40 for the Forties

Today is my fortieth birthday. As I prepare for my next decade, here are forty things I’d like to accomplish in my forties. UPDATED on November 18, 2018.

Me, forty years ago.

In no particular order:

1. Become certified in First Aid and CPR √ (I couldn’t find a First Aid course that wasn’t targeted toward EMTs, but I am recently CPR certified)
2. Donate blood 6 times (the maximum) per year (so far so good)
3. Visit Yellowstone National Park  and/or Grand Canyon with my family (hoping to pull this off in the next few years)
4. Travel to at least 5 states I’ve never been to before (none so far, but completing #3 would help)
5. Attend games at least 5 MLB ballparks I’ve never been to before (1 down, 4 to go)
6. Visit two foreign countries I’ve never been to before (Ha! Seeming increasingly unlikely)
7. Write a book (perhaps even try to get it published)
8. Participate in Walk for Hunger  and/or Bikes Not Bombs Bike-A-Thon every year (Bikes Not Bombs Bike-A-Thon is annual tradition)
9. Audition (and hopefully perform) for the Revels again (Not sure if I want to do this anymore)
10. Enter (and hopefully win) USS Constitution turnaround lottery (This wasn’t available while the Constitution was undergoing renovation & I’m not sure if they’re doing it all now)
11. Ride in an open-cockpit biplane and/or a hot air balloon (someone needs to make this happen)
12. Take up birding (I got a bird app, not much else progress)
13. Read a classic Russian novel (Maybe next year)
14. Try singing with a barbershop quartet
15. Participate in an atlas-based road rally √ (I did this, had a lot of fun, and got a terrible score)
16. Perform karaoke (who wants to take me out)
17. Take a martial arts class (scheduling difficulties are a major barrier)
18. Paddle on the Charles River (more like a doggy paddle)
19. Play croquet in strange places (not sure what I was thinking of with this one)
20. Volunteer with Bikes Not Bombs and/or Boston Bicyclists Union (still something I could do)
21. Try rock climbing √ (tried a climbing wall, did NOT enjoy it)
22. Visit the Great Dismal Swamp (driven past, stopped at the visitors center/rest area, does that count)
23. Write in my journal more regularly √ (I have and I haven’t)
24. Climb to the highest points in each of the New England states and complete hiking up all the 4000 footers in New England (increasingly unlikely to happen)
25. Serve in a ministry in our church community √    
26. Walk inside the Mapparium √
27. Take the tour at the Sam Adams Brewery √
28. Become a patron of the arts by getting a subscription to a symphony, dance, or theatre series (I have been to more performances that in my 30s, but far from being a regular)
29. Through hike the AT (maybe when I retire?)
30. See the reenactment on Lexington Green on Patriots Day (after 20 years in the Boston year, it’s time to make it happen)
31. Go to a drive-in movie for the first time (still waiting)
32. Take kids to the  balloon parade in Stamford, CT (no, but we’ve been to the  Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in NYC twice!)
33. Complete my Around the World for a Good Book project (still a long way to go)
34. Build a new playhouse for the kids in the backyard (got overruled)
35. Take a storytelling class and perform a story to a live audience (going to try an online course soon)
36. Attend 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada (proved to be logistically challenging, so we watched it on tv)
37. Visit maritime Canada (not sure this will happen in the near future)
38. Play curling (there should be more urban curling opportunities)
39. Visit Susan’s Michigan (someday)
40. Get an SLR camera and learn how to take photos √ (yes, much fun!)

If you have any suggestions for anything else I should try, let me know in the comments.

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