I don’t want to brag, but I did think up the idea of pump toothpaste about a year before Colgate introduced this wildly successful product. Sadly, I sent my letter to them regular mail, not registered, so my chance at millions of dollars evaporated.

I did what any inventor worth her notepad does: I picked myself up and resolutely went on to hatch new notions.

My latest grows out of personal need, the best source of inventions. (I’m sure the Post-it guy was just sick of writing on the backs of envelopes.)

No matter how large my desk space, I always need a side table for materials I’m using–big notebooks, maps, paper documents I’m comparing side-by-side. Sometimes the table needs to be even with the computer desk, other times higher or lower. It also needs to be something I can easily put away. Due to square footage of my work space as well as personal preference, I go for furniture that can be used more than one way, like furnishings on a boat.

Today, Dear Reader, I hit on the perfect solution: the ironing board. It’s easily adjustable, the right width (not too wide, but big enough for my large loose-leaf notebooks) and it can be folded up and stashed in the closet in a few seconds. Plus, once it’s out, I have no excuse not to iron the linen napkins for Shabbat dinner.

If the Colgate-Palmolive people try to horn in on this one, I’m ready to fight.