Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Welcome to my blog and the "30 Before 30 List"

So this is my official blog...we'll see how this goes. Someone once told me that writing your thoughts down helps you let go of things and since I have been so stressed lately maybe this will help. So where am I in my life right now? Well in exactly 3 weeks I will turn 28. I don't like my job very much, I have no prospects in the love department, and trying to be everything to all of my friends is starting to wear on me. I have had disappointments in my life. The only family I have left is my mom and my uncle. My grandparents are all gone. My dad died almost 10 years ago. And I have no siblings. So life can get lonely. On the plus side, I have a great group of friends that I love. I am getting ready to go on a cruise (for a whole week!) and I'm not as broke as I used to be. I have a great dog (Cam- a border collie) and a great cat (Bailey) and I own my own house. So things aren't too terribly bad. I have been very stressed lately. Being an adult is hard. It never seems like there is enough time in the day and my life seems to be in fast forward (but not really going anywhere).

So I decided to make a list of 30 things I want to do before I am 30:
(click on any of the crossed off items to read the story of how I marked it off the list!)
  1. Get in the best shape of my life
  2. Try snowboarding
  3. Get a job I love
  4. Take Cam to an agility class
  5. Pay all my own bills (with no help from mom)
  6. Ask out a crush
  7. Run a 5K
  8. Go to a water park and not feel self-conscious
  9. kayak
  10. Catch a fish
  11. Open my heart to someone
  12. Make a baby laugh
  13. Change a diaper (no I have never done this)
  14. Go on a mission trip
  15. Help a stranger
  16. Find a doctor I trust
  17. Grow a plant
  18. Upgrade one room in my house
  19. Travel abroad
  20. Swim with a dolphin
  21. Go skinny dipping
  22. Visit Washington, DC
  23. Take a dance lesson
  24. Sing Karaoke
  25. Invest in the stock market
  26. Kiss in the rain
  27. Read the Bible all the way through
  28. Go see a movie at the theater- alone!
  29. Attempt Surfing
  30. Purchase 1 piece of expensive jewelry for myself
I just don't want life to pass me by and I want to make sure I have fun while I can. So I'll keep you updated on my progress!

36 comments:

Anonymous said...

Suz...i love this blog. I am, like, SOOO your biggest fan, lol.
SO my favorite thing to do before you are 30 is take a dance lesson.
I cant wait to read up on your crazy adventures as you complete your list!! Let the fun begin and NEVER forget that 30 is the new 20...so many more adventures for all of us to come!! xoxo

Anonymous said...

Suz,

It's great. I am serious about the D.C. trip. Just let me know. P.S. the picture of you is beautiful!

Abby O.

Anonymous said...

So...I am going print these out and hold you to them! This is awesome, and this is why I LOVE YOU! With every down there is a up...and things are looking up! This offers a new outlook on life. PS: you and Abby can not go to DC without me!

Anonymous said...

you are super fabulous suz! super fabulous! if you need any help you know i'm here. you shouldn't have any problems with this stuff, you can dooooo it!
k-roc

Suz said...

Thanks guys! I will surely be dragging y'all along on my adventures so you better not be embarassed when you end up on this blog with me! Love you girls!

Unknown said...

Can I tell you just how proud I am of you? You have always had an inner strength that you didn't see yourself...maybe now you'll see how wonderful you are!! And can I PLEASE be there when you sing Karaoke! I'd pay money...REALLY!!:)

Anonymous said...

Suz - So I didn't know everyone replied to your email by posting their comment on here (where I'm old school and emailed you back) - I'm new to the whole blog thing so I apologize. I'm so excited for you to venture out and do all of the things on your list. You can achieve your goal and I look forward to reading (and being part) of some of your adventures. You are more amazing than you give yourself credit for. Love you, friend!

Anonymous said...

Almost to single digits...counting down the days!

Anonymous said...

You can sing kareoke on the cruise and mark that off too! You are on your way to finish this list real fast...

ps only 16 more hours of work before the cruise...get excited!

Anonymous said...

I saw your blog pop up on the BlogHer blogroll...very interesting topic! I'm over halfway through my 101 Things list, but it wasn't tied to being a certain age (although I'll finish it before I turn 30). Best of luck! :)

Anonymous said...

Blog Queen...Helping Friends... What else can you do?

Lesley Looper said...

Cool list! Looks like you're going to have some fun adventures before you're 30!

I enjoy running 5Ks and live in Morrisville, so let me know if you'd like to join me sometime! I keep a list of my possible races on my "Going the Extra Mile" blog.

Lesley from Shelfari

Melissa said...

Okay so I have two little fannies here you can come and change any day you want! That would knock off #12 and you could get 13 too with a little work. With the beach just down the street and 3 surfboards in my garage you could nail #29. So I'm thinking I could help you with 1/10th of your list in a long weekend! You can come anytime, I'll even teach you how to feed a baby a bottle! ;)

Wani said...

I'm working on my own 30 by 30 list now. Good luck with yours!

Unknown said...

We have a couple of the same things on our lists...way to go girl! Mind if I follow along??

Skinny dipping is going to be fun, right??!! I have that one on my list too. ;)

Anonymous said...

Hi, I love the your list!
I have a daily quick to-do to Sauc-y Up Your Life.
Check it out!

http://saucysalsita.blogspot.com/
Saucy Salsita - A woman that knows who she is and isn't afraid to hide it!

Jennifer said...

I love this! It's a bit of an inspiration for this girl, who, at 26, still doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up and feels like she hasn't accomplished ANYTHING- aside from birthing the love of her life.

Jessica Dickinson Goodman said...

This is so cool! I'm working on Robert Heinlein's list of things every human should be able to do:

http://feelingelephants.wordpress.com/2008/04/18/lazarus-long-on-specialization/

But yours sounds like so much more fun!

Thank you for the great writing.

Anonymous said...

Hey Suz,
Wow.. I came across your blog today via some other blog.. anyway.. all I have to say is, we have A LOT in common, including, I think, a 30th birthday in August 2010.. and A LIST.

I love what you're doing here (obviously) and totally get you girl.

-sandyb

The Undomestic Mom said...

I love this!!!!! I need to make a list like this!

Fannie said...

Hey Suz :) Obviously I love your blog and I am hooked to list making myself ! I just restored my blog and added a 30 before 30 list (http://aritza-goddess.blogspot.com/2009/03/my-30-before-30-list.html).

Thank you for inspiring me ! Writing things down helps motivate me to make it happen :o)

Candie said...

i just came across your blog through a friend and im SO INCREDIBLY inspired! bravo on a fabulous idea. i love your honesty and passion. im totally gonna write a list of my very own in order to make this next 1 1/2 years purposeful and meaningful- im now a bit more excited to arrive at 30 because that means i have a list of wonderful goals completed. thank you for blogging and sharing your experiences with the world! all the best to you..... xo

Gina said...

Love your list! I'm almost 29, so I know how you feel. How'd you like going to the movies by yourself? I've done that a few times and actually loved it. Now... I just need to buy that expensive piece of jewelry for myself... ;)

Denis Merkas said...

You go girl! That's a great list! So impressed... there are some tough ones there - skinny dipping and open your heart to someone - good luck - be brave!

Read the bible all the way through is a bit odd - I'm not religious - but I still think that would be an interesting read, a tough one tho. I think it may be quite hard to read it completely. Love to hear how it is going?

Anonymous said...

Just found your blog and so glad I did! I turn 30 this year too and writing down a list of things to accomplish sounds so fulfilling!

Also - used to live near Raleigh. Miss that place :)

Anonymous said...

I just came across your blog. Ironically enough I just started something similar last week.

Www.moisliving30.wordpress.com

Unknown said...

I love your list. Some great items on there. Isn't it amazing how many people are on board with this 30 before 30 idea? I had no idea until I started a blog of my own chronicling my journey. I hope you'll check mine out as well and we can compare lists. Good luck and keep going!

Green Door Girl said...

what a great concept for a blog! :) I am glad you awarded me the stylish blogger award so that I can now follow along with your adventures! :)

Laura said...

Your list is great and you're almost done! Good luck on your final items.

Lindsey said...

Wow, I just came across your blog like 3 minutes ago. I can't stop laughing and smiling the whole time. Thanks for making something so fun and so inspiring to me as well.

Robyn said...

Just came across your blog. LOVE IT!
I turned 30 last week and have been blogging my journey. 3 months prior to my birthday, I started my 13 going on 30 list (I'm a cheesy theme obsessed girl girl sometimes!) and loved using my blog to track my progress. Since my birthday I've struggled a bit with re-focusing my blog but hope to have it back on track within the week with a new set of goals for this next phase in my life! Your list is great and I wish you the best!

TheGirlWithTheNotepad said...

I've only just discovered this blog by accident, but I'm so glad I did! It's the best blog I've seen so far (I mean that.) You've inspired me to make my own list before the New Year, although not on my blog (www.thegirlwiththenotepad.blogspot.com) Wish you luck with your list!

The thin seeker said...

I love that you have a list that you want to get through before you're 30. I am approaching 30 soon too and I am getting a little scared (27 going on 28 at the moment).

http://weightlossthesearchfortheskinnierme.blogspot.com/

Katie said...

Hey Suz! Thanks for commenting on my 30 before 30 list! I'm impressed by how much of yours you were able to finish in just two years!

As for the mortgage getting paid off before turning 30, there's no big secret... other than the fact that we stayed under budget when we bought the house and that I still have 7.5 years before I turn 30. We're currently living on just my husband's salary, so once I get out of law school in 2013 and have a salary of my own, we're going to keep living on my husband's salary and put 100% of my bigger salary toward the house payment. You actually end up paying a LOT less if you pay it off early... just $50 extra on your first few mortgage payments can save you hundreds in interest down the road! It also helps that we moved out of the city and into the suburbs, so our minimum monthly mortgage payment right now is about half what we used to pay in rent... makes it easy to overpay on the mortgage!

Nathan O. said...

i love your list. I am on my third annual __ before __ list and LOVE to see others doing theirs. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you cross items off your list.

Unknown said...

I love your list! We share some of the same items. I just made my own list and then stumbled upon yours! Good luck!