Reading your post, and Dan's, Maeve made me think of a song I wrote a long time ago about my Uncle Jim: Here's the verse that came to mind:

    Old Uncle Jim he said, said to his son he said
    Wake up Howard 'cause it's almost dawn
    The snow drifts have covered up the old hay wagon
    And we'll have to dig our way out to the barn
    The cows will all be waiting for the old milk pail
    And it won't be long before the rooster crows
    So we'd better hop to it, 'cause there's no one else to do it
    And the sky is getting cloudy and it looks like snow
                   from Uncle Jim

I did a concert out in my home town in Wisconsin, and just as I started singing this verse, who should walk through the door buy my cousing Howard with a big grin on his face, hearins his name in the song.

My youngest son Aaron picked up a line from this song which became part of his speaking for a few years. When I'd tell him we had to go do something he'd sing out, "We'd better hop to it, 'cause there's no one else to do it."

It sounds like that's what you're singing to yourself these days, maeve.

Jerry