I am 34… I think. I don’t have that many fingers and toes so it’s hard to accurately calculate but I’m pretty sure I’m a lot months younger than Dan, who is 35, so I will say I’m 34. Let’s just call it “early 30’s.”
The way I figger, given that I plan to live to at least a hundred years of age, that means I’m about a third of the way through my life and nowhere near a third of the way through the mental list of things I want to accomplish in my life. If you throw my increasing age and possible decrepitness into the mix, I think it would behoove me to do as many of the things on said intangible list before my fortieth birthday as possible. You know? While I can still chew my own food.
This list has been on my mind and I thought it was time I wrote it down, considering I am planning to check off one of the largest items tomorrow morning.
I am competing in a triathlon. Competing is a harsh word. I am going to complete triumphantly a sprint triathlon without injuring myself or any other person.
I’ve been training for months with my friend Stephanie, who is faster than me at swimming, faster than me at running, and who became faster than me at biking when she discovered that shifting gears actually makes a difference. Dang the do-gooder spin class friend who explained this to her!
My original goal for the tri was to finish in something better than last place. Then we looked at the finishing times for last year and my new goal is to finish the tri unscathed. We shall see.
Below is a partial list of other Feats of Strength, Skill, and Whimsy I hope to pull off in the next five and a half years:
1. Fake sky dive (I promised Dan I would never truly sky dive so this will have to suffice unless he dies before me and then the promise is void. I will wait at least one week from his funeral before suiting up and jumping out of a plane.)
2. Sing and play guitar in front of someone other than my own family members
3. Publish a book
4. Digitize and organize our family photos and videos
5. Direct a documentary film and enter it in a festival, hosted by Not My Mom
6. Complete a thorough study of the Bible with supporting documents and commentaries.
7. Scuba dive at night (happening later this summer)
8. Ride in a hot air balloon
9. Drive a car over 120 miles per hour
10. Build a piece of furniture
11. Visit Europe with Dan
12. Design and sew an article of clothing for myself without a pattern
13. Hike (at least partially) Mount Rainier
14. Visit every library in King County
15. Hike to the peak of Mount Timpanogos
16. Do an amazing act of service, something I’ll never forget
17. Teach my kids to flush the toilet
I am positive you will accomplish all the items on your list…except # 17…I am fairly certain this is impossible.
I love you! And when you get your kids to do #17 please hve them come over and flush mine. And I’ve done #1 and its pretty awesome!
I need to actually write down my list instead of just having it in my head. It’s fun to see what things on your list I have done, and what ideas I will steal from you. I realized a week or so ago that I have reached the age that would signify the year of my mid life crisis. (I might have to adjust my original desire to only live to 70.)
As for #17, living in a house with only a man and three man children, I have found the only solution is to have them pee outside. But the neighbors started complaining…
Come visit me in Germany and take our BMW for a spin on the autobahn! That will take care of #9 for you! 🙂
That’s a great list!
I love your list and I feel the same. I am afraid I might never manage to go all the places I want to go or get a book published.
visiting every library in king county sounds fun, now i want to do it.
hot air balloon? bit of advice i wish someone had told me. be flexible on your date choice. it’s not generally a schedule it and go deal. even if the weather down here is great, up there might make it a no go.
When you come down to Utah to climb Mount Timpanogas, you should stop by Lagoon and fly the Sky Coaster. It’s expensive, but a great rush. That is the closest I can think of for fake sky diving. (Unless you are going to try a wind tunnel like IFly or something. That I’ve not tried but would like to…)
Also, hiking to the peak of Timp would be neat. That’s like an 8+ hour deal. (I haven’t done this, but my brother is actually going to do it with his friends tomorrow.) I wish you all the best in your list.
In. For the fake sky diving. I know the Timp thing is a big deal. That’s why it goes on the list. Also adding, win a ribbon for something I enter at the local fair. I’m not sure if it will be a science project, or a lego creation, or an oddly shaped vegetable, but I want a ribbon.