Wednesday, May 20, 2009

The List

Last week, both my brother and my soon-to-be sister-in-law sent me an article about the “Quarterlife Crisis.”

I think my chest started to tighten a bit after the article specifically mentioned “trips to Peru” comment. Who knew that when I dragged my mom to Peru I was in full-on crisis mode? Really? Eh, probably not, but for the sake of a kitschy blog name, I’m gonna go with it.

So now what? Well, what — above all else — helps in a time a crisis? Yes, that’s right, it’s a list of goals! And the wonderful people over at Day Zero decided to help me out by creating the 101 Things to Do in 1001 Days Project.

Oh man, I love lists. Nothing gives me more satisfaction than to check something off a list once it’s completed. Hmm … that statement came out sounding kind of sad.

Moving on.

Some goals will certainly be more challenging than others; just as some goals are clearly more serious than others.

I’ll keep track of my progress here, in case anyone is interested. If not, I don’t mind talking to myself. OK, here we go, broken down by category, naturally:

Travel
1. Visit an Asian country
2. Take a road trip
3. Visit Seattle
4. Watch the sun set over the Pacific
5. Go camping
6. Visit Chelsea
7. See a ballgame at three more stadiums
8. Visit 10 new cities
9. Have a local give me a tour of Chicago
10. Skip work for an afternoon game to Wrigley
11. Spend a day on the Lake Michigan lakeshore
12. Explore a vineyard

Adventure
13. Go skydiving
14. Hike up a mountain
15. Kayak through the jungle
16. Sing loudly in public
17. Ride a horse
18. Go snorkeling
19. Learn to SCUBA
20. Ride a motorcycle
21. Downhill ski

Culture and stuff
22. Act in a play
23. Go to the ballet
24. See an opera
25. Read LOTR trilogy
26. Memorize one classical piece of music for the piano
27. Go to a concert
28. Try sushi
29. Try Indian food
30. Watch the Godfather trilogy
31. Watch Cirque de Soleil
32. Go to a street fair
33. Watch AFI’s top 25 musicals

Give
34. Knit a friend a baby blanket
35. Buy someone else flowers
36. Throw a surprise party
37. Pay for the next person in line
38. Leave a tip of 100%
39. Volunteer 100 hours
40. Cook a meal for someone other than myself
41. Donate $20 for every item not completed

Train
42. Run in the rain
43. Eat a raw diet for two weeks
44. Finish a round on a regulation golf course
45. Drive a ball 200 yards
46. Try yoga
47. Go to the dentist
48. Complete the 100 push up challenge
49. Run a six-minute mile
50. Complete a half marathon
51. Touch my toes without bending my knees

Learn
52. Read through the Bible
53. Become fluent in Spanish
54. Learn how to knit
55. Take a dance class
56. Take an art class
57. Learn a new word every week for a year
58. Finish every puzzle in a Sudoku book
59. Attend a lecture
60. Listen to 25 lectures on iTunesU
61. Learn how to give a proper massage
62. Take a CPR class
63. Learn to drive a stick shift
64. Write a piece of nonfiction
65. Learn how to apply makeup

Connect
66. Mend a broken relationship
67. Catch up with an old friend
68. Beat my brother at something
69. Send out Christmas cards
70. Send a letter to my grandma
71. Take my parents to dinner
72. Get 5 people to make a 101 in 1001 list

Earth-friendly
73. Grow tomatoes
74. Grow an herb garden
75. Go carless for a week
76. Donate all clothing I don’t wear
77. Buy week’s worth of groceries at the farmer’s market
78. Plant a tree
79. Make the switch to fluorescent light bulbs

Just for me
80. Buy myself flowers
81. Get a bikini wax
82. Sell my house
83. Find a new place to live
84. Reach $14,000 in savings
85. Pay off car
86. Save all my change
87. Get fitted for the correct-sized bra
88. Get set up on a blind date

Just for fun
89. Cook a homemade dinner five nights a week for a month
90. Create a new dessert recipe
91. Create a signature drink
92. Take a picture every day for a month
93. Wear a dress every day for a week
94. Host a party
95. See a sing-along version of The Sound of Music
96. Go makeup-less
97. Go to the zoo
98. Go to a restaurant by myself
99. Bake a beautiful cake
100. Fly a kite
101. Enter a contest