101/1001 (take 1) wrap-up

[thingism]

If this were a test I'd be given a D-. But being my first time I'm not too concerned.

Final Stats:

Things completed: 62
Things in progress: 17
Things never even started: 20

Topic breakdown [complete/in progress/total]

Personal: [7/1/10]
Home: [8/0/12]
Reading: [2/2/7]
Arts and Crafts: [8/4/16]
Other Hobbies: [7/7/15]
Travel: [14/0/17]
Local: [7/0/9]
Misc.: [9/3/15]

Blue things are completed
Red things are failed

Personal

1. Visit eye doctor and get new prescription/glasses/contacts - 1/25/2011

I'm glad I did this, though it's kind of irrelevant now since I had LASIK surgery a little over a year later.

2. Donate blood 5 times - 5/25/2012

I like cookies. And my blood type is always needed. And I like cookies.

3. Write one thing I'm grateful for in my diary every day for a month - 8/31/2011

This was an amazing experience. It really changes your perspective.

4. Change the passwords for all of my important online accounts - 7/5/2011

I really should do this again, come to think of it. Maybe think up some better passwords while I'm at it.

5. Make a will

This never happened. It's something that everyone should do but I think I was a little intimidated by the whole idea of it. I mean, it's less dire since I have no children (and thus don't have to designate guardians), but it'd be a good thing to have. And a living will, come to think of it. I mean, my husband knows my intentions and I know his, but what if we were in a car wreck together or something?

6. Don't eat fast food for a month - 1/31/2012

I did it, though I cheated a little bit by breakfasting at Subway a few times. Mostly I just wanted to see if I could.

7. Get a manicure - 7/10/2010

This was added solely because it's something a lot of people do regularly that I'd never done in my life. And I lucked out - I was a bridesmaid in a wedding where the bride's mom sprung for all of us to get manicures and pedicures the day before the ceremony. It was a lot of fun, but something I'd really prefer to do with friends. It's just not important enough to me to do on my own.

8. Drink only water for one week

I tried this on a few occasions, including immediately following ankle surgery since I was on both Oxycontin and Percoset at the same time. No dice: my headache was so terrible waking up from the anesthesia that the nurse handed me a can of Coke. I know I should give up soda, but (1) it's far from the worst of the vices I could have, and (2) I really don't want to give up soda. I like soda. A lot.

9. Log 1001 miles on the stationary bike [749.65/1001]

This was more doable back when I was routinely churning out 10+ miles on the stationary bike a few times a week. I have since changed my cardio habits to more challenging things, like running.

10. Change BC prescription - 4/28/2010

This needed to be done. It was done. That's about all I can say about it.

Home

11. Put up bird feeder - 10/30/2010

My parents helped me with this, both in providing the feeder itself (they have a million - their backyard looks like a scene from Snow White) and in actually helping me install it. My husband isn't very good about keeping it filled, but when he does both the birds and our cats think it's the best thing that's ever happened.

12. Landscape the front yard

My meaning with this was actually to get rid of the ginormous evergreen bush out front that has been encroaching on our sidewalk and is actually completely brown underneath its thin green veneer. My husband is convinced it's actually getting healthier. So I guess it'll stay for now.

13. Get a safe deposit box

I have no idea why I never did this. My husband and I have both talked about it for years. We're kind of stupid that way.

14. Get rid of the flower pots on the deck - 5/22/2010

The deck looks much cleaner without them, and my husband has accepted that he's really not a gardener after all.

15. Clean out huge bin in closet - 7/4/2011

One of the nice things about the 101/1001 project is that it helps me actually do the things I keep meaning to do but never get around to because something else keeps coming up. Having goals and a deadline - and a place to publicly report my progress - is an amazing motivator.

16. Fix dent in my car

I...guess I don't care as much about this as I thought I did.

17. Take down satellite dish - 10/30/2010

I brained myself on this thing at least once, so taking it down has surely saved me some headaches.

18. Install hardwood flooring in livingroom

I still want to do this but I have no idea when it'll happen. Cream-colored shag carpet looks dirty all the time, especially with two black cats running around shedding.

19. Refinish front steps - 4/7/2012

Not quite the results I wanted, but at least they're sealed. Maybe we can repaint them someday.

20. Replace caulk in my shower - 8/15/2010

This actually needs to get done again. I suspect the next step is replacing the shower entirely.

21. Clean out inside of car - vacuum, clean windows, wipe down dash, etc. - 8/26/2011

Once every 1001 days really isn't enough. My car is gross.

22. Purchase new comforter/sheet set - 5/28/2010

I love my comforter!

Reading

23. Finish reading the Bible (current progress: finished Ezra)

This is one of those tasks I have to sit down and do. Since I take copious notes, it's not something I can just do in little bits here and there. I still hope to finish it eventually.

24. Read/listen to 250 books (not counting rereads) - 11/27/2012

I made it! Just barely, but I made it!

25. Get TBR pile under 50 books (even just temporarily)

At its peak, my TBR pile was over 200 books. Now it's under 75. That's progress, right?

26. Reread childhood picture books and post reviews

The annoying thing about this is that it probably wouldn't have taken more than an afternoon to complete. Hmmph.

27. Read all the Death Note manga/novels

All our comics are in another room, separate from our other books, so I often forget they exist when scouting out my next read.

28. Read 1 non-Christian book for BRRP

This was something I didn't want to do until I'd finished reading the Bible. Probably shouldn't have included it in the goal list, but I guess I was feeling overconfident.

29. Read at least 1 of my NaNovels beginning to end - 5/23/2012

I did this to remind myself that (1) NaNoWriMo isn't a complete waste of time and (2) I'm not a totally crap writer, even when I'm blathering for pages on end just to boost my word count.

Arts and Crafts

30. Fill pink camo book - 8/7/2011

Poor book. It's so full the cover fell off.

31. Fill TAD sketchbook

I really enjoy filling these pages with sketches drawn from magazine photographs. There are just a whole bunch more pages than I realized.

32. Complete 10 ATC swaps on Swap-bot - 5/7/2011

I heart ATCs.

33. Answer 10 mailart calls

I like mailart. I don't know why I can't seem to get myself to do more of it.

34. Complete "Wreck This Journal"

Another lesson in priorities: this turned out not to be the adventure in creative freedom I'd hoped. Mostly it was tedious and a little gross.

35. Draw at an art museum - 7/31/2010

I did this, but it was a live model at the Corcoran. Someday I want to go and draw the actual art.

36. Sell something that I have made - 9/17/2011

I think I meant something I'd drawn, but it ended up being Perler bead ornaments, and that's fine too.

37. Take and post a photo a day for a month - 5/13/2012

This was fun but not something I feel a desire to do again. I'm not much of a photographer.

38. Draw at the zoo - 7/11/2012

It's really difficult to draw standing up.

39. Take a painting class

Still hope to do this eventually.

40. Learn amigurumi and create 1 critter

I so failed at this, but my sister is amazing at crochet so I think we might work something out where she pours some of her expertise into my brain.

41. Send 10 RAKs on send something - 5/27/2010

This was all right but I wasn't active after finishing this goal.

42. Fill Jem journal gluebook

I think the only reason this was not completed was because I made completed gluebooks for three other people from scratch during this time, plus started a separate gluebook just for tourism. So I've been gluebooking up a storm - just not in this particular book.

43. Participate in 24-Hour Comics Day - 10/1/2011

Okay, so it was more like an illustrated short story, but I did it and it was kind of fun. If I did it again, I'd want to go to one of the 24HCD events. Alone wasn't all that exciting.

44. Complete Thing-a-Day

Tried this multiple times. I'm just no good at daily challenges, especially when they involve scanning in things.

45. Make a calendar of my own art

I still want to do this. I just don't have any art I want to put in a calendar.

Other Hobbies

46. Write and submit 2 BookCrossing newsletter articles

I wrote one. I never thought up anything else to write about.

47. Reach 4000 snarfs on Markeroni

Total: 2609/4000 - 65%
When I started this venture, I had 899 snarfs under my belt. 4000 was pretty ambitious - 3100 snarfs in under three years! - but considering I've logged more than half that many in that time and still have several hundred left to sort through, perhaps it wasn't such a crazy idea after all. I'm repeating this goal next time around.

48. Attend 5 write-ins - 7/1/2011

just_the_things and I have started semi-regular Friday evening write-ins at a local Panera. Mostly I catch up on book reviews and blog posts, but it's a wonderful opportunity both to be productive and to hang out with one of my very best friends more often.

49. Finish and post 5 short stories.

I haven't written a single short story in years. I don't know why not.

50. Update SFF site: fix color scheme, add Fun & Games - 4/27/2011

I did this and then ended up transferring the entire site to Wordpress.com. But it was still good to have uploaded the Fun & Games stuff.

51. Write and post 3 Squidoo articles

Squidoo lost its appeal. Maybe someday I'll post another article there but it doesn't really interest me so much.

52. Respond to all prompts in A Writer's Book of Days

Well, I made it into February. The problem is that a lot of the prompts aren't all that great.

53. Finish snarfing FX county/city, Alexandria, and Falls Church

Fairfax: 491/503 - 97%
12 left, though 2 of them are in Mount Vernon, 1 no longer exists, and 1 is in an unknown location. (Seriously: just_the_things snarfed it but doesn't remember where it was.)

Alexandria: 139/166 - 83%
27 to go, 3 of which are historic districts and those are always tricky.

Falls Church: 37/47 - 78%
The same 10 left that have been left for at least a year. Two of them are ones I swear I've snarfed but heaven knows where the photo might have gone to. Falls Church is annoying because they don't seem to like to let me leave my car anywhere. There's no Metro access either; I have no idea how people get there.

Total: 667/716 - 93%
49 to go. I've separated these out into three separate goals for the next time around. It'll be a little different from what I have outstanding now because just_the_things and I made a pact months ago not to add any new Fairfax snarfs to the catalog. Now, all bets are off.

54. Scan/log pre-Markeroni snarfs

I thought I'd do this when I cleaned out the giant bin in my closet, which is where my photo albums are, but .... yeah. That didn't happen.

55. Release 100 books into the wild (not counting festivals or Book Thing donations) - 9/11/2010

I love releasing books but it was kind of a pain in the butt to keep track of this way.

56. Find 10 geocaches [8/10]

So close! This doesn't count the half dozen or so geocaches I searched for but never found. I like geocaching, but I really prefer to do it with a friend. I get discouraged too easily alone.

57. Attend a BookCrossing convention - 4/18/2010

Two, actually - Amsterdam and Washington, DC. Good times.

58. Make buttons for BookCrossing 2011 Convention goodie bags - 3/27/2011

Done, and we had buttons floating around for ages afterward. It was great.

59. Write how-to guide for making snarf maps - 7/25/2012

I'm really proud of this.

60. Try out letterboxing (make a stamp and find one letterbox) - 8/11/2012

Glad I tried it, but I don't think it's really my thing.

Travel

61. Visit Grandma - 12/24/2011

Grandma is awesome. I need to visit her again soon.

62. Luray Caverns - 10/5/2012

Obscenely touristy, but a nice afternoon outing.

63. Holocaust Museum

This isn't somewhere I can visit on a whim while I happen to be in DC for something else, and in the end I just never made it happen.

64. International Spy Museum - 5/19/2012

Good to take the in-laws to but not somewhere I'd revisit.

65. Colonial Williamsburg

Aw heck, I have no idea if this will ever happen, despite my husband's and my interest in it.

66. Montpelier and/or Ash Lawn - 2/26/2012

I went to Montpelier. It was just okay. I don't see myself going out of my way to visit Ash Lawn.

67. Gettysburg - 4/23/2011

I had a blast until I tore a tendon in my ankle and ended up in a brace for the next five months. That was less fun.

68. One state I've never been to before - 9/1/2011

South Carolina!

69. Go camping

Something I guess I wasn't as eager to do as I'd thought.

70. Japan - 3/18-26/2010

So awesome. Must go back.

71. Visit my sister - 4/9/2012

Twice, amazingly!

72. Go on a solo road trip - 10/11/2012

This was really great. I mean, I do mini solo road trips now and again when I go on snarfari, but having five full days to follow my whims while visiting some of my favorite people, well, that was unforgettable.

73. Complete 1 experiment in Lonely Planet Guide to Experimental Travel - 8/5/2012

I had fun with this, but something tells me most of the experiments would be better in a more walkable city.

74. Collect 5 National Park Passport stamps - 10/1/2010

I love stamps.

75. Visit a lighthouse - 8/8/2010

Another thing I wanted to do but probably never would have gotten around to were it not for this list. Excellent.

76. Hike the entire Maryland Heights trail at Harpers Ferry - 11/6/2010

I'm so proud of myself for doing this. I should go back again sometime.

77. Ride a train. (A real one, not the Metro.) - 3/24/2010

The Tokyo-Osaka train was extremely pleasant. Maybe one day I'll try Amtrak.

Local

78. Peeps store in National Harbor - 4/10/2010

I've been here several times since, and every time it makes me smile.

79. Shop at a farmer's market - 7/30/2010

One of these days I should drag my husband to this. I think he'd like it. He's the cook in the family, after all.

80. See a play at Shakespeare Theatre - 11/27/2010

Candide - very fun.

81. See a show at the Kennedy Center - 11/23/2012

Jekyll & Hyde - a bit flat but still a good time.

82. See a show at Wolf Trap - 7/26/2012

Legend of Zelda music performed by a symphony orchestra - beautiful!

83. Go to the top of the Washington Monument

Closed for repairs. Boo-urns.

84. Host a board game night

I....have no idea why this didn't happen. My husband and I both want to do it.

85. Attend 5 plays - 7/20/2011

I love plays.

86. Visit ten new restaurants - 6/7/2011

There are so many restaurants around here that it's easy to fall into a rut of only going to the same few over and over again because you know they're good. This thing really forced me to try new places.

Misc.

87. Visit 1 art-o-mat machine - 8/28/2011

I am so glad there aren't any art-o-mat machines too conveniently located. I would have no money.

88. Keep separate 101/1001 blog - 3/11/2010

You're looking at it!

89. Update Daniel's maps - 5/3/2010

My GPS is so essential I'm glad I did this. Of course, now I have a new GPS, Daniel Junior, with map updates for life, but I still got over two years of use out of these maps.

90. Attend a SF/F convention - 5/27/2011

Balticon and Dragon*Con, both good times.

91. Learn how to tie a tie

Yeah. I don't care.

92. Watch Cowboy Bebop series - 12/9/2011

I liked it. I'm not sure I'd care to watch the entire thing again.

93. Watch all of Doctor Who (9th Doctor and onward) - 4/2/2012

I am now a bona fide Doctor Who fan. Sure, Nine and Ten are still my favorites, but I love them all and want to see more of the classic series. I also want to read the books and listen to the audio dramas. Good thing there's 50 years of stuff to experience!

94. Recycle my old shoes - 12/5/2010

Hoorah for more room in the closet!

95. Fly a kite

I actually had the opportunity to do this on the National Mall, but tore a tendon in my ankle the week before. So it never happened. I've still never flown a kite.

96. Go to a drive-in movie

I had such high hopes for this, but drive-ins are so scarce that it's probably more trouble than it's worth at this point.

97. Donate 100,000 grains of rice at FreeRice [28,000/100,000]

For a while, FreeRice was being obnoxious and randomly re-zeroing my total without me noticing. Also, getting to 100,000 grains got really boring after a while because there are a limited number of questions and things get repetitive. Especially when you get the same one wrong over and over and over again.

98. Organize photos/files in "figure out later" folder 5 times

I did this once. I really need to do it again.

99. Take pictures in a photo booth. - 4/26/2010

I did a passport photo one, not the kind that give you four different photos in a strip. That's all right.

100. Donate $1 to charity for each goal left undone on 7 Dec 2012 - 12/5/2012

I opted for a Kiva loan and a flock of chicks from Heifer International. Donating makes me happy so I haven't quite figured out why I don't do more of it. It's not like I can't afford to.

101. Watch the DVDs I own but have never seen. [25/43]

I discovered that we own a fair number of DVDs I don't care if I ever see.

The next 1001 days begins tomorrow with a shiny new list. Stay tuned!