My New Bucket List

I did a bucket list last year as well, so I'm sure there is a lot of overlap here. I've thought about the things that I'd like to do before I die in the past, as most people have. I'm sure that my return to this concept has a lot to do with my grandmother's recent passing. Some of these thing I can word toward, others are thing that are only likely to occur due to chance, either way it's fun to dream.

It's been a rough year at our house, but I've managed to try a couple of new things. I've been selling unneeded items on Ebay and I tried a Blackberry cookie recipe. Thanks to a friend, I got to try Benihana's. It was delicious, I highly recommend going there for the food and the show.

These aren't listed in any particular order, just the order that they came into my head.

1. See the Grand Canyon - I've been to Palo Duro Canyon which is the second largest canyon in the US, so I might as well up the ante and see the biggest one.

2. Go to Yellowstone National Park - I know, I know, it's a super-volcano. It's a beautiful place and it might bring about the extinction of all life on earth. It would be so awesome to stand on top of our potential doom.

3. Visit Seattle, Washington - I hear it's a really mellow place with a great art and music community. Plus, I know somebody that lives there and I haven't seen him in years.

4. Go to Canada - It has beautiful lands, and my interest was further peaked by reading Kathy Reich's books about Temperance Brennan. Plus, it's the closest foreign land to me, I could finally go out of the US.

5. See Mount Rushmore - I mean, really! Who doesn't want to see giant Presidents' heads and take a picture pretending to pick their stone noses?

6. Meet Stephen King - I love books, this man was my introduction to horror novels. Plus, he's a generous and compassionate person.

7. Meet Joe Hill - Stephen King's son, though I think he's a better writer than his dad. He seems nice as well.

8. Win a fair competition for cross-stitch - First I have to figure out the entry rules and pick a piece.

9. Meet Cornelia Funke - She wrote the Inkheart series, please do not judge the books by the movie. The movie was a dim shadow of the books. The books speak of and exhibit the magic words have.

10. Meet Neil deGrasse Tyson - A proponent of curiosity and science education and fascination.

11. Meet Bill Nye - He's Bill Nye the Science Guy, that alone is enough. He's also an advocate for the importance of NASA's space program and space exploration.

12. Meet Eddie Izzard - I love his movie roles, got to see him in concert, and he's a humanitarian. He's hilarious, sexy, and intelligent. Not to mention that seductive British accent. This is one of my favorite comedic bits by him.

13. See Wicked the Musical - I loved the book. The songs I've heard from the show are great.

14. Go to ISTE conference. - ISTE is the International Society for Technology in Education. They have a yearly conference full of ideas, techniques, and new technologies.

15. Go to Diversicon - This is a scifi/fantasy literature convention in Minneapolis. They have guests and host book events all year round. Translation: book nerd paradise.

16. Learn Gaelic  - The language of my ancestors, that's enough reason for me.

17. Go on mob/ghost tours in Minneapolis - I don't believe in ghosts, but ghost tours seem like a fun and silly way to spend an evening. Mob tours are historical and fascinating.

18. Meet Patrick Stewart - He is an amazing actor and man. I couldn't find a website for him, just his fan club, so I linked his Twitter account. He supports gay rights and an active protector of abused women.

19. Meet Kathy Reichs - I really enjoyed the Temperance Brennan series as well as her YA series. I found the scientific pieces of her books very interesting and the field of forensic anthropology is fascinating.

20. Run a 10K - I've run a 5K, so next is a 10K. The trickiest part of this goal will be figuring out how to train year round without a gym membership.

21. Finish library degree for Minnesota - I need 7 classses to get my Library/Media Specialist license for MN, only 17 hours of coursework. This would allow me to be a school librarian or work in a technology integration position.

22. Get an English degree - My favorite subject that I've taught so far is English, getting a degree in English would allow me to teach middle school and high school English in Minnesota, allowing me more professional choices.

23. Get an Anthropology degree - This would just be interesting.

24. Do a biathlon -I'd consider doing a triathlon, but I'm a terrible swimmer. I can ride a bike without crashing, so I thought a biathlon would be a better choice.

25. Do a half marathon - After a 10K, there's a half marathon. I'd like to run one of these at least once. If I survive it, I'll consider doing a full marathon.
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26. Travel to the UK - I want to visit England, Scotland and Ireland. I some friends I met online that I'd like to meet in person. It's the home or a large number of my ancestors, and I'd be able to further my genealogy research. Plus there is Big Ben, the Tower of London, the White Cliffs of Dover, and the Highlands.

27. Go on a cruise - This is an interesting way to go on vacation in my mind. Someone else takes care of the transportation while you relax on the way to your destination or destinations. Then you get to do more fun stuff when you get there and relax all the way back home.

28. Attend Fantastic Fest - A genre film festival in Austin, TX. They focus on horror, scifi, and independent films. There are celebrity guests, huge parties, and discussion panels.

29. Go to Australia/New Zealand -There is a wildness connected with Australia and New Zealand in my mind. A purity of nature. I have a couple of friends there I'd like to meet in person. Plus, the Great Barrier Reef and the Snowy Mountains. Both countries have beautiful landscapes. I admit that I want to visit the locations where they filmed Lord of the Rings as well.

30. Own a house - I need a base of operations.

31. Own a brand new car - I just think it would be nice to have a vehicle that isn't second hand just once.

32. See Niagara Falls - Huge, giant waterfall. Enough said.

33. Read 2000+ books - I saw an article a while back that no one can read more than 2000 books in a life time, this seems erroneous to me, so I've made it my goal to beat that number. I've currently
read 1500 books, though I've probably read a few more than I forgot about.

34. See the Action Figure Museum - I have driven past this so many times on the road trip between Texas and Minnesota. This is one of the few reasons I can see for visiting Oklahoma. They also have a collection of cartoon art.

35. Go to a rock concert - I've never gotten to see a rock concert, and there are many people I'd like to see: Billy Joel, Billy Idol, Elton John, Bette Midler, Blues Traveler, etc.

36. Learn archery - There is a certain elegance in archery. Maybe I grew up on too much Robin Hood.

37. Learn piano - I really only want to learn one song, Fur Elise, but I think I'd have to learn at least some of the basics to play it well.

38. Finish my zombie novel - The main story is done, but it needs a lot of revising and editing. I'm not sure it will ever be published, but I want to feel satisfied with the "finished" product.