*1. read Virginia Woolf--success!
*2. try Vegemite--ugh.
*3. removing carpeting ourselves--success!
2. Visit 50 new places. (Could be a city, a state, a country, or even something like the Pacific coast.)
*1. Mount Hope Cemetery (Rochester, NY)
*3. Maine
*4. Circle B Organic Farm (to pick apples)
*5. Albany, NY
3. Visit 50 parks. (Be they local, state, national, or international.)
*1. Letchworth State Park (NY state)
*2. Mendon Ponds Park (Mendon/Pittsford, NY)
*3. Taughannock Falls State Park ((NY state)
*4. Buttermilk Falls State Park (NY state)
*5. Ordiorne State Park (New Hampshire)
*6. Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge (Maine)
*7. Ferry Beach State Park (Maine)
*8. Tinker Nature Park (Henrietta, NY)
*9. Thousand Acre Swamp (Penfield, NY)
*10. Cobbs Hill Park (Rochester, NY)
*11. Sherwood Fields (Penfield, NY)
*12. Abraham Lincoln Park (Webster, NY)
4. Visit 50 museums. (Of any type.)
*1. Seacoast Science Center (New Hampshire)
*2. Rochester Museum and Science Center (New York)
*3. Storm King Art Center (New York)
*4. Herkimer Diamond Mine Museum (New York)
*5. American Museum of Natural History (NYC)
5. Visit 50 zoos, aquariums, insectariums, etc.
*1. Bronx Zoo
6. Walk/hike on 50 different trails.
*1. Quaker Pond Trail.
*4. Devil's Bathtub trail (at Mendon Ponds)
7. Make a donation to 50 different charities. (Monetary or otherwise.)
*1. money donation to St. Judes
*2. money donation to Citizens Campaign for the Environment
*3. made thirteen crocheted baby caps for Mom's church project
*4. money donation to sponsor Kara for the Diabetes Walk
*5. money donation to sponsor Annie for the readathon to raise money for the Teen Book Festival
*6. crocheted two hats for the hat-mitten tree at Max's school
*7. money donation to Smile Train (in Gray's name)
*8. money donation to MDA (in Max's name)
*9. money donation to WXXI, our local NPR station
*10. money donation to MCC scholarship fund
*11. donated game to Max's sister school
*12. embellished flip flops (a Craft Hope project for the children of La Chureca)
8. Donate 50 trunkloads of stuff to charity thrift store, etc.
*1. trunk-load (January 2011)
*2. trunk-load (February 2011)
*3. trunk-load (March 2011)
*4. trunk-load (April 2011)
*5. trunk-load (April 2011)
*6. trunk-load (April 2011)
*7. trunk-load (May 2011)
*8. trunk-load (June 2011)
*9. trunk-load (July 2011)
*10. trunk-load (July 2011)
*11. trunk-load (July 2011)
*12. trunk-load (July 2011)
*13. trunk-load (July 2011)
*14. trunk-load (July 2011)
*15. trunk-load (July 2011)
*16. trunk-load (July 2011)
*17. trunk-load (July 2011)
*18. trunk-load (August 2011)
*19. trunk-load (August 2011)
*20. trunk-load (October 2011)
*21. trunk-load (October 2011)
*22. trunk-load (October 2011)
*23. trunk-load (October 2011)
*24. trunk-load (November 2011)
*25. trunk-load (November 2011)
*26. trunk-load (January 2012)
*27. trunk-load (February 2012)
*28. trunk-load (February 2012)
*29. trunk-load (April 2012)
*30. trunk-load (April 2012)
*31. trunk-load (April 2012)
*32. trunk-load (May 2012)
*33. trunk-load (May 2012)
*34. trunk-load (June 2012)
*35. trunk-load (June 2012)
*36. trunk-load (July 2012)
*37. trunk-load (August 2012)
*38. trunk-load (December 2012)
*39. trunk-load (March 2013)
*40. trunk-load (June 2013)
9. Give away 50 books. (Not to thrift stores or library. Not bought new specifically for someone else. But a book I read that I just think someone else will love so I pass it on to them.)
*1. Life Artist by Ali Edwards to Chris
*2. Priceless: The Vanishing Beauty of a Fragile Planet by Bradley Trevor Greive with photography by Mitsuaki Iwago to Chris
*3. Shivers, Wishes, and Wolves by Donald Lemke to Heather
*4. Pixerina Witcherina edited by Bill Conger to Ana
*5. The Axe-Man of New Orleans by Rick Geary to Chris
*6. Neil Young's Greendale by Joshua Dysart to Heather
*7-8. Graven Images by Paul Fleischman and Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest by Matt Haig to Heather
*9. A Year of Learning Dangerously by Quinn Cummings to Ali
10. Support 50 independent local businesses. (Could be a store, a restaurant, a coffee shop, etc.) *This idea was blatantly lifted from Chris. Thanks for the great idea!
*1. Lori's Natural Foods
*2. Casa Azteca (Mexican restaurant)
*3. Rochester Colonial (doors and windows)
*4. One World Goods (fair trade gift shop)
*5. Monroe Ave. Diner
*6. Thali of India (restaurant)
*7. Salvatores (pizza shop)
*8. Gallea's (nursery)
*9. El Jimador (Mexican restaurant)
*10. Hyatt's-All Things Creative (art supply store)
*ll. Bauman's (nursery)
*12. Pattaya (Thai restaurant)
*13. Cam's Pizzeria
*14. Napa Wood Fired Pizzaria
11. Watch 50 documentaries.
*1. China's First Emperor
*2. The True Story of Hannibal
*3. Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire
*4. Diamonds of War: Africa's Blood Diamonds
*5. The Impressionists
*6. Food Inc. (rewatch)
*7. Planet in Peril
*8. Waste Land
*9. Rivers and Tides
*10. State of the Planet (rewatch)
*11. Strange Days on Planet Earth (rewatch)
*12. PBS's Benjamin Franklin
*13. Gasland
*14. Burning the Future: Coal in America
*15. The Source
*16. The Untold Story of Emmett Till
*17. Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965
*18. Andy Warhol: The Complete Picture
*19. Drawing the Line
*20. American Experience: Roads to Memphis
*21. American Experience: LBJ
*22. Inspirations
*23. The Last Mountain
*24. The Revolution (rewatch)
*25. Ken Burn's Thomas Jefferson
*26. American Experience: My Lai
12. Try 50 new restaurants.
*1. Mike's New York Diner
*2. Monroe Ave. Diner
*3. El Jimador
*4. El Dorado
*5. Jay's Diner
*6. Flatbread Company All Natural Pizza
*7. Margaritas
*8. Maine Diner
*9. Don's Original
*10. Hong Wah
*11. Pattaya Thai Restaurant
*12. Peach's Cafe
*13. Napa Wood Fired Pizzeria
*14. Cam's Pizzeria
*15. Monte Alban
*16. Fort Lee Pizza
*17. Cornerstone Restaurant and Cafe
*18. Tandoor Flame
13. Drink 50 different mixed drinks and/or wines.
*1. Irish Creme on the rocks
*2. gin and tonic
*3. pina colada
*4. tom collins
*5. gin and Squirt
*6. margarita
14. Drink 50 different beers.
*1. Tsingtao
*2. Kirin Ichiban
*3. Coopers Pale Ale
*4. Chakra
*5. Canandaigua Lake Ale
*6. St. Pauli Girl
*7. Great Lakes Burning River Pale Ale (OMG-YUM!)
*8. Three Heads Brewing--The Kind IPA
*9. Snapperhead IPA
15. Try 50 new recipes. (COMPLETED 5/10/12)
*1. sweet potato cupcakes
*2. stovetop ziti
*3. blueberry sour cream muffins
*4. pumpkin muffins
*5. creamy lemon cheese pie
*6. cheesy rice & broccoli
*7. walnut carrot raisin muffins
*8. fantasia bars
*9. hot pepper rice
*10. chili relleno pie
*11. spinach cheese swirls
*12. ravioli casserole
*13. veggie chili
*14. chocolate snack cake
*15. double chocolate torte
*16. spinach lasagna roll-ups
*17. garlic breadsticks
*18. seasoned couscous
*19. ranch biscuits
*20. cola cake
*21. three cheese spirals
*22. cheesecake swirl brownies
*23. jiffy jambalaya
*24. blueberry spice muffins
*25. faux chicken penne
*26. parmesan veggies
*27. ale bread
*28. chocolate peanut butter cake
*29. butterscotch muffins
*30. coconut almond muffins
*31. banana chip oat muffins
*32. orange muffins
*33. marvelous shells and cheese (it wasn't all that marvelous)
*34. pioneer bread pudding
*35. cheesy broccoli rigatoni
*36. glazed orange date squares
*37. crock-pot mac & cheese
*38. pumpkin ribbon bread
*39. snickerdoodle bread
*40. crunchy granola
*41. Spanish rice
*42. spicy chocolate applesauce cake
*43. cinnamon walnut scones
*44. rustic sourdough bread
*45. dried fruit and white chip scones
*46. baked ziti
*47. whole wheat biscuits
*48. decadent brownie pie
*49. apple carrot muffins
*50. taco casserole
16. Bake 50 different kinds of cookies.
*1. Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chips
*2. Cupboard Cookies
*3. Crack Cookies
*4. M&M Cookies
*5. No Bake Cookies
*6. Snickerdoodles
*7. Fairy Drops
*8. Chocolate Peanut Chewies
*9. Double Peanut Butter Cookies
*10. Oatmeal Scotchies
*11. Lemon Crisp Cookies
*12. Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
*13. Chocolate Chunk Cookies
*14. Crispy Oat Drops
*15. Chocolate Chip Bars
*16. Peanut Butter Pieces Cookies
*17. Orange Drop Cookies
*18. Doctored Peanut Butter Cookies
*19. Ginger Cookies
*20. Sweet and Salty Cookies
*21. Cinnamon Crackle Cookies
*22. Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
*23. Double-Chip Cookies
*24. Nutty Orange Snowballs
*25. Chocolate Espresso Oatmeal Cookies
*26. Chocolate-Dipped Cranberry Cookies
*27. Hint-of-Coconut Cookies
*28. Crispy Sugar Cookies
*29. Chips and Chunks
*30. Gumdrop Cookies
*31. Lemon Snowballs
*32. Double Peanut Butter Cookies
*33. Toffee Cashew Treasures
17. Make 50 different kinds of soup. (This one is for Rich—he loves soup, but I never think to make it.)
*1. Easy Minestrone Soup
*2. 3 Bean Soup
*3. Carrot Apple Soup
*4. Refried Bean Soup
*5. Jambalaya
*6. Cheesy Potato Soup
18. Can/freeze/dry/otherwise preserve 50 different things. (This one sounds challenging, but fun.)
*1. made and canned applesauce (with apples from our tree)
*2. canned tomatoes (from our garden)
*3. made and canned fresh salsa (with tomatoes and jalapenos from our garden)
*4. made and canned strawberry jam (with strawberries from the farmers market)
*5. made and canned blueberry jam
*6. froze what seems like a bazillion tons of blueberries
*7. chopped and froze oodles of jalapenos from our garden
*8. made and canned blackberry jam
*9. chopped and froze green peppers from our garden
*10. made and canned apple butter
*11. dried basil (from Maryann's garden)
*12. froze lots of strawberries--whole plain, whole in simple syrup, sliced in simple syrup, and strawberry coulis
*13. dried blueberries (picked at a local organic farm)
*14. froze kohlrabi (from our garden)
*15. made and canned tomato juice (tomatoes from our garden)
*16. made and froze veggie broth from saved veggie "ends"
*17. froze radishes (from garden)
*18. froze zucchini (from garden)
19. Feed 50 different people in our home.
*1. John
*2. Susan
*3. Sean
*4. Cole
*5. Jimmy (Gray's friend)
*6. Mom
*7. Dad
*8. Butch
*9. Chris
*10. Cece (Annie's friend)
*11. Maryann
*12. Dale
*13. Dani (Annie's friend)
*14. Eva
*15. Tristan (Max's friend)
20. Buy 50 fair trade gifts.
*1. hot chocolate for Kim's birthday
*2. oodles of ornaments for Christmas gifts
*3. tea for Chris
*4. oodles of hot chocolate for Christmas gifts
*5. Pacay Shaker musical instrument--Christmas gift for John
*6. dark chocolate java drops--birthday gift for John
*7. coffee for a few coffee lovers for Christmas
*8. hot chocolate for one very fun family for Christmas
*9. another handful of ornaments for another year's Christmas
*10. java drops--Christmas gift for Tony
*11. candy bars--Mom and Annie's birthdays
*12. candy bars and coffee--in Chris and Matt's house-warming basket
*13. yet more ornaments for Christmas gifts
*14. wool fingerless gloves--Christmas gift for Annie
21. Buy 50 etsy or other handmade gifts.
*1. cat ears hat (for Annie)
*2. clever buttons (for Rich, Chris, Care, Butch)
22. Make 50 one-of-a-kind gifts. (In other words, if it’s something I make three of for three different people, it does *not* count.)
*1. scrapbook for Chris of his visit to New York
*2. slouch hat for Annie
*3. basketweave dishcloth for Mom
*4. chunky hat for Annie
*5. tote bag for Heather
*6. blocked afghan for Ana
*7. granny afghan for Chris
*8. chenille cozy blanket for Annie
23. Give 50 “happy something unexpected” gifts. (Yeah, so Christmas, birthday, etc. gifts do *not* count.)
*1. cinnamon tea, gumdrop pumpkins, and crocheted ghost (for Carl)
*2. farmers market crocheted bag (for Kara)
*3. soap and washcloths (for Chris)
*4. crocheted cat, Halloween cat x-stitch, homemade soap and washcloth, cat PEZ, and a couple of books (for Ana)
*5. February love notes and treats (for Rich, Annie, Gray, and Max)
24. Send 50 handwritten letters.
*1. to Ana
*2. to Jean
*3. to Kim
*4. to Eva
25. Write 50 love letters to Rich.
*1. October 2012
*2. July 2013
26. Make 50 “just because” cards.
*1. card for Chris
*2. card for Heather
*3. card for Ana
*4. postcard for Jean
*5. postcard for Care
*6. postcard for Chris
*7. postcard for Heather
*8. card for Eva
27. Write 50 poems.
*1. Book spine poetry.
The night of wishes
haunted
hunger
Can such things be?
The dead of the night
full dark,
no stars.
Fragile things
catching fire.
Everything is illuminated.
*2. Book spine poetry.
after the first death
I hunt killers
the plague
wicked
germ
from hell
fade
drown
choke
deathnote
echo
how I live now
haunted
28. Make 50 things for us/for our home. (I give away most everything I make, so this really will be a challenge.)
*1. Baker's placemat
*2. farmers market bag
29. Upcycle 50 things.
*1. safety envelops into greeting card
*2. doorbell into necklace
*3. packing paper, fabric scraps, and used cards into gift wrap
*4. ugly canvas print into art play surface
This:
To:
*5. outgrown tee shirt into bracelet
Tee first turned to yarn:
And then to this:
*6. food cans to these planters for some herbs:
*7. I'm so upset that I didn't think to take a before picture of this dresser that we picked up at the thrift store for $30. It was just your average slightly beat up, medium-toned wood dresser. But with a little paint, it now looks rather classy in Annie's new room.
*8. simple glass food jars to vases, just by adding washi tape
*9. tote bag with lining made from pajamas
*10. Gray's old worn-out pajama bottoms into a sheath for his toy sword
*11. a scrapbook album from salvages recyclables (the backs of tablets, acetate from packaging, cardboard, etc.)
30. Do 50 different environmentally friendly things. (Will include things I already do, and hopefully many new things, too.)
*1. hanging laundry instead of using dryer
*2. paper saving strategies for school
*3. keeping thermostat set at 62 degrees
*4. using baking soda and vinegar instead of toxic cleaning products
*5. making own laundry detergent
*6. using rags instead of paper towels
*7. bought energy efficient/water efficient washing machine
*8. using cloth napkins instead of paper ones
*9. gardening organically
*10. composting
*11. canning
*12. making wrapping paper from things headed for the recycle bin (old posters, kids' drawings, old calendar pages, etc.)
*13. buying carpet made from recycled materials
*14. eating vegetarian
*15. changing from a two-car to one-car family when the mini van finally bit the dust
31. Take 50 photos I absolutely love. (Not technically perfect or anything—I couldn’t do that—just photos I adore.)
*1.
*9.
32. Make 50 meaningful layouts for Annie’s albums. (Layouts that really tell a story, that capture a piece of her personality, etc.)
33. Make 50 meaningful layouts for Gray’s albums. (See #32.)
*1.
34. Make 50 meaningful layouts for Max’s albums. (See #32.)
35. Make 50 layouts for our About Us albums.
36. Open an etsy shop and sell 50 things. (Hopefully to someone other than Rich. :P )
37. Read 50 books I never heard of before buying/borrowing from library.
*1. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow
*2. The Wisdom of the Radish and Other Lessons Learned on a Small Farm by Lynda Hopkins
*3. The Year We Disappeared by Cylin Busby and John Busby
*4. The Red Market: On the Trail of the World's Organ Brokers, Bone Thieves, Blood Farmers, and Child Traffickers by Scott Carney
*5. The Wave by Todd Strasser
*6. Same Difference by Derek Kirk Kim
*7. Sita's Ramayana by Samhita Anri and Moyna Chitrakar
*8. Tyranny by Lesley Fairfield
*9. A Game for Swallows: To Die, To Leave, To Return by Zeina Abirached
*10. Americus by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill
*11. Retrovirus by Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti, and Norberto Fernandez
*12. Revival Volume One: You're Among Friends by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton
*13. Food: The New Gold by Kathlyn Gay
*14. Plenty: One Man, One Woman, and a Raucous Year of Eating Locally by Alisa Smith & J.B. MacKinnon
*15. Ruined Landscapes: Paintings of the Balkan War Zone paintings by Laura Buxton and text by Ross Yockey
38. Read 50 books borrowed from someone else. (Yes, this includes Rich and the munchkins.)
*1. The Dreaming Collection by Queenie Chan (from Annie)
*2. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster (from Annie)
*3. The Face of Death by Cody McFayden (from Mom)
*4. Nightschool: The Weirn Books Vol. 1 by Svetlana Chmakova (from Annie)
*5. Nightschool: The Weirn Books Vol. 2 by Svetlana Chmakova (from Annie)
*6. Nightschool: The Weirn Books Vol. 3 by Svetlana Chmakova (from Annie)
*7. Nightschool: The Weirn Books Vol. 4 by Svetlana Chmakova (from Annie)
*8. The Darker Side by Cody McFayden (from Mom)
*9. Abandoned by Cody McFayden (from Mom)
*10. Higurashi When They Cry, Abducted by Demons Arc, Volume 1 (from Annie)
*11. Higurashi When They Cry, Abducted by Demons Arc, Volume 2 (from Annie)
*12. Family by Micol Ostow (from Annie)
*13. God Bless You, Dr. Kevorkian by Kurt Vonnegut (from Rich)
*14. I, Alex Cross by James Patterson (from Mom)
*15. Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart (from Rich)
39. Read 50 classics. *Another blatantly stolen from Chris.
*1. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
*2. Orlando by Virgina Woolf
*3. The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
*4. We by Yevgeny Zamyatin
*5. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
*6. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
*7. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
*8. The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle
*9. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
*10. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
40. Read a book set in each of the 50 states.
*1. Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill--Massachusetts
*2. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan--New York
*3. The Face of Death by Cody McFayden--California
*4. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow--Oregon
*5. Columbine by Dave Cullen--Colorado
*6. Jericho Season 3: Civil War by Dan Shotz and Robert Levine--Kansas
*7. Rules of Prey by John Sandford--Minnesota
*8. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green--Indiana
*9. The Last Bridge by Teri Coyne--Ohio
*10. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz--Texas
*11. Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse (reread)--Oklahoma
*12. Paper Towns by John Green--Florida
*13. The Axe-Man of New Orleans by Rick Geary--Louisiana
*14. Green River Killer: A True Detective Story--Washington
*15. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury--Illinois
*16. Chiggers by Hope Larson--North Carolina
*17. The Lindbergh Child: America's Hero and the Crime of the Century by Rick Geary--New Jersey
*18. Revival Volume One: You're Among Friends by Time Seeley and Mike Norton--Wisconsin
41. Read 50 non-fiction books, each about a different country
*1. China's Buried Kingdoms by the editors of Time-Life books--China
*2. What Life Was Like When Rome Ruled the World by the editors of Time-Life books--mostly Italy
*3. Life in a Medieval City by Joseph and Frances Gies--mostly France
*4. In the Wake of the Plague by Norman Cantor--mostly England
*5. Hiroshima by John Hersey--Japan
*6. The Fifties by David Halberstam--United States
*7. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi--Iran
*8. Ruined Landscapes: Paintings of the Balkan War Zone paintings by Laura Buxton and text by Ross Yockey--Bosnia and Herzegovina
42. Read 50 memoirs, autobiographies, biographies, etc. (Collections of personal accounts about a subject or event will also count.)
*1. The Wisdom of the Radish and Other Lessons Learned on a Small Farm by Lynda Hopkins
*2. The Year We Disappeared by Cylin Busby and John Busby
*3. Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis by Robert F. Kennedy
*4. When I Knew edited by Robert Trachtenberg
*5. A Year of Learning Dangerously by Quinn Cummings
*6. French Milk by Lucy Knisley
*7. A Game for Swallows: To Die, To Leave, To Return by Zeina Abirached
*8. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
*9. Plenty: One Man, One Woman, and a Raucous Year of Eating Locally by Alisa Smith & J.B. MacKinnon
*10. Harriet Tubman: Leading the Way to Freedom by Laurie Calkhoven
*11. Reading Women: How the Great Books of Feminism Changed My Life by Stephanie Staal
43. Read 50 award-winning books. (Any awards.)
*1. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by Heidi W. Durrow--Bellwether Prize for Fiction
*2. A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller, Jr.--1961 Hugo Award
*3. The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein--1967 Hugo Award
*4. Ship Breaker by Paulo Bacigalupi--2011 Printz Award
*5. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card--1985 Nebula Award and 1986 Hugo Award (reread)
*6. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare--1959 Newbery Medal Winner
*7. Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky--2006 Pulitzer Prize Winner for history
*8. Locke and Key by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez--2009 British Fantasy Award for best comic or graphic novel
*9. The Night Watch by Sarah Waters--2006 Lambda Literary Award for lesbian fiction
*10. Deogratias: A Tale of Rwanda by J.P. Stassen--2000 Rene Goscinny Award
*11. The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi--2004 Alex Award
*12. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters--2002 CWA Ellis Peters Historical Award
44. Read 50 science/nature books.
*1. Priceless: The Vanishing Beauty of a Fragile Planet by Bradley Trevor Greive with photography by Mitsuaki Iwago
*2. Bees by Candace Savage
*3. Science Detectives: How Scientists Solved Six Real-Life Mysteries by the editors of YES Magazine
*4. Cane Toads and Other Rogue Species edited by Karl Weber
*5. Life in Cold Blood by David Attenborough
*6. Bad Science by Ben Goldacre
*7. Wicked Plants by Amy Stewart
*8. The Fever: How Malaria Ruled Humankind for 500,000 Years by Sonia Shah
45. Read 50 short story or essay collections. (Includes fairy tale, folktale, etc. collections.)
*1. Cosmicomics by Italo Calvino
*2. The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
*3. Shivers, Wishes, and Wolves edited by Donald Lemke
*4. How Beautiful the Ordinary edited by Michael Cart
*5. Kissing the Witch by Emma Donoghue
*6. Night Shift by Stephen King
*7. Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver
*8. A Christmas Memory (also includes "One Christmas" and "The Thanksgiving Visitor") by Truman Capote
*9. What You Wish For: Stories and Poems for Darfur by various
*10. Hers³ edited by Terry Wolverton
*11. Gothic! Ten Original Dark Tales edited by Deborah Noyes
*12. Graven Images by Paul Fleischman
*13. Troll's Eye View edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
*14. I Remember Nothing and Other Reflections by Nora Ephron
*15. More Baths Less Talking by Nick Hornby
*16. Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance by Atul Gwande
*17. My Planet: Finding Humor in the Oddest Places by Mary Roach
46. Read an article from 50 different magazines. *Thanks for the suggestion, Rich!
*1. article about monsoons in National Geographic
*2. article about human waste composting in Mother Earth News
*3. article about making time for oneself in Whole Living
*4. "The Hidden Epidemic: Tapeworms in the Brain" by Carl Zimmer in Discover
*5. "The Big Heat" by Elizabeth Kolbert in The New Yorker
*6. a series of articles about JFK in Time
47. Watch 50 different seasons of TV shows on DVD. *Thanks again, Rich!
*1. Criminal Minds, season 3
*2. The Wire, season 3
*3. Criminal Minds, season 4
*4. Jericho, season 1
*5. Jericho, season 2
*6. Kaze No Stigma, season 1
*7. Battlestar Galactica, season 1
*8. Doctor Who, season 1
*9. Criminal Minds, season 6
*10. Law & Order: SVU, season 1
*11. Avatar: The Last Airbender, season 1
*12. Battlestar Galactica, season 2
*13. Battlestar Galactica, season 3
*14. Criminal Minds, season 1
*15. Battlestar Galactica, season 4
*16. The Fabulous Beekman Boys, season 1
*17. Law & Order: SVU, season 2
*18. Twin Peaks, season 1
*19. Law & Order: SVU, season 3
*20. Doctor Who, season 2
48. Find 50 new bands that I like enough to download something by them. (Yes, Chris and Ana, I’m counting on you to help me with this one!)
*1. Justin Townes Earle (thanks to NPR)
*2. Allo Darlin' (thanks to Ana)
*3. The National (thanks to Ana)
*4. Nick Drake (thanks to Chris)
*5. Amanda Applewood (thanks to Ana)
*6. Mountain Goats (thanks to Ana)
*7. Noah and the Whales (thanks to Criminal Minds)
*8. Beck (thanks to Ana)
*9. The Civil Wars (thanks to Heather)
*10. Escondido (thanks to Rich)
49. Photograph 50 different animals in the wild. *Thanks yet again, Rich!
*1.
*2.
*3.
50. Have sex in 50 different places. (Sorry for the TMI there—I promised Rich if he helped me finish this list, I would use that one.)
*1. our bedroom
*2. our living room
*3. our home library
*4. "new" home bedroom
*5. in our tent, which was pitched in my parents' backyard
*6. "new" home stairwell
*7. "new" home family room
