20 Before 40: I Stole This Idea from A Friend

As I was sitting here thinking about how to change my life and the things I want (or need) to accomplish before I turn 40, I came upon a former preservice teacher’s Facebook post. LeeAnn posted a list of 25 things she wanted to accomplish before she turned 25 and then made her way through the list. According to the post, she hasn’t done all 25 things, but I am not sure that she is yet 25. I love the idea of having goals and trying to accomplish them by a monumental birthday. And, it just so happens that I will turn 40 in seven months and seven days, which is 219 days. I don’t think I have time to do 40 things by 40, but I can do 20 things by 40. If I should happen to accomplish all 20 and have time left over, I’ll just make a new list. Let’s see how many of these things I can accomplish before my birthday:

Exercise related:

1. Run a marathon. This is still a goal, even though I can’t run at all right now because of my sore foot. Slow and steady wins the race.
2. Finish the Racine 70.3 on July 21.  I’d like to finish it in under 8 hours.
3. Swim a 500 in 7:30 minutes.
4. Take a yoga class. I suppose I could do this through the Ball, but I am not sure if I will have the time. This may wait until we move.
5. Do a 30 burpees in 30 days challenge. I will start this on January 1.
6. Ride a century ride on the bicycle. This doesn’t have to be official. If I ride from here to Gaston to Richmond and back, that’ll work.
7. Meditate for at least 15 minutes each day. I will start this on January 1.

One of my goals in this section is to swim the Chicago race called Big Shoulders. I plan to do it, but it doesn’t happen until September, so it really won’t happen before my birthday.

Food related:

1. Eat paleo at least 80% of the time. Preferably eat paleo as much as possible.
2. Try foods that aren’t the usual things I eat.
3. Visit every Indiana brewery with my brother.
4. Learn to cook one new thing each month.
5. Do not drink alcohol until my birthday. This will start on January 1.

Reading, writing, or art related:

1. Read the whole Bible. I’ve read the whole text, but I’ve never read it all the way through.
2. Reread the Harry Potter series.
3. Finish the Sketchbook Project book I just received in the mail. Even if I don’t finish it in time to turn it in, in January, I still want to fill it.
4. Finish my master’s degree in creative writing. Get my project published somewhere.
5. Post a blog post three days a week. Write something every day.

Personal:

1. Get a new tattoo.
2. Lose 40 pounds. That’s 5 pound a month, or roughly one pound each week. Surely I can do that, right?
3. Find a job doing something I love.

I am not sure how much meaning there is in this list, but there are some things on this list that I’ve been hoping to do for a while. Maybe by articulating them, I’ll have greater success.