Much of my winter free time was spent with university applications. Now that's finished, and my time is being occupied by wedding preparations! I must admit I've been slacking. Nevertheless I've accomplished a few more goals:
#14, Schedule a church retrofit consultation. A representative from Phillips lighting came to the church and did an energy audit for us. I plan to present the resulting recommendations soon.
#18, Attend an opera, symphony, or ballet performance. James and I attended a performance by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra of the Russian masters.
#32, Grow a garden and harvest something edible from each patch. It took well into November and even December, but my broccoli patch finally yielded some edible crowns.
#39, Knit a sweater. For Halloween I dressed up as Waldo and knit my own red- and white-striped sweater and hat.
#42, Go snowboarding at least three times during the 07-08 season; learn to carve. I massively outdid myself here, buying a season's pass at Mt. Seymour. James and I went almost every week from January to April. I can turn confidently on both sides, I'm working on getting better at maintaining speed, and on one occasion actually landed a jump.
#46, Run 10 km. Well... I did stop to walk a few times, but I think it still counts. On April 20 James and I did the Vancouver Sun Run, along with more than 59,000 others. Our time was 1:11 (yes, we stayed together the whole time).
#61, Compile a cookbook. I did this at Christmas and gave it to my dad, who says he loves it.
#62, Take a yoga class at a gym or community centre. I've been going to radha yoga at least three times a week since the beginning of March - money was the motivator, I bought monthly passes and then felt motivated to get the most I could out of it.
#65, Keep a monthly budget. I've been doing this for some time now, using Pearbudget.
#74, Get a driver’s license. I did this on a whim last month (well, it's just a learner's permit). James was completely shocked when I told him.
#76, Donate 10% of my income to a church or charity of my choice. I've kept this up since at least December... I don't remember exactly.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
September & October accomplishments
I've been busy doing stuff! And here's a list of goals I have finished in the past couple months.
#17, visit the Museum of Anthropology at UBC. I went on Oct. 6 with my boyfriend and his mom and sister.
This is the MOST IMPORTANT ONE: #25, pay off student loans by Dec. 31st, 2007. The cheque for my final payment cleared Oct. 10. I have no debt whatsoever at this point. :)
#57, eat everything in my freezer. Everything from last year is gone, and it's now full of new things from this summer - blueberries, blackberries, beans, strawberries, rhubarb, pesto, tomato sauce... I think that's it.
#66, clear Nicole's Trail at Burnaby Mountain. I went with James a while ago and while I wasn't perfect (there were several places where I had to put a foot down) I never had to get off the bike and walk. I think that's close enough.
#71, Change working hours from 9-5 to 8-4. I've done you one better, most mornings I am in the office by 7:30 and done at 3:30. Sometimes I'm even half an hour earlier.
#72, Get insurance settlement taken care of. I actually settled my claim yesterday. It has been more than seven months, and my left hip is still achy every now and then but that has stabilized. The insurance company included a lump sum payment for "future care" should I need more physio at a later date. To be honest he offered me a LOT more money than I was expecting... I'm really surprised.
#17, visit the Museum of Anthropology at UBC. I went on Oct. 6 with my boyfriend and his mom and sister.
This is the MOST IMPORTANT ONE: #25, pay off student loans by Dec. 31st, 2007. The cheque for my final payment cleared Oct. 10. I have no debt whatsoever at this point. :)
#57, eat everything in my freezer. Everything from last year is gone, and it's now full of new things from this summer - blueberries, blackberries, beans, strawberries, rhubarb, pesto, tomato sauce... I think that's it.
#66, clear Nicole's Trail at Burnaby Mountain. I went with James a while ago and while I wasn't perfect (there were several places where I had to put a foot down) I never had to get off the bike and walk. I think that's close enough.
#71, Change working hours from 9-5 to 8-4. I've done you one better, most mornings I am in the office by 7:30 and done at 3:30. Sometimes I'm even half an hour earlier.
#72, Get insurance settlement taken care of. I actually settled my claim yesterday. It has been more than seven months, and my left hip is still achy every now and then but that has stabilized. The insurance company included a lump sum payment for "future care" should I need more physio at a later date. To be honest he offered me a LOT more money than I was expecting... I'm really surprised.
Friday, September 7, 2007
August's accomplishments
#15, Drink 8 glasses of water a day for 2 weeks. I managed to finish this while on vacation, even with spending an entire day in airports and airplanes!
#26, Develop an emergency fund with $1500. It's actually got $1900 in it now.
#27, Take a camping trip to Oregon; save $500 for camping gear. As mentioned before, I did the first but not the second. I will need to save for camping gear to accomplish other goals though.
#33, Go in with some friends on buying/picking local produce in bulk, and preserve it. I wasn't able to get friends together, but I did it by myself. So far I have either canned, frozen, or dried the following: 13 quarts of cherries, 7 of peaches, and 5 of dill pickles; 9 pints of tomato sauce and 12 of green beans; 6 half-pints of blueberry jam, 6 of blackberry jam, 3 corncob jelly, 5 apple cider jelly, 4 peach jelly, and 1 oil-packed dried tomatoes; and some dried plums and cantaloupe.
#34, Obtain at least 50% of my food from within 200 miles. I know I didn't set a timeline, but I achieved this in August - 52.8% of my food expenditures for the month were local.
#55, Have one meal per week with all ingredients from within 200 miles. Again, I hadn't specified a timeline, and I haven't kept a strict chart, but I have been doing this quite consistently for most of July and August. On some weeks I've had 8 or 10 100%-local meals.
#26, Develop an emergency fund with $1500. It's actually got $1900 in it now.
#27, Take a camping trip to Oregon; save $500 for camping gear. As mentioned before, I did the first but not the second. I will need to save for camping gear to accomplish other goals though.
#33, Go in with some friends on buying/picking local produce in bulk, and preserve it. I wasn't able to get friends together, but I did it by myself. So far I have either canned, frozen, or dried the following: 13 quarts of cherries, 7 of peaches, and 5 of dill pickles; 9 pints of tomato sauce and 12 of green beans; 6 half-pints of blueberry jam, 6 of blackberry jam, 3 corncob jelly, 5 apple cider jelly, 4 peach jelly, and 1 oil-packed dried tomatoes; and some dried plums and cantaloupe.
#34, Obtain at least 50% of my food from within 200 miles. I know I didn't set a timeline, but I achieved this in August - 52.8% of my food expenditures for the month were local.
#55, Have one meal per week with all ingredients from within 200 miles. Again, I hadn't specified a timeline, and I haven't kept a strict chart, but I have been doing this quite consistently for most of July and August. On some weeks I've had 8 or 10 100%-local meals.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Progress report
Here's what I'm working on currently:
#15, Drink 8 glasses of water a day for 2 weeks. I started today and I'm well on target. For today, anyway!
#25, Pay off student loans by Dec. 31. This is also going well, as I mentioned last month I'm putting my whole tax refund towards this goal. I also scrounged together an extra $1000 last month, thanks in part to a cheque from the insurance company (I was hit by a car while biking in March).
#27, Take a camping trip to Oregon, save $500 for camping gear. Unfortunately this will have to be split into two separate goals! I'm going to visit my family July 28-Aug 4, and then camping the week after. However the added expense of the family visit precludes buying gear; I'll be borrowing this time around. I'll still have to buy it before doing #86, the Appalachian Trail.
#28, Visit my immediate family twice and each side of the extended family once. My mom and dad and I are visiting my mom's side of the family at the end of July. Unfortunately my brother and sister won't be able to come, but I think this still counts for immediate family!
#32, Grow a garden and harvest something edible from each patch. I planted beans, beets, carrots, squash, and possibly some other things that I've forgotten about. There are some things growing in my little plot, and some of them I can't tell if they're weeds or good plants. However I can distinguish the beans, carrots, and squash. Nothing edible yet. I have salad greens, tomatoes, basil, and habanero pepper in containers as well. The basil is pressed into service regularly and the first tomato is almost ready to be picked. I also have some wild raspberry bushes that have started producing some luscious berries.
#35, Limit TV/computer time to 7 hours a week outside work. I haven't been keeping track, but I'm fairly sure I've been doing this already. However, in the next few weeks I'll make up a timesheet to make sure.
#57, eat everything in my freezer. Almost done! There's only a big container of frozen pumpkin. I just need to use it before Halloween, which is when my freezer experiences its annual pumpkin puree bonanza.
#60, make laundry detergent, glass cleaner, and shampoo. I made glass cleaner.
#65, keep a monthly budget. I started doing this at the beginning of June and will obviously continue, probably indefinitely. I use PearBudget for this.
#15, Drink 8 glasses of water a day for 2 weeks. I started today and I'm well on target. For today, anyway!
#25, Pay off student loans by Dec. 31. This is also going well, as I mentioned last month I'm putting my whole tax refund towards this goal. I also scrounged together an extra $1000 last month, thanks in part to a cheque from the insurance company (I was hit by a car while biking in March).
#27, Take a camping trip to Oregon, save $500 for camping gear. Unfortunately this will have to be split into two separate goals! I'm going to visit my family July 28-Aug 4, and then camping the week after. However the added expense of the family visit precludes buying gear; I'll be borrowing this time around. I'll still have to buy it before doing #86, the Appalachian Trail.
#28, Visit my immediate family twice and each side of the extended family once. My mom and dad and I are visiting my mom's side of the family at the end of July. Unfortunately my brother and sister won't be able to come, but I think this still counts for immediate family!
#32, Grow a garden and harvest something edible from each patch. I planted beans, beets, carrots, squash, and possibly some other things that I've forgotten about. There are some things growing in my little plot, and some of them I can't tell if they're weeds or good plants. However I can distinguish the beans, carrots, and squash. Nothing edible yet. I have salad greens, tomatoes, basil, and habanero pepper in containers as well. The basil is pressed into service regularly and the first tomato is almost ready to be picked. I also have some wild raspberry bushes that have started producing some luscious berries.
#35, Limit TV/computer time to 7 hours a week outside work. I haven't been keeping track, but I'm fairly sure I've been doing this already. However, in the next few weeks I'll make up a timesheet to make sure.
#57, eat everything in my freezer. Almost done! There's only a big container of frozen pumpkin. I just need to use it before Halloween, which is when my freezer experiences its annual pumpkin puree bonanza.
#60, make laundry detergent, glass cleaner, and shampoo. I made glass cleaner.
#65, keep a monthly budget. I started doing this at the beginning of June and will obviously continue, probably indefinitely. I use PearBudget for this.
One more goal accomplished!
Well, sort of. #8, Register as an organ donor. When I went to do this, I found that I already was registered! I don't remember doing it at all. Well, regardless, it's done.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Goals Accomplished!
FOUR of them.
#2. Race in an alleycat and bring home a prize. I participated in the Time Bomb team bike race June 16th, and my team took fifth place. Fourth place didn't stick around for the prize awarding ceremony, so between the three of us we bagged two bottles of wine, a lovely decorated inner tube ("like lace panties for your bike" he said), and some toe-strap holders.
#9. Have a picnic. On June 22nd several of my friends and I had a picnic at Stanley Park's Third Beach. It involved homemeade falafels, hula hoops, and a raccoon (ugh). We're planning on having more beach picnics throughout the summer.
#19. File tax return by June 31st; use refund towards student loan payment. Well, this is half done. I filed today. Only two months late! I can expect my refund in about a week or so, at which time it'll get sent straight back to the Receiver General of Canada. How appropriate.
#22. Surprise James with something romantic. On June 17th was the Commercial Drive Car-Free Festival - all sorts of artists, musicians, booths, performers, etc. take over the main street through one of Vancouver's more notorious neighbourhoods. James was looking at a particular teacup; the potter was there doing some carving on un-fired ones and selling finished ones. He decided he couldn't afford one at that time though, so after he went home I went back and bought him one. He was really thrilled with it.
#2. Race in an alleycat and bring home a prize. I participated in the Time Bomb team bike race June 16th, and my team took fifth place. Fourth place didn't stick around for the prize awarding ceremony, so between the three of us we bagged two bottles of wine, a lovely decorated inner tube ("like lace panties for your bike" he said), and some toe-strap holders.
#9. Have a picnic. On June 22nd several of my friends and I had a picnic at Stanley Park's Third Beach. It involved homemeade falafels, hula hoops, and a raccoon (ugh). We're planning on having more beach picnics throughout the summer.
#19. File tax return by June 31st; use refund towards student loan payment. Well, this is half done. I filed today. Only two months late! I can expect my refund in about a week or so, at which time it'll get sent straight back to the Receiver General of Canada. How appropriate.
#22. Surprise James with something romantic. On June 17th was the Commercial Drive Car-Free Festival - all sorts of artists, musicians, booths, performers, etc. take over the main street through one of Vancouver's more notorious neighbourhoods. James was looking at a particular teacup; the potter was there doing some carving on un-fired ones and selling finished ones. He decided he couldn't afford one at that time though, so after he went home I went back and bought him one. He was really thrilled with it.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Putting them all together
1. Write a will, including a living will, funeral arrangements, etc.
2. Race in an alleycat, and bring home a prize
3. Finish all the writing for my church website, and get it online
4. Make at least 10 beaded items (e.g. bracelets)
5. Make one new contact who can help influence my career path each week for one month
6. Update résumé to include present work experience, and new skills and objectives
7. Donate hair to locks of love – once it reaches waist length, chop it to chin length
8. Register as an organ donor
9. Have a picnic
10. Make at least one batch of soy yogurt that tastes good, with at least half homemade soymilk
11. Make at least one batch of tofu entirely from scratch
12. Have a temporary corset piercing at a formal event
13. Make and post energy labels for St. Oswald’s, and work with the church committee to develop and meet energy reduction goals
14. Schedule a church retrofit consultation, and work with the church committee to implement recommendations as possible
15. Drink 8 glasses of water each day for 2 weeks straight
16. Digitize CD collection
17. Visit the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia
18. Attend an opera, symphony, or ballet performance
19. File tax return by June 31st; use refund towards student loan payment
20. Teach someone to knit
21. Go sailing on two separate occasions
22. Surprise James with something romantic
23. Conduct an inventory of my possessions; sell or donate anything I don’t need and itemize any valuables
24. By a Macbook in about January 2008
25. Pay off student loans by Dec. 31st, 2007
26. Develop an emergency fund with $1500
27. Take a camping trip to Oregon; save $500 for camping gear
28. Visit my immediate family at least twice, and my mom’s and dad’s sides of the extended family at least once by July 2008
29. Become employed in any of the following fields: linguistics, social science, fibre arts, environmental or charitable work
30. Develop and implement an environmental stewardship program at St. Oswald’s
31. Finish Learn to Ride and Learn to Race
32. Grow a garden and harvest something edible from each patch that I plant
33. Go in with some friends on buying/picking local produce in bulk, and preserve it via canning, drying, or freezing
34. Obtain at least 50% of my food, and as much of my non-food as well, from within 200 miles
35. Limit computer/TV time to 7 hrs/week, except as needed for job/grad school hunting
36. Practice mediation for one half hour, three times a week
37. Practice writing regularly – one short article per month and morning pages three times a week
38. Read all the books currently on my shelf or the 100-best list that I have not read yet
39. Knit a sweater
40. Have a Buy Nothing Christmas
41. Save $100 a month to buy a digital SLR
42. Go snowboarding at least three times during the 07-08 season; learn to carve
43. Spend at least five days working with Habitat for Humanity
44. Choose a social scene to study and begin participant observation/research
45. Knit something with yarn I’ve handspun on a spinning wheel
46. Run 10 km.
47. Bike 150 km.
48. Practice taking pictures on a weekly basis and have prints made of five of my best
49. Sew one whole outfit for myself
50. Learn to dirtjump; be able to do a clean run on medium-sized tables
51. Practice stretching to improve flexibility 15 minutes a day for one month
52. Take a beginner open water scuba diving course; save $35 a month for it
53. Go rock climbing three times; become certified to belay
54. Spend twenty evenings playing board games
55. Have one meal per week with all ingredients from within 200 miles
56. Do the Master Cleanse for 10 days
57. Eat everything in my freezer
58. Use stash yarn for every other project I start; do not buy new yarn unless ready to cast on with it
59. Limit dining out to 15% of food spending
60. Make laundry detergent, glass cleaner, and shampoo
61. Compile a cookbook
62. Register for a yoga class at a gym or community centre
63. Vote in every election I’m eligible to
64. Develop an investment portfolio
65. Keep a monthly budget
66. Clear Nicole’s Trail at Burnaby Mountain
67. Do a collaborative painting with James
68. Get bike- and knitting-related tattoos
69. Attend knitting group four times a month
70. Learn to do nose wheelie pivots
71. Change working hours from 9-5 to 8-4
72. Get insurance settlement taken care of
73. Renew passports
74. Get a driver’s license
75. Do an outdoor suspension in summer 2007
76. Donate 10% of my income to a church or charity of my choice
77. Have half-hour spiritual reflection time three times a week
78. Bake all my own bread, except for fancy occasion bread
79. Visit a different church in Vancouver every week that I’m not at St. Oswald’s until I find one to attend regularly
80. Develop a crafting space
81. Watch all the Oscar Best Picture winners
82. Make wine
83. Reduce carbon emissions by 90% (from the average North American level)
84. Go on a week-long bike or canoe camping trip
85. Take a pilgrimage
86. Through-hike the Appalachian Trail
87. Begin a master’s degree in Linguistics
88. Get my legs tattooed
89. Grow hair out to waist length
90. Take the train across Canada
91. Increase net worth by 20% in 2009
92. Spend 6-8 weeks in East Africa doing humanitarian work of a linguistic nature
93. Become familiar with the real estate market to facilitate the eventual purchase of property
94. Learn to skid (on my fixed-gear bike)
95. Complete 5 random acts of kindness
96. Attend a taping of A Prairie Home Companion or The Vinyl Café
97. Audition for Jeopardy
98. Have a raw-food-only week
99. Learn to dance with a partner (swing, waltz, salsa, whichever!)
100. Get CPR certified
You may notice I added a few at the end. Had to get up to 100, you know. Huzzah! Updates on progress to come.
2. Race in an alleycat, and bring home a prize
3. Finish all the writing for my church website, and get it online
4. Make at least 10 beaded items (e.g. bracelets)
5. Make one new contact who can help influence my career path each week for one month
6. Update résumé to include present work experience, and new skills and objectives
7. Donate hair to locks of love – once it reaches waist length, chop it to chin length
8. Register as an organ donor
9. Have a picnic
10. Make at least one batch of soy yogurt that tastes good, with at least half homemade soymilk
11. Make at least one batch of tofu entirely from scratch
12. Have a temporary corset piercing at a formal event
13. Make and post energy labels for St. Oswald’s, and work with the church committee to develop and meet energy reduction goals
14. Schedule a church retrofit consultation, and work with the church committee to implement recommendations as possible
15. Drink 8 glasses of water each day for 2 weeks straight
16. Digitize CD collection
17. Visit the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia
18. Attend an opera, symphony, or ballet performance
19. File tax return by June 31st; use refund towards student loan payment
20. Teach someone to knit
21. Go sailing on two separate occasions
22. Surprise James with something romantic
23. Conduct an inventory of my possessions; sell or donate anything I don’t need and itemize any valuables
24. By a Macbook in about January 2008
25. Pay off student loans by Dec. 31st, 2007
26. Develop an emergency fund with $1500
27. Take a camping trip to Oregon; save $500 for camping gear
28. Visit my immediate family at least twice, and my mom’s and dad’s sides of the extended family at least once by July 2008
29. Become employed in any of the following fields: linguistics, social science, fibre arts, environmental or charitable work
30. Develop and implement an environmental stewardship program at St. Oswald’s
31. Finish Learn to Ride and Learn to Race
32. Grow a garden and harvest something edible from each patch that I plant
33. Go in with some friends on buying/picking local produce in bulk, and preserve it via canning, drying, or freezing
34. Obtain at least 50% of my food, and as much of my non-food as well, from within 200 miles
35. Limit computer/TV time to 7 hrs/week, except as needed for job/grad school hunting
36. Practice mediation for one half hour, three times a week
37. Practice writing regularly – one short article per month and morning pages three times a week
38. Read all the books currently on my shelf or the 100-best list that I have not read yet
39. Knit a sweater
40. Have a Buy Nothing Christmas
41. Save $100 a month to buy a digital SLR
42. Go snowboarding at least three times during the 07-08 season; learn to carve
43. Spend at least five days working with Habitat for Humanity
44. Choose a social scene to study and begin participant observation/research
45. Knit something with yarn I’ve handspun on a spinning wheel
46. Run 10 km.
47. Bike 150 km.
48. Practice taking pictures on a weekly basis and have prints made of five of my best
49. Sew one whole outfit for myself
50. Learn to dirtjump; be able to do a clean run on medium-sized tables
51. Practice stretching to improve flexibility 15 minutes a day for one month
52. Take a beginner open water scuba diving course; save $35 a month for it
53. Go rock climbing three times; become certified to belay
54. Spend twenty evenings playing board games
55. Have one meal per week with all ingredients from within 200 miles
56. Do the Master Cleanse for 10 days
57. Eat everything in my freezer
58. Use stash yarn for every other project I start; do not buy new yarn unless ready to cast on with it
59. Limit dining out to 15% of food spending
60. Make laundry detergent, glass cleaner, and shampoo
61. Compile a cookbook
62. Register for a yoga class at a gym or community centre
63. Vote in every election I’m eligible to
64. Develop an investment portfolio
65. Keep a monthly budget
66. Clear Nicole’s Trail at Burnaby Mountain
67. Do a collaborative painting with James
68. Get bike- and knitting-related tattoos
69. Attend knitting group four times a month
70. Learn to do nose wheelie pivots
71. Change working hours from 9-5 to 8-4
72. Get insurance settlement taken care of
73. Renew passports
74. Get a driver’s license
75. Do an outdoor suspension in summer 2007
76. Donate 10% of my income to a church or charity of my choice
77. Have half-hour spiritual reflection time three times a week
78. Bake all my own bread, except for fancy occasion bread
79. Visit a different church in Vancouver every week that I’m not at St. Oswald’s until I find one to attend regularly
80. Develop a crafting space
81. Watch all the Oscar Best Picture winners
82. Make wine
83. Reduce carbon emissions by 90% (from the average North American level)
84. Go on a week-long bike or canoe camping trip
85. Take a pilgrimage
86. Through-hike the Appalachian Trail
87. Begin a master’s degree in Linguistics
88. Get my legs tattooed
89. Grow hair out to waist length
90. Take the train across Canada
91. Increase net worth by 20% in 2009
92. Spend 6-8 weeks in East Africa doing humanitarian work of a linguistic nature
93. Become familiar with the real estate market to facilitate the eventual purchase of property
94. Learn to skid (on my fixed-gear bike)
95. Complete 5 random acts of kindness
96. Attend a taping of A Prairie Home Companion or The Vinyl Café
97. Audition for Jeopardy
98. Have a raw-food-only week
99. Learn to dance with a partner (swing, waltz, salsa, whichever!)
100. Get CPR certified
You may notice I added a few at the end. Had to get up to 100, you know. Huzzah! Updates on progress to come.
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