One thing I’ve noticed about blogs, especially since I’ve been hanging around these parts, is the prevalence of lists. I have to say, I like lists and most of the ones I come across are other people’s rather than my own and it is rare to find one that fails to capture my interest. As soon as I read a list it makes me want to create a list myself although I rarely do, to be honest. Although my wife does most of our shopping and thus creates her own dispensable shopping list, at weekends I get to choose a recipe and create a list of my own; usually of ingredients to shop for before we set off. I’ve taken to using the notes app on my phone to write them but once used they rarely get looked at again and aren’t particularly inspiring to me or probably anyone else for that matter. But there is something quite fulfilling about writing down an ingredient on its own exclusive line before pressing the return key to add another essential constituent part of the same list.

Lists are usually vertical, perpendicular. This is surely the best way to write a list, one item on top of the other as you don’t need to use punctuation marks and the app automatically capitalises each item to ensure all parts share equal importance. Make a list horizontal and you are immediately having to insert dreary commas, full stops and with only the first item starting with a capital letter your are in effect writing a sentence. So a list must start from the top and end at the bottom, one item per line.

So what makes a list interesting? Well, the first time I came across lists in earnest was on reading the book Hi Fidelity by Nick Hornby which was all about lists of old music and records for different circumstances and situations. Give a list a reason and suddenly it’s contents have purpose and meaning not just to its author but inspire thought and conflict in its readership. 10 songs to listen to when you’ve been dumped by your significant other…10 movies to watch which represent the modern zeitgeist (or something like that), it’s entirely your subjective call. No 2 lists will ever be the same or certainly will not be in the same order so there is something different to contemplate in every one.

So I have decided I am going to make lists myself. Not right now but soon enough even though I am itching to do one immediately. If you really want to…watch this space, I’m excited (mmmm, lists).