The List


The List
1. Get my writing published in a magazine or book.
2. Visit every continent (North America, Europe)
3. Become conversational in another language
4. Get married barefoot
5. Have or adopt a child
6. Complete a marathon
7. Go on a cruise
8. Visit Yosemite National Park
9. Take a photo with a celebrity
10. Own a house
11. Attend graduate school
12. Pay off my undergraduate loans
13. Be involved in a political campaign at a hands-on level
14. Hike the Grand Canyon (March 22, 2008)
15. Send someone flowers
16. Take silly pictures in a photo booth (September 20, 2009)
17. Attend a major religious service for at least four different religions (Catholicism, Judaism)
18. Milk a cow
19. Make a scrapbook
20. Swim with dolphins
21.  Take a self portrait photo every day for a year
22. Explore a jungle
23. Have sex in all 50 states
24. Skydive a second time
25. Put my hand in ten of the world’s natural oceans & bodies of water (1. Pacific Ocean, 2. Atlantic Ocean, 3. Gulf of Mexico, 4. Aegean Sea)
26. Be an extra in a movie or a television show
27. Go backpacking for at least one month (9.18.09 – 11.9.09)
28. Ride a camel
29. Drive across America, from Los Angeles to NYC
30. Become a certified reiki practioner
31. Visit Bali, Indonesia
32. Take recreational culinary classes
33. Get naked on a nude beach
34. Read 50 books in one year
35. Visit Machu Picchu
36. Drive through a tollbooth and pay for myself and the car behind me (January 10, 2010)
37. Walk on a glacier
38. Visit the Great Wall of China
39. Send out a photo holiday card (December 2008)
40. Work in a cupcake shop
41. Buy something for each of my parents that they couldn’t afford on their own
42. Leave a ridiculously big tip for a breakfast waitress
43. Watch the sunrise at the beach
44. Stay in an Ice Hotel
45. Regularly practice yoga for an entire year, at least once per week
46. Have a picnic (January 10, 2010)
47. Go to a major music festival
48. Stay at a spa for an entire weekend
49. Attend a school reunion
50. Get a puppy
51. Take a picture in the towns all 4 of my grandparents were born in
52. Meet ten blog friends in person (completed May 21, 2009)
53. Eat dinner at Per Se in New York City
54. Leave my home city of San Francisco once a month for a year (3.10 Los Angeles)
55. Leave my home country once a year for five years
56. Tour the White House
57. Ride in a submarine
58. Take dance lessons
59. See the Aurora Borealis
60. Go wine tasting (May 30, 2009)
61. Visit Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe
62. Write one handwritten card or letter per week for a year (started 09.10.09)
63. Relearn how to ski
64. Go white water rafting on the Colorado River
65. Travel alone (9.18.09 – 11.9.09)
66. Give twenty “just because” gifts
67. Spend Christmas on a beach
68. Buy the perfect little black dress
69. Go camping with three other bloggers
70. Get a fourth and fifth tattoo (fourth tattoo- May 1, 2009)
71. Make homemade jam
72. Run a 5K (April 2008)
73. Visit the Galapagos Islands
74. Enter a writing contest (August 2008, Fiction in a Nutshell, The Acorn Newspaper, Runner up)
75. Have sex on a train
76. Swim in the Dead Sea
77. Attend a white tie event
78. Go canoeing
79. Ride a jet ski
80. Get my picture in a major newspaper
81. Be able to complete five pull-ups
82. Host a five-course dinner party for 8 people
83. Ride a zip line
84. Go to the Olympics
85. Stay out all night dancing
86. Go on safari in Africa
87. Spend a month as a vegetarian
88. Go snorkeling at The Great Barrier Reef
89. Bake a French baguette from scratch
90. Volunteer for 100 hours
91. Hike a volcano
92. Take my nieces on vacation
93. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge (October 20, 2009)
94. Fly a kite (January 10, 2010)
95. Create a personal mission statement for myself (September 1, 2009)
96. Teach a class or a seminar
97. Wear snowshoes
98. Donate blood
99. Learn how to change a tire
100. Show up at the airport with my bag and passport- take the first available flight
101. Work at The Annual Chocolate Show in NYC
102. Eat BBQ in Memphis
103. Taste sushi (November 28, 2009)
104. Watch all of the Top 100 IMDB movies
105. Tour a brewery and a winery
106. Get photographed naked for TimeOut NY’s Naked New Yorker Photo Shoot
107. Visit a tea plantation
108. Meet the Editor in Chief of three major magazines
109. Get drunk on a bus
110. Take a class at Murray’s Cheese Shop in NYC
111. Have lunch with Rachael Ray
112. Have cocktails with Chelsea Handler
113. Visit the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia
114. Raise $10,000 in one month for charity
115. Go bungee jumping
116. Contribute to setting or breaking a world record
117. Go on a silent retreat
118. Try a ridiculously bizarre job for at least a week
119. Attend a food festival
120. Move to a new city on a whim (December 20, 2009)
121. Visit a Redwood forest (January 10, 2010)
122. Take a trapeze class
123. Learn to parallel park
124. Learn to drive stick shift

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{ 5 trackbacks }

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{ 51 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Damsel in Digress January 8, 2009 at 8:10 am

come visit me in new york. not only can we catch up and frolic, but i will personally wine and dine you to per se.

just get your cute butt HERR.

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2 Sarai January 10, 2009 at 6:27 pm

Good god you are fierce. I wouldn’t have the balls to pull half of this list!

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3 Dawn January 19, 2009 at 2:07 pm

You’ve inspired me to create my own Life List. How did you arrive at your final 100? Any suggestions?

@LyriqueTragedy

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4 Mishi January 29, 2009 at 12:21 pm

I love this list. I made one for myself a few years ago, but I haven’t looked at it since. Looking at your list reminds me of all the things I still want to do!

Sidenote – I love so many of the things on your list (and they’re so similar to a lot of my own “things to do during life” list that I’ve decided we should be friends. (I know that one can’t usually unilaterly declare friendship, but I’m giving it a try).

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5 trigirl82 January 30, 2009 at 2:08 am

Your list is great! So is your “about me”. Well done. :-)

I want to make a physical list now! :-)

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6 Meesh January 30, 2009 at 8:56 am

you are one step closer to #52 bc you can add ME!!!!!! The site looks FABULOUS. Truly. SO excited for you…and absolutely LOVED meeting you!!! xoxox

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7 chido January 30, 2009 at 7:28 pm

for the first time in a long time i was proud to be zimbabwean after i saw you wanna visit vic falls. i tell you its well worth the trip and i hve a lot of childhood memories of holidays spent there and hope to one day return and bungee jump there!!!

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8 brandy February 3, 2009 at 2:07 pm

If you want tips on cow milking, I’m your girl.

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9 Lisa February 5, 2009 at 5:33 am

Dude. ASIA. Right here. Shopping like no other. That, and you’re gonna get LOTS of travel pictures of you. Haha.

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10 Debbie February 5, 2009 at 2:27 pm

For #17 you could go to the Mormon Conference here in Utah. I could take you but I’m on their “we don’t want her as a member, DO NOT LET HER IN THE BUILDING” list. So I guess I could point you to their general vicinity and send you off with my condolences! Or we do have some awsome camping around here!

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11 20-Something February 10, 2009 at 5:34 pm

You inspired me to write one too! I just posted it on my blog! :)

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12 jomygoodness February 11, 2009 at 8:16 pm

thanks for sharing! I think I’ll be making my own list now… although we have some of the same things! ;-)

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13 Josef Pinlac February 17, 2009 at 2:40 pm

I found your blog through a link and I couldn’t stop reading. If you are ever in New York City again, I will offer to be a guide to cross some of these things off your list. I’ve ran the NYC marathon 3 times so I can give you some pointers, too (apply by March-it takes place in November, run a good 10K to get a good spot at the start or overestimate your abilities and say you will finish early). Good luck!

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14 Jeremy February 18, 2009 at 10:44 am

Great compilation of life goals! You have inspired me to make my own… Im a freelance writer as well so our #1 is the same.. 99 to go!

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15 KassyK February 24, 2009 at 9:51 am

My family is Eastern European and Israeli originally…and I can tell you firsthand that swimming in the Dead Sea is one of the most amazing experiences. In fact, swimming in the gorgeous water at the beach in Tel Aviv is pretty awesome too. :)

I spent many childhood summers on a Dead Sea Kibbutz in the summers with some of my family who live there.

Quite a magical place.

And I am a vegetarian…I could give you tips! Great list.

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16 Andrea March 18, 2009 at 5:37 pm

So you know how I was supposed to pick 10 to do with you? Uh… I couldn't. So here's 14.

8. Visit Yosemite National Park
22. Explore a jungle.
24. Skydive a second time
29. Drive across America
32. Take recreational culinary classes
35. Visit Machu Picchu
38. Visit the Great Wall of China
45. Regularly practice yoga for an entire year (at least once per week)
47. Go to a music festival
48. Stay at a spa for an entire weekend
53. Eat dinner at Per Se in New York City
59. See the Aurora Borealis
60. Go wine tasting (Does it count if I've done this before?)
100. Show up at the airport with my bag and passport- take the first available flight

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17 jen laceda April 6, 2009 at 6:10 pm

Just found you through Nomadic Matt's site! Girl, I like your spunk! I will be loitering around your blog..By the way, this is a great life list. Makes me want to think of mine!

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18 Kirsty April 7, 2009 at 1:59 am

Hey nice list, mine is over at my blog under '99 Things'. I like a few of yours so might make a few additions. Nice blog too… glad I found it.

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19 MinD April 8, 2009 at 9:48 pm

Very nice list. I made one of these, but mine will never happen because it's the "101 things in 1,001 days." Ya, I forget about that shit for three months at a time.

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20 Tovah May 12, 2009 at 6:29 pm

Great idea! The pressure is on when people are following your list!
http://www.whereisyourtowel.blogspot.com

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21 Vanessa Tran July 1, 2009 at 12:56 pm

Come to Australia already!!!

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22 dwmatty July 29, 2009 at 9:32 pm

This inspires me to make my list.

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23 Sarah Nicole August 31, 2009 at 12:11 am

This is a wonderful list. Best of luck to you! And thanks for stopping my blog. Hope you have a wonderful day.

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24 tasha September 23, 2009 at 5:19 pm

love this list, i started my own and borrowed a few ideas from you but i really love #100 and #21, good luck and i will continue reading your blog.

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25 Lacey Bean September 25, 2009 at 4:14 pm

Yay #16!!!! Can't wait to do another one with you… but not #23 bwah ha. How bout #53? Let's make it happen one day. When I have oodles of money to spend. :)

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26 Court September 25, 2009 at 4:33 pm

Number 100 sounds like a good time! I think I need to do that one!

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27 Dayne September 30, 2009 at 4:18 pm

This is a FANTASTIC list and idea Nicole! I loved reading it and you have me greatly inspired to do the same. :) I wish you nothing but success for getting out in life and just doing it!

Cheers,

Dayne (from TheHappySelf.com) :)

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28 Kari September 30, 2009 at 4:40 pm

I think it's silly to put life into such black and white terms. Don't get me wrong – setting goals is wonderful. But life is always changing, and so will your goals… so why date them? Why put a time stamp on them? Do you have to knock things off of the list every time you decide you want to do something new? If you wake up tomorrow and decide you want to write a novel, do you have to add that to the list and delete something else? It feels like you are relying a bit too much on the "life list," when, in fact, life is never this cut and dry.

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29 nicoleisbetter September 30, 2009 at 4:51 pm

Kari:

I totally get what you're saying about a list making things seem very black and white, and believe me, I don't base my entire life around these goals. I mean, the big things in life are pretty intangible, right? Things that can't be written down on a list and checked off.

But, with that said, having an (ever-growing) list of things I want to accomplish just helps me stay focused on being the active, traveling writer that I want to be. It's more for fun than anything else, not the be-all-end-all. I do know, though, that if I manage to live a life that encompasses these types of activities and experiences, that I'll be pretty happy.

Thanks for taking the time to comment!

Nicole

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30 Dijea September 30, 2009 at 5:05 pm

Check this out you could kill two birds with one stone. An outdoor hotel where you camp in tree houses and you can only get to them on a zip line.

http://www.cypressvalleycanopytours.com/

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31 E.P. October 12, 2009 at 3:47 pm

Dude. When you go to Memphis for BBQ, I'm meeting you there. We're going to do this thing right!

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32 Kristine October 28, 2009 at 7:46 pm

If you ever make your way to Alberta, I can make both the glacier and the northern lights happen. (I know, like I'm MAGIC right?!) You now have my email, so feel free to use it!

Amazing list btw…I hope you live such a full life that there isn't an entry left when you're done!

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33 Candice October 28, 2009 at 7:53 pm

Wow, I just found your blog and I think I'm in love with you. And I really like penis, so that's saying something. You've got a new loyal follower.

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34 Candice October 28, 2009 at 7:58 pm

P.S. do you have a how-to guide for ditching the corporate world and becoming a nomad despite $348304930943 in student debt?

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35 Ashley November 4, 2009 at 3:09 am

according to Wanda Sykes Dolphins poop on you when they get excited….just saying…

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36 Andi November 26, 2009 at 8:58 pm

Fabulous list!!!!!!! I hope with all of my heart that you accomplish all of them. Looks like you’ve got a great start. :)

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37 Stephanie December 4, 2009 at 11:37 pm

If you decide to make it up north for the 2010 Olympics, you could cross at least a few of the items off your list (Olympics, brewery, snowshoeing, etc.). I'd even be willing to put you up at my house, which is walking distance from the Olympics … if you really like to walk. Maybe I will give you one of my children to adopt as well. :) Then you can send me flowers cause I was such a hospitable host.

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38 Jessica December 4, 2009 at 7:07 pm

Your #23 will be way easier once you do your #4

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39 Bitterly Books December 8, 2009 at 3:05 pm

I suggest you harness some of the potential synergies present with 75 and 23. Amtrak has very reasonable cross-country rates.

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40 kins December 12, 2009 at 4:27 pm

#47. go to bonnaroo. no questions just get there. or if you volunteer and get accepted you get a free ticket and five meals. it will rock your world and change your life, which i think is what youre in the business of doing.

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41 meg December 14, 2009 at 4:22 pm

geez, how did I not know about your blog until now? awesome list.

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42 Jeff December 18, 2009 at 9:47 pm

Have to admit.I am a little shocked that you have never been on a picnic

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43 Ross December 20, 2009 at 3:20 am

Awesome list! Let me know if you in BC ever, we'll do some snowshoeing!

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44 sandyb December 28, 2009 at 6:14 am

Girl, I UNDERSTAND the List. I so get it.
If you happen to stop by, you'll know what I mean.

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45 Swedishskier December 28, 2009 at 5:10 pm

There are definetely things on this list I could help with. I.e. learn to ski, whitewater raft, walk on a glacier, and get drunk on a bus. Careful with drunk on a bus though, puking and sleeping with a new level of awful can be side effects.

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46 Geoffrey January 2, 2010 at 4:46 pm

We have a zip line and it’s effin huge. As in high and long. Get your butt over here.

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47 Boring Life Rob January 4, 2010 at 8:46 am

I just spent 3 weeks in Bali, Kuta to be exact. What are you waiting for? You could do this shit from there and it's cheap as hell. That said, it is a zoo(Kuta) and unless you are a crazed creature you may find it tough. Somehow I think you'll fit in just fine.

That is all,

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48 Bill January 4, 2010 at 5:52 pm

Next time you go to Phoenix, go to the Phoenix zoo. You can (or could a year ago) ride a camel there. Not as exciting as going somewhere exotic, but still! :)

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49 Tim January 4, 2010 at 6:32 pm

I can give you and your nieces an all-night dance lesson under the aurora borealis on one of the archipelago islands….

I think that checks off 5 from your list.
Also, we can hike a snow-volcano in snowshoes. If you want.

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50 Jackie February 1, 2010 at 8:33 pm

Love, love, LOVE this list. I have my own and can't believe how similar the two are. I have some variation of 14 of your goals still to do on my list and have done 31 others. I also just stole 7 of yours and added them to my list. So thanks.

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51 Hol March 2, 2010 at 12:10 pm

This is awesome. I was looking for something to pick me up after a nasty break up, and making my own list is exactly that!!! Thanks. :)

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