the list

I've always had this internal "things I want to do" list running through my head. Long before Oprah, or Letterman or whomever it was that decided these things should be written down and acted upon. There are not 100 of them. I never even bothered to count them until the other night, when I was bored, and thinking too much. (Couldn't sleep, hate that.) I managed to list 38 things I wanted to do. They are varied, and include things random, like learning to make spanakopita (which is one of the best foods of the world when done right) to seeing a Sea Horse. (I don't think I've ever seen one. . .). There are some already fulfilled things, like going to Normandy and seeing the D day beaches, standing under the Eiffel Tower, seeing Mount Fuji, and learning to Knit. Of course, those things have made me add more things to the list. Now, I want to try my hand at knitting a sweater. And I want to travel more. Other places that have made the list? Ride a Gondola in Venice, take a Sauna in Finland, drink a Pint in Ireland. . . Will I be dissapointed at the end of my life if I've never done these things? Probably not. Because if I don't get to all of these places, there is a good reason. It's not like I've lived my life sitting in front of a television with a vat of ice cream, and been fine with that. There are probably things I am MEANT to do in my life that I am not aware of. Surprise is always nice.
Some things on my list benefit others. I want to take a whole paycheck, just once, and donate it to charity. I donate bits and pieces, here and there. But someday, somewhere, I am going to do that. I also want to (re) learn sign language, and see what I can do with that. I was pretty good at it in college.
Plant a garden of my own is listed as well (CK, I have garden envy.) I also want to have a dog, someday, and go to a High Tea. (pass the crumpets.) There are some personal and emotional things on my list, too. Some that I have to let go. Some that I will never let go. I can get really personal on this blog, but there are some things I just refuse to release to the internet world at large. Plus, I don't feel like crying this morning. :)
In a few days, I am going to be able to cross more off my list. The Vietnam war memorial, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, to name a few. I guess that's what prompted this post. Its strange, to see my list, even only my partial list, in print. Its has just lived in my head for so long. I think, now that I am done with this post, I'm gonna throw my list away. Its more fun that way.