Home on the Cape

I have a few days on Cape Cod before I leave for Mexico. My last day of work was Tuesday and I drove from Washington to Mass on Wednesday. I got up at 6 am and besides a quick run and a shower, I packed up the car until noon. And by packed up I mean cram everything I could into a Honda Civic. A surprisingly large amount of my stuff fit, but I was forced to rely on the side mirrors and not my review for the subsequent ten hour drive. I had to leave many items with my cousin/roommate. He seemed pretty happy to take them off my hands so I feel better about letting them go. I am sad about the plants that I have had for years and moved with several times - there just was NO more room. I can buy more furniture and more jars for my bulk food goods and of course plants can be replaced. My attachment to these physical items, while weaker than it was a year ago, interests me. I understand wanting items to "make life easier" but it still bugs me that I like things so much.

Most of my time on the Cape is spent sorting and repacking what I did keep for storage. I still have a lot- mainly clothes and kitchen items. Who knows where I will be living next year. Most likely in the Boston-area, but I am very flexible and I have a whole year to make that decision.

I went to see Bucket List last night with my mom. She is so take charge. There was a huge line at the theater, no credit card ticket machines and only one ticket seller. Oh yeah, I don't live in a city any more. We were already late for the movie so she wanted to walk in and then pay on the way out. I protested, so she marched up front, asked to cut the line and bought us tickets. The previews were over and the show was on when we arrived at our seats, so it was a good move on her part. Why did I wimp out? What is so scary about paying later? Am I afraid of the kids who work at the movies? I was proud and a bit envious of mom's take charge attitude.

Anyway, the Bucket List was cute, but certainly not a great movie. Probably 2.3 of 5 stars. It made me think- what do I want to do in my life. I have a list titled "100 Things" that I started a few years ago. My trip to Mexico will fulfill a some of my goals. When asked, mom said she had done many of the things she wanted to do on her list and some of the things she wanted when she was younger no longer applied. For instance, she does not care that she never went skydiving, but there are some places she'd still like to travel, like Vietnam and China. Also, an article in today's Cape Cod times pointed me to this blog where the woman chooses a new thing to do each day: http://www.todayslifelist.blogspot.com/

I know there is more than what I have written down so far, but here's a start:
100 Things

Live in Africa for at least 1 year.
Learn to play the cello.
Learn to play the steel drum.
Climb Kilimanjaro.
Invest in women-owned small business loans.
Attend the Olympics.
Brew my own root beer.
Ride a train across Asia.
Teach someone to read.
Spend New Years in Edinburgh.
Go wild in Rio during Carnival.
Run a marathon.
Raft or kayak through the Grand Canyon.
Trek to Machu Pichu.
See a polar bear in the wild.
Learn how to cook Thai and South Indian food.
Ride horses in Australia.
Swim a mile in the ocean.
Own my own house.
Become a level 4 tennis player.
Compete in a mountain bike race.
Apply appropriate technology in a 3rd world region.
Get married to someone I am madly in love with.
Go to a school bus demolition derby.
Milk a cow.
Start a fire with only wood, string and grass.
Get my MBA or another graduate degree.
Catch a fish with my bare hands and cook it.
Get a photo(s) into an exhibition/gallery.
Grow enough fruits and vegetable to eat only those for a week.
Teach yoga in a shelter or prison or hospital rehab center.
Teach yoga in a school.
Get certified to teach yoga in an exotic local.
Become fluent in Spanish and live in a Spanish speaking place for at least one year.
Get back on a pottery wheel. Make my own granola bowls.
Be a mother.