Bucket List Print
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Tuesday, 09 December 2008 05:37

Do all thinking people have a bucket list? I don't know, but I do, even though I've never written it down. What's a bucket list? You know... like in the movie of that title with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman? It's a list of all the things you would like to do before you die. Always wanted to try skydiving? Put it on the bucket list. Ever wanted to be a missionary? Put it on the bucket list.

Anyway, I ran across the following list on the Expert Witness Blog, and he invites us to use it. Feel free to modify it if you please. I've used the original here. I've bolded and underlined the items which I've actually done, with explanations provided to preserve my dignity and reputation.

  1. Started your own blog. (Several times)
  2. Slept under the stars.
  3. Played in a band. (Oh yeah...)
  4. Visited Hawaii.
  5. Watched a meteor shower.
  6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
  7. Been to Disneyland.
  8. Climbed a mountain.
  9. Held a praying mantis.
  10. Sang a solo.
  11. Bungee jumped. (Don't need it . . .)
  12. Visited Paris. 
  13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.
  14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. (. . .if you count pre-press graphics and website design. . .)
  15. Adopted a child.
  16. Had food poisoning.
  17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty. (I visited it once, but the statue wasn't open for going up inside of it.)
  18. Grown your own vegetables.
  19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.
  20. Slept on an overnight train.
  21. Had a pillow fight.
  22. Hitch hiked.
  23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill.
  24. Built a snow fort. (Actually, it was an igloo, and I slept in it overnight on the slopes of Mount San Gorgonio.)
  25. Held a lamb.
  26. Gone skinny dipping.
  27. Run a Marathon.
  28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice.
  29. Seen a total eclipse. (Both lunar and solar)
  30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.
  31. Hit a home run.
  32. Been on a cruise. (It wasn't really a cruise, but my family sailed to Europe and back on an ocean liner in 1960.)
  33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
  34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors. (Caveat: My ancestors are from France, Norway, England, and Java. I haven't been to Java yet.)
  35. Seen an Amish community.
  36. Taught yourself a new language. (Sort of... I'm bilingual by upbringing - English & French - but I've picked up a little Spanish and Japanese along the way.)
  37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied. (It wasn't really very much. I was just satisfied with it.)
  38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
  39. Gone rock climbing.
  40. Seen Michelangelo's David. (No, but I have seen the Mona Lisa. She's at least as beautiful. . . .)
  41. Sung karaoke.
  42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.
  43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant.
  44. Visited Africa. (Actually, it was North Africa, and I was born there [Morocco]. Never been back.)
  45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.
  46. Been transported in an ambulance.
  47. Had your portrait painted. (Well, drawn, actually.)
  48. Gone deep sea fishing.
  49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person.
  50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. (The truth is, I've been to the 2nd level. My wife didn't want to go all the way to the top.)
  51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling.
  52. Kissed in the rain.
  53. Played in the mud.
  54. Gone to a drive-in theater.
  55. Been in a movie.
  56. Visited the Great Wall of China
  57. Started a business. (Wham Productions)
  58. Taken a martial arts class.
  59. Visited Russia.
  60. Served at a soup kitchen.
  61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies.
  62. Gone whale watching. (Qualifier: You can watch the whales from my mother's living room. It's quite a view.)
  63. Got flowers for no reason.
  64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma.
  65. Gone sky diving.
  66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp. (No, but I have been to the site of a Nazi atrocity at Oradour sur Glane in France.)
  67. Bounced a check.
  68. Flown in a helicopter.
  69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.
  70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.
  71. Eaten Caviar.
  72. Pieced a quilt.
  73. Stood in Times Square.
  74. Toured the Everglades.
  75. Been fired from a job. 
  76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London.
  77. Broken a bone.
  78. Been on a speeding motorcycle. (I road-raced open class bikes on the west coast from 1985-1990.)
  79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.
  80. Published a book.
  81. Visited the Vatican.
  82. Bought a brand new car.
  83. Walked in Jerusalem.
  84. Had your picture in the newspaper.
  85. Read the entire Bible.
  86. Visited the White House.
  87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating. (I went deer hunting for the first time last year and struck out. My son and I are going hog hunting next month. We'll see.)
  88. Had chickenpox.
  89. Saved someone’s life. (. . .not by myself, but I worked in a large, busy emergency room for 5 years of my life, and was privileged to be part of a group that saved a number of lives.
  90. Sat on a jury. (I actually made a jury, and then the trial was postponed the next day and the jury was released. Never got to try the case.)
  91. Met someone famous. (A number of times. Family circumstances...)
  92. Joined a book club.
  93. Lost a loved one.
  94. Had a baby. (Well, I helped to make the babies. That's to be covered in a later topic.)
  95. Seen the Alamo in person.
  96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake.
  97. Been involved in a law suit.
  98. Owned a cell phone.
  99. Been stung by a bee.
  100. Read an entire book in one day. 
That's a good place to start. I was actually surprised by how many of these things I've actually done already. Is that just part of getting older, or have I had an exceptional life? I don't know. Some of the things happened to me almost by default, so I can't properly take credit for them. I'm not sure I care that much about it. I hope you have fun with this list.
Last Updated ( Saturday, 31 January 2009 08:55 )