01-10

Today is the first day of January 2010. 01-10.

You know that. I'm just practicing saying it.

I don't make New Year's resolutions... I set goals for myself throughout the year. It's mental self-preservation: I just don't care for the artificial pressure of creating resolutions on January 1, then feeling the disappointment the first time I fall short of meeting those goals.

However, these are not resolutions. It's just a score sheet on my Bucket List. (Nice loop hole, huh?)

In September 2008, I created a Top Ten list, containing the first 10 items below. In January 2009, I added #11. So, since it's no longer a list of ten, let's just rename it Bucket List: It's the list of things I'd like to accomplish or do before I die. {Preferably sooner.} This list is ever-changing: Each year I'll cross off some, I'll make progress on some, I'll add some as my interests change.

So, how'd I do this year?

1. Visit all 6 inhabitable continents (we'll count Antarctica as a bonus continent). {Note that I included Antarctica in my January 2009 revision. So I would like to visit all 7 continents, whether or not they're permanently inhabitable. I mean, I'm not planning on living on all of them - just visiting.}

Holding steady at 2 so far. Thinking about hitting a 3rd in 2011.

2. Visit all 50 states in the U.S.

Visited several favorites this year, but no new states. Will try to add 1 or 2 in 2010.

3. Climb a mountain.

Done! Along with five amazing family members/friends, I climbed to the peak of Mt Whitney in July 2009. It is the highest peak in the contiguous United States, at 14, 597 feet. Though the challenge was difficult in the thin air, and our muscles fatigued with the relentless up, up, up, it was nevertheless an exhilarating and memorable experience - one made all the more possible with my fabulous family and friend! Thanks to Kelly, Dad, Joey, Tony, and Connie for this one-of-a-kind experience. I love you all!

4. Run a marathon.

Not yet. But getting closer. I ran my first half-marathon in October 2009 and found it to be an experience that I loved and definitely want to repeat! However, I have to respect my aging bones. So I've scheduled two half-marathons for 2010 - focusing on improving my time - and then I plan to tackle a full marathon in spring 2011.

5. Write a book (that is actually published!).

Again, not yet, but working toward it. It may take several years before I'm there.

6. Learn to fly an airplane.

Haven't even attempted this one yet. I'm waiting until my son, who also has an interest in learning to fly, is 14 so we can learn together.

7. Play in a tennis match and (here's the kicker:) actually keep score, by myself, without having to stop and think! (I know -- doesn't seem like this should be so hard. But I must have a mental block about scoring tennis. I always have to stop and figure it out.)

Done! And OK, this wasn't nearly as difficult as I'd made it out to be. I joined a tennis team on a competitive league this past fall and am having a blast. Now, if only I could log more wins!

8. Cook a Thanksgiving turkey dinner without help from my mother or mother-in-law. (OK, I don't really want to achieve this so badly; I just think I should.)

Don't know how to answer this one. Does it count if it's a joint effort? Wait a minute, it's my own goal, so I get to decide. But I think that means I also have to do it myself. Let's replay this past Thanksgiving: My husband and I hosted Thanksgiving here for the first time, and we prepared everything (well, not quite: Mom brought the pies - her specialty!). I did all the appetizers and sides. My husband deep-fried two turkeys. To be specific, he deep-fried one turkey completely; the other was deep-fried partially. Then he brought it in the house and I stuffed it and finished cooking it in the oven. So - wait a minute! - I think that counts! I had no help from my mom or MIL. I stuffed it and I did actually do some cooking of the turkey. Let's go ahead and cross this one off the list...

9. Create something, from scratch, with my hands. (A quilt? A needlepoint creation?)

Not this year.

10. Dance sometime in public the way I dance when I'm at home - unselfconsciously!

Not this one either. This one takes a lot of guts! And anyway, I didn't go dancing. Would have been kind of weird to dance at the mall or my kids' schools...

11. Wear a bikini -- in public! This isn't a "body" issue so much as a "mind" issue. It doesn't matter if you're a size 2 or a size 20, if you weigh 110 or 210 lbs, as long as you exude confidence. That's the real goal, of course.

Yeah, I did it. This one's kind of tough around the neighborhood pool. But I can handle it better on vacation, where I don't know anyone except the close friends and family I bring with me.

So here's the score: I can cross off 4 items on my Bucket List (#3, 7, 8, 11)! That leaves 7 goals, and nearly all of them will take time and perseverance to accomplish. Though I may not be able to cross any off the list by the end of 2010, I expect to make good progress on four or five of them in 2010. And I might even add a few - 7 items on a Bucket List seems a little light.

What's on your list?