Update 1.13.09

I'm back from New Zealand with much to share! While we were gone, I accomplished 6 goals, some planned, some unexpected!

15. Drive on the left side of the road (in a place where it's legal!)
Andy did most of the driving, but I pitched in a bit!














58. Spend my birthday and New Years in another country
There's a whole story behind my birthday and the strange B&B we were staying at in Rotorua, but you probably had to be there. The great thing was, I got 2 birthdays in a row-- we celebrated on the 18th in NZ, and then again on the 19th while it was still the 18th in the US! New Years in Queenstown was amazing.

66. Go sailing
This one was not planned in advance! We had the opportunity to sail on an antique sailboat around Akaroa harbor on the Banks Peninsula. This beautiful bay is the home to Hector's Dolphins, the world's smallest and rarest dolphins. They're super friendly, and loved swimming right alongside the boat!















































80. Drink Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in Marlborough
This picture was taken on our 6 month anniversary. Yummy local wine!














88. Finish a NY Times crossword puzzle (any day) on my own
My mom had randomly given me printouts of NYT crossword puzzles to kill time on the long plane rides. While waiting in Brisbane for our flight back to LA, I busted them out and finished one quickly and easily! Granted, it was a Monday puzzle, but I was still proud of my little accomplishment.

92. Be among the first in the world to ring in 2009
You can't tell from this picture, but we were dancing in the rain with thousands of other partiers on the streets of Queenstown. It was pretty sweet.

Update 12.8.08

I just finished another goal, #64 Watch Hannah Montana to see what all the fuss is about. I must admit, this was one of the very last goals I came up with as I was finishing my list, and was totally grasping at straws trying to come up with a few more to make the 101.

I tend to adore everything that 8 year old girls do, because I'm awesome like that. I was curious about this enormous cultural phenomenon, and had to see it for myself (and secretly thought there was a small chance I'd enjoy it). Well, the timing was right this evening, I was bored and flipping around the channels (which I rarely do), and it was just starting.

It took every ounce of willpower to KEEP it on after I put it on, because I lost interest after about, oh, 2.5 seconds. But now I can say I've seen it, and cross another goal off the list!

Update 12.6.08, Parte Dos

I just plowed through and finished #44, 30 things I like about myself. It took more than the month I allotted myself, but I've officially finished my first goal!

This one was much harder than I anticipated. I can't believe I'm about to share this on the internet, but I have really low self-esteem. I hoped that this exercise would help me recognize some worthwhile qualities in myself, and I think it did. At times, it had the opposite effect because it was so hard to think of anything, but overall I'm glad I tried it.

Maybe someday I'll find the balls to post the list here. Until then, I'm celebrating 1 goal down, 100 to go!

Update 12.6.08

It's December! That means New Zealand, birthday, and holidays! We leave a week from today on our month-long belated honeymoon to NZ. I'm so thrilled that I'm feeling well enough to go. While I'm much improved from when I first threw my back out, there's still a very long road to recovery and I have limited mobility, numbness, and a good amount of pain. Trying to keep a positive attitude, do my physical therapy homework, and keep a positive attitude. Can't say that enough.

Anyways, here's what I've been working on:

#36 Commenting on blogs. I'm at 13/101. I've been slowly gaining confidence about randomly commenting and coming out of my shell. Twitter has helped with that (be my friend! i'm @amy_i). I've been enjoying this goal a lot. I went a couple weeks making comments and forgot about accounting for them here, so instead of estimating I'm just not counting those.

#44 30 things I like about myself is almost finished. I'm at 28/30. Hoping to finish before the trip, and it will be the first completed goal!

I had NZ on the brain when I was developing my 101, and will be crossing some things off the list over the next month. Here they are:

#15 Drive on the left side of the road (in a place where it’s legal)
#58 Spend my birthday and New Years' in another country
#80 Drink Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc in Marlborough
#92 Be among the first in the world to ring in 2009

I'll be back here in mid-January, hopefully with lots of updates.

Update 11.23.08

Well, I'm still struggling with my back pain/nerve damage ridiculousness, but I'm trying to forge ahead in small ways. I'm still working on #44, my list of things I like about myself. Though I haven't been able to do it every day, I'm getting closer.

I also got started on #20, learn to cook 10 dishes well. I recently re-discovered cous cous and it's so easy and yummy. It's a fantastic, quick dish to have in my back pocket.

Finally, I'm rethinking #16 (finish MSW, graduate with 4.0). With everything going on right now, I feel like it might not be healthy to pressure myself into getting straight A's. I have absolutely every intention of continuing with the program for now, but I may edit out the GPA stipulation.

Even though I'm going through a rough patch, my list is often on my mind... going to keep on truckin'!

Update 11.15.08

Hi there. The list is semi-on hold at the moment. I have some health issues that I'm working on healing in time for our trip to New Zealand next month. In the meantime, I'm still working on #36 (commenting on blogs) and #44 (writing 1 thing I like about myself each day for a month).

Oh, and I also got off to a great start on #2 (try 5 new foods). Andy brought back some interesting candy and treats from China, so I tried something called Hawthorn candy (Hawthorn is apparently a fruit). It was... interesting.

Hopefully I'll be back sometime soon and more in full force.

Update 11.3.08

It's been a week since I started my list, and so far I'm really enjoying it. I started small, with easy, do-able tasks, and haven't actually completed anything yet, but I'm on my way. The only thing I have to reflect on so far is that, every day, I try to start #60, no cracking knuckles every day for one week, and fail by mid-morning at the latest. Usually I catch myself doing it absentmindedly, so I'm going to have to be more mindful of my habits. That's what this is all about, isn't it?

Hopefully soon I'll be able to report on something I've actually completed. I'm going to transfer my list to the sidebar of this blog so I don't have to dig for it every time I want to update, as these posts become more frequent. In the meantime, happy November!