The Bucket List

If you know me, you know that I obsessively make lists.  Everything from 'to-do' today to 'to-do' in life.  I referred to my list in an earlier post and here it is: the 'to-do' in life list.  I don't have the full 100 but it does expand occasionally.  For now the 60 or so things I have to do are keeping me plenty busy.  Some things are definitely more likely to happen than others, but I'll make the effort to get through it.  And really, what fun is a list like this if it's not a challenge??


(Here is the key: Not yet started  Complete  Started at some point but haven't gotten very far  A work in progress)

• Get a masters (A whole class in - Really enjoyed that Finite Element Analysis though)
• Get a Ph.D. (I'm thinking in religious studies - just to learn about it - I already know the topic of my dissertation)
• Climb The Great Wall
• Raise $100,000 for charity (Over a couple years I organized fundraising events)
• Run a half marathon
• Learn a second language (This all depends on what we define as learning a second language.  I know Latin pretty well but can't speak it.  If we don't count Latin, then this is barely started since I only know a handful of words in about twelve languages)
• Learn to play guitar
• Learn to play piano
• Try to surf
• See the Pyramids
• Write a book
• Join the Peace Corps
• Go on a safari
• Start a scholarship fund
• Make a quilt 
• Learn to knit
• Learn to draw/paint
• Run for public office
• Visit Denmark
• Visit Switzerland
• Visit Italy
• Visit Spain
• Visit Portugal
• See the Taj Mahal
• Go to Ireland for St. Patrick's Day
• Set foot in all 50 states (Up to 35 out of 50)
• Go deep sea fishing
• Ride in a hot air balloon
• See a baseball game in every MLB stadium (4 out of 30)
• Be a groupie (in the follow a band around for an entire tour sort of way...not the band-aid sort of way)
• Meet a U.S. President
• Learn to cook
• Start a restaurant
• Buy a house
• Read the Bible cover to cover
• Scuba Dive
• Learn to fly a plane
• Sky dive (It terrifies me)
• Learn to box
• Learn to dance
• Camp (Last week I crossed this one off the list)
• Go to the top of Mt. Timpanogos
• Stop at the view area (I don't know why I haven't done this yet - And for that matter, I'm not sure why it's on my list but it's something I always mean to do on my way home)
• Finish a triathlon
• Learn to ride a motorcycle
• Invent something
• Start my own business
• Ride a gondola in Venice
• Go to the opera
• Go to the movie theater alone
• Dine alone
• Ring the NYSE bell
• Be a delegate for a political party
• Donate a gallon of blood (I am 5/8 of the way there.  Only 3 more pints)
• Read all of Kurt Vonnegut's work (I think I am about half way there.  He wrote a lot of books)
• See the 7 wonders of the world
• Set foot on all 7 continents
• Go to all of the National Parks in Utah (2 of 5 so far - Arches and Zion down...Canyonlands, Bryce, and Capitol Reef left)

The Uintas - How Have I Missed These for the Last TEN Years?

Yesterday I went up to the Uintas for the first time. I am completely aware of how ridiculous that statement is. June marked the 10th year of living in Utah and the Uintas are practically in my backyard.

Having the day off, this was a spontaneous adventure with the goal being Mirror Lake. My family used to go there every time I went back to school after we moved from Indiana. (Maybe not every time, but it certainly seemed like it) They even went fishing when I wasn't around.

So with some time on our hands, we decided to head up into the mountains. I am not the most outdoorsy person in the world yet I have a fascination with water and trees. Some of my issues with Utah are that so much of the outdoorsy stuff is in the middle of the desert where it is just way too hot for me. But this was perfect. It was beautiful. Lots of trees and lots of water. As I said, we were heading up to Mirror Lake. We never made it because the Provo River Falls distracted us. I love waterfalls and these were exceptionally nice. There is a place to park and a couple hundred yards of walking and you are there. There are three cascading falls and you can walk through the water and climb around the rocks from top to bottom.

The water was freezing but definitely worth walking through. (Lesson learned: bring some water shoes)

I'm excited to go back. And more importantly, I have decided that I am adequately prepared for a weekend camping trip. I have finally realized that camping is not necessarily backpacking miles into some slot canyon in the desert.

My concerns have been addressed. We watched people camping yesterday and I think I can handle it. My only requests. I would like to be near water and go fishing. Canoeing would be nice too but I'll take fishing for starters.