Plastic storage boxes, pajamas, tools, gardening -- people meet and celebrate in the name of many different things. I propose yet another reason to gather four or five together: Improving Your Technical Skillset.

Here's how it works....

... Identify your target

You need to learn something, say, something task-based like using Adobe Dreamweaver Cascading Style Sheet palette or conducting a mail merge in Microsoft Word.

Perhaps you need to augment some body of knowledge that you already have -- for example, how to take advantage of the additional information delivery dimensions you have available to you when you move your graphical design attention from paper to the Web.

Or, you might just want a guided tour around PayPal or eBay or to learn the highlights of Google power searching.

Think about it and send an email to me with your idea. I will help you refine your goal to meet the time you want to spend.

... Find learning buddies

• Find 2 to 4 friends or co-workers who would like to know how to do the same thing and are willing to pay to learn.
• Contact me and schedule 2 1/2 hours at your place.
• Prepare your computer (if you need to) by downloading the right software, acquiring Internet access, or whatnot.
• (Optional) Arrange for food. (Remember that you want to join the session instead of cook; consider throwing a potluck or serving tea and cookies.)
• I need 1/2 hour to check your pc setup before beginning the session. If the setup will not serve the purpose, we will explore alternatives (if possible); however, you are responsible for making sure you have the necessary tools!
• Gather around and learn for two hours, with a break in the middle.
• (Optional) Serve dinner and talk about what you've learned!

Your two hours might begin before lunch, or right after teatime... you and people you know and trust, warm and comfortable in your safe, quiet cubical, skipping the rush hour traffic. Consider your new knowledge as you snack on sandwiches and soup before heading home.

Your two hours might be at your house on Saturday instead, before dinner and a movie. Or -- if you have a portable computer -- it might be at the Carrboro Century Center, or the Open Eye Cafe, or the wired Wendy's around your corner. The idea is to work with the tools that you use all the time.

When the party's over, you have handouts to read and friendly people to call on, who will help jog your memory. It is a good idea to use your new knowledge as soon after the session as you can. If that's not possible, you can always throw another Tea Party for Your Brain!

Price

The Guru gets $125 for 2.5 hours of her time when teaching five or fewer people, and an additional $10 per person for up to eight people total, space allowing (any more than that and the session becomes unwieldy, with insufficient time to answer questions and ensure understanding, not to mention crowding around the work space).

The person with whom the Guru made arrangements is responsible for coughing up the fee; it's a good idea to collect money before party time!

Topics

Google Apps...

Google is a leader in providing Web 2.0 applications that enable collaboration from almost everywhere: web-based email is designed to help you sort, search, archive, collect, and otherwise control your email; Google Docs provides always-there access to spreadsheet and word processing applications; Google Calendar helps you maintain and share your schedule with friends and groups.

Learn how these three Web applications can help you organize and manage your online and offline life... sort and tag your mail as it comes in... search, sort, group, and filter contacts... invite people to an event and send appointment reminders to invitees... display your club's schedule on your calendar... share documents and spreadsheets... find help and answers to your questions.

Do It with Style...

Styles in applications make it easy to determine, apply, and change the look of elements (font and paragraphs, or objects in a graphics program). This is particularly useful when more than one person produces a publication or Web site, or for a collection of publications.

Learn how to use styles in any one of a wide variety of software programs, including applications from Adobe (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Fireworks), Microsoft (Word, Excel), and OpenOffice.*

In some applications, such as Word and InDesign,styles form the basis of automated lists such as tables of content, figures, etc.

Cascading Style Sheets, or CSS, provide styles for Web pages and sites. In raw form, they are somewhat more involved than styles found in word processing, publishing, and illustration applications.

* Names of software and companies are protected by trademarks or copyrights; I reference them throughout the site in the spirit of fair use.