I've made a few changes to The List that I started back in early 2007. Some things have been shuffled around, some things added and some things deleted. You might think that this is counter to the spirit of the list--a long litany of goals to reach before my fortieth birthday. But it's my list, my blog, my goals. So I changed things.
Gone are many of the aspirations that became impossible at worst, improbable at best: no more trips to NYC to dine at one of Mario's restaurants, no more vacation to Finland.
Also deleted was "buy a house," a goal we've had since leaving Canada in 2003. We realized that with the kids out of high school in fewer than five years, we might not want to buy a house in Vancouver at all. I'll put that on my "50x50" list, should I make one.
Some goals were renamed. I gave myself a little more lattitude to "contact old friends," for example, rather than "write a letter monthly." Same spirit, but more flexibility. Likewise, I'm not as anxious to "get off antidepressants" as I am to "take care of my mental health."
I also added a few new things. I'm looking forward to working with our new puppy as he develops into a well trained dog. And next week I will begin mentoring Anna, a teenager who moved here from Ukraine, just six months ago.
Fortunately I left a few items on my list that had already been completed. The Ilmatar quilt and some bike riding help boost my self-confidence that much of this is possible. That said, I know that my chance of achieving everything on the list is unlikely. That's okay--I'll give it a shot and see what happens.
- 1. Blog regularly (at least 1x week)
- 2. Commute to work by bike
- 3. Contact old friends
- 4. Create Lucky Star Cards
- 5. Deal with old debt
- 6. De-clutter
- 7. Develop a bill paying system
- 8. Eat a pancake breakfast at the Sons of Norway lodge
- 9. Eat more vegetables, less meat
- 10. Exhibit my artwork
- 11. Finish fingerless gloves
- 12. Finish Ilmatar quilt
- 13. Get away from home with just Harry
- 14. Go back to VanIsle and see Fiona
- 15. Go river rafting
- 16. Have a big adventure
- 17. Hike Ape Caves again
- 18. Implement a plan for Saffron's Threads
- 19. Join a food buying club
- 20. Make homemade fortune cookies
- 21. Make my mom an urn and scatter her remaining ashes
- 22. Make snowflake cookies
- 23. Never pay late fees/overdraft charges again
- 24. Organize all sewing and crafts
- 25. Participate in NaNoWriMo or NaBloPoMo
- 26. Raise credit score to 700
- 27. Raise household income to $50,000/year
- 28. Refinish/upholster corner chair
- 29. Ride the Portland Tram
- 30. See an active volcano
- 31. Set up worm composting
- 32. Sew 1950s dress and host a mid-century cocktail party
- 33. Shop off the rack at Ann Taylor
- 34. Start my Masters degree
- 35. Subscribe to two favorite magazines (only)
- 36. Take a vacation with each kid alone
- 37. Take a wine appreciation class
- 38. Take care of my mental health
- 39. Train Arlo for agility and/or earthdog trials
- 40. Volunteer to mentor an at-risk teen
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