Epic Attempts

I love the summertime. Amazing weather (when the apocolypse isn't crawling over DC) and tons of things to do.

I have recently been in the buying mood despite my low funds. On my list of 1001 things to do in 101 days #99. Finish all shopping for the year by Halloween (Birthdays, Christmas, Etc.) so I am trying to fuel my buying energy in that direction as an excuse.

Speaking of which I am moving along pretty well on my list:

1. Learn Conversational French
2. Learn Sign Language
3. Swim with a dolphin
4. Host a board game night
5. Visit all 50 states
6. Put my feet in the Pacific Ocean (I put my feet in the Gulf of Mexico!)
7. Don’t text message for an entire month
8. Build something
9. Visit the Ben and Jerry’s Factory (In Waterbury, VT)
10. Go to Ireland
11. Watch Star Wars for the first time (just the first movie) Watched Episodes 4, 5, & 6 on 02/14/09
12. Take daily vitamin every day straight for a month (Finished May 2009!)
13. Set and FOLLOW a month long workout routine.
14. Learn how to drive a manual.
15. Make a photography portfolio
16. Buy a bicycle
17. Go two weeks without cursing
18. Keep a piggy bank and put ALL excess change in said bank
19. Read the entire Harry Potter Series… again
20. Read at least 4 books off of a greatest books ever written list
21. See Dave Matthews in Concert... no matter how old he is and no matter how old I am.
22. Decorate an entire room of my own by myself.
23. Go to the New Jersey Botanical Gardens
24. Straddle 5 state lines… Photographed.
25. Finally organize all of the postcards I have collected.
26. Create and mail in a Post Secret postcard.
27. Don’t watch any television for a week.
28. Don’t use any plastic bags for a month.
29. Don’t buy bottled water for a month.
30. Paint a room a crazy color
31. Run in a mini marathon ((5k in October!))
32. Dress up for Halloween (seriously, even though you hate Halloween)
33. Watch the end of the West Wing series
34. Watch the end of the O.C. series
35. Learn how to surf
36. Learn how to play guitar

37. Go to a wine tasting
38. Go to a drive in movie
39. Go to a planetarium
40. Listen to all of the music on my iPod (5535 items, 49.7 days worth of music)
41. Skip dessert for a month
42. Stop biting my nails for an entire month
43. Make something from blown glass
44. Learn how to make pottery
45. Color an entire coloring book
46. Send 101 cards (41/101)
47. Read Gone With the Wind
48. Don’t use Facebook for two weeks
49. Pay Dad back for the accident ($500)
50. See 50 of IMDB’s top 250 movies (http://www.imdb.com/chart/top)
51. Do Photo Project 365 (http://photojojo.com/content/tutorials/project-365-take-a-photo-a-day/)
52. Go to a Salsa Club
53. Buy nothing for a week.
54. See the sunrise (01/20/09, Inauguration morning, the day I started 1001!)
55. See the sunset.
56. Do the 26 Things project (http://sh1ft.org/26things/)
57. Reread Childhood books
58. Attend a film festival
59. Go to Atlantic City (Post 05/05/09) and gamble with only $40. Whatever happens, happens, no continuing with winnings.
60. Keep a journal everyday.
61. Go to church every Sunday for three months straight.
62. Organize iTunes
63. Organize all of my crap/memorabilia
64. Don’t eat out for an entire month
65. Ride in a hot air balloon
66. Graduate (Early?)
67. Make my own website (buy the web space... don’t cop out)
68. Keep a dream glass
69. Get over it.
70. Sing in front of people
71. Read five banned books
72. Dress up for an entire week for no reason.
73. Go crabbing
74. Donate to Locks of Love (more than once)
75. Buy fruit from local farmers for an entire month
76. See Penguins in their natural habitat (Saw penguins LIVE at the Florida Aquarium 03/14/09).
77. Travel to a Spanish speaking country and use as much Spanish as possible
78. Seriously consider backpacking across Europe in 07/2010. Do everything humanly possible to go.
79. Read more books per year than the previous year (32 in 06, 33 in 07…)
80. Donate to a charity every year (0/3)
81. Go to the beach without getting Sun burned
82. Finish and frame a puzzle with over 5,000 pieces in it.
83. Attempt (legitimately) a NaNoWriMo (http://www.nanowrimo.org/)
84. Write a message in a bottle and let it go at my favorite spot by the beach.
85. Go through an entire semester without missing class.
86. Go sky diving.
87. Conquer my fear of horses and ride one.
88. Send someone I love flowers anonymously.
89. Keep five plants/flowers/trees, and keep them alive.
90. Fill someone’s expired meter.
91. Go to high school reunion.

92. Give up all caffeine (including chocolate) for two months.
93. Go to the top ten best rated restaurants in DC.
94. Shadow a journalist, designer, or Mr. Zink for a day.
95. Write your life story in a day.

96. Edit it later, make a memoir?

97. Identify 100 things that make you happy.

98. Start a blog and keep up with it.

99. Finish all shopping for the year by Halloween (Birthdays, Christmas, Etc.)

100. Donate $10 to charity for every item I do not achieve by XX/XX/XXXX

101. Create another list.

So many dreams and so little time.

I'm also making every attempt to become a coupon lady. Things are expensive and I hear gas prices are rising too! It's rough.

I have stopped eating out as much as possible. I'm not going to lie, I have broken a couple of times but it's only been 2 or 3 in two weeks, which after eating out almost every meal isn't bad! Attempt number 2 to save money.

Going home in two weeks for my Mom's Birthday and Father's Day and I'm pretty excited. My sister is popping in to visit tomorrow night on her way to VA which will also be a good time. I am having the hardest time finding a birthday card for my mom though. We try to make each other cry due to laugher but I don't want to make my mother cry because of saddness from an old joke which is what EVERY card is now. How frustrating. I might have to make her one and think of something witty. If you know of any good card stores in DC or ideas for messages for inside cards send them my way!

More later, and more often, promise.

Photo for this post: Flowers on campus.