Nostalgia

1. Go on a picnic.- Surprisingly, I never did this.

2. Eat a rutabaga.- I cooked it unconventionally by frying it and thoroughly enjoyed it.

3. Sing at a karaoke bar.- I dreaded, dreaded, dreaded this task. But, with the help of a friend, I completed it by singing “Lucky” by Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat.

4. Take a morning yoga class that meets before 10 AM for a month.- I could not find one of these. But I did take a Pilates class.

5. Read an entire book without skipping any pages in one week. (Must be over 150 pages).- I tried and failed at least twice. Thank you, grad school.

6. Meet a celebrity.- I met two and offended one. Sonny Shroyer (Enos from “Dukes of Hazzard”) and Gavin DeGraw

7. Go horseback riding (when cleared by doctor).- I decided it wasn’t a good idea just yet.

8. Memorize 99 Luftballoons (in German).- The farthest I got on this one was putting the English version on my blog and listening to the song a few times.

9. Introduce myself to a random stranger.- I introduced myself to the person sitting next to me on an airplane and it ended up being one of the most interesting and educational conversations I have ever had.

10. Go 1 month without eating any fast food.- It is amazing how much better you feel and how much thicker your wallet it if you kiss fast food goodbye.

11. Audition for something.- I auditioned for a play and got the role! (Nikki in “The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940)

12. Create a work of art.- Would you count my Master’s Thesis as a work of art?

13. Smile at a stranger.- I was nervous about this one, but it was much easier than I expected.

14. Memorize how to say "hello" in ten languages (not including English, Spanish, French, or Pig-Latin).- Bengali and Welsh were two of my favorites.

15. Watch The Wizard of Oz to the Pink Floyd's" Dark Side of the Moon" album.- I never did this. Maybe this one will go on next year’s list.

16. Teach someone how to do something.- I taught a bunch of nondancers how to dance in this summer’s musical.

17. Learn how to play a new game.- A professor taught me and a classmate how to play Boccer Ball.

18. Go on a road trip.- My aunt and I went on a spontaneous road trip to Florida to buy health food.

19. Do something completely spontaneous that no one would ever expect me to do.- I hit on Josh Groban. Twice.

20. Secretly make someone's day brighter.- Completed.

21. Go on a good date.- Completed.

22. Eat an entire grape tomato.- Turns out, I still hate tomatoes.

23. Memorize the entire Animaniacs Country Song.- I got about 1/5 of the way through to Scandinavia, then got overwhelmed once again by my grad school duties.

24. Write a letter to a person in the military.- This was one of my favorite tasks. I went through a group/website called Cup of Joe for a Joe. I highly recommend this site, it lets you buy a cup of coffee for a soldier and send them a note of encouragement, as well.

25. Go two weeks without buying anything other than necessities.- I feel like I have been doing that since I have been on Christmas break, but as of yet it is technically not completed.

26. Have a jam session.- I played piano with a guest at the bed and breakfast where I live (who happened to be an amazing piano player) out of the blue one day.

27. Learn how to play chords on the piano.- I have been teaching myself this over the past few months.

28. Visit someone in a nursing home.- Sadly, this is incomplete. I really want to do this though. I’m thinking this one will show up on next year’s list as well.

29. Show someone appreciation by more than just saying "thank you."- Through the genius of a fellow castmate, out cast and crew said “thank you” to our director and musical director by singing “To Sir With Love” before the final show. You can see proof on my Facebook videos.

30. Make a loaf of Challah bread.- Incomplete.

31. Volunteer.- I volunteered as a judge’s assistant’s assistant for the International Folk Fair. I helped with the international youth inventor’s competition. Quite interesting, I must admit.

32. Win.- My uncle and I beat my grandmother and aunt at a card game.

33. Lose.- I lost to a Thumb War.

34. Tie.- I tied a game of Tic Tac Toe.

35. Tell someone the truth even though it is very difficult.- Completed.

36. Babysit.- Babysat three girls this summer.

37. Master the Moonlight Sonata. All of it. Up to speed.- In progress, thought the “up to speed” part has a LOOOONG way to go.

38. Perform (not including karaoke).- I performed in a play and in a musical.

39. Make myself look stupid on purpose.- I let the Navy embarrass me in front of hundreds of people.

40. Go somewhere secluded and yell at the top of my lungs.- Check.

41. Learn how to belly dance.- Thank you, FitTV.

42. Go to a rock concert. – Went to my fourth Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert, but was the closest I had ever been (5th row!) with my mother.

43. Learn how to whistle.- Check. Apparently, it is not a genetic trait.

44. Go to a lecture on something other than psychology, dance, or the arts and stay awake for the whole thing.- Incomplete. Grad school owns me.

45. Go to bed before 10pm four nights in a row.- Incomplete.

46. Ride in a grocery cart.- Check! My friend pushed me around in the WalMart parking lot until we got in trouble by a cart attendant.

47. Learn how to play backgammon.- Incomplete. Does anyone know how to play backgammon? What exactly is backgammon?

48. Eat escargot.- It was not as gross as I expected, but it was difficult to keep myself from thinking, “Ew! I just ate a snail. Don’t gag.”

49. Eat a piece of sushi previously thought of as revolting.- I ate a rainbow roll with raw salmon on it and a caterpillar roll with eel in it. I liked the eel much more than the raw salmon.

50. Learn how to yodel.- I never fully accomplished this one, though I did watch a few instructional YouTube videos and practiced in my car on long trips.

51. Beat a video game.- I beat some computer game about a boat ride in South America.

52. Touch all the bordering (ocean-based) bodies of water in America within 6 months of each other.- I touched the Gulf in May and the Atlantic in July (I think?), but I never touched the Pacific. I was trying to find someone to bring me some Pacific water in a water bottle, but that was unsuccessful.