If your cockpit looks like this during or after a flight, you might consider a little more organization. Then again, this might work for you.

By Frank Bowlin

This is a true story that still scares me after six years: I’d hitched a ride from a friend we’ll call Henry. He was a nice guy, very intelligent, but I hadn’t flown with him before.

It was VFR under clear, early evening skies. The first trouble sign was copying the Class B departure instructions. Henry had no pen; I offered mine. A 5-year-old Sectional served as notepaper. The next indication was a need to hold the portable intercom just right to hear the radio. After fiddling with the home-made loose connections while getting configured after takeoff and talking to the busy controller, we got the intercom mostly working. Since…