes, itches and watery eyes associated with allergies.  Pollen is actually present all year round, but it's much worse at this time of year.   You might have allergy meds on hand, along with lots of hand soap and facial tissues.

Yes, this is definitely not the time to run out of facial tissues and we've got a great item for you - the Kleenex zip half pack.

How many times have you purchased an item and tried to take the label off of it, only to get frustrated when it won't come off all the way (or at all)?  AAARRGH!  I hate that!  It comes off in strips and you can't peel the rest of it off.  Or, if you do get it off, it leaves a bunch of gunk behind that never completely disappears. It's especially maddening when it's a piece of glassware.

MACO  Label has a line of dissolvable labels that solves this problem.

You've probably been in this situation at least once.

The toner (or ink cartridge) runs out in your printer.  You go to your supply closet/cabinet to get another one and ..........AARRGH!  Somebody used the last one and didn't order a replacement! 

You need a new toner, but you don't know the item number because you don't have a box and you don't see the number on the cartridge.

Protecting your investment is always important.  Your floors and your employees are two important investments.  The right floor mats are essential to protecting the floors and carpeting in your building and the health of your employees.  Today I'll discuss matting and show you some options for the different uses.

I learned the value of an external hard drive quickly when Windows 10 trashed my home computer.  <sigh>  That was not a fun time.  I'm back on Windows 7 Professional and that's where I'm staying until this computer dies.

Your computer should be backed up regularly and the backup needs to be stored somewhere other than on your computer.  External hard drives are portable, secure storage for your data and are commonly used precisely for this purpose. 

Continuous carbonless forms have pretty much become dinosaurs, having been replaced by cut sheet carbonless, which is more economical and easier to use.  You can either have the forms professionally printed (print.oexusa.com) or, to save even more money, you can print them yourself.  It's really not a difficult process - let me walk you through it. 

Back in the spring, I wrote a review of a new product - the Safco Onyx Powered Monitor Stand - and we gave one away as the grand prize in our 30th Anniversary Trivia Contest.  (You can read that review here.)  The winner of the contest recently wrote to me to tell me that he gave the monitor stand to his wife.  She is using it as part of her scrapbooking set up and he says she absolutely loves it! 

So your company is hosting a dinner.  Perhaps it's a regional meeting or the annual employee Christmas party.  You want to make an elegant table - not just paper plates and paper cups.  We have a line of fine porcelain dinnerware, along with stainless steel cutlery and tempered glassware that can help you accomplish the perfect look.

Introducing Chef's Table Fine Porcelain.  

Do you know who's watching you?  Do you keep an eye on your home or business effectively?  Every so often I like to showcase an unusual item - one that you ordinarily might not think of trying to purchase from your office supply dealer - and today I'd like to show you our selection of surveillance cameras and dashcam recorders.

Samsill has a combination binder that I think many of you will find interesting - especially if you're in sales.  They're called the Duo 2-in-1 Organizer and the Trio 3-in-1 Organizer.  It is a combination of a ring binder and an expanding file pocket and, in the case of the Trio, a hanging file folder as well. 

I know..........you read the title and said to yourself, "Are you kidding me?  It's only the beginning of September!"  But like it or not, cold & flu season will be here before you know it.  The pharmacies in my area have had their "Get your flu shot" signs up since the beginning of August even though the shots weren't available yet.

I am the proud parent of an Eagle Scout and the Scout motto is Be Prepared.  Now is the time for you to check your first aid kits - both at home and in the office - and make sure your medicines are unexpired and that the kit is complete.  You should have some cold & flu supplies......

Have a small office?  Not a lot of space for shelf files or large filing cabinets but still have files that need to be accessible?  Consider a rolling file cart.

Rolling file carts, or mobile tub files, are a great way to keep active files handy without taking up a lot of space.  And, since they're mobile, they can easily go wherever you need them to be.  With or without a lid, these carts are available in a variety of sizes and configurations:

Justick boards are an item that has actually been around for about 10 years over in Europe and recently made its debut in the United States.  It's a line of display boards (whiteboards, bulletin boards, lobby boards, tabletop presentations and promo stands) that gives you the ability to display items without using tape, push pins, glue or magnets.

Today I'm going to show you the whiteboards.

Can you believe it's August already?  The summer has just flown by - at least for me - and now it's time for parents and teachers alike to start their back to school shopping.  Teachers, now is the time to stock up on items for your classrooms - like decorations, classroom aids, literature sorters, pencil & crayon sharpeners, learning wall papers, calculators and more.

If you have electronic equipment (and who doesn't?), you need to protect it from damage.  There are a couple ways to do this - one of which is to use surge protectors.  There are lots of variables to choosing a good surge protector and I may bore some of you if I were to discuss all of them, so I'm going to try to narrow it down to the most important points.