So, as I do in all my moments of potential crisis, I decided to make myself a list.
The original version is in my journal and a lot of it is frankly impossible now that I'm only seven months away from turning 30.
Like these items from the original list?
1. Build a House
3. Lose 90 lbs.
6. Run a half marathon
10. Drive across the country
17. Learn to cook a souffle
19. Live in Europe
26. Read the Bible again.
Not going to happen. At least not in my twenties.
The funny thing about the way I write in my journals is that I often lose track of things right after I write them. By mid-August that journal was filled up and promptly stuffed underneath my bed.
Which meant that I totally lost track of my 30 Things list for a few months. So I made another one in my next journal, and it only partially matched up with the original. And then I think the list moved to my phone so I wouldn't keep losing it. But then I got an iPad and the list migrated again. Then came the iPhone last year. And each time the list changed places, it got tweaked a little bit.
When I moved to Utah, I had to alter it again because a lot of the items were location-specific. Like I wanted to ride my bike to the end of the Iron Horse Trail, but that would be a 750 mile bike ride now across the salt flats and the Nevada desert. So I swapped it for biking to Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon.
Here is the list in its current form. I redid it again instead of making New Year's Resolutions this year. I don't know for sure if I'll finish it all before I turn thirty, but even if I don't, that's okay with me. I just like having a list of personal challenges and adventures. Keeps me from feeling as old as I really am. :)
Note: The question marks are for things I can't do by myself so I can't be sure they'll happen. Or for things that I'm not sure I really want to do. You'll also notice some alternatives in parentheses.
30 Things to Do Before I'm 30
1. Finish all the French lessons on Duolingo
2. Learn to play a hymn or two
3. Learn to play the banjo
4. Be kissed? (done)
5. Publish fiction
6. Read all my journals again (or start a blog--done)
7. Sing in Lamb of God again (done--sort of)
8. Finish my crosstitch
9. Visit the East Coast? (Or go on a cruise?--done)
10. Go on a trip with Nani (or Jess--done)
11. Renew my passport (or travel abroad without one--done)
12. Start freelancing again (done)
13. Go to Utah (or move there--done)
14. Ride Daphne to the end of the Iron Horse trail (or to Bridal Veil Falls)
15. Keep working at the temple (ongoing)
16. Hike to the top of Camp Ritchie (or hike to Two Trees)
17. Climb the wall at Camp Ritchie (or go rock climbing somewhere else)
18. Hand-walk the parallel bars by Brody's old house (close enough)
19. Save at least _____ in my emergency fund and _____ in my Roth IRA (Sorry, blog readers, you don't get to know my financial figures. Mostly because they're embarrassingly low. Did I mention I work in publishing and before that I was a nanny? Not the most lucrative career paths. But so much fun it's worth it.)
20. Make pesto (done)
21. Ask someone out, but not _______ or _______. (done) (You also don't get to know these names. I wouldn't necessarily mind, but they might.)
22. Go to the dentist. (Ugh. Sigh. Blech.)
23. Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge (done)
24. Hike Mt. Tam (or visit the Mt. Timpanogos caves)
25. Visit Muir Woods (or find a forest in Utah)
26. Go hiking at Las Trampas again (done)
27. Finish writing The Jane Journals (done with a first draft)
28. Host a hot chocolate party
29. Make dinner for my guy friends (done)
30. Go to Chinatown
I can't bear to replace that last one. There's no suitable Utah equivalent to San Francisco's Chinatown. I'll just have to do the tourist thing next time I go home to visit.
Anyway, this list is a little silly and a little idiosyncratic, but that's what I like about it.
So now the question is, what would you put on your list?
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