Who can resist a list?

Apparently everyone loves them.

Best of.. Worst of .. Top Ten .. Least Known ... Must See ... Must Visit ... Biggest ... Smallest ...

Come on - we've all fallen for it - you start with one that looks kind of interesting and possibly a bit researchy - and before you know it you've clicked here and clicked there and spent an hour looking at stuff that is fascinating, but no real use to man or beast.

And then there is the 'To do' list. I'm a big fan of these. When I worked for someone who paid me, instead of for myself, I was occasionally guilty of having lists of lists.  I certainly had home and work lists and sometimes a 'Me' list. Unfortunately the poor old 'Me' list is the one that usually gets pushed right to the back of the queue.

Then there is the ultimate list - the most personal one, that you might carry about for years, maybe even your whole life. Yes, I'm talking about the Bucket List. I was thinking about mine the other day, and whether it needed an up date. Or even a complete revision. If I could find it. I know it's around somewhere. It can be a lot of fun, finding an old list. And perhaps a measure of how you've grown, or changed. Sometimes the entries don't even make sense any more. But they were important once.

I'm sure lists change with age. When you're young it's all about achievements and milestones - academic and career success, buying the first car, the first house, the first diamond? Making the first million!!!

But then you do all that - or your ideas of what is achievable and realistic change and the list changes too.

New York is certainly on the list.

As I said, I've been thinking about mine - and you know, the things I would put on it now seem mostly to be about places I want to visit, or re-visit. It's not that I've achieved all those 'Before I'm (insert next milestone birthday) things.' But somehow travelling, and the fun stuff, is looking more attractive.

Of course that could be because the weather is still pretty average and all these holiday brochures keep dropping onto the door mat. I'm sure I never asked for half of them, but I just love looking at the pictures.

Maybe I need to re-name it? It's not the Bucket List - it's the Research Visits List.

Now you're talking ...