Friday, May 30, 2014

Before 30 Bucket List: The Challenge Begins!



On August 15th, 2014 I'll be turning the big 3-0. For some people this is scary. I remember there was this episode of Friends I saw as a teen where Joey was crying into a sad birthday cake screaming "We had a deal!" at the sky. For some people 30 is a revolutionary age, I think the Sex and the City factor had a lot to do with this. For me, age is just a number but 30 is a pretty significant number.


Since I turned 20, I've accomplished a lot in my life. I graduated college, and my Masters, I had my first paying job, I moved abroad, I had my first messy breakup, had my first drink, (at the legal age of 21, like a good girl), made new friends, dumped some bad ones, made a lot of good art, made some not so good art, explored the world and myself.




So in these last 3 months of my 20's I will be striking out on one last challenge.
The 30 bucket list where I'll try and accomplish a bunch of things I haven't yet.
I'll update periodically and let you know how the adventure is going.

Here's the list (in no particular order)

1. Try something new.-

GHOST CHILI
During the Canada Day race I faced something called the Suicide Wing which has ghost chilies in the recipe. Horribly painful to eat. Your face automatically turns red, your tummy hurts and your nose and eyes start leaking from the spiciness. I tried something new, it was an adventure and I made 2 new awesome friends during the race but I can't see why people want to eat these.

2. Face a fear.-

HEIGHTS and JUMPING
I jumped off the top of a junk boat. It was terrifying for me and incredibly painful. Glad I faced the fear but I'll never do it again.

3. Read more.-
So far 11 BOOKS this summer!

4. Stay out all night and watch the sunrise with friends.

5. Do a shot.-

 I actually did this TWICE!
I did a shot of vodka on a junk boat and thought it was thoroughly disgusting. Then I tried this maple flavored vodka at a Quebec day celebration and it was actually quite lovely. I could have actually sat there and sipped it straight but it was very yummy mixed with ginger ale.

6. Try hiking. (Because I always say "I hate it" but I've never actually done it.)

I realized in a panic last night that I have hiked... a few times in fact. I hiked when I went and saw the Big Buddha with my mom and Yolanda. This is how much I hate hiking... I've blocked it from my memory. Here's a photo as evidence. (See! I hiked up there!)

Number 6 is being scratched from the list because it was put on the list on the basis of forgetfulness. Maybe I should make a goal to drink more green tea, so my memory won't suck so much.



7. Try a new style of food.

I did a trip to Chiang Mai this past week and tried many new foods! Some good and some bad- the main bad one... Chiang Mai Northern Sausage. Do not eat this if you are of the faint of heart. It is so so so so bad.

8. Be a vegetarian for a week. (FAILURE)

Didn't happen. Doesn't look like it's going to. The most I could make it was 3 days before I broke down and ate a steak. I'm a carnivore, I guess!

9. Go to the gym. (Like... ever)

10. Purge my life (Of useless things and people)

I had a clothes swap with my girlfriend, had an honest conversation with 2 people I decided I no longer want to be friends with and did a big FB purge of "friends. You know those people? The ones who are only friends with you- to get something from you? The ones who pressure you to do things you don't want to do or make you continually feel bad about yourself? Or the ones who just never talk to you unless they want something. Well, I dumped them... All of them. Now you know if I'm friends with you on facebook I'm actually invested in our relationship. I care about your life and what happens in it.

I have many friends on my facebook that are international friends, people I've met from backpacking or travelling, but I actually think that these friends are some of my most inspirational. They believe in me and support me, even though we've only spent like 72 hrs together. That's a dedicated friend.

In light of my clothes swap, I'm not allowed to go shopping for a long time. I've decided I own way too many useless things.

11. Explore a new style of art.-

CHINESE DANCE
I took a sleeves lesson from the HK Dance Company during the summer. It was really interesting and I really enjoyed the class. There was a bit of a language barrier, as the class was taught in Cantonese but I still learned quite a bit. I don't know if I would take another class from HK Dance but I would be interested in taking another Chinese dance class in the future.

12. Learn to say no.

Still working on this one. Don't know if I'm going to accomplish this. I've learned this summer, I have a very big problem with overcommitting myself. I need to learn to say no.

13. Go somewhere in HK I've never been before.-

NORTH POINT FERRY
Did you know North Point has a ferry that goes to Hung Hom? I didn't either. We road it during the Canada Day race. It was a pretty gross ferry compared to Star Ferry and had a long wait between boat departures but was a pretty quick way to cross the harbor.

14. Ride a motorcycle.

Looking to accomplish this over the next 3 days. Got a motorbike? Can I sit on the back of it while you drive around the block? I'll bake you cookies...

15. Take a Cantonese lesson.

I took a brief Cantonese lesson with my friend Annabel while we were in Thailand. She taught me some very useful phrases like what time is it?, how? and testicles. Something that all people need to know. I haven't taken an official lesson but I think my Annabel lesson totally counts.



My reward for completing this list will be having a fabulous birthday party!
I hope you enjoy coming on this journey with me.

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