Massive Posting!!

I've been trying to update all of you on my goings on but with limited time and no internet at home, I've had to bring my little notebook computer with me to work every day and use the Target wi-fi on my lunch. So it's been slow going. Today, despite the single digit weather, I have ventured out of the house on my day off to sit in Starbucks (my Starbucks as I like to call it) and just see if I can bang out a whole shitload of things I've checked off. I came to the conclusion that I'm a Rochesterarian and just because it's a bit brisk, to put it mildly, I can't let that stop me from leaving the house. We were spoiled by last winter and it's not like it's never been this cold before and won't be again. Although I will state, for the record, I don't like it. Cold is not my friend. But I digress. So sit back, grab a cup of coffee (I'm enjoying a triple venti vanilla latte), perhaps a snack, and hopefully enjoy my blog.

24. Write in my journal every day

I've kept a journal in one form or another since I was a little girl. Not always consistently, but there was almost a notebook or diary of some sort sitting next to my bed. I have a lot of thoughts rolling around in my head, not always deep but there, and sometimes I think people don't necessarily want to listen to me babble about what's going on in there. Actually, based on some of what's up there, I know for a fact you don't want to hear it! So I write it down. I try to come across as someone who mostly has it all together.Mostly. But I don't. I freak out about a lot. I'm quite over emotional. I worry. I panic. For some of you, these are not new things to find out. So I journal and it's a way to get some of this stuff out of my head. Plus, I tend to not let go of things so I'll end up writing about the same problems or people day after day day. Rarely do I solve anything, but at least it's out there and even if just for a few minutes it's not dwelling in my head. When I added this item to the list I had gotten away from journaling. I would write for a few days in a row and then wouldn't touch it for three months. But I wanted to get back in to it, if for nothing else to improve my writing skills. In the past few months I have actually been really good about writing. I admit, it's not every day. Some days I don't have time. Other days there is truly nothing interesting to write about. Some times I'm just sick of my own head and can't bring myself to write about that subject ONE MORE TIME! I can guarantee it's not fascinating writing. But since I'm not the type to just call a friend or sibling up to discuss my crap it works for me. I hope it's helping me on some level, even if just five years from now I can read through it and wonder at myself.

28. Go to New Orleans Again

In the fall of 2010 I got to go down to New Orleans with Rochester Help to New Orleans, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, and Project Homecoming to do Katrina rebuilding work. This is truly and 100% the BEST thing I have ever done in my life. If I had the funds I would be down there all the time doing this. Being able to be just a small part of helping somebody to get back in to their home... I don't have words to describe it. I remember sitting on the floor in the kitchen my first work day down there, scraping at grout between the tiles, and turning to my mom and saying "I can't wait to come back and do this again." The trip wasn't just about work. We had some time our first and last days down there to be tourists, as well as every night. Walking through the French Quarter every night I found myself falling in love with this city. I am the first to admit there is much more to New Orleans besides the Quarter and I'm sure I haven't seen most of it, but just the places I had been to were enough to convince me this would be one of my favorite places. So once I came back to Rochester I was determined to go back down again.

Fall of 2011 I got my chance. Of course if you've already been reading my blog you remember I posted going to Cafe du Monde so you already know that I had been back down. This trip reconfirmed my love affair for New Orleans. I could go on and on about being down there, but I won't. Again, I can't describe the feeling of working to bring somebody home, what it was like to sit in The Spotted Cat and listen to amazing jazz music, to just absorb the energy down there. And on a more personal note, this second trip, although I didn't know it at the time, helped start me on my spiritual journey that has led me to enrolling at Colgate Rochester Crozier Divinity School in the Masters of Divinity program.

I want to go back. I've talked about it a lot since I got back. Unfortunately it didn't work out last year, but I keep hoping. It's probably at the top of the list of places to go to when I take a real vacation some time hopefully soon. I would love to go back and do work again. I would love to also go down for a purely social visit. If you can cross something off and put it back on the list, then this is the item I do that with. Laissez le bon temps roulez!

39. Stop Drinking Pop

I actually have debated whether or not I can truly cross this off. Technically, I haven't cut pop out of my life 100%. I will indulge once in a great while, especially at family gatherings if I can't drink wine (I'm looking at you Thanksgiving when I have to go in at work that night!). But those times are so few and far between that I say this has been accomplished. After all, it's my list. Are the list police going to come and arrest me?

41. Watch the News At Least Once A Week

I will be the first to admit I am not the most informed person on world issues. I am trying to do better, but at 6:00 if I have a choice between the news and a How I Met Your Mother rerun, I'm going with HIMYM every time. But as an adult, and someone who wants to be a minister, I know this is something I need to improve. And while, belive it or not, I do get a lot of info on Twitter, I know that can't compare with watching the news. Once I lived on my own and didn't have cable I found this a little easier to do. So every weekday work morning at 6:20 after I check my facebook I turn the news on and listen to it while I get ready for work. Some mornings the news is filled with fluff pieces. I get a lot of weather information. But watching the news has led me to follow the local ABC station on Facebook and Twitter so I do read updates. And having internet on my phone helps also. When I get a blurb about something going on in the news I can google it right away, like I did with Newtown CT. I know I have further to go with this, but I've made steps. I can only go up from here, right?

45. Go Out for Ice Cream On A Hot Summer Day/Night

This past summer I reconnected with a friend I had lost touch with. As a way to catch up we met up one night and walked to Abbott's (If you're not from Rochester it's a local frozen custard place that is absolutely divine) It was hot enough that our ice cream melted quickly, but not so hot that the walk was uncomfortable. We brought the custard back to the front steps of my building and sat and talked for a couple hours. It was nice to catch up and to be able to talk about what was going on in our lives. And who doesn't love ice cream on a hot summer night?

51. Jump On The Lost Bandwagon By Finally Adding The Series To My Netflix Queue And Watching It

I tried watching Lost when it was on TV. I adore J.J. Abrams and am a huge fan of Felicity and Alias. But for one reason or another I never stuck with it. Maybe because by the time I tried to watch it it was already season 2 and I was a bit lost (hahaha). Maybe it kept being opposite something else I watched. I don't know. But I sort of kept up on the goings on due to my Entertainment Weekly subscription so I was never completely out of the loop. When I lived with my cousin after moving back to Rochester three  years ago she was a huge fan and I would sort of watch with her once in a while. That was about the time I first started thinking maybe I should watch the series and when the idea for this list came up it seemed logical to add it.

The first couple seasons were awesome. There were a couple in the middle I didn't quite care for. One season I only loved about half of it (three? four? I can't remember). By the end I certainly understood the confusion and anger fans felt over the end. It sort of answered questions but it sort of didn't.  I liked it, but I don't think I'll be running out to buy the series on DVD. Maybe season 1. That is the one with Ian Somerholder in it after all.

53. Mail Christmas Cards

When I was in college and possibly for a few years after I came back after school I mailed Christmas cards. I remember my mom doing Christmas cards when I was a kid and I loved seeing if new cards came during the Christmas season. I would love to go through and read them, even if I didn't know who half these people were. When I became an adult I understood the desire and maybe even need of these cards. Christmas is a time of family and friends and love, of connecting with people. The cards were a way to reach out to people and let them know you were thinking of them, even if you had lost touch in every other way. But due to cost and motivation, I hadn't mailed them in quite a few years. So a couple Christmases ago I decided to mail out cards. A few came back because I had the wrong address. But by sending them I got responses from people I don't talk to any more. It maybe was a small thing to them, maybe even an annoyance (Man, Summer sent us a Christmas card so I better be polite and mail one back), but it meant a lot to me. It's kind of like when someone takes that 30 seconds to wish you a Happy Birthday on your Facebook page. It's a small thing, but it's nice to know that even just for that very brief period of time they were thinking of you. Unfortunately I was a little too broke this holiday season and couldn't mail cards out. But I hope to do it this Christmas. Much like with my gift shopping, I plan on trying to start the list a little earlier than I think I have to so I can get them out.

66. Eat Breakfast Every Day

Yes, I know all the speeches and lectures. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Eating breakfast helps with your metabolism. If you eat breakfast you'll eat less later in the day. Blah blah blah. Like with the exercising, it's not about eating breakfast so I'll eat less later to lose weight. It's for my crankiness. If I go too long without eating I start getting bitchy. And tired. And unhappy. And testy. But I'm really making much more of an effort. I try to bring a little container of cereal with me to work every day. Or buy a cheese danish. They're heavenly. And like with the pop, this is not something I actually do every day. Some days I forget. Some days I don't have time. Some days I just don't feel like it. But I'm doing much better than I was when I added it to the list. Go me!

71. Go To The Eastman House

I had actually forgotten that I accomplished this item. I had been to the Eastman House several years ago when one of my friends got married for a bridal show and then again when I lived with my cousin for a showing of Ghostbusters in the Dryden Theatre. But I couldn't remember the last time I had been there for an actual exhibit. But a couple summers ago, right after I got my glasses actually, there was a Norman Rockwell exhibit there that I wanted to see. So one very rainy Sunday after church me, my mom, and my stepdad went to the exhibit. It was really cool. There were pictures of the models that Rockwell used to base his paintings on. Of course there were copies of his paintings. I don't get out to do these artsy cultural things as much as I want or should. And George Eastman is such an integral part of Rochester history it's a shame I don't take advantage more often. I'm going to try to keep my eyes open for other exhibits and hopefully go again.

85. Make A New Friend

I don't make friends easily. Part of it is I'm not good at small talk. Part of it is I'm never sure if people and I are going to get along or if I'll say something or make a joke and they'll just look at me with that "Why are you talking?" look and I'll wish I'd just kept my mouth shut. (This happens more than you think it would). So I'd rather sit back and observe until I get a handle on people. Part of it is because I'm shy. Those of you who are laughing right  now can stop. Once you get to know me this is not so true, but I can be rather uncomfortable around people, especially in group settings like a party. Part of it is because I'm a bit of a loner. I love my alone time. I'm a hermit who most of the time would rather be at home watching a movie than out socializing. When you also factor in how many people I once considered good friends that I never talk to any more beyond an occasional Facebook like or comment, is it any wonder I sometimes think the effort isn't worth it? I mean, you can only reach out so many times before you just assume your presence isn't necessarily wanted so it's easier to fade in to the background. So I added this to the list to try to force myself to reach out.
I don't know if it was my effort or the other person's effort or fate or whatever, but I have actually made a new friend!!!! We work together and she's my lunch buddy. We've hung out a few times outside of work at the movies and she was my plus one at a coworker's wedding this fall. She shares my love of hot male celebrities especially when they're shirtless. Sure we can be a little creepy and wrong when we hang out together, but isn't that what friends are for?
I don't know if the friendship will last only while we both work at Target or will continue on. Maybe one day she too will be one of those people I'll only communicate with on Facebook. But until then I'll continue to text her about seeing my ex-boyfriend at lacrosse games and letting her borrow books. Besides, we have a bet going and there's Sabres tickets (for her) and Bills tickets (for me) on the line. So she's stuck with me for a while at least!!!

88. Own At Least Two Lipcolors

To go along with my clothing post of a few days ago, makeup is something I'm working on. I didn't wear makeup until after college. My mom never sat me down and taught me how to wear it. I never had a desire to wear it until I started working in a retail job where I felt it would help to look a little better. While some people have told me I look just fine or even better without makeup, I wear it as a mask or a shield. I feel more confident when I have it on. I'm sure a shrink could have a field day with that issue, but whatever. I stick with pretty basic and neutral colors and it's been shocking that I've expanded my eyeshadow collection to include many colors and even eyeliner. But lipstick? That's a little trickier. You can hide your eyeshadow a bit more, especially since I wear glasses and a hat at work so you can't see much. But if you wear the wrong color lipstick you can look like an idiot and it's much more obvious. A year or so ago I bought a lipstick that was a little darker than my normal lip color and called it a day. It's just going to wear off and I don't reapply anyway, so what's the point? But I finally decided to take some cues from the fashion magazines I read and take a chance. I always get excited when they recommend a color that is a brand I can afford! Wouldn't it be nice of spending $25 on lipstick at Sephora wasn't a huge deal? But I cringe at even $8 for Revlon, so there you go. Speaking of Revlon, the two lipcolors I own are from their Lip Butter line. I think that's what it's called. I don't know, they're very soft and go on somewhat sheer. Which is good since one of the colors I bought is red. I guess every woman should own a red lipstick and at the age of 34 it's finally time. The other color I own is a very light baby pink that I wear most often. But I'm starting to wear the red a little more, especially when my eye shadow is very light. My plan is to buy a couple more shades so I can really expand my beauty routine.

97. Floss Regularly

I'll keep it short and sweet, because who wants to read about my dental routine in excruciating detail? I'm not 100% at it, but I do it more often than I used to. Sometimes it's only once a day. Sometimes I skip it. I'll keep plugging away at it.

And that's it. You are now all caught up on my list!!! And my butt hurts from sitting for the last almost hour and a half to type all this up. Next up I will analyze the items I want to remove and figure out what I want to replace them with. I'll keep my eyes open for when I do things outside my comfort zone and let you know what's going. I'll keep reviewing the items left and be open to the chances to knock those off. Thanks for sitting here this long and reading this. As my latte is almost done, I am going to head home and watch a bit more True Blood. Laters baby!