30 Before 30 Update

I like to complete things.  We know this!  This desire means the goals on my 30 Before 30 list that I'm still working toward HAUNT me!  Because even though some of these things see progress daily or weekly, I'm still weeks or months from the completion of the actual goal.  And don't get me started on all the near misses this month!!!  So to make me feel better, let's talk about all of the things I have in progress!


4) Ride a mechanical bull for at least :08.  THERE WAS ONE ON CAMPUS FOR SPRINGFEST AND I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT IT!!!!  What kind of foolishness????  People in my program knew there was one AND THAT I WANTED TO RIDE ONE and DIDN'T TELL ME.  I HATE THEM.
5) Go on a helicopter ride.  Rashan wanted to take me on one for our Valentine's Day but they're prohibitively expensive around here.
8) Read the entire Bible. [Started 5/31/10]  It's coming along but not as quickly as I want it to.  I'm simultaneously trying to speed up and slow myself down.
9) Run a 5k. I was supposed to do one this month but I haven't been running.  Sounds like a bad idea.  I found one for next month, though so I WILL be doing it.

11) Go wine tasting in North Carolina Wine Country.  ARGH!!!  Rashan and I went to a vineyard this weekend and all the vines looked like THIS!  Brilliant blue skies, lush green grass and naked as a jaybird vines...... Pass on that tour!!!
12) Cook my way through Tyler's Ultimate cookbook.  I'm really terribly over this one and I'm only about a third of the way through.  There are some expensive ingredients and some things that really just don't intrigue me.  Le sigh.
14) Work out 3xs a week for a full year. [Started 12/26/10]  Enjoying this!  Especially since I'm getting to go outside some (something I very often don't like)!
15) Take at least one picture every day for a year. [Started 3/7/11]  I started a tumblr page to keep track of it all!  I don't like that you can't comment (what on earth is the point of that??) but I like that it's so easy to post pictures.  It will be all pics with a brief description.  Hopefully there are more great days than "I just need a picture day."  The beginning of any long challenge is pretty easy plus I got some cool tips on taking daily pics that I hope will help me along.
17) Go to a Duke-Carolina basketball game.  ARGH!!! This thing sells out THE SECOND it goes on sale so I didn't get a ticket.  :/
18) Learn how to hem clothing.  My cousins wasted SO MUCH of my time by showing up 3+ hours late OR NOT AT ALL to the point where I didn't get to learn how to hem clothing from grandma.  UGH!!
19) Ride on a hot air balloon.  Still waiting on this to come on Groupon/Living Social again.  More expensive than I want.
20) Make a house a home via decoration! I've been looking but I think this will be waiting a while yet.
23) Make AND KEEP a budget.  Oh my goodness!  I've been doing incredibly poorly with this.
25) Read 10 classic books: The plan for this is to read one a month but I'm stuck at Catch 22.  Great Gatsby is next.  I think it'll give me a boost.
a. Pride & Prejudice [6/6/10- LOVED IT!!]
b. Oliver Twist [8/14/10 Liked it a lot. The neat wrap up was rather ridiculous at the end. My 2nd e-book.]
c. Catch 22 (in progress)
d. Catcher in the Rye [1/13/11] I can absolutely see why this one was banned. I don't particularly enjoy being cursed out the entire time I'm reading a book.  It was a pretty easy read.  Very stream-of-consciousness which I was actually far more tolerant of than I've ever been before.
e. Grapes of Wrath
f. The Great Gatsby
g. Invisible Man
h. Lord of the Flies
i. Their Eyes Were Watching God
j. Uncle Tom's Cabin [7/15/10- Slow start, intriguing & at times infuriating middle, shark-jumping end. My first e-book. That experience alone was an adjustment.].
27) Get my name in the newspaper a minimum of 5 times! One down for the radio program I'm teaching. Wheeeee!!
28) Enter a food competition with my own recipe. I've composed a couple of recipes. I just need to find the right competition!
29) Watch AFI's Top 100 movies.  I needed to watch about 51 movies at the start of this and now I have 35 left.  I feel like this is moving sooooo slowly!