Things I've Done

I found this in my random Internet travels and I thought it seemed like a good thing.

All things bolded are things I’ve done:
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch - unless origami counts, and even then I can only make cranes
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors - unless you count Hawaii which doesn't seem right
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant - but a stranger bought me one once!
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma.
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt - well, I attempted to
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone - well, a toe
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper - high school science fair
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life - not unless my donated blood helped do that
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous - my list is a good one!
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

I like this list because everything is presented as equal. No, I haven't adopted a child or started my own business. But guest what? I HAVE broken a toe and write a blog. My life is just as good!

I've been trying to think of a number 100 as the grand finale. So far I can't think of a thing that I've done that none of you know about. Hmmm... what could it be? You already know about the time I got arrested, that tattoo I have, and my past lives. I guess I have to keep thinking!

Sharing Shaka

Our apartment building has two elevators. Each one has a small plastic frame that holds random and sometimes seasonal pictures or notices. For the 4th of July we have fireworks. When there's a building meeting, there's a note about it. Yesterday and today we have this picture:


And I am just totally LOVING it.

I walked into the elevator just a bit ago so very tired and with my arms full of Costco purchases and I giggled when I saw this. I love our president! He has got to be just the coolest guy around!

Yesterday was Inauguration Day. Bryan and I started it very early - 6:30 Hawaii time. I curled up on the couch and watched the swearing in of President Barack Hussein Obama, slowly waking up and filled with immense happiness. I am just in awe of the emotion I have towards a politician, and towards the rest of the country. So many people are sharing the same happy feelings. I am touched, hopeful and feel changed for the better.

I danced around with this happiness for much of the day until my recent funk started to take over. I don't know exactly what's bugging me lately but I am in a true funk. By the end of the day I was grumpy and stressed. I felt sort of helpless and down-trodden.

And I also felt guilty.

Because here we are as a country with so much to celebrate and so much to be thankful for. And there I am wallowing in my own silly sorrows.

I think I'm going to let myself be sorrowful a bit.

But I'm going to take a few rides in the elevator just to keep it all in perspective.

______

For those that don't know... the picture is of President Obama throwing shaka to the Punahou band during the Inauguration parade. Obama went to Punahou when he lived here in Hawaii (right across the street from where we live, actually).

Hi

I'm feeling a little guilty that I haven't posted much lately. So I really just wanted to reach out and say "hi!"

"Hi!"

All is good here. We're healthy and happy and living our lives. There's a lot of exciting things going on but none of it has felt particularly blog-worthy.

Here's a short list of things on my mind just to get you up to date:

- There's a big storm rolling into Hawaii today. I think they said winds up to 80mph (did I make that part up?) and waves up to 35 ft. Woohoo! They closed all the schools and the government offices. Which I suppose is cause for a little worry. But I do like weather so I'm sort of looking forward to it.
- Monday is a holiday. THANK GOD! These past two weeks have felt like 20 weeks.
- On Tuesday I move to a cubicle and start a new job within our company. I don't wanna talk about.
- *Change of subject* We have 128 days until our wedding. Eeeee!
- I bought my wedding dress the other day. Fun! Okay, done. No more wedding talk.
- We are considering hiking this weekend - pending muddy trails.
- I saw a centipede on my way to work yesterday. A big one! So gross.
- LOST starts on Wednesday. We cannot wait.
- And Bush walks out and Obama walks in on Tuesday. I'm so thrilled. I feel like we should throw an Obama Party. Maybe I will. What would you wear to an Obama party?

Hello, 2009!

Here we are, day one of 2009.

2009 has always sounded like such a flat year to me. It doesn't have the ring of 2008 or 2010. Maybe it's like 2003 felt. I can't remember that far back...

But as flat as it might sound, it's going to be a stunningly amazing year. Our country will welcome a new president. Bryan and I will get married. And I know of at least three of my childhood friends who will have babies. Such good stuff!

Bryan and I have spent the last week or more in San Diego at my parents house. We've been lazy and relaxed and quite chilly. We also spent some time with some of my high school friends. These are friends I had 15 years ago. I do not feel old enough to have a 15 year history with anything, but I do. My high school friends all seem very happy and successful in their lives. They have changed and grown in so many ways but are still very much the core person they were 15 years ago. And I suppose I am too. It's a very great way to start a new year, by reflecting on 15 years of growth.

I hope you have welcomed in the new year with a bit of reflection on the past, and much hope for the future. Happy New Year to you!