25 Things Before 29

The coming year will provide many things for me. The Mayan apocalypse may or may not be among them; personally, I'm rooting in favor of the four horsemen deciding they're just not up to destroying the world this year, and would rather stay in Valhalla and comb their ridiculous green-tentacled beards. I like where my life is going, and I'd like it to get there - wherever there may happen to be.

It's that time of year when I like to at least pretend I have some control over my life and make wise and ridiculous goals as I gallop off into the sunset of another anniversary. Here's what I'm hoping to accomplish in the next year. The first six are uncompleted items from last year - ones that I still hope to check off my list.

1. Take a creative class - painting, writing, etc.

2. Bake something extra-difficult. Then make other people eat it. Because I'm evil.

3. Get a bike - if not for myself, for Spousal Unit.

4. Volunteer somewhere - like a children's museum or an animal shelter.

5. Take Spousal Unit to Mall of America, as he's never been there.

6. Read a book about quantum physics.

7. Finish the end of the novel, by the end of the year, so that I have a complete draft to rip to pieces, rearrange, and rewrite.

8. Check off steps 1 through 6 of my revision checklist. (Not as big a goal as it seems - I'm already halfway toward most of them.)

9. Write at least 200 words a day for the novel, starting November 1. I'm totally serious about this thing.

10. At least prepare a letter and the first chapter to go out to a publisher.

11. Get a kitty.

12. Go to Germany again. Or somewhere else awesome - I'm not picky.
13. Mod Podge/paint a bookshelf.

14. Go to Aztalan with Spousal Unit.

15. Knit socks for myself.

16. Save a predetermined amount of money.

17. Visit three Madison museums - the first on my list is the Mustard Museum.

18. Finish all of the quilt squares and sew them together. (This doesn't mean finishing it, as it will still need a border.)

19. Continue to exercise regularly. 

20. Reach a point where I do not expect to experience physical pain on a daily basis. I've given PT a shot; next up is massage and a chiropractor.

21. Continue to see the shrink.

22. Get my tattoo. This includes figuring out exactly where I want it, and how much of it I want to get at once.

23. Go to a concert. I don't care what kind - indie, jazz, classical, Irish - but it has to be live, and it has to be more than just one person making musical noise in a room I happen to inhabit. I miss live music.

24. Try to make music of my own again - as in, practice and become somewhat proficient again. I will pick between mandolin, piano, and flute.

25. Research hunting, and possibly go hunting - I'm thinking turkeys, or maybe fishing. More on this idea to come - if nothing else, I want to go to an archery range.


The year to come will, in some ways, be a continuation of last year - lots of novel work and self-improvement. In some ways, it will be kind of weird. I've come to expect that of my life.

Comments

  1. SandyOctober 18, 2012 at 12:25 PM

    I've always been very intrigued by the Mustard Museum, but never made it there when I lived in Madison. I think that is an excellent goal.

    ReplyDelete
  2. LizOctober 18, 2012 at 7:42 PM

    Turkeys are tricky to hunt. You will need to wear full body camouflage. They have really good eyesight.

    http://geff1.tripod.com/

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sally Anns and a Can of Spam

Image
Sally Anns are one of my favorite cookies. By their taste alone, they evoke a sense of home and comfort, reminding me of the kitchen at my grandparents' place and the simple happiness of mid-afternoon sweets. They're the only food that evokes the thought, This would be better with a cup of coffee. Making them was a good Easter activity, especially as I was stuck away from the family due to unpacking (the books are now free!) and yard work shenanigans (such as finding a dead mouse in the yard, which was lovely). With help from my mom, I found the recipe in the family cookbook (my great-great-grandparents are on the cover, and other awesome old pictures are scattered throughout). I decided that the transgression of buying a can of Spam (just once) was worth it for the sake of the cookies. Poke holes in the bottom of the can to allow for air flow. I didn't have enough butter for a full batch, but half of one made 18 Cookies of Unusual Size. I made the mistake of
Read more

The Beatles' Help! Scarf

Image
Remember when I posted about making Beatles-themed crafts after seeing Cirque du Soleil's performance of Love? I've finished the first one. Here's a refresher of the original Help! scarf. Source And here's my version: a massive thing that I gave my sister for her birthday. In these shots, it's wrapped around her neck twice. I didn't measure the beast before I sent it to its new home, but it's probably about 8 feet long. Made with Caron yarn on size 8 needles, this tube scarf was 40 stitches in the round. Each block of color is 20 rows. The only tricky parts are getting a smooth transition between colors and what to do with the yarn ends inside the tube, but they are easy problems to solve. When you transitioning, knit a normal row with the new color, then pull tight the last stitch of the previous color. That last stitch shouldn't disappear entirely, but it will be close, and your problem will be solved. Then, because this scarf
Read more

Data in Social Science

The science aspect of social science work is central to improving social systems. Data inform whether we are moving in the right direction or need to adjust our course. However, data and science must not be the center of our work; we must keep focus on children, families, and individuals, whose experiences are nuanced and filtered through systems that hold innate bias, which rests within the data . By maintaining awareness of these biases and their potential, we can keep people at the center of our work and focus on the true causes of injustice and pain that many families deal with. Lack of awareness can be a slippery slope to believing that individuals or families are themselves at fault for their situations, be it lack of housing, interpersonal violence, or other abuse. With data that are conscious of systemic issues and biases, we can examine the true issues at hand, such as racism , financial instability, and ableist policies.  What good are any manner of properly applied scientifi
Read more