If I had a wishing tree, this week  Jim, I would like you to fix it for me  to have a short- term memory, and a fully paid up tidying up gene.

I have often wondered how different my life would have been if I had had any type of short term memory.  I have always had real problems learning lines. I studied acting from a small age and had no idea that it was taking me 5 times longer for me to learn my lines than anyone else. At school often the english teacher would ask us to learn a poem, and I remember it being really hard for me and one week she asked me to get up and recite my poem and I had not learned it so I just stood up and said nothing…for what seemed like hours. She then just asked me to sit down…never told me off, but looked very disappointed in me, as I was a good student – but as hard as I tried never a great student, messy handwriting, rubbish spelling, haphazard style. As a singer I have never been able to learn words very well, one good reason why I did not become a cabaret/wedding/cruise ship singer as I could not learn the songs quick enough!..That could be considered a blessing I suppose.

Funny, on X factor, forgetting your words was considered a huge no-no. If Louis Armstrong had not forgotten  his words one day, scat singing would never been invented  ( I can hear all those people who hate scat singin now thinkin …so it’s Louis we have to blame!). I love to scat and twiddlyoddly, and writing songs is great as I don’t have to learn words. I invent them! I forget the words to my own songs sometimes too..

So I would like the magic tree to bring me a short term memory...but just for say a few months so I could try it out and see how it felt. I would also like the magic tree to give me the tidy gene -to be tidy and orderly for a little while…again, just to try it out for size. I would love to know where I put things, have pretty filing systems, put things away when I used them, delete emails as I went, ( I have 2800 unopened emails) create  orderly files on my computer, have a tidy desktop  ( I have a thing on my hard drive like a great  set of big big cardboard boxes, where I scoop up everything on my desktop and stick it in desktop number what ever the next number is…I think I am up to 5 – a bit like having an attic full of boxes of unsorted rubbish) I would like the tidy gene to come along and rip all the postcards and pictures, fairy lights  mobiles  off my walls and turn it into a minimalistic designer catalogue rather  than a flat that looked like a truck-load of  messy  bohemian art students lived there. Just for a little while though, as I actually feel a little bit uncomfortable in houses that are too tidy and you feel like you must behave. I have often come across a strange atmosphere of moral  superiority in very tidy showroom houses where  creative and messy things just do not happen, as it would spoil the picture of loveliness that is their world. In some very tidy houses, a sense of tightened control evades which I sometimes find a bit stifling. Sort of talking myself out of my wishes here..no …would like to try as long I  could go back to being my original elephant-memoried ‘I never forget a face…sorry what was your name again?’ untidy self, after a few weeks. Thanks magic tree.

SONG OF THE DAY  The Hustle. Van McCoy It is still a week for dancing so another old favourite from the way back then …in the 70’s

‘Van Allen Clinton McCoy (January 6, 1940 – July 6, 1979) was an accomplished musician, music producer, arranger, songwriter and orchestra conductor. He is known best for his 1975 internationally successful song “The Hustle”, which is still played in dance halls and by radio nowadays more than 30 years since his death. He has approximately 700 song copyrights to his credit and is also noted for producing songs for such recording artists as Gladys Knight and the pips, The Stylistics, Aretha Franklin, Peaches and herb .‘( quoted  from wiki) He has over 700 copyrighted songs to his name…sadly died at the young age of 39 of a heart attack over 30 years ago.

You have got to watch the video and check out the magnificent dancing ( some of which is Pan’s people)