101 Things in 1001 Days

I'm pregnant!!!

I'm only 4 weeks and 4 days along, so it's very early days, and I'm desperately hoping nothing goes wrong.

But... none the less, I'm pregnant!


Soooooo... that means I've fulfilled list item number ONE!

Plus I got to surprise Matt with the pregnancy tests, so that's item number TWO aswell!!

Wooo :)

I went to the Pearl Jam concert yesterday.... oh...my..god.

Amazing, just as they were last time. No surprises really, they're a phenomenal band.

Liam Finn and Ben Harper were the opening acts... Liam was great, so much like his dad and uncle! And Ben, was of course awesome. Half way through his set Eddie came out and sang Under Pressure with him. I nearly lost my shit... amazing.

Oh how I love thee Eddie.

I went rollerblading today with a friend. We took her son and my little brother along, it was a great time.

I'm a bit more unco than I used to be, but can still skate pretty damn well. My brother had a stack and there was blood and tears, but apart from that it was great to catch up with Amber and have a chat.

I heart skating.

I saw the Black Eyed Peas in concert tonight at the Burswood Dome.

It. Was. Amazing.

They were so great. The visual effects they had going on were awesome, and it was just so so great.

I went with Leah and her sister in law Tina. It was a really great night, one of the best concerts I've ever been to. Hurrah!

I visited the Museum today with my friend and her daughters. It was really lovely, I hung out with the two eldest for a little while and we laughed and played around and learnt interesting things!

We also went to the State Library while we were nearby - they have a section called "The Place" which is for kids. It has a whole bunch of cool comfy cushions and seats and cubes and stuff all over the place, as well as kids books and activities, all sectioned off with a security fence and gate so the little ones can't run off.

Such a great idea.

I love my city :)

I bought some Bubble Tea today.

I asked the guy for bubblegum flavour, but he accidentally gave me strawberry. Oh well.

I looked at it with curious eyes - it had little square chunks of rainbow jelly floating around in it!

The straw is enormous and the drink is sealed with a plastic lid which confuses me, because I saw him pick up an empty cup to fill up - how did he seal it? The future is now.


So I took it home and battled to open it. Spilt it on my hand and the counter.

I had a little sip and frowned and looked a bit confused. I tried some more and wasn't quite sure about what I was tasting.

I put it in the fridge for later, but I'm not sure I'll go back to it.

Maybe I should try a different flavour in future because I never really like strawberry flavoured things.

I went to the library today.

Two libraries actually!!

I went to the local library to sit somewhere quiet to do some study in the evening. It closes earlier than it used to now, so when it closed I went to the uni library and sat on a comfy couch and continued studying til that one was nearly closed too.

I forgot how much I enjoy libraries. Even if I don't borrow any books, just being surrounded by so much information and exciting new topics and authors, and the quiet and calm of it all is lovely.

It's definitely a great place to study, because you absolutely can not get distracted by the things at home and you know you're there for a reason so you buckle down and do it, and actually enjoy it.


Hurrah.

I have enrolled to study Enrolled Nursing externally.

I decided to go with Enrolled Nursing instead of Registered Nursing at uni, because obviously it's a shorter course and cheaper, but it will also give me an opportunity to work in the industry and see if it's what I want first.

If it is, then I will continue on and do the Bachelor's degree :)

I really hope I can keep up and continue on with this, I have a bad record for not finishing things that I start.

Here's hoping!

I sent an anonymous gift to someone special.

She'd been talking about this particular thing so I found one on eBay and got it sent to her :)

It's an early birthday present and she'll be stoked when she gets it. I guarantee she'll know who sent it too :)


It feels nice to send a gift to someone just because.

Today I went out to the city with some friends op shopping (charity store shopping for you non-aussies).

I bought a few bargains and came across some awful clothes too heh. It was a fun time :)

I met a homeless fellow along the way in the city and he asked if I had any change I could spare. I didn't have any coins, but I had a $5 note - so I gave him that :) He was really grateful. It was a nice feeling.

I got some lunch and was going to head home and then realised that a good friend that I haven't seen in ages lived nearby, so I randomly popped over to his house hoping he was home.

He was :)

I ended up spending 2 hours there and we sat and talked and laughed and had a d&m.. it was really nice. I'm glad I saw him.

And in doing so I also knocked something else partially off my list - item 39!

Today I went horse riding!

My visiting English friend Nicola and I, along with a family friend Anneli went to Ron's Riding Ranch for a 1.5hour horse ride.

I arrived down the bush path, hopped out of my car and was told to find a helmet. I popped on the helmet that fit the LEAST crudely and was least dirty/sweaty, and then over to meet my horse for the day.

I was introduced to a dark brown fella named Smudge. He was sweet and gentle and didn't mind a rub on the nose or a pat on the back, so that was reassuring.

We hopped on our horses (gently!) and off we went. It was just a gentle walk, no trotting or anything crazy. We walked through the bush, saw a few kangaroos, and just chatted and laughed as we went.

The horses stopped at almost EVERY blackboy they saw to rip a bunch off and eat it. The majority of the ride you could hear them crunching on it. It was odd - I never would have guessed that horses liked blackboy leaves so much.. they're certainly not the softest looking food.

Towards the middle of the trip I discovered I had bones in my butt that I didn't even know existed. I was in paaaain. It was so sore and then every little bump or hill was like "owwwwwww".

We were all moaning and groaning by the end, but it WAS a lovely time and I can definitely see how people can love horses and horse riding so much - it would just take getting used to.

This week was National Homeless Persons Week. It was run by Homelessness Australia in conjunction with the Australian Federal Police and Missing Persons Week.

Over 14,000 people are homeless in my city alone and it breaks my heart to think of it.

Homeless people aren't just drunks or junkies, or people who "choose" to be on the streets. They're families, couples, children, or people who just made a wrong choice in their life or weren't given a chance to start with. They're people who were put out by their families, unloved or uncared for, people who have just had a rough trot in life and need a helping hand to get back on track.

I hate people who judge others, more than anything, because you never know someone's story - what they've been through, where they're from, what they're striving for.

Some people say "Well they shouldn't have taken drugs/drunk alcohol/run with a bad crowd - it was their choice and they should live with the consequences - they can only help themselves."

Well yes, and no. Yes it was their choice, and a bad choice. But by the time they get to the point of homelessness - living in shelters, on peoples couches, or in the streets, they're just a person who needs help. Why does it matter how they got there? They're human beings like everyone else. They were someones baby at one point, someone loved and cared for them - and so should you.


One of the items on my 101 list was to give at least $5 to a homeless person 3 times. I did that this week - I gave $5 to a kind old fella in the city. I stopped and had a chat to him - he was selling "The Big Issue" - a magazine that gives struggling people a chance to get back into the workforce and get their lives back on track. I bought a magazine from him (he gets 50% of all sales) and talked to him. He was such a sweet man with the kindest eyes and it really made me think - how did he get here. Where are the people who love him?


As a favour to me - next time you see someone asleep on the ground, or on a bench - or some "drunk" wandering through the street wearing dirty clothes, don't turn up your nose or walk around him like he's nothing - smile, say hi and treat him with the dignity he deserves.

He's just a person.



National Homeless Persons Week

The Big Issue

Today I visited Caversham Wildlife Park.

I'd been there as a kid when it was located in a different place, but since it's moved to Whiteman Park I'd not been.

Soooo I went along with Mum and Nicola - a girl who's over from the UK and staying at Mum's.

I sat next to a bunch of kangaroos and patted them. Took obligatory photos of them. I also patted a koala and got a photo with her too... andddddddd got a photo of me patting Big Bubs the wombat.

I love wombats, they're great. Big boofer things. <3

Photos here!

I was just driving home from my little brothers footy game and saw a garage sale sign.

So I went to the garage sale and found an outdoor setting there. It's only a 6 seater, and we wanted a bigger one than that, but it'll do for now until we can afford $1000 or whatever for a nice big one.

I'm happy, because it means we can go sit outside to have dinner on nice nights, and have people over and actually have somewhere to sit outside :)

Hurrah!

I went to my dentist today to get my Invisalign treatment back on track.

I started Invisalign to straighten my teeth over a year ago and went off track after a chest infection late last year/early this year (can't remember exactly.)

I'd been putting off going back for so long because I didn't think they'd let me continue after this long, plus there was a disagreement about money (which was all a misunderstanding).

So I went today and started afresh and got back on track.

I only had to go back 2 aligners fortunately, so I'll be done in a few months.. yayyy.


I'm so happy I've done it. My teeth/smile are the one main thing I've never liked about myself and it stops me smiling and getting photos taken and stuff because I have crooked teeth and a very gummy smile.

So once the treatment is done and my teeth are straight they'll do "gingival recontouring" which is like, cutting the gum into shape to make it all look nice, coz at the moment I have what look like quite short teeth and my gums kinda go straight across, instead of up in an arch around each tooth. So this will fix that, then they also do a teeth whitening to complete it all and I'll be pretty and beautiful and smiling lots :)

Yay. Very happy.

Link to the blog about my Invisalign treatment

Oops I haven't updated in a little while. The project has been on the backburner a bit.. just because life gets in the way sometimes.

I will have to look at the list this week and pick something I can actively go out and decide to do.

Then again, I have just under 3 years to complete these things so there's no rush, but I'd like to do it sooner.

I went out op-shopping with Mum and Nicola today. Bought a bunch of pants and a few tops - casual and work/businessy stuff for interviews and new job (when I get one).

After op shopping we went to the markets. Wandered around for a bit, bought a couple of small things, BUT - I also bought some wool and knitting needles!

My goal to learn to knit has begun. I remember how to finger-knit - my Nanna taught me when I was little, but I have to learn to knit with the knitting needles.

I want to make a scarf :)

I was going to google how to start knitting but there's a million and one different ways/styles of knitting, so I think I'll just get Mum to show me how.


Hooray :)

I wrote a new postcard today. This one's going to a lady named Mia in Finland!

According to her profile on PostCrossing she's sent and received over 200 postcards - how exciting.

Can't wait to receive some of my own :)

I started reading the Harry Potter books again. I really do love them.

It awakens the inner child in me. Makes me want to be a wizard/witch and be whisked away to Hogwarts!

I'm only a little bit into the first book, so I've got a bit to go but will keep you all updated :) (The whole 2 people who probably read this.)

I sent out my first Post Crossing postcard today. It was to a girl named Bridget in America.

I didn't have much interesting to say, but introduced her to the DayZeroProject, so hopefully she's inspired by that :)

Will send out a few more this week I think.

I've been lazy already in updating this blog.

I still haven't managed to finish my list - that is, think of the full 101 things. I have, however, completed one item this weekend.

I went to the Zoo!!

I took a family friend who is visiting from England. She's been here 2 weeks already and noone's taken her places - not cool. So I took her to the Zoo! We had a great day. The rain stayed away and it even got kinda warm, it was lovely.

Took some cool photos of a lot of the animals, and Nicola even posed with a gorilla. (Ok, so it was a gorilla statue..)

CLICK FOR PHOTOS

The Mission
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.


Start Date: Monday, 6th July, 2009.


End Date: Monday, 2nd April, 2012.


Personal/Relationship
1. Get pregnant
2. Surprise Matt with something nice and unexpected 5 times (0/5)
3. Pay off all of my personal debt
4. Get a puppy
5. Do something special for our anniversaries (0/2)

Health/Fitness
6. Get back down to 50kg and maintain it for 3 months
7. Complete my dental treatment
8. Get some new glasses
9. Be able to run 1km (0/1000m)
10. Go to the gym 3 times a week for four consecutive weeks (0/4)
11. Find out my blood type
12. Do 10,000 situps
13. Be able to do 25 pushups consecutively (0/25)
14. Do 1,000 pushups
15. Get a professional massage
16. Remember to take Multivitamin every day for one month (0/31)
17. Get laser eye surgery (very costly – may not be achievable)
18. Attend a group fitness class at least 10 times (0/10)

Travel
19. Go on a road trip with no defined destination
20. Go on a spontaneous trip
21. Visit Melbourne

Family
22. Camp out in a tent in the backyard with my little brother
23. Have a day with my Mum and little brother 5 times per year (0/15)

Personal Growth/Learning
24. Get a new tattoo
25. Have a ‘me’ day once every month, where I do only whatever I feel I most want to do and to hell with the rest of the world
26. Learn 10 new skills (0/10)
27. Go to a dance class
28. Buy myself flowers
29. Have a bubble bath with candles around me
30. Complete a TAFE certificate/equivalent

Home/Food
31. Send out Christmas Cards
32. Grow a vege/herb garden
33. Get an outdoor setting
34. Get a BBQ
35. Bake a cake
36. Try 10 new foods (0/10)
37. Try bubble tea
38. Get a worm farm

Social/Friends
39. Catch up with 5 old friends (0/5)
40. Organise a movie marathon day/night with friends at my house
41. Write a letter to at least 5 people – handwritten, not emailed (0/5)
42. Have a board game day/night with friends

Being a good person
43. Donate 10,000 grains of rice (630/10,000)
44. Donate $5 for every item I don’t complete
45. Plant a tree
46. Actually remember to use my reusable shopping bags
47. Attend a dawn service on ANZAC day
48. Participate in 2 charity/fundraising events (0/2)
49. Pay for the coffee/lunch/small purchase of the person in front/behind me in line
50. Help a complete stranger
51. Send an anonymous gift/flowers
52. Give blood
53. Give at least $5 to a homeless person three times (0/3)

Internet/Computer
54. Buy a new computer
55. Organise all pre-digital photos – get them all bulk scanned and organized
56. Give WoW a try (someone else’s account/computer)
57. Join Post Crossing and send 5 postcards (1/5)
58. Complete a 26 Things project entry
59. Participate in Gimme Your Stuff

Acquire
60. Buy a waterproof digital camera and go snorkelling with it
61. Buy rollerblades
62. Buy a video camera
63. Buy a pair of Birkenstocks

Places to Go
64. Visit the WA Museum
65. Go to the zoo
66. Go to a library
67. Visit a national park
68. Go on a picnic
69. Visit 5 places I’ve never been (sights, towns, anything)

Movies/Music/Books/Entertainment
70. Go to the cinema to watch 10 different films (0/10)
71. See a movie on my own
72. Track down and read (re-read) all of Elizabeth Wurtzel's books (0/4)
73. Catalogue all of my dvd's and books
74. Reread 5 books from my childhood (0/5)
75. Bowl a score of 150
76. Watch 26 movies I’ve never seen starting with each letter of the alphabet (0/26)
77. Go to the drive ins
78. See 5 concerts (0/5)
79. Read 100 books (0/100)
80. Read the Harry Potter series (0/7)
81. Go to 3 footy games (0/3)

Things to Do/Random Stuff
82. Go geocaching
83. Learn to knit
84. Knit a funky scarf
85. Try Pilates
86. Get a penpal in another country
87. Laugh so hard that I almost cry and pee simultaneously
88. Write in my journal at least once a month for a year (0/12) 89. Get a helium filled balloon, insert a letter with my address details and let it go
90. Devote an entire day to travelling on trains, buses, ferries and document it through words, photos and video
91. Hem all of my pants (new and old) to the correct length
92. Make a piece of simple beaded jewellery
93. Get a PO Box (for Post Crossing)
94. Sew a piece of clothing for myself
95. Fly a kite
96. Do a jigsaw puzzle
97. Introduce the 100\1001 idea to 5 people (3/5)
98. Go Rollerblading
99. Ride on a horse
100. Complete a scrapbook
101. Write a new “101 in 1001” list