It’s a low-down lockdown list to help you make it through the best and worst

It's a tale of two Gladys' as we try to make it through our various lockdowns to the tune of a popular song for support and smiles.

Kris Kristofferson first wrote his country music ballad Help Me Make It Through the Night in 1970, and 12 months later, Gladys Knight and the Pips made it a big hit.

What if we rebadge it "Help Me Make It Through The Lockdown" in homage to the two Gladys' and collect some of your tips and tricks? All from Fifty Ups for Fifty Ups.

It's a challenge to shape an exciting listicle, a confected blend list and article, around one of the more boring experiences most of us have to endure.

The obvious self-improvement pursuits such as making sourdough bread, lifting weights and wasting time with jigsaws were well ventilated the first time around.

But can they still cut the time-wasting mustard for what might be your sixth lockdown or your most prolonged or perhaps worse, the most uncertain?

So taking a leaf from that song, maybe it can inspire some constructive, devilish, ridiculous or plain fun ways to help us make it through the lockdown.

And to echo a verse:

Yesterday is dead and gone
And tomorrow's out of sight
And it's sad to be alone
Help me make it through the night

Go to bed early- There's little else to do, and despite being no curfew, there are precious few outside distractions. Besides, plenty of sleep is one of the few things which aren't unpleasant that doctors agree is good for you.

Sort out those photos. To propose a declutter is too unlikely to get far, but what about those boxes of old prints and slides you may have hidden away? I know I do. There are various devices you can buy or services you can use to digitise them, and for all those digital pics are many platforms for both saving and sorting. As kids, we often played with an old suitcase full of Kodak Brownie family holidays and our ancestors' even more ancient photographic portraits. It all seems far more fun than the boxes of shots and slides I face now.

Pickles and preserves. Maybe this fits with the sourdough crew, but for some reason, I have delighted in boiling kinds of vinegar, spices and sugars with beetroot, fennel, onions etc. I'm fermenting two types of sauerkraut, and every fortnight, I make two litres of the tangiest purest and cheapest ($2.50) yogurt you'll see this side of Switzerland.

Any ideas from your end? They definitely don't have to be worthy, and the funnier and the more fun, the better. I read one animal expert claiming some dogs are in danger of being over-walked in the lockdown and are not used to all the exercise.

If bereft of inspiration just imagine the two Gladys' singing the song. It may help.

Any information contained in this communication is general advice, it does not take into account your individual circumstances, objectives, financial situation or needs.