Bucket List

Let's clear this up first.

I had a bucket list before the movie came out. I've had a bucket list for decades because I took the following quote to heart when I was just a teenager.

"As you grow older, you'll find the only things you regret are the things you didn't do." There are many versions of that quote and I've believed all of them. I knew it was true...like gravity... and ever since I wanted to experience stuff. Lots of stuff. I want to know what it looks like, feels like, sounds like, tastes like.

The list is an organic, evolving thing. I add things. I subtract things. I'll read something I wrote down a year ago and I'll wonder why I ever thought it was important. Then I'll think about something else and wonder why that wasn't always on my list.

This next paragraph is a summary of what's been completed. (I cheated on a couple and only added them to the list so I could cross them off after I did them!)

I have sky dived, rounded up cattle on the back of a horse, fired a machine gun, been tear gassed, hang glided, earned a college degree, run marathons, survived a triathlon, raised 3 children, hitch hiked across the country, climbed mountains and rappeled down them, rafted rapids, skied on snow and water, loved deeply, written a novel, played poker in the world series, and have given a eulogy.

Here's what I still need. Some are easy. Some are not likely to happen.

Visit all 50 states (I'm just short Louisiana and Hawaii)
Paraglide
Fast for 3 days
Hike the Appalachian Trail (this requires 5 months)
Canoe the Mississippi from headwaters to Gulf (3 months)
Spend a month in a monastery
Scuba dive
Play a musical instrument
Visit a nude beach...nude (with lots of sunblock)
Live outside the US for awhile
Learn to sail
Attend Olympics
Expertly cook one meal
Volunteer at a Hospice
Sing in public (I won't even sing in church)
Perform in community theater
No human contact for a week
Outdoor survival course
Expert at digital photos
Dance at grandkids wedding
Make a movie or music video
Get a pedicure
Hole in one
Learn a martial art
See a NASCAR race (not a fan, just want to see what all the fuss is about)
Holy Land
Great Wall of China
Northern Lights
Total eclipse of the sun
Pyramids
Write a poem (a good one)
Host a huge party for no reason (not so easy...I hate huge parties)
Be a film extra
Dance lessons
Gun lessons (this is the west after all!)
Raft Grand Canyon
Ask a stranger for a date (read "Cowardice at the Concert")
Hot air balloon ride
Donate enough money to put my name on something
Draw or Paint lessons
Change strangers life (for the better hopefully)

Wow!! That's a lot. What am I doing just sitting here?

Any suggestions or advice are welcome!