How lucky am I? January 26, 2011

My life is amazing.  Period.

I was just watching American Idol and the last auditioner (WordPress is telling me this is not a word – I beg to differ) introduced the 3 judges (and the 20 million viewers) to his wife who was in a car accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury… Wait, who am I kidding?  You all watched it and were sobbing along with me.

 

Moments like that really get you thinking.  How blessed am I that I can make this silly, frivolous little list that pushes me to do the 30 things in life that I have always wanted to do?  How lucky am I that I have the cash to do them?  How lucky am I to have the support of an amazing husband who might try snowboarding with me – and any other thing on the list I ask him to try (except the whole giving blood thing)?

 

It’s interesting how something as simple as American Idol can remind someone that you need to live life to the fullest.  You never know when something might be taken away from you in a flash.  Cliche but true.

 

Now I’m going to go watch Toddlers and Tiaras to snap me back into my snarky self and quit sobbing like a baby.

 

“If you wait to do everything until you’re sure it’s right, you’ll probably never do much of anything.”  ~Win Borden

Well this is going to be harder than I thought… January 19, 2011

There are only so many things on my list that I can do during the winter months. Many of my quests need to be done when it’s warmer outside (I’m not sailing in 30 degree weather) or at a specific time of the year (I’m going to go ahead and guess that people might look at me funny if I start wearing my Halloween costume to the grocery store… because man, is it good!). So that leaves me with a few options that I can do without scheduling conflicts or weather hurdles.

So that leads me to today’s endeavor.

Do you know how long it took me to purchase these five items, having absolutely NO idea what I was doing?

A long time.

I’ve officially spent a solid hour – a good old college try if you ask me (what does that mean anyway?) – and I have casted 12 stitches (is that even proper knitting terminology?).  What do you think I could use this for?  An earplug?  Because at this rate, I’m going to have to get awfully creative to count this as a success.

 

Why did I put this on my list anyways?

 

My thoughts exactly.

 

I’m confused – I see people ALL THE TIME looking so content and relaxed, knitting once, purling twice (not pearl – wait, I did learn something!) for hours on end, creating beautiful scarves, mittens, and slippers the correct size for someone’s foot (remember Yard Sale Goddess?  Yeah, her mom is a knitting Queen… some may even call her the Queen B =).  So far, I’m not relaxed.  Quite the opposite actually.  Luckily I was watching the first episode of American Idol so I was being soothed by some amazing voices (who are we kidding – I was laughing, which was keeping me sane).  But no worries… I am NOT giving up until I create something that I can somehow use/display/hide in a drawer somewhere in my house to show that I did indeed complete #7 on my list.  I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time and now I have the motivation.  I’m currently not good at it.  And I hate not being good at things.

 

I’m good at the things I was born knowing how to do… I can definitely learn some other stuff.

 

This whole knitting experience – the hour in AC Moore, the hour I spent trying to figure out which way the %$&*^@! yarn is supposed to wrap around my finger and NOT figuring out how to get one measly little stitch from one of my size 10 bamboo needles to the other – has been very eye opening for me.  I’ve realized that I didn’t put things on my list that were going to be easy to just cross off left and right.  This list is really there to push me to my limits, engage some different brain cells than I normally use (you like that, Dad?) and challenge myself to try new things.  No one said I had to be good at them.  Ok… that’s probably going to be the hardest lesson I have to learn.  I hate not being good at things (I might have mentioned that already).  But even if I try something and find out that I’m not, it doesn’t mean that I didn’t DO it!  I’m not going to admit defeat.  I recognize that my grand dream of a beautiful scarf that I made and wear proudly while telling the story of 30 little things that pushed me to live life in a way that I can be proud of might not become a reality.

 

I’ve been needing some new potholders anyway.

 

Plus, I’ve already got an awesome friend offering to teach me and we’ve been meaning to schedule a date for a long time (I’m not sure she knows exactly what she’s getting herself into).  This list isn’t just about me but strengthening some friendships through new-found interests too.  Who would have thought?

I just hope the friendship is stronger than my knit stitch.

 

I’m not going to get anywhere by sitting here complaining which I was born knowing how to do… well.

 

 

“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.”  ~Albert Einstein

 

I’m Good at Nothing if Not Procrastination… January 18, 2011

There’s a reason I make lists. If I don’t have something visibly in front of me, taunting me, showing me that I have things that need to be done (preferably today) then they won’t. There’s something ridiculously satisfying about crossing a completed task off the list and I’ve been known (on several occasions) to add things JUST for the sake of drawing that beautiful little line through them. The way I see it, if there was something else that took up my time, pulling me away from the other (probably more important) tasks that I was supposed to be accomplishing, then I should get credit for it, damn it! I have yet to write “watch craploads of useless reality television” to any To-Do lists I’ve created. But I’ve thought about it.

In addition to procrastination, I’m also REALLY good at changing my mind. It’s not often. But I do it. Although I’m fairly certain that my Capricorn tendencies (oooh! My necklace came in and it’s FABULOUS) say that I am the kind of person who sets their mind to something and does it, I’m going to blame this new “you have a different Zodiac sign than the one you’ve been told over and over that you fit to a tee for the past 29 years” thing.* Because you know what? I changed my mind. I changed something on my list.

I know… I was shocked too!

  

Let me explain myself. #23 on my list was originally “Give up Facebook for a week (use on iPhone included).” I could do it. Really. I’m also vaguely aware that most addicts say those same exact words about giving up their substance of choice on their own. But honestly, I didn’t delete it from my list because I thought I wouldn’t be able to complete such a silly little task (read: this was probably going to be one of the most challenging things I did). I actually found something I wanted to do even MORE! Plus, I really don’t like that Facebook doesn’t have the option of being able to approve what people decide they want to post on your Wall for ALL 48,000 (give or take a few) of your “friends” to see before you do. What if I went a whole week with a post that says I smell (or something worse)? Or if someone just lobbed out a secret of mine that I wasn’t ready to tell? (Don’t read into that – I’m not harboring any big secrets that I would be waiting for an opportune time to share). I can’t handle that kind of pressure! Plus, I use Facebook for work. It’s a done deal. I’m not giving it up unless I shut down my account (and who are we kidding?).

 

Plus, I’ve got a much better idea. I’m going to learn how to Yard Sale! Yeah, yeah… I know what you’re thinking.

 

“Ummm… Darcie? You know yard sale-ing (I didn’t think you would know how to spell that either) is nothing more than picking through other people’s junk and paying 50 cents for some cheap crap you can use to clutter your own house with, right? You don’t have to learn how to do it.”

Yeah… kind of like this.

Well then I say – YOU’RE WRONG! And you know why I know this? Because one of my best friends is a Yard Sale-ing GODDESS! She can find the best stuff in any pile of junk. She’s like Captain Jack Sparrow looking for the Dead Man’s Chest… and finding it for less than $10! Whenever I go to her house, I’m in awe of her style. She’s like Martha Friggin Stewart on a Scrooge budget! I don’t know why I bother asking where she got things anymore. Those beautiful stemless wine glasses? Yard sale. Great cloth napkins that match everything in her kitchen in a complete set of 8? Yard sale. Adorable decorations that adorn her little boy’s nursery? Yard sale. Vitamins that cost $50 at Whole Foods? $1.50 at Mardens (I consider Mardens a yard sale, it’s just inside and the price tags aren’t hand written – most of the time). A 9′x11′ wool rug from Pottery Barn? YARD. SALE. It’s an art – an impeccably perfected ability to find the best sales using a planned agenda and maps in order to find the most amazing deals among the 25 cent books and clothes from the 1970′s.

 I bought mine for $130 at Macy’s.  And you look better in it.  Awesome.

 

I yearn to be her. I want this skill. I will have it… before I turn 30! She’s on-board with my quest. It’s going to be a weekend to remember and I better come home with something epic. And the best part? I could probably find a TON of treasures and this will still be one of the least expensive adventures on my list.

 

How’s that for frugal?

 

And the reason for this rambling post of self-justification? There’s laundry to be done.

Write another blog post.

 

* http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/13/new-zodiac-sign-dates-oph_n_808567.html#s223863&title=kristin_leigh

For the record, I’m sticking with the tropical zodiac (which is what we all go by anyways) and I’m keeping my Capricorn necklace!

  

“The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.” ~ Flora Whittemore

2 Done; 28 To Go… January 10, 2011

Well, I’m 3 days into my 29th year (or is it technically my 30th?) and I’ve already crossed something else off the list while simultaneously working on some of those year-long goals!  I’m doing WAY better with this than my New Year’s Resolutions!  Granted, the thing I crossed off? # 6 – Buy myself a nice piece of jewelry to commemorate my 29th birthday… a hard one, I assure you.  I had been researching this item for weeks, preparing for the purchase, planning my attack on the store of choice… Tiffany & Co.  I know you’ve heard of it.  There’s just something wonderful about a beautiful memory in the form of a shiny silver trinket wrapped in a pretty blue box.  Unfortunately, I drove all the way to Mohegan Sun (ummm… did I mention I live pretty close?  I really shouldn’t complain) and found that they did not have the item I longed for BUT they could order it and have it shipped to my door for free. Sold.  Although I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to wear my new gem to dinner on my birthday I did have 3 dozen beautiful red/pink/peach roses from my wonderful husband and flowers always make things better!

 

Back to the list.  My gift to myself?  The Elsa Peretti Zodiac necklace – Capricorn.  I could not think of a more fitting symbol of the experience and subsequent adventures I’m about to embark on.  I’m a strong believer in my astrological sign and this description pretty much sums it up – both my personality AND this 30 Before 30 List.

 

Capricorn in a Nutshell:
Capricorns are very ambitious people, they always have something they are pursuing and they want their lives to be fulfilled and important. Capricorns are extremely patient and will wait a long time for something they want, when the opportunity arises, they will plan their steps carefully to others, they might appear hesitant but this is not true, they know that there is only one chance to succeed and they are filing together their information to take the proper steps to accomplish their goal with flying colors, not just second rate. Capricorns have a very active mind and strong powers of concentration. Capricorns like being in control of their surroundings and everyone in their life. Capricorns are very cautious but this is only to survey the situation before leaping in, they will never make a hasty jump in. They accept change but introduce it slowly* so they can get used to it and incorporate it into their life. Capricorns tend to see life in black or white, definitives only. There are no gray areas for these are areas that are not understood and this makes Capricorn feel uncomfortable (http://zodiac-signs-astrology.com/zodiac-signs/capricorn.htm).

 

(*That bit about incorporating any change slowly???  That’s how I’m approaching #26… one day at a time.  I made it in and out of the mall today – no shoes – I consider that a small success in and of itself!)

 

See??? It’s perfect!  Unfortunately, I don’t have a photo of my necklace yet because it should be arriving mid-week but will post as part of my 365 Photo Project as soon as I can.  This is the photo from the website but I believe this was Taurus (also a great sign but alas, not mine). 

Speaking of the Photo Project, I’m doing pretty well with that – I currently have an album on Facebook but I’m considering another outlet so that non-Facebook friends who are reading can follow along as well.  I was thinking Flickr but I’d take other suggestions too (let me know in the comments).

 

My birthday weekend was a blast – I don’t remember the last time I had a group of people sing me “Happy Birthday” while I blew out candles who weren’t waiters being paid to sing a ridiculous version of the song in the middle of a restaurant (not that I mind the public embarrassment).  A couple of my cousins and their significant others came to visit us in good ole CT and we had a wonderful dinner and Wii Dance Off to celebrate my adulthood.  Hey, it made sense to us!  I can’t thank them enough for making the weekend so special.

 

This is my last week of winter vacation (yes, 3 weeks… it’s been fantastic) and I’m going to take a trip to Maine and see some very special new (tiny) people in my life who I’m so excited to share experiences with that I’m sure I can’t even fathom at this point!  You don’t have to have siblings to be called “Auntie” – that’s why God gives you best friends!

 

Oh… and #24?   I’ve got some ridiculously good ideas.  Is it October yet?

 

“Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live.”  ~Anon.

Well… here it is. Happy 29th Birthday to me! January 7, 2011

It’s my 29th birthday.  A day that has lived in infamy since I was a kid and my mom and all her girlfriends joked that they were 29.  Every.  Birthday.  And now it’s mine… I’m not gonna lie – I think 29 is going to be harder than 30.  At least at 30 you get a fabulous party.  Right?  Right???

I’ve always been dependent on lists to get things done and I claim to live life to its fullest so, inspired by some friends of mine, I have decided to start my own “30 Before 30″ list.  Thirty things.  One year.  Starting today.

The list is in no particular order (but you better believe I’m going to buy myself something new and shiny before I volunteer to have a giant needle stuck in my arm to give blood again) but I really do plan on accomplishing all of them.  Even the no shoes for a year thing (stop laughing).

First off the list?  #9 – Start a blog and document my list of 30 things (and life within and after).  Now, since it is indeed my first day, I don’t promise anything flashy for a while (I see some wonderful excuses to visit my bloggy friend and her adorable little boy often to learn more about making this blog great).  In the future, I’ll figure out how to scratch things off the list all technical-like and hopefully link to the post I write about the accomplishment.

So far, 29 hasn’t been too bad (so what if I’m barely 12 hours into it?) and now it’s off to scratch #6 off this list and do my best to keep with #26 while I’m out.  And I guess I’ll have to grab a photo somewhere along the way.

Happy Birthday to me!

 

*** The list is always going to be visible (and one day updated and fancy) on the right side of the blog.