The site index of the MeadowLife resident website lists about 150 pages of important information about Carolina Meadows’ activities, services, governance, residents and administration, each accessible at the click of a mouse.  While the value of easy access to this trove of data is obvious, some of MeadowLife’s other benefits might be unsuspected.

MeadowLife can serve as aide to an imperfect memory or as a planning tool.  Sometimes one simply cannot recall the name of that nice man named “John” one recently met on the golf course. Leafing through more than 700 black-and-white resident photos in the printed directory is the time-consuming way to solve such a mystery.  A much quicker approach involves using MeadowLife’s search function to obtain a list of the complete names of all residents named “John;” then, the accompanying colored portraits make for easy recognition of which John is in question.  Or how about that delicious Pork Picatta one recently enjoyed in the dining room; when might one taste it again?  With six-months’ worth of dining menus available on MeadowLife, it is a simple matter to search for the dates on which the dish will be served and plan accordingly.

MeadowLife is also a superior means for making dining reservations and service requests. Requesting dining reservations by telephone requires listening to recorded instructions, and then recording details of the desired reservation; confirmation comes via another phone call.  In contrast, the MeadowLife reservations system involves a simple electronic form that elicits all the required information and then instantaneously returns an email confirmation.  And here’s a little trick: if one includes guest names in the comments section of the reservation request, confirmation emails provide a record of guests expected at upcoming dinner parties and of those present at past parties.  Similarly, a form-based work request system allows one to avoid the bother of phoning to request handyman or landscaping services—one never hears a “please leave a recording” message!  An added benefit is that the work-request module includes a log of all work orders and their status— it is easy to keep track of in-progress or completed orders.

Of course, if all one needs is a little amusement, MeadowLife can oblige.  The Happenings page is an ever-changing source of funny videos, nostalgic photos and other such escapist trivia.