Go Geocaching

Today was a horribly frustrating day. I thought I was going to have this really great day off, which is what I really needed it to be. I feel like I've been working so much -- and that I've been so exhausted from working so much -- that I don't really get to do anything fun anymore. I also kind of feel like I've been neglecting my list. Suddenly, I felt this terrible looming pressure to cross goals off. I don't like that feeling. I also don't like the thought that this list has become more stress in my life rather than the challenge and entertainment it was supposed to be.

So today, amongst all of these gross feelings, I decided to step back for a moment, and try to have some fun. As I was perusing the iTunes App Store on my iPhone, I came across a free Geocaching app. This was perfect! I could use this app to search for a geocache, and cross off an item on my list while getting outside in the beautiful weather. I harnessed up Bo to take with me on my search, loaded a geocache to search for on my app, and set off.

It all went downhill from there. I think I was out searching for almost two hours. I tried so hard to find the one that is supposedly in Wicker Park, but to no avail. I didn't want to give up, but I just couldn't find the damn thing, and every time I thought I was close, the app would tell me I was 30 feet away (right after telling me I was only 9 feet away!!!). So I abandoned Wicker Park, and started walking toward another one just north of the Damen/North Ave/Milwaukee six corner intersection. I found my way into an alley where I ended up being only one foot away from the damn thing, but I just COULD NOT find it. And the hint was awful!

Because I really didn't want to give up, I opted to try the last option that was in the vicinity. My phone was almost dead, Bo was definitely tired, and Dov and Ari were ready to be picked up at the groomer, but I just had to give this last one a shot. And then, SUCCESS! I guess the third time was the charm today. I forgot a pen to write in the log, but I pass by it every day on my way to and from work, so I figure I can just stop tomorrow.

Finished Goals: 54/101
Days Left: 542

Clean Out iTunes

I started this a long time ago thinking it wouldn't take me very long because I don't have a ton of music. Then I got busy and abandoned it, and I acquired more music along the way. Today I finally sat down and went through it all from start to finish. I filled out the information I didn't have for songs I got from other people, including album artwork, and I deleted a lot of stuff that I don't even know from where or how I got it. I think the hardest part, though, was trying to decide if I wanted to just uncheck some songs, or completely delete them. I'm guessing that I'll end up going through again sometime and deleting songs I unchecked. Only time will tell.


Finished Goals: 53/101
Days Left: 549

No Soda For a Month

I didn't think I'd be able to do it. I love me some Coke. I also love Diet Coke, and have actually switched to it in the past couple of years in order to save on the calories. You can often catch me sipping on ginger ale as well. And even more so, I like to use these tasty libations as mixers in my adult beverages. Alas, I had to even abstain from that, which was especially difficult. Luckily I have an amazing bartender at home who knows his way around tonic water and mango nectar.

Surprisingly enough, I didn't actually miss it too much. The month seemed to fly by. Perhaps it is because I was so distracted by my career and its seeming inability to get off the ground in my new city. I don't know; however, I'm thinking it's very possible that I may celebrate this accomplishment with a Coke and a smile.

Finished Goals: 52/101
Days Left: 562

Watch AFI's Top 100

Finished! 11/27/09

The other day I went through AFI's Top 100 list and added all the films I haven't seen to my Netflix list. I can't believe how many of these I actually haven't seen. I guess I better get started; this is going to take a long while. The movies I've viewed so far are in bold. Continue to follow my progress over here.

1. Citizen Kane
2. The Godfather
3. Casablanca
4. Raging Bull
5. Singin' in the Rain
6. Gone with the Wind
7. Lawrence of Arabia
8. Schindler's List
9. Vertigo
10. The Wizard of Oz
11. City Lights
12. The Searchers
13. Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope
14. Psycho
15. 2001: A Space Odyssey
16. Sunset Boulevard
17. The Graduate
18. The General
19. On the Waterfront
20. It's a Wonderful Life
21. Chinatown
22. Some Like it Hot
23. The Grapes of Wrath
24. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
25. To Kill a Mockingbird
26. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
27. High Noon
28. All About Eve
29. Double Indemnity
30. Apocalypse Now
31. The Maltese Falcon
32. The Godfather: Part II
33. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
34. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
35. Annie Hall
36. The Bridge on the River Kwai
37. The Best Years of Our Lives
38. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
39. Dr. Strangelove
40. The Sound of Music
41. King Kong
42. Bonnie and Clyde
43. Midnight Cowboy
44. The Philadelphia Story
45. Shane
46. It Happened One Night
47. A Streetcar Named Desire
48. Rear Window
49. Intolerance
50. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
51. West Side Story
52. Taxi Driver
53. The Deer Hunter
54. MASH
55. North by Northwest
56. Jaws
57. Rocky
58. The Gold Rush
59. Nashville
60. Duck Soup
61. Sullivan's Travels
62. American Graffiti
63. Cabaret
64. Network
65. The African Queen
66. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
67. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
68. Unforgiven
69. Tootsie
70. A Clockwork Orange
71. Saving Private Ryan
72. The Shawshank Redemption
73. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
74. Silence of the Lambs
75. In the Heat of the Night
76. Forrest Gump
77. All the President's Men
78. Modern Times
79. The Wild Bunch
80. The Apartment
81. Spartacus
82. Sunrise
83. Titanic
84. Easy Rider
85. Blade Runner
86. A Night at the Opera
87. Platoon
88. 12 Angry Men
89. Bringing Up Baby
90. The Sixth Sense
91. Swing Time
92. Sophie's Choice
93. GoodFellas
94. The French Connection
95. Pulp Fiction
96. The Last Picture Show
97. Do the Right Thing
98. Yankee Doodle Dandy
99. Ben-Hur
100. Toy Story

Finished Goals: 48/101
Days Left: 687

Finish Every Gig in Rock Band 2

This goal was a mix of fun, frustration, challenge, and time consumption. When I first started, I didn't realize that the game forces you to play at increasingly difficult levels. I thought the whole time I could choose my level of difficulty per gig. Alas, some of the player's free will is taken as you move through the game. The better you play on the easier levels, the more the game pushes you to move to the next level, and once you do so, you can't really go back. This meant that on some of the most difficult songs, I was only given the option of playing on "Hard." And so I procrastinated a little on those. Finally, I summoned up the motivation and plowed through.

And then I hit the "Endless Playlist 2" challenge. Aw, crap. This gig is 84 songs straight. That's right, 84 songs with no break and no way stop and save the game. This gig took me 7 hours! I'm not even sure how I managed to get through it all. Needless to say, I was exhausted once it was done. And grateful. And maybe a little embarrassed that I just spent 7 straight hours playing a video game...

Finished Goals: 42/101
Days Left: 726

Crochet Myself a Sweater

I finally finished. I started this little gem a long time ago, but put it aside because I came upon a difficult direction in the pattern, and I needed some help. I eventually made my way over to Depth of Field at Cedar and Riverside, and they cleared it all up for me.

Considering that this is one of the more difficult patterns in the book I've been working from, I think the other projects I want to tackle in it should be pretty smooth sailing.

Finished Goals: 36/101
Days Left: 815

Complete 101 Postcrossings

Today my 101st postcard was registered on postcrossing.com. It took about 6 months. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself.

It's been really fun, actually. I think I'm going to continue doing it. I've gotten a lot of beautiful postcards from all over the world. Now all I need is better storage for them. I've been keeping them in a shoebox.

Finished Goals: 35/101
Days Left: 830