30 by 30.

for the past six months or so i have been working on compiling a list of 30 things i want to accomplish by my 30th birthday, which, in my little pea brain, seems a million miles away. in reality march 2nd will make me 28 years young, so i have two whole years to complete my list. it's sort of like a bucket list, but with a little more heat behind it. with a two year deadline it almost lights a fire under my ass to get shit done. and because i'm a self diagnosed 'lister', and find the practice of writing things out and then crossing them off to be therapeutic and fulfilling, i thought there was no better way to embrace the unfortunate, inevitable, 'dirty thirty'. it even sounds wrong.

i finished writing the list yesterday and thought i would post it as motivation to actually cross off as many items as possible. not all my selections are life-altering or profound, but mean enough that they've become a priority -- at least priority enough to complete in the next two years. so here it is. as each item gets eagerly crossed off, i will be sure to share the process and any lessons learned (well, maybe not each item). and because this list has been in the making for some time, i have already had the chance to accomplish some of my "must-do's".

1. buy and move into “big boy & big girl” home.
2. visit scotland.
3. sing karaoke solo. drunk or not. preferably both. {completed 10.12.2011}
4. have nonna teach me how to make her homemade sauce, meatballs and pasta. {sauce & meatballs completed 02.20.2012}
5. plant a garden with nonno. {completed 05.20.2013}
6. take a photography class. {completed 03.31.2012}
7. save for and plan a surprise weekend away for paulie.
8. get hip tattoo touched up and new one on wrist. {completed 12.27.2011}
9. learn to crochet.
10. try sushi. {completed 03.2.2012}
11. make a huge ass photobook of the honeymoon.
12. take home the oldest pooch up for adoption at the humane society.
13. go on a motorcycle trip to port dover for 'friday the thirteenth' with my old man. {completed 07.13.2012}
14. master hollandaise sauce. {completed 03.09.2013}
15. condense and organize all craft supplies. {completed 02.22.2012}
16. go camping and sleep in an actual tent in the actual woods.
17. go skinny-dipping. alone doesn’t count. {completed 06.08.2012, 06.09.2012 & 06.10.2012}
18. teach india to play dead.
19. learn the proper use of “than” vs. “then”. for good. {looks promising: completed 02.13.2012.}
20. take a dance class.
21. visit and photograph the ‘comfort maple’ each season, then frame the series.
22. visit 10 new wineries in the region.
23. read ‘the great gatsby’ already. for christ sakes.
24. spend a day on toronto island. {completed 08.25.2012}
25. buy a sewing machine and learn how to use it.
26. spend more time with oma.
27. learn how to play euchre. {completed 03.16.2012}
28. have mom teach me her homemade chicken soup recipe. {completed 11.25.2012}
29. learn how to do a fishtail braid on myself. {completed 04.02.2012}
30. not get pregnant. if that happens, make a new list.

*should be on the list, but i'm a weiner and never thought i could accomplish it: see oprah winfrey live. {completed 04.16.2012}