35 before 35: The ones I missed
Well, my deadline for this list is today, and in 3 years' time, I completed 24 out of 35 goals on this list. Not too bad, considering some of them were fairly ambitious. But that means I still have 11 goals floating around out there that I might still want to do something about, so here's my plan of attack for those.
#3 Go on a vacation to Hawaii (or somewhere tropical - Bahamas, Puerto Rico, etc)
I still plan to do this one, probably within the next few years, but it probably won't be Hawaii (we'll get there someday, though!). D and I are thinking that we'll probably take B with us to the Beaches Turks & Caicos resort since it's family friendly and all-inclusive is just easy to plan for. We'll probably also head to Fort Myers and Sanibel Island in Florida at some point as well, since we have family there and would like to visit them. So two tropical vacations coming up for us!
#7 Participate in a standup paddleboarding race
This one is still on my radar since there are races here in Charleston and there's also a duathalon back in Charlotte at the U.S. National White Water Center. Ideally, I'd like to do a duathalon with running and paddling, and I'm hoping to do this next summer.
#15 Spend a weekend in Manhattan
I'd still like to do this and the easiest way would be to tack it on the end of our annual Christmas trip back home to PA, but I don't have any immediate plans or a timeline for when we'd do this. B definitely needs to experience NYC at some point, though!
#17 Run a mud run
I've kind of lost interest in doing this type of race. I just really prefer running instead of all the other bells and whistles with mud runs or other novelty races. Not that I couldn't be convinced to participate in one of these, but if I were to make another list similar to 35 Before 35, this wouldn't be on it.
#18 Start either a web design certificate program (short and simple, online) or the Design Management MA program at SCAD (I know, more education, but really I can't help myself. I like the idea of formal learning.)
As much as I'd like to earn a second graduate degree, I think that's mostly a pipe dream at this point. Maybe in a few years when B is in school, I could think about this again, but at this point, it's just not really a priority (or necessary) for me.
#23 Camp on the beach
Yes. This will happen. We live near some state parks where we can do this when B is a little older.
#24 Create a photography project that investigates a specific subject and has a specific artistic point of view
I'd still like to tackle this one and make it into a book. It's not at the top of my priorities, but it's still on my mind.
#25 Live off my land/urban farming: grow a bigger vegetable and fruit garden (and maybe get some chickens)
So my chickens, whom I planned to name Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia, are a no-go as long as we live in our current neighborhood since there's a "no livestock" ordinance. But next summer, I do plan to plant a garden. We didn't do it this year because I was pregnant and our yard needs a ton of work to get it ready for a garden and I just wasn't into it this summer. Next year.
#28 Take D to Disney World (he's never been there and insists he doesn't want to go- this is ridiculous)
I'm sort of glad I didn't get to this one because really, Disney World will be so much more fun with B along. I want to wait for this until he's around 4 or 5, but we'll definitely be heading to Disney World for some fun at some point. And I think we'll probably plan it around one of the race weekends so I can run at least one Run Disney event.
#33 Organize a 5K
Yep, still want to do this. I had originally wanted to do this back in Charlotte for Family Addition Dog Rescue, but we ended up moving. Rumor has it Girls on the Run is coming to Charleston, so I'd like to get involved with that and help plan that 5K.
#34 Master coding once and for all. I know enough to get by (and to possibly be dangerous), but I want to really be able to use it on a regular basis for web design work.
Yeah, I should do this, especially to close the circle on my user experience skills (it's the one missing link, essentially), but it's not my top priority. I'll probably still do it, though, because it's just a good skill to master, especially in my field. And I'm just talking front end code here; I'm not looking to be a back end developer or anything.
So that's it. The end of my 35 Before 35 adventure. I think I did a pretty good job conquering a big chunk of my goals, especially the big ones, like moving out of Pennsylvania and finishing grad school. And along the way, my priorities have certainly shifted as life took some unexpected turns, but overall, working my way through this list before I hit the 35 year milestone was a pretty fun endeavor.
35 Before 35 is a list of 35 goals I want to accomplish before I hit 35 in August 2014. Some of them are big things, some small, but all of them are things I really want to do, and what better time to do them than now?