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I can't find my wristwatch.

The Timex my stepfather gave me for Christmas has been missing a few weeks now. It's not a fancy watch, but it's my favorite. The face is easy to read and glows in the dark. What more could you ask for?

I've searched all the usual places ... jacket pockets, dresser drawers, jewelry box, etc., with no luck.

What I need, according to news articles, is better organization. A cataloged home storage system would reduce clutter and eliminate lost possessions.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, “A place for everything, everything in its place.”

Several of my friends are fans of storage tubs with labels. They like stackable, transparent bins so they can see what's inside. Our neighbor even uses an Excel spreadsheet to inventory supplies she keeps in tubs.

The tub system works great ... as long as you put items in the correct bin. Nothing like opening a container labeled “Extra baking dishes,” expecting to find a cookie sheet and instead discovering moldy Halloween costumes. It all comes down to the flawed (but lovable) human element.

Today's home architects, however, are harnessing technology to improve storage and functionality. (And possibly overcome human forgetfulness?) Their designs make clutter, and even furniture, disappear from sight with a mere touch of a button. The idea is to make living spaces more efficient by removing furniture and stuff when it isn't being used.

According to a recent article in the “Wall Street Journal,” “These systems include beds that, on voice command, float into the ceiling to reveal couches, and artificial-intelligence enabled cameras to track where your belongings are stored.”

Watching videos of these robotic rooms is like watching an episode of “The Jetsons.”

Bumblebee Spaces is one company that offers storage systems to transform your house. Beds, desks, and cubby hole units are stored in the ceiling and retrieved when you summon them. All you have to do is ask for your watch, and, presto, a box comes down from the ceiling containing your favorite Timex.

You don't even have to remember where the watch is because the system catalogs and locates all your stuff. An app allows you to “see inside” the storage above your head via your phone.

All this from your ceiling?

Gee, I remember back in the day when storage space above the living room was called, “the attic,” and it was either a place of mystical treasure hunts or scary nightmares.

For apartment dwellers not familiar with the concept, an attic is not accessed with an app, but by a set of rickety stairs which pulls down from the ceiling. Climbing into the attic is traditionally an annual event, when you shove the artificial Christmas tree down the stairs (look out, below) or search for stuff to sell on eBay. Where is that box of grandpa's baseball cards?

A problem with storing things in the attic, however, is temperatures upstairs are extreme, from sweltering in the summer (uh-oh, those candles from Pier 1's close-out sale melted) to frigid in the winter (the leftover bedroom paint turned to jelly).

Or, you might even find an unexpected tenant living there; your son home early from college or a raccoon. One of them has some explaining to do ...

Having an attic is helpful for storing stuff, but doesn't seem as cool as telling your unmade bed to go away and watching it disappear into an overhead module. Or instantly summoning your winter boots at the first hint of snowflakes without having to dig in the back of the closet. What a great party trick to show your friends.

But, until the day comes when Rosie the robot controls my furniture and sock drawer, I'll just keep using cardboard dividers, plastic storage bins and adhesive labels to organize my life. Hopefully I'll find my watch before then.

Contact Susan Hazlett at susanrhazlett@yahoo.com or write to her in care of The Pantagraph, 205 N. Main St., Bloomington, IL 61702-2907.

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