Nick Of Time

Nick Of Time
by John Forster & Tom Chapin
© Limousine Music Co. & The Last Music Co. (ASCAP)

Kids! Come on down for dinner
Your dinner’s getting cold.
Come on now, it’s time to eat.
Do as you’re told.
Kids! Hurry up! Shake a leg!
Step on it! Look alive!
Kids, come on I mean it;
I’m gonna count to five
One... two... three... four...
In the nick, nick, nick
In the nick of time,
That’s when kids arrive
Not one, not two, not three, not four,
But in the nick of time on five.

Kids! Come on down, there’s company
Aunt Bess and Uncle Hugh.
On their way to Delaware,
And they’re just passing through.
Kids! They’re in a hurry;
They do not have all day.
Kids, come on I mean it.
You want me to count? O.K.!
One...
I know they’ll be thrilled to see you
Two...
You won’t believe how they’ve grown
Three...
Maybe their door is shut.
Four...
In the nick, nick, nick
In the nick of time,
That’s when kids arrive
Not one, not two, not three, not four,
But in the nick of time on five.

Kids! Who’s been using crayons
And writing on the wall?
In the kitchen? In the bathroom?
In the basement? In the hall?
Kids! I want whoever did it
To get down here on the double.
And if I have to count,
You’re in twice as much trouble...
One...
(Go on down, you know you did it.)
Two...
(Yeah, but it was your idea.)
Three...
(Was not. Get down there.)
Four...
(Let’s... let’s say a robber did it.)
Four and a half...
(Robbers don’t use crayons, stupid! Let’s go.)
In the nick, nick, nick
In the nick of time,
That’s when kids arrive
Not one, not two, not three, not four,
But in the nick of time on five.

Kids! Come on down for ice cream
I’ve got chocolate chip for you.
And if you’re here
By the count of five,
You can have a cookie too.
One...
But when it comes to ice cream
And other kinds of fun,
In the nick, nick, nick,
In the nick of time,
The nick of time becomes... one!

This song appears on Tom Chapin's Family Tree CD.

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