My "To Do" list by Lynne Benton

MY “TO DO” LIST

I often wonder how people get on if they don't make lists!  Shopping lists, birthday lists, and most especially To Do lists - I am never without one, and I keep adding to it all the time.  (Confession: sometimes I add a job I've already done, so I can start by crossing something off!)

 So, since the first thing on my list today is "Write Blog!" I wrote a poem about my today's "TO DO" list, and here it is:

My head is fit to burst
With all the things I haven’t done,
It’s time to make a list of jobs,
And tick them one by one.

Must ring Aunt Jane and thank her
For my lovely Christmas gift.
She’ll talk for hours, I know, but then
It gives her such a lift.

Then I must email Jennifer
I need to ask her how
Her operation went – I do so hope
She’s feeling better now.

And then I’ll text my brother,
Who is stuck in Cameroon,
I hope he’s caught a plane by now
To bring him home quite soon.

I’ve also got to strip the beds
And put the sheets to wash,
Then make them up for grandsons three –
By Thursday, what a squash!

Then I must make a shopping list
Of food I need to seek,
But first I ought to work out
What we’re eating all this week.

And in between these other jobs
I ought to clean and dust
And put the hoover round the house,
And tidy up, I must!

 I know I need to do these things,
To make the house look bright,
But one thing I’ve not mentioned yet –
I’ve got a book to write!

 So maybe I’ll forget the rest
And turn my laptop on,
I’ll write my thousand words, and then
The morning will be gone!

So what about my list, you ask?
I shake my head in sorrow.
I know those jobs will still be there -
I’ll do them all tomorrow. 

And that's the way it often goes, I'm afraid.  I'm sure many writers are the same - it's a question of priorities, and somehow dusting is never going to take precedence over getting on with my writing!

The other thing I promised to do today was to give you a list of my answers to last month's Christmas Song Quiz.  So here they are:

1) I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas, Just like the ones I used to know.  2) Make my wish come true, All I want for Christmas is you.  3) I saw mummy kissing Santa Claus underneath the mistletoe last night.  4) Dashing through the snow in a one-horse open sleigh.  5) So here it is, merry Christmas, everybody's having fun.  6) Have yourself a merry little Christmas, let your heart be light.  7) Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose.  8) Rocking around the Christmas tree, have a happy holiday.  9) It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go.  10) Oh I wish it could be Christmas every day, let the bells ring out for Christmas!

I hope you had fun with them.  (And one of my followers produced her own set of ten further questions, but I'll let her give the answers to hers in the Comments.  Many thanks for those - they provided my family with even more entertainment - and it was nice for me to have to work some out too!)

website: www.lynnebenton.com

Latest book:

Billy and the Queen (available via Amazon)