Thirty Before Thirty

Well, today's my birthday, and now I'm 29. I'm pretty happy in my life, so I'm not really stressed out about aging (plus I recently found out that I am going to live to be 102, so that helps). But the thought of 30 closing in does make one take stock of one's life and one's goals. Recently, while perusing one of my favorite blogs, Making It Lovely, I came across a post the author, Nicole, wrote about thirty things she wanted to accomplish before she turns thirty this fall. It seemed like a worthwhile pursuit, and I decided to blatantly rip off the idea. Otherwise, without goals, I could end up happily wasting the last year of my twenties sitting on this couch with this laptop yammering away to you people (no offense- I love yammering to you). Kind of like New Year's resolutions, but more of them, and with an expiration date. But here's the thing- once I started coming up with things I wanted to do a few weeks ago, I started doing them already. So, I've already done a few of these (represented by the strikethroughs)- I'll keep updating, as I accomplish them. I hope you don't mind that I'm a such a goal-oriented person.  I'll keep you updated as I plow through these thangs. Here's to the last 365 days of my youth- may they be extremely productive!

1. Run a half marathon and a 10K (not every race has to be a marathon).
2. Swim from the island (in the lake where we go in the summer. This concludes the athletic portion of my goals).
3. Build out a roofdeck on my apartment.
4. Renovate my downstairs bathroom (ugh, so ugly).
5. Find a weekly yoga class I love (trust me, if I love it, it won't count as athletic).
6. Write, write, write.
7. Place a bet on a horse race and win. (unless you don't count winning $100 on a $5 bet at the Belmont Stakes last weekend, suckers!)
8. Read Ayn Rand, finally, and find out what people have been talking about.
9. Write thank-you notes every time someone does something nice for me.
10. Learn how to edit film.
11. Get better at HTML (better than terrible can't be that hard).
12. Teach my baby niece to say my name.
13. Figure out and master the best chocolate-chip cookie recipe.
14. Teach my dog to roll over. (I'm so proud. She'll do anything for food. Just like her mama).
15. Learn new ways to cook fish inside without stinking up the house.
16. Learn the Beyonce "Single Ladies" dance (yeah, I know I'm late to the table on this one, but I still love it).
17. Find a great self-tanner (if one exists) and use it, instead of crisping myself in the real sun all summer.
18. Install shutters in my living room (so I can walk from the kitchen to the bedroom in a towel without traumatizing the neighbors).
19. Do a 5-day juice fast.
20. Do a kidney and liver cleanse. (First, find out how to do a liver and kidney cleanse).
21. Bowl over a 180 (I think my previous record is 150).
22. Visit a new country with my husband.
23. Learn to sail (passably- I'm not trying to become an Admiral or anything).
24. Master my own signature punch recipe. I'm almost there...
25. Borrow my friend's Rosetta Stone Spanish tapes and complete the course.
26. Take a skiing lesson so I can keep up with JM on the bowls and double blacks without peeing my pants.
27. Get annual check-ups at the dermo, gyno, dentist, herbalist,voodoo priestess and my general practitioner to make sure I'm in top physical form (I mean, for me. I'm not trying to be Lance Armstrong or anything).
28. Talk my husband into going camping. Maybe climb something? (But just getting him to sleep in a tent would be an accomplishment in itself).
29. Find and buy a sun hat that actually looks good on me. I admit it's a long shot with this massive noggin.
30. Learn how to get "beach hair" without going to the beach. Or just go to the beach a lot. Either way, I'll be happy.

What are your goals for this year? Take it from me- even if you're only turning 25 (a baby!) it's never too early to figure out the stupid superficial things you want to accomplish!

photo credit: Martha Stewart