Dinner was a division of labor in my house growing up. If one person cooked, someone else (or multiple someones) cleaned up afterward. I much preferred the cleaning part, which suited the adults just fine. This habit has followed me into adulthood. When someone cooks me a meal, I show my appreciation by doing or assisting in the cleanup. In October at the Northshield Crown event, I learned that some of the fighters have a similar tradition, only they do it shirtless.

Well, I wasn’t about to let a bunch of bare chested men scare me off, so into the kitchen I went to assist with the washing. So, there I was, one lone, shirted woman in a room with my own personal harem and two of these brave souls were bards, so there was a lot of singing and good natured ribbing involved. In short, it was the most fun I’ve had cleaning up in a while. Near the end of the process, one of the bards turned to the other and said “you know, you should really write a song about this. You could call it One More Dish Johnny.”

In the end, the inspiration came to me on the drive home.

The feast is all over, the cleaning’s begun
The cooks are all sleeping, their labor is done
The men in the kitchen, all shirtless save one
We sing along merrily washing

(chorus)
And it’s one more dish, Johnny, one more spoon
One more plate and we’re sure to finish soon

The platters are stacked on the sideboard just there
Awaiting their turn in the soapy night air
And once they are clean they’re all rinsed off with care
We sing along merrily washing

(chorus)

The washing goes quick with a song in the air
Of sailing and drinking and ladies most fair
A towel as our mainsail the spray in our hair
We sing along merrily washing

(chorus)

And as we are drying each lady draws near
To check on the status of her feasting gear
She leaves with a twinkle and grins ear to ear
We sing along merrily washing

(chorus)

And just when it seems that there aren’t any more
A new stack of platters is whisked through the door
I swear that I’ve washed this exact dish before
We sing along merrily washing

(chorus)

Just one more dish, Johnny, one more spoon
One more plate and we’re sure to finish soon!