Todo Queue

v1.1 — Adapted for public use

Batch-process emails in a designated Gmail label, converting them to Apple Reminders with timing extracted from the email body.

Usage

/todo-queue

Overview

This skill processes emails sent to your-email+todo@gmail.com (or manually labeled @ToSelf). It:

1. Searches for unread @ToSelf emails
2. Parses timing syntax from the email body
3. Creates Apple Reminders automatically (no confirmation needed)
4. Marks emails as read and archives them

Note: Auto-processing is enabled. Use dryrun argument to preview without creating.

Platform note: This skill uses osascript for Apple Reminders, which is macOS-only. On other platforms, you would need to replace Step 3 with a different reminder/task API.

Instructions

Step 1: Search for Pending Todo Emails

Search Gmail: label:@ToSelf is:unread

If no emails found:

No pending todo emails in @ToSelf.

To add emails to the queue:
- Forward any email to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
- Add timing in the body: "due:Friday" or "due:tomorrow list:Personal"

Stop here.

Step 2: Fetch and Parse Each Email

For each email found:

1. Get email content using mcp__google_workspace__get_gmail_message_content

2. Extract task title:

   • If forwarded email (subject starts with "Fwd:"): Use original subject, suggest "Review: [subject]" or "Reply to [sender] about [subject]"
   • If self-sent email: Use subject line directly
   • If subject contains "Re:": Suggest "Follow up on [topic]"

3. Parse timing syntax from body (case-insensitive, colon required):

Parsing rules:

• Keywords can appear anywhere in email body
• Multiple keywords on same line or different lines both work
• Case-insensitive (DUE:Friday = due:friday)
• Colon is required (due:tomorrow works, due tomorrow does not)
• For forwarded emails, parse the ADDED text (before "---------- Forwarded message"), not the forwarded content

Day name parsing:

• If today is Tuesday and body says due:Friday, that's Friday of THIS week (3 days away)
• If today is Saturday and body says due:Friday, that's Friday of NEXT week (6 days away)
• due:Monday when today is Monday means NEXT Monday (7 days away)

Step 3: Create Reminders (Auto-Processing)

Process each email automatically — no confirmation needed.

For each task:

1. Create Apple Reminder using osascript:

osascript -e '
tell application "Reminders"
    set targetList to list "[List Name]"
    set newReminder to make new reminder at end of targetList with properties {name:"[Task Title]", body:"[Gmail Link]\n\n[Any tags]"}
    [If due date:] set due date of newReminder to date "[formatted date]"
end tell
'

Date format for osascript: "February 7, 2026 at 9:00:00 AM"

Gmail link format: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/[message_id]

2. Archive the email:
   • Remove INBOX label (if present)
   • Keep @ToSelf label (for history/audit trail)
   • Mark as read

Use mcp__google_workspace__modify_gmail_message_labels with:

• remove_labels: ["INBOX", "UNREAD"]
• Do NOT remove @ToSelf

Step 4: Report Results

COMPLETE

Created 3 reminders:
  1. Reply to [Name] about grant proposal → Work (due Fri Feb 7)
  2. Review proposal draft → Work (no due date)
  3. Book dentist appointment → Personal (due Mon Feb 10)

Processed emails archived (kept in @ToSelf for history)

To find these reminders:
- Mac: Reminders app → Work / Personal lists
- iPhone: Reminders app → Work / Personal lists

Arguments

• dryrun — Show what would be created without actually creating
• limit:N — Only process first N emails (default: all)

Examples

/todo-queue              # Process all pending
/todo-queue dryrun       # Preview only
/todo-queue limit:5      # Process first 5 only

Usage Examples (Email Side)

Example 1: Forward with timing

Forward email from a colleague to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
Add to body before forwarded content:
"due:Friday

---------- Forwarded message ----------"
→ Creates: "Reply to [Name] about [subject]" due Friday 9am in Work list

Example 2: Self-email quick capture

Send to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
Subject: Book flights for March trip
Body: "due:next week list:Personal"
→ Creates: "Book flights for March trip" due Monday in Personal list

Example 3: No timing

Forward email to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
Body: (empty, just forward)
→ Creates: "Review: [subject]" with no due date in Work list

Example 4: Multiple tags

Send to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
Subject: Review project budget
Body: "due:Feb 15 tags:#project #budget"
→ Creates: "Review project budget" due Feb 15 in Work list with tags

Error Handling

• No @ToSelf label found: "Error: @ToSelf label not found. Check Gmail labels — see Customization Points below."
• Apple Reminders unavailable: "Error: Could not create reminder. Emails NOT processed (still unread in @ToSelf)."
• Partial failure: If some reminders fail, report which succeeded/failed. Leave failed emails unread.
• List doesn't exist: Create in "Reminders" default list with note about missing list.

Technical Notes

Gmail Label ID

@ToSelf = YOUR_LABEL_ID (you need to look this up — see Customization Points)

osascript Fallback

The Apple MCP's listName parameter is unreliable. This skill uses direct osascript for reminder creation, which is more reliable for specifying target lists.

Archive vs Delete

Emails are archived (removed from INBOX) but kept in @ToSelf for audit trail. They remain searchable via label:@ToSelf if you need to find the original email.

Customization Points

To set up this skill for your workflow:

1. Gmail alias setup

Gmail supports "plus addressing" out of the box. If your email is you@gmail.com, then you+todo@gmail.com already works — mail sent there arrives in your inbox. No configuration needed.

2. Create the @ToSelf label and filter

1. In Gmail, go to Settings → Filters and Blocked Addresses → Create a new filter
2. Set "To" field to: your-email+todo@gmail.com
3. Click "Create filter" and check: Apply the label → Create new label called @ToSelf
4. Optionally check: Skip the Inbox (if you only want to process via this skill)

3. Find your label ID

The Gmail API uses internal label IDs, not display names. To find yours:

• Use the Gmail MCP to search for a labeled message, or
• Use the Gmail API's labels.list endpoint
• Replace YOUR_LABEL_ID in the Technical Notes section with your actual ID

4. Reminder list names

The default lists are Work, Personal, and Someday. These must match actual list names in your Apple Reminders app. To use different names:

• Edit the list: entries in the timing syntax table (Step 2)
• Update the osascript list name in Step 3
• Make sure the lists exist in your Reminders app

5. MCP requirements

This skill requires:

• Gmail MCP (google_workspace or equivalent) with permissions to search, read, and modify labels
• macOS with Apple Reminders app (for osascript). On Linux/Windows, replace Step 3 with your preferred task manager API (Todoist, TickTick, etc.)

6. Default reminder time

The default due time is 9:00 AM. To change it, find all references to "9am" and "9:00:00 AM" in the instructions and update them.

7. Integration with other skills

If you have a morning briefing or weekly review skill, you can add a check for pending @ToSelf emails:

if (unread @ToSelf emails found):
    "You have N emails in your todo queue. Run /todo-queue? [Y/n]"