(Almost) 100 Things To Do

I have always had a mental list of things I wanted to accomplish in my lifetime and I thought it would be great to put them all here, online, as a visual reminder. Some of the things have already been crossed out because the list has been around much longer this blog has. Some things I have done before but want to do again.

The order of things is in no way indicative of importance. The list is not complete, nor is it static. My goals change constantly and what is important to me today, may not be in a year or ten. I realize that and grant myself the freedom to update and revise this list as often as necessary. The only important thing is to experience.

To Do:

1. See a play on Broadway.
2. Adopt an animal from a shelter.
3. Celebrate Christmas in another country.
4. Prepare and deliver a speech that has nothing to do with my job.
5. Leave a $100 tip on an inexpensive meal.
6. Drive through Big Sur. Jan 1991
7. Ride in a helicopter.
8. Spend a holiday working in a shelter or soup kitchen.
9. Take CPR/AED training. Dec 2008
10. Visit Morocco.
11. Meet at least one of my online friends in person.
12. Ride in a hot air balloon Sep 1994
13. Spend a night in a lighthouse.
14. Ride a cable car in San Francisco.
15. Ride in a horse-drawn carriage. Oct 2003
16. Learn to play another instrument besides the piano.
17. Teach someone to read.
18. Visit Spain.
19. Grow my own roses.
20. Go dogsledding.
21. Meet a favorite author and own a signed copy of their book Nov 2007
22. Attend a major sporting event (Olympics, World Series, Super Bowl, Wimbledon, etc.)
23. Go at least a week without television.
24. Go at least three days without the Internet.
25. Serve on a jury. Dec 2007
26. See the autumn foliage in the Northeast.
27. Be in the audience of a television show.
28. Make a charitable donation that results in having my name on something.
29. Own a room with a view.
30. Cruise to Alaska.
31. Bid on and win something in an auction (eBay doesn’t count).
32. Purchase a painting from a local artist.
33. Purchase a sculpture from a local artist.
34. Purchase a photo from a local photographer. May 2008
35. Be a board member of a professional or charitable organization.
36. Ride a subway.
37. Take a self-defense class.
38. Build a snowman again.
39. Write a book, even if it never gets published.
40. See the Giant Sequoias.
41. Try a new recipe every month for a year. Aug 2009
42. Run for political office and win. Nov 1990
43. Take a photograph that I would proudly display.
44. Make a will.
45. Go to a comedy club. Oct 2003
46. Plant a tree.
47. Eat a croissant at a sidewalk cafe in France.
48. Memorize a poem.
49. Buy dinner for a family sitting near me in a restaurant, anonymously.
50. See the Atlantic Ocean.
51. See Lake Superior from Canada.
52. Take a community class in something I know nothing about.
53. Ride across Canada by train.
54. Visit India.
55. Learn to say and write a phrase in at least seven different languages.
56. Write a poem. Sep 2006
57. Enter a writing contest.
58. Visit all the spectacular hotel lobbies on the strip in Las Vegas.
59. Journal every day for a year. Oct 2009
60. Take a cooking class. Nov 2007
61. Attend an outdoor concert.
62. Be a vegetarian for at least a year. Aug 2008
63. Go to Disney World.
64. Keep the same blog for at least three years. Nov 2009
65. Attend a professional basketball game. (Have already been to professional baseball, football, and hockey games, golf tournament and Indy 500)
66. Own a home on a lake. Or water of some kind. (and the creek in my backyard now doesn’t count)
67. Visit Chicago at Christmas to see all the decorations on Michigan Avenue.
68. Go on a road trip with no destination or goals in mind.
69. Watch a movie at a drive-in theater again…before they are all gone.
70. Read every novel written by Chris Bohjalian.
71. Become a lender with the Kiva organization. Jun 2008
72. See the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center.
73. Visit Tuscany.
74. Fly a kite again.
75. Dance in the rain.
76. Write a short story.
77. Shake the hand of someone famous for changing the world for the better.
78. Stay downtown Chicago and walk Michigan Avenue after dark. Oct 2008
79. Guest post on someone else’s blog. Oct 2008
80. Co-author a blog post. Jul 2009
81. Visit Hawaii.
82. See Niagara Falls.
83. Sit on a grassy knoll with José and talk for hours and hours.
84. Don’t settle for being a PC forever. Own a Mac. Jul 2009
85. Renew my passport and always have a current one. October 2009
86. Use my passport.
87. Live somewhere other than Illinois in the US.
88. Live outside the US.
89. Get a professional massage Sep 2009
90. Learn to cook one signature dish from at least six countries.
91. Step out onto the glass deck of Willis Tower in Chicago.
92. Change careers.
93. Take at least two weeks off work at once.
94. Participate in, and complete, NaNoWriMo.