Life List Update: Almost Four Years Later

With my 34th birthday approaching in a few months, it is now almost 5 years since I had my "where is my life going" funk and made the list that originally inspired this blog. Its also been well over a year since I've posted a single thing and although my world have been busy with sick family members, getting married, and running my own business, I still think about this nutty list often and am always inspired to do some shenanigans from it. So let's bring it back old style with an update:

Of the 111 things on my original list (because I'm an over-achiever who can't stop at 100), I've now conquered 35 of them (76 left!). So let's recap.

Stuff in grey italics are DONE!!! Stuff in blue are hopefully within reach in 6 months!

WISH ME LUCK!!!



STRENGTHEN MY BODY
1. run a marathon :: completed first on October 28, 2007 (Marine Corps in DC - 4:42:44). Finished my second at the New York Marathon in 2008 at 4:28:14. Started training for Nashville in 2010 but was sidelined for a stress fracture half way through. Finished Toledo in 2011 at 4:40:something... that was an injury filled race but I was glad to not do my worst. Too bad I don't get extra credit for finishing three now. Who would have though since I was so not a runner when I started this list.
2. complete a triathlon :: completed at Douglas, MA 5 Star Triathlon on September 13, 2008. Also finished Maumee Bay Sprint Triathlon in 2010. Maybe an Olympic is next???
3. buy a bike :: completed on April 24, 2007. And upgraded in 2010 to a road bike. Score.
4. ride a century (100mile) bike ride in honor of my Uncle Ray :: completed with my sister Tessa on August 31, 2007. Rainiest bike ride ever ended up in the longest bike ride ever. We projected 8 hours but with Tropical Storm Daniel, we finished in 11!
5. run 10 5ks :: 8 out of 10 so far (PR 26:12)
6. learn to swim properly :: finished course at Y on 4/29/08, fluent with freestyle and backstroke. Took some refreshers in 2010.
7. surf in New England
8. surf in Hawaii
9. surf in Indonesia
10. go rockclimbing outdoors
11. run in Central Park :: completed on 8/5/07 during NYC Nike Half Marathon
12. run up the stairs of the Chicago Sears Tower (now called the Willis Tower)
13. run a half-marathon in less than 2 hours (PR is 2:00:50) :: SERIOUSLY!? 50 seconds away. Its taken me 7 half-marathons and I have yet to do this but I'm totally getting closer.
14. take boxing classes
15. do a yoga 30-day challenge
16. drink 8 glasses of water a day for one full month :: why is this one SO hard for me?!?
17. no soda for a full year :: finished on 10/1/08
18. compete at least three seasons of tennis league

FEEL THE ADRENALINE
19. go skydiving for my 30th birthday :: have to reschedule this... my initial attempt on 4/12/07 got canceled because of weather
20. ride an elephant
21. ride a camel :: completed in July 2009 at Diani Beach in Kenya
22. go skinny dipping :: completed in Fall 2008, not the sexy encounter I was envisioning in my head when I wrote this item but a hilarious memory of a camping trip gone silly
23. gamble in Vegas :: completed on 5/9/07 on a work trip
24. go white-water kayaking and/or sea kayaking
25. scale/belay down a building
26. climb a volcano
27. target practice at a shooting range - this is on the agenda sometime this year with my friend Kristinna
28. play paintball :: finished on 4/13/08 with sisters, Bill, cousin Todd, and Tim... want to do it again!
29. go snowboarding out West :: woo hoo! just accomplished this in January 2012 in Vail!
30. go scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef
31. swim with sharks
32. swim with dolphins
33. drive a sportscar around a track
34. go dog sledding
35. climb Mt. Kilmanjaro

SEE THE WORLD
36. climb Macchu Picchu
37. go on an African safari :: Jen & TC's wedding in July 2009. What an amazing adventure. I still cannot believe it.
38. visit the Pyramids
39. drive across America from coast-to-coast
40. visit Japan :: completed on 5/14/08
42. visit 200 places in the "1001 Places to See Before You Die" :: 51 out of 200 so far but I haven't updated this in a while
43. visit Stockholm
44. visit Kenya :: trip of a lifetime!! completed July 2009
45. visit Montreal
46. visit Morocco
47. ride a mule in the Grand Canyon
48. go on a mission trip
49. spend a weekend in a log cabin in the wilderness :: October 2 in New Hampshire with Laura, Braden, and Emily. No running water... no electricity. And the most amazing food and more stars than you could ever ask for.
50. spend New Year's in an exotic location
51. ride in a hot air balloon :: completed on 7/12/08 in Stowe, Vermont (thanks, Steve!)
52. go on a yoga vacation/retreat
53. visit a rainforest :: completed in Belize on 12/24/07
54. fly first class
55. visit India
56. visit all seven continents :: 4 out of 7 so far
58. visit Graceland
59. attend Maine's Lobsterfest
60. attend the Head of the Charles Regatta :: completed on 10/21/07 - thanks Jeff & Sarah!
61. watch the sunset on the West Coast in a romantic setting
62. watch the sunrise on the East Coast in a romantic setting
63. spend an entire weekend on a sailboat
64. take a helicopter tour

FEED MY BRAIN
65. get CPR certified :: accomplished 3/18/10
66. learn to make paella :: completed on 5/26/07
67. read the Bible
68. grow and eat my own herbs + vegetables - I tried and failed in 2011. I'm feeling like this is the year.
69. learn to roll sushi :: classes on 9/19/08
70. learn to pray the rosary (in memory of my grandmother + with her rosary)
71. bake bread from scratch :: completed 9/29/07 (rosemary bread... mmm)
72. learn to chop food like a pro :: finished cooking chopping class on 6/8/08 given to me from Danielle, Kristen, + Liz! I can't wait!
73. learn another language fluently
74. read/reread all 100 of the "Radcliffe 100 Best Novels" :: only 9 out of 100
75. watch all 100 of the AFI's 100 years, 10th anniv edition :: 67 out of 100 so far - 33 more movies? I can do that.
76. learn more about investing - I think I need money to invest first
77. learn woodworking + make a piece of furniture :: finished a lovely teak coffeetable on 1/24/08

ADVANCE MY FUTURE
78. develop a better/stricter budget and stick to for at least 3 months
79. pick back up my contributions to my 401K :: met with a financial planner. IRA, here I come!
80. write a will :: ryan and I are actually working on this. We just need to wrap it up
81. start a new 111 to-do's once this one is halfway finished (21 more to go before I scrap all the dumb stuff on my list and refresh!)

PLAY UP MY CREATIVITY
82. learn at least three songs on my guitar
83. take up art more regularly (though drawing, painting, photography, or mixed media)
84. commit at least three balloon animals to memory :: almost!
85. knit an entire sweater
86. sell some type of art/product
87. teach a class :: I think I technically did this last year, I lectured 5 different high school art classes on what I did! WOO HOO!
88. be in another play or musical
89. write/illustrate a children's book and submit it to a publisher

GIVE BACK
90. convince someone else to start a list of life to-do's :: completed on 7/29/07, Lori and Missy
91. adopt a family for thanksgiving or christmas :: adopted two families with the Householder family in 2010 and another one with some friends in 2011
92. volunteer once a week for at least 6 months
93. organize a charity event
94. be someone's mentor
95. donate hair to Locks of Love charity (I realized I'm a triple whammy and this will never be completed... I knew they didn't take bleached hair and I have periodically highlighted my hair maybe once every other year or so... plus they don't prefer curly/wavy hair or blonde hair. DAMN!)

SACRIFICE UNNECESSARIES
96. give up coffee for at least 3 months :: finished 1/1/08
97. go to bed no later than 11pm every weekday for a month
98. one week without a single curse word - I've probably done this and not known it since I don't have nearly the potty mouth I had when I originally wrote this.
99. go one week without complaining a single time
100. no computer for one whole week :: completed week of 5/14/08 while in Japan, Vancouver, Seattle

OH YEA... SUPERFICIAL STUFF TOO
101. buy a car
102. buy a house/condo/2-square-foot-of-land!
103. own a pair of manolo blahniks or jimmy choos :: completed on 9/16/08 (thanks, you know who you are!)
104. wear a bikini and feel 100% gorgeous + confident with my body
105. eat at a Michelin-rated restaurant
106. be on a silly TV gameshow (reality TV shows DO NOT count)
107. do a keg stand with both my sisters :: completed on 4/12/08
108. kiss someone in the pouring rain (a la The Notebook... *sigh*) :: completed on July 31, 2009. First weekend reunited with Ryan... stuck in the Ryan trying to get to dinner with my sisters as our cabbie got pulled over by a cop for a wrong turn and we chanced trying for another cab. Umbrella broke. And we were soaking wet. It was frustrating as hell but every moment with him that weekend was still romantic and magical.
109. throw an old-school all-girls pajama party sleepover :: completed on 4/26/08
110. go to the movies once a month for a full year
111. go on a picnic complete with basket, blanket, wine, and a cute guy :: got the basket and the guy... now I just gotta make it happen once the weather warms up!