I turn 39 today, and by next year, my 40th year, likely my life will be about half over. This isn’t a bad thing; I have very few regrets about how I’ve spent my one precious existance. But there is still a lot to do. I don’t fear dying, just not having lived enough. So here’s my list of things I want to accomplish in the next 365 days:
Spend an evening in a fancy restaurant with friends.Travel to a country I’ve never visited, preferably in South America or Africa (the only continents I haven’t visited).- Go on a long (multi-day) hike.
- Make a really cool piece of interactive art.
- Play a movement of one of the Bach solo cello suites reasonably well.
Buy a nice watch.Put myself on the bone marrow transplant donor list.See a product launch that my company designed.Eat at Burma Superstar.- Do 100 pushups in a single session.
Get my second tattoo.- Set up a real retirement savings plan.
Lose 10 pounds.- Read Bleak House.
Give blood.- Teach Fiona how to ride a two-wheeler bike.
- Do 200 situps.
- Spend a day doing service.
Visit a national park.Go on a decent vacation with my family.- Do 20 pullups.
Get an interesting new pair of glasses.Go wine tasting.Build a robot.Hire an employee.Discover an amazing new band.Have a spa day with Rachael.Listen to a live classical music performance.Write for, or at least be mentioned in, a major media publication.Find another series of books Fiona and I can read together, then read them.Buy a piece of art.Make a new friend.- Buy a coffee table for my living room.
- Go to the real Northern California
and see the giant redwoods. Buy a new desk chair.- Do 30 minutes of exercise every day.
- Eat at The French Laundry.
Give Rachael an unexpected gift.Speak in front of a new audience.- Perform a cello/violin duet with Fiona.
That is a terrific list! (I should start working on mine)
Happy Birthday, and many happy returns.
The redwoods are spectacular. I took a road trip up there last summer. Try to go midweek and you’ll find lots of spots along the road to pull off and be completely alone in the forest. It’s a wonderful experience.
I can help you with #26…
Augie March’s latest album “Watch Me Disappear” is a true undiscovered gem.
Matt.
A lovely list – I especially like the last one for its touching quality. Being a parent – and especially a dad – is a hugely important role, and you’re a good one.
You know, a really cool piece of interactive art” makes me think of Burning Man…heh. Your goals are good here – they’re very SMART oriented, which means you’ll probably achieve them. Might be a good session for a talk – how to make your design goals achievable in the face of constraints (not sure if you’ve written something like that).
I think I’ll join you on the work out. 10,17 & 21
I like number 40 – I’ve been playing violin for a couple of years now, and my fiance has just started playing cello (we’re talking last week). We have a similar aspiration – to play a duet by the end of the year. Fortunately, that’s still a couple of months off, and we’ll need every one (this fretless string instrument thing is *hard*)!