# 25 Have Another OTC Solo

Completed February 21, 2007

Off the Cuff (OTC) is my college a cappella group. Sophomore year I had the solo for Jimmy Eat World's "Futures" (photo of me singing above), and the one I got to complete this goal was for Del Amitri's "Roll to Me". If you'd like to hear me singing "Futures" you can purchase our first CD, Cartoonishly Irresponsible, for $10- email me at offthecuff@richmond.edu and I'll take care of it. We also have a CD coming out later this year which will have "Roll to Me" on it, so you can pre-order that one, too. Of course, you can always come see us in concert at UR!

# 28 Go to Boston

Completed June, 2007

My original plan was to get up to Boston to visit Jonny, but it turned out he was actually living at school in Maine when I was in Boston, so we missed each other. Anyway, when Dave came to visit from Australia, he thought I lived near Boston (not quite) and said he'd like to see the city. I made plans, put in a few calls, found us a free place to stay (Brandeis frat house), and drove us up. I really liked the city- there's a lot of American history there and it's pretty clean and visitor-friendly. If I only could have gone to a Red Sox game and checked off # 30 as well....next time.

Photo is me in the Boston Commons with the "Make Way for Ducklings" statues- I loved that book when I was a kid!

# 37 Go to Mardi Gras

Completed February 14-18, 2007

When I was growing up, I had a friend in my neighborhood during the summer who lived with his mom in New Orleans during the school year. I've wanted to go to Mardi Gras since he started telling me about it, and conveniently enough, my college roommate is from New Orleans. In lieu of a spring break trip, my mom bought me a plane ticket to 'the Big Easy' for a long weekend right before the actual "Fat Tuesday", but we got to see most of the biggest parades. Jessica (my roommate)'s grandma lived right on the parade route, so we just hung out at her house all day eating and drinking and going out to the front yard to catch beads when parades went by. We stuck mostly with the 'family oriented' part of Carnival, but one of these days I'd like to get back and check out the clubs as well as the parades. Good times!

Me, Bonnie, and Jessica between parades.

# 19 and # 20 Together

Completed January, 2007

I'm putting these together because neither are exciting enough to earn their own post.

# 19 I learned how to drive a manual car to the point where I was comfortable enough to drive from campus to the Fan- about a 10 minute drive (but I took about 20), and I think I only stalled once. I probably need more practice, though.

# 20 I sold a calculus textbook on eBay. I got like $40 for it. Very exciting.

# 18 Own Lonely Planet's Blue List

Completed December 25, 2006

I'm a pretty big fan of travel and of lists, so when I saw Lonely Planet's Blue List book I had to have it. They put out a new one every year, so I'll make sure I keep up with the latest. The Blue List has categories like "Best Tourist Destinations That Are Worth the Crowds" (example: Taj Mahal) and "Best Food and Place Combinations" (a hot dog in New York City). It's pretty interesting and inspiring to flip through- give it a shot.

# 13 Send Out Christmas Cards

Completed December, 2006

This one's pretty self-explanatory, too. I like that even if you don't keep in touch very well with certain people, you can still let them know that they're on your mind during the holiday season. I sent a bunch to people I'd just left from studying abroad with, too, so it was kind of special. Nowadays with all the text messaging and facebook wall posting, I think it's nice when friends take the time to send real mail *hinthint*. Anyway, we'll see if I stick with it again this year.

# 14 Run a 5K

Completed September 22, 2007

OK, I'm extra excited about this one for two reasons: 1) it's the first goal I've completed in 'real time' since I started this blog, and 2) not only did I run the 5k, but I got a silver medal!! My team of 5, "Team Jogging Somewhat-ish" (pictured above with our medals: Laurie, Meg, me, Beth, and Tracy) managed to place second in the Women's Over 17 age group.

The race was the Marine Corps Mud Run, and it was awesome. It started pretty normally, but then we ran under a road in a dry creek bed, along the river up to our waist for about 100 yards, through a mud pit up to our knees, up a giant hill, down the giant hill, through another small river, and finally, for the last 100 feet or so, we crawled/swam in a foot and a half of muddy water under ropes to the finish line (see the mud pit here). I've never been so dirty in my life, and it felt great. I had mud in my ears, my nose, my hair, everywhere. We went back to the river to swim and 'wash off', but I don't know how much it helped. We had no idea we'd placed, though we were hopeful of being among the top few. When they announced we got second, we were shocked, but so excited. My teammates really pushed me, and although I was in a lot of pain, I'm glad they did. I think we finished right around 29:15, which I'm pretty excited about- my personal goal was under 30 minutes.

Just because I had so much fun, and because I'm always looking for a new challenge (and 53 more goals!), I'm adding an 8 or 10k to my to-do list.

# 29 Attend Christmas Eve Church Services

Completed December 24, 2006

Christmas Eve might be one of my favorite nights of the year. I enjoy the lead up to Christmas even more than the actual day, and Christmas Eve church services are always so peaceful and lovely. I'd been when I was a kid but I wanted to go again when I could get more out of it, so Mom and I went, along with Grandma and Aunt Betsey and my sister. We sang carols and talked about the message of Christmas, and it was all very nice. I'll definitely try to go again. Also, the candlelight service around Christmastime at Richmond is really nice, so I'll try to get to that since I missed it last year.

# 41 Get a Tattoo

Completed December 23, 2006

I'd been toying with the idea of getting a tattoo for a few months, mostly because I'd had such a fantastic time in Oz that I wanted to commemorate it somehow. I definitely wanted to think long and hard about exactly what and where I wanted it (just to be sure), and the boomerang idea came to me one night as I was trying to fall asleep. Yeah, it hurt quite a bit, but it was so small that it only took about 3 minutes to do, so it was bearable. A week or so afterward, I had a moment of panic and tried to wash it off (brilliant), but now I love it and I'm so glad I got it. I've also started thinking about another one... :)

PS: can you tell that it's not actually symmetrical? Oh well.

# 9 Try Thai Food

Completed December 10, 2006

Nothing too mysterious about this one- after Rick went to Thailand he started talking about how good Thai food is, so I made it a goal to try some. I went to Mom Siam in Carytown, Richmond, VA, and had pad thai. Since then I've also had pad thai at Ginger Thai, also in Carytown. Ginger Thai is $1 more but I think it's better. Anyway, it's safe to say I'm hooked. Maybe one day I'll even try a new dish.

# 4 Go Sailing in the Whitsundays

Completed November 22, 2006

After our residence hall kicked us out at the end of term, I went on a camper van road trip up Australia's east coast from Brisbane to the Whitsunday Coast (about 1000k in 5 days) with (above) Esben from Denmark, Alex from Norway, and Allan from Scotland, all friends from uni. The Whitsunday Islands are a group of islands off the coast of Queensland between Mackay and Townsville, and are super famous for sailing, camping, snorkeling, and generally being paradise. I knew we were taking this road trip but I wasn't sure if we'd make it that far up- although the boys were continuing all the way north to Cairns, I was flying out of Mackay (south of the Whitsundays) for New Zealand on the 23rd. Luckily, we had enough time, so as soon as we got back into cell phone service range the day before (we'd been in 'the bush'), I called and made reservations for a day sail to go snorkeling. We sailed to Heyman Island and snorkeled in Blue Pearl Bay. It was worth driving all night to get there on time- the weather warmed up nicely, the snorkeling was great and now I want my own sailboat. So glad I managed to check this one off the list.

# 10 Eat a Moreton Bay Bug

Completed November 18, 2006

Ok, before you judge me, it's like a lobster. Bay bugs are only found in Moreton Bay (obviously) at the mouth of the Brisbane River and are a local favorite. I wanted to give one a try at A Salt and Battery in honor of being a local. It was pretty tasty. Mmmm.

# 5 Tour the XXXX Brewery

Completed Nov. 8, 2006

XXXX is a beer company based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, where I was studying abroad. 'Fourex' was pretty much all we drank, so of course we had to go on the official brewery tour one night. Along with the tour, the entry price included 4 drinks at the end, one of which they don't sell outside the brewery, so that was pretty cool. The best part was goofing around with everyone afterwards, and of course later in the night we walked down to the Regatta for jugs of....XXXX.

Above: Brandon, Jon, Lynsey, Luke, me, Nicola, Allan, and Thom-O, some of the coolest kids I know.

# 3 Feed a Kangaroo

Completed October 18, 2006

There are quite a few wildlife reserve/zoo type places in Australia where the kangas run free. You can buy little food pellets, like what you'd feed a goat, and the kangaroos just hop up to you and sometimes grab hold of your arm as they eat out of your hand. Their claws can be sharp though, and if you annoy them too much they will kick you. Hanging out with a bunch of 'roos can keep you entertained for hours. Definitely an experience I'd recommend.

# 2 Hold a Koala

Completed October 18, 2006

Who goes to Australia and doesn't hold a koala? Exactly. I think this one was called Bagel. Just for the record, koalas smell, and they have sharp claws. I smelled like koala for the rest of the day. However, I can't say he wasn't adorable. Awww.

# 1 Walk on the Sydney Harbor Bridge

Completed October 13, 2006

Originally I wanted to climb it (see the flags on top? That's where I would have gone), but after seeing the price I settled for walking out to the middle. The views were still pretty incredible.

Did you know...? The Sydney Harbor Bridge opened in 1932 and is 3,770 feet long.

To catch you up:

I started this list Oct. 13, 2006 when I went to Sydney, Australia. I knew I wanted to do a list but since the first thing on it was Sydney-related, I figured I'd wait for Sydney to officially start. I was studying abroad in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia at the time, so several of the first items are Australian. Otherwise, I've been trying to work on it whenever I can, but obviously I'm having some trouble thinking of appropriate goals. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

The List

101 Things to Do in 1001 Days

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Start: Friday, October 13, 2006
End: Friday, July 10, 2009


Completed: 35 (In Progress)
Left to think of: 12
Left to check off: 66

1. Walk on the Sydney Harbour Bridge Oct. 13, 2006
2. Hold a koala Oct. 18, 2006
3. Feed a kangaroo Oct. 18, 2006
4. Go sailing in the Whitsunday Islands Nov. 22, 2006
5. Tour the XXXX brewery Nov. 8, 2006
6. Read 10 more of the 1001 must read books (done: 2)
7. Get an A- or better in 5 classes Dec. 2007
8. Listen to every song in my iTunes & get rid of the ones I don't like
9. Try Thai food Dec. 10, 2006
10. Eat a Moreton Bay Bug Nov. 18, 2006
11. Stand up on a surfboard
12. Visit Nicola and Lynsey in England July 23, 2007
13. Send out Christmas cards Dec. 2006
14. Run a 5k Sept. 22, 2007
15. Picnic in Central Park
16. See IMDB's Top 100 movies (done: 49)
17. Come up with 101 things
18. Own Lonely Planet’s Blue List Dec. 25, 2006
19. Really learn how to drive a manual car Jan, 2007
20. Sell something on eBay Jan. 6, 2007
21. Visit 2 new countries: New Zealand Nov. 23, 2006, Scotland July 25, 2007
22. Get a professional facial Jan. 9, 2008
23. Visit 4 new states June 8, 2008
24. Tour a winery
25. Have another OTC solo Feb. 21, 2007
26. Have a drink in NYC with Mom
27. Go on a college tour with Leslie
28. Go to Boston July 2007
29. Attend Christmas Eve church services Dec. 24, 2006
30. Go to a major league baseball game
31. Take a photography class May, 2007
32. Take a drawing class Jan-May, 2008
33. Go to DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival
34. Learn to juggle
35. Put the Rolling Stone’s top 100 rock songs of all time into my iTunes
36. Have a book of my photos printed
37. Go to Mardi Gras Feb. 14-18, 2006
38. See Something Corporate or Jack’s Mannequin in concert
39. 365 Day Portrait Challenge
40. See Ground Zero Aug. 22, 2007
41. Get a tattoo Dec. 23, 2006
42. See IMDB's 101-250 top movies
43. See AFI's 100 Years...100 Films
44. Donate hair (at least 10") Sept. 2007
45. Recruit another person to do this list Jan. 24, 2008
46. Own a digital SLR camera Dec. 25, 2007
47. Go on a cruise March 8-15, 2008
48. Write my Australia diary
49. Run an 8 or 10k
50. Plant and harvest a vegetable plant
51. Do a photographic portrait study of someone
52. Raise/donate $1000 for various charities (so far: $285)
53. Take a yoga class
54. Collect my tips from the coffee shop for one month and donate to a local charity (TBD)
55. Own a Bible March 4, 2008
56. Read Bible
57. Run a marathon
58. Graduate cum laude May 11, 2008
59. Host a champagne brunch at my apartment May 10, 2008
60. Run a 5k under 25 minutes
61. Eat vegetarian for one week
62. Plant and grow a bonsai tree from seed
63. Try every tea in the coffee shop where I work May, 2008
64. Make a mini-list of recommendations of goals
65. Vote in the US Presidential election
66. Cook a romantic dinner for two
67. Refrain from gossip for one week
68. Learn the Thriller dance
69. Be able to play 5 songs on the guitar that I really like.
70. Apply for and receive BUNAC visa
71. Pay off my credit card before moving to London
72. Find an apartment in London
73. Find a job in London
74. Shadow a professional photographer
75. Sell a piece of glass art
76. See the AFI's 10 Top 10
77. Really, truly clean out my room
78. Save all important emails from my Richmond account
79. Learn how to make sushi
80. Have a photo shoot with my puppy
81. Visit Africa
82. Make a photo display in my room
83. Make a "Where I've Been" map to hang in my room
84. Knit a blanket
85. Download VH1's Top 100 Songs of the 80s
86. Download VH1's Top 100 Songs of the 90s
87. Run a half marathon
88.
89.
90.
91.
92.
93.
94.
95.
96.
97.
98.
99.
100.
101. For every item not done, donate $10 to charity.