101 Things to Do in 1001 Days

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.


The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).


Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

START DATE: Wednesday, April 30, 2008
END DATE:
Wednesday, January 26, 2011

My List

  • LEARNING
  • [FL] 1. Become fluent in Spanish
  • [FL] 2. Be fluent in Sign Language
  • [-] 3. Go to at least one office hour with every professor (0/16)
  • [x] 4. Learn about another religion's holiday and celebrate it
  • [FL] 5. Learn the locations of every nation-state in the world (192)
  • [FL] 6. Learn to speak and understand a little conversational Arabic
  • [FL] 7. Learn to speak and understand a little conversational French
  • [x] 8. Participate in an internship in Namibia
  • [x] 9. Qualify for a free master's degree
  • [ ] 10. Write a piece of literature, at least a short story
  • HEALTH/BODY
  • [FL] 11. Follow the bike path from the top of Rhode Island to the bottom (in one weekend)
  • [FL] 12. Participate in a marathon
  • [FL] 13. Reach and maintain an average BMI
  • INTERPERSONAL
  • [-] 14. Be on a first-name basis with Annie, best short-order cook in Worcester
  • [FL] 15. Be in a relationship for at least 6 months
  • [x] 16. Become friends with someone I meet on public transportation
  • [FL] 17. Convince someone about the value of a Department of Peace
  • [x] 18. Have an intellectual conversation with President Basset
  • [FL] 19. Meet Conan O'Brien
  • [x] 20. Reach out to someone lonely
  • [FL] 21. Shake hands with Barack Obama
  • [FL] 22. Talk to (a) stranger(s) for the entire period of waiting for a bus/train, etc.
  • LIFE SKILLS
  • [-] 23. Be the person solely responsible for a pet
  • [x] 24. Be THE reason a student decides to come to Clark (told by the person or through email)
  • [x] 25. Convince someone to stop using derogatory language
  • [-] 26. Grow a vegetable from seed and be able to eat it
  • [-] 27. Invest in the stocks of a company for a month
  • [FL] 28. Learn to shuffle and deal cards well
  • [FL] 29. Make beef jerky
  • [-] 30. Make yummy brownies
  • [FL] 31. Prepare a 3-course meal all by myself
  • SELF-IMPROVEMENT
  • [x] 32. Be a facilitator at a HOBY Conference
  • [x] 33. Be on the E-board of a CU organization
  • [x] 34. Donate food to a local shelter
  • [-] 35. Donate $200 to a good cause
  • [FL] 36. Eat a meal (that I bought or made) with a homeless person
  • [ ] 37. Eat a meal with my high school rival
  • [FL] 38. Found an activist organization
  • [FL] 39. Have a significant communication with the United Nations
  • [-] 40. Make a lasting impact on Clark University (start a club, program, etc.)
  • [FL] 41. March for peace
  • [x] 42. Organize and run an event on campus
  • [FL] 43. Research Buddhism and become Buddhist if it appeals to me
  • [-] 44. Send anonymous encouraging notes to everyone with mailboxes at school (0/2200)
  • [FL] 45. Spend time with my half-brother and his family
  • [FL] 46. Talk with an ex-prisoner about their experiences
  • [FL] 47. Visit my older relatives at least 2 times a year (0/6)
  • [x] 48. Volunteer at least 50 hours every year (3)
  • TRAVEL
  • [FL] 49. Go on a road trip that takes more than 24 hours to drive to destination
  • [x] 50. See my roommate's hometown of San Francisco
  • [FL] 51. Travel the West Coast, visitng friends in CA, and NV
  • [FL] 52. Travel to the Middle East
  • [FL] 53. Travel to 4 continents of the world (3/4)
  • [x] 54. Be in a theatrical production at Clark University
  • [x] 55. Visit a wine vineyard
  • [FL] 56. Visit at least 30 of the "1,000 places to see before you die" (12/30)
  • [FL] 57. Visit Craig in Jamaica
  • CREATIVITY
  • [FL] 58. Be featured in a Frank Warren PostSecret book
  • [FL] 59. Choreograph a dance that others will perform
  • [x] 60. Create a piece of art that I'm proud of
  • [ ] 61. Cross stitch a picture to frame
  • [FL] 62. Get a matching tattoo with my best friend
  • [FL] 63. Invent something
  • [x] 64. Learn to draw better
  • [-] 65. Learn to play 5 songs on bass guitar (0/5)
  • [x] 66. Make a film
  • [FL] 67. Make a scrapbook of Clark undergraduate years
  • FOR FUN
  • [FL] 68. Audition for the Amazing Race
  • [FL] 69. Beat Sonic 2 on Sega Genesis
  • [-] 70. Be pulled on stage during a concert
  • [x] 71. Bring my mum to a hookah bar
  • [-] 72. Complete a 500-piece puzzle by myself
  • [-] 73. Drive a motorcycle
  • [FL] 74. Get a list of 25 friends' favorite movies and watch them all (0/25)
  • [-] 75. Get on national news
  • [x] 76. Give a fireworks display
  • [-] 77. Go kayaking in the ocean
  • [-] 78. Go skiing
  • [FL] 79. Go skydiving
  • [FL] 80. Go to Bonaroo
  • [-] 81. Have a romantic picnic lunch at the Cumberland Monastery
  • [ ] 82. Have sex in one of the administration buildings on campus
  • [ ] 83. Have sex on the Green/in Red Square
  • [FL] 84. Order drinks for an entire bar full of people
  • [-] 85. Participate in a parade
  • [FL] 86. Play paintball
  • [FL] 87. Read a 200+ page novel in one day
  • [ ] 88. Spend an over-night in Goddard Library
  • [FL] 89. Streak through an event
  • [-] 90. Swim in the Blackstone River
  • [x] 91. Trespass on a golf course
  • WILL POWER
  • [x] 92. Become a vegetarian for one month
  • [-] 93. Eat a cheeseburger with everything on it
  • [x] 94. Eat everything that is given to me on an unappetizing plate
  • [-] 95. Fast for a week for a cause
  • [FL] 96. Forage for food and shelter for 24 hours
  • [FL] 97. Get arrested for something I believe in
  • [FL] 98. Give up sweets for one month
  • [x] 99. Live without technology for one week
  • [FL] 100. Survive on less than $2 a day for seven days straight
  • [x] 101. Stay a pacifist

Thursday, May 28, 2009

3 More Down in Namibia

I spent 3 1/2 months in Namibia on a study abroad program and experienced some amazing things! It's a beautiful country and I met some wonderful people. While there, I accomplished 3 more of my goals:

# 8 - participate in an internship in namibia
# 55 - visit a wine vineyard
# 99 - live w/o technology for a week

I worked at an organization that helps people in the Windhoek area with physical and intellectual disabilities. I served as a TA type person in their day program. The kids were fantastic and it was a great experience!

While in Cape Town during the end of our semester, we visited a wine vineyard and got a tour and did wine tasting, while also learning about all the processes involved in wine making. We went to Domain Brahms, which was the first vineyard in the Cape Town winelands to be started by a non-white person. It was beautiful and very cool to learn all about wine.

When in Damaraland, we spent 4 days with families on farms near Khorixas. These farms had no electricity or indoor plumming/running water. It was super fun to milk cows and ride bulls and go on donkey cart rides! We did watch tv and some movies while there, but they were solar powered, so I don't really count them. The next few days we spent driving around Etosha National Park trying to sight zebras, giraffes, wildebeest, ostrich, etc. in their natural environment. After the week was up, I hadn't used any sort of "technology".