By Ben Garcia

KUWAIT: By the end of December till early January, people usually receive calendars from companies and friends. This year however, many have complained of a paucity of calendars. "I normally get five to 10 calendars every year and I give them away to people I know. But I am very disappointed that I got nothing this year. The desk calendar is very important to me because every time I go to the office, I can check the date and my appointments for the day. I write everything on the calendar on my desk, but I don't have one now," said Noor, an Egyptian expat.

"After my cellphone, the calendar is the next very important thing for me as I am a secretary. I received one calendar this year but I gave it away, thinking I will get more from other companies. It's the fourth of January today and I am afraid of not getting any more calendars," she told Kuwait Times. Noor said the calendar is easier to refer to when you need to make an immediate decision. "I don't use a smartphone to view my appointments. It is easier to use a calendar," she added.

A well-known computer institute in Kuwait City told Kuwait Times they not only cut their calendar budget, but also decided to get rid of other unnecessary expenses because of the low number of enrollees, and also because attitudes have changed. "The digital calendar is in. The smartphone is there and the digital calendar can be viewed any time. So we stopped printing calendars," said Faruk, the owner of the institute.