V is for Viviendo

I'm turning 25 this summer. Not a big deal right? Wrong. The average American woman lives to be around 77, which means I will officially have lived 1/3 of my life by the end of 2010. And what have I done with these past 25 years? So glad you asked:

1. I've been a student in school.

2. I've been a teacher in school.

3. ???????

4. ????????????

5. ????????????????

Hence my panic.

So, I've decided I need broaden my horizons a bit and try new things. You know, things that don't involve school. Things that I've wanted to do for years now, but have never gotten around to. You can call them life goals if you want to go all counselor on me, or things to do before I die if you want to be all morbid about it. Any way you want to slice it, I've started creating a list . . . of stuff . . . for me to do . . . that doesn't involve school.

I'm starting small though. So here's my list of stuff to do before 2011 (put in no particular order, since I have no clue when I'll finish any of this):

- Do twenty reps of the stupid, evil dual ab crunch machine on twenty pounds (sounds easy? YOU TRY IT)!

- Kayak with Blair and Chappy (because we've been talking about it for a year now, and haven't done it yet . . . it's time).

- Take Lola to a lake and watch her go crazy.

- Paint a picture with oil paints that doesn't look like like crap.

- Cook: beef bourguignon & duck confit

- Bake: bagels & pretzels

- Take Will to visit his Papa's grave (again, something we've been meaning to do, but haven't done yet).

- Go to Puerto Rico.

I need to pause to explain this entry. Will is 1/4 Puerto Rican and loves everything about the place. Eduardo (Will's late papa) came to Georgia from Puerto Rico to go to Georgia Tech, met Will's grandma, a homegrown Georgia Peach, and they fell for one another. One generation and lots of "Besame Mucho's" later, Will came into the picture. And he's proud of his Puerto Rican heritage. I've always had a thing for Spanish speaking countries, and Will's always wanted to take me to meet his extended family in Puerto Rico (who are getting up there in age). We've talked about going, and even looked at plane tickets, but we've never clicked "buy." It's time to click "buy."

Now, onto the rest of the list . . .

- Go on a hike with Bunk (another one of those "hey we should do that soon" that hasn't been done).

- Sew a dress for myself.

- Make a piece of pottery.

- Get back to letter writing (I used to have the cool stationary, wax stamps, and such . . . but I just haven't made time to write to people lately).

- Sell homemade goodies (like cake or candy) at a local farmer's market (with the help of Blair and Amanda of course . . . yeah, I'm gonna MAKE us do this . . . but you started it Blair).

So there you have it. That's my list to do before 1/3 of my life goes by. We'll tackle the next 1/3 after this one passes. What's on your list?

Here's to living out what's been in our heads for years.