Thursday, September 22, 2011

26 Things to do While 26

image via weheartit

My dear friend Carrie does this thing every year on her birthday: Things to do while she's a certain age, with 1 thing for every year she is old. That sounded confusing, but I mean she comes up with "25 Things to do While 25," "26 Things to do While 26," etc. (Yeah, that makes much more sense.) Anyway, she's inspired me. So I've come up with my own, even though I'm about a month late. They aren't terribly lofty goals, and many are fairly easy. In fact, a lot of these are things that I've been "meaning to do" over the last few years, and have just never gotten around to. If I put them on a list, I'll HAVE to do them. =)

1. Reach this important goal that doesn't get to be shared with everyone. (Sorry.)

2. Attend a Parson Red Heads show.

3. Read 25 new books.

4. Hike Inspiration Point at Jenny Lake.

5. Learn to cook 5 new things.

6. Finish the current volume of my journal.

7. Go through the temple for 5 family names.

8. Learn to ride a motorcycle bigger than 110 cc’s.

9. Finish writing the first draft (at least) of the “Kirby Novel.”

10. Anonymously pay for a stranger's meal.

11. Get a 3.4 GPA each semester.

12. Give someone a copy of the Book of Mormon.

13. Sleep under the stars.

14. Travel to someplace I've NEVER been before.

15. Go sledding. (This sounds so easy, but I say I'm going to go every year, and have YET to actually go.)

16. Bake a pumpkin pie.

17. Complete the scrapbook for the trip to Germany my family made in high school.

18. Finish the New York City travel diary.

19. Learn Hindi basics...be able to say your standard beginner conversational phrases. ("Hello, how are you?" "Where is the train station?" "It will rain today." You know.)

20. Read 5 Shakespeare plays I haven't read before.

21. Go horseback riding.

22. Sew a skirt for myself.

23. Build an online acting resume.

24. Ride the carousel at Porter Park.

25. Run a mile in under 15 minutes. (I know this sounds pathetic. It is. But running has never been my strongest...thing. It's possible that I have sports-induced asthma, but I'm probably just really really really out of shape. I could put the goal "Get in shape," but I know it's not specific enough for me. The mile in under 15 minutes goal is specific enough and measurable enough for me to accomplish it. Even though I'll still probably get tested for asthma...)

26. Make a painting...a real, on-a-canvas painting, with paint. I've done plenty of artwork in my life, including lots of set painting, but I've never tried just a straight up PAINTING. I'm gonna do acrylics, since I'm most familiar with them, and because I already have a TON. And I'm thinking from a "gridded image"...I'm sure there's an official artistic term for this, but I sure don't know what it is. I'm in the process of brainstorming exactly what to paint. I'm not a huge fan of still lifes, but human figures/faces are a little beyond my training and ability at the moment. I keep coming back to images from the Hubble telescope. CONS: Light. That's hard. Painting luminosity. PROS: Wiggle-room for creativity/mistakes. If I don't paint a face correctly, you'll know it. But if I don't paint a star system correctly, I'll say it's a fantasy world. =)

What are you going to do in this year of your life?

7 comments:

Valerie said...

Listen, I hate to tell you how to live your 26th year, but for the sake of symmetry, you should read 26 books, not 25.

Also, I'll just assume the goal you can't talk about has something to do with aiding East German citizens to defect from behind the Berlin wall by smuggling them out during intermission while they perform with the East Berlin symphony. I'll also it has to do with a time machine.

Anonymous said...

I'm way too old to do this.

Mom
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

word verification - drach: An exclamation of frustration said with a granola bar in one's mouth.

Beckah said...

I got an inhaler to try and help with my exercise-induced asthma, and it doesn't do CRAP. So now I have to go in for a pulmonary function test. Fun.

That sounds cool. Maybe I'll make a similar list for my birthday. And the first thing on it will be "make more lists," because I don't think I've ever created a list for anything in my life.

Word verification: "yistor" - a Jewish sister

mallosaurus said...

oh my goodness this is great! can i copy you and Carrie? kthx. also i love your mom's comment. also can i get in on the word verification game? just a few minutes ago on another friend's blog the word verification was "kingear" - King Lear said in an Asian accent?

this new one is "stunne": slang for salsa tune. 'Man, i'm lovin' that stunne!'

...am i trying too hard?

mallosaurus said...

p.s. lizard how do you get the thing that says "You might also like..." at the bottom of your posts? where it lists other posts?

Zia said...

Thats an awesome list you have there!! :D

Just wondering, why do you wanna learn Hindi?? :S

Cheryl J said...

What a lovely idea of things to do for your age. I struggle with a follow through of ideas, may do myself a list, If you don't mind? I could link your blog to it so I've not totally pinched it.
I think your a wonderful writer, can't wait to read some more.