Things I've Done, Part 1 (questions 1-50)

Total count for first 50:
Yes: 34
1/2 Credit: 5
No: 11

Abstract:
Yes: 1, 6-10, 12-14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 22-27, 29-34, 37-39, 41-43, 45, 47, 49
1/2: 3, 4, 28, 44, 48
No: 2, 5, 11, 16, 18, 21, 35, 36, 40, 46, 50


1 - Bought everyone in the bar a drink. Fortunately, the place was almost empty, so it wasn’t as painful as it could have been.

2 - Swam with wild dolphins. No, but it sure sounds cool.

3 - Climbed a mountain. But really, does it count if you don’t *need* special equipment? I’ve scaled several but they were all friendly – I haven’t ever used rappelling gear and such. We’ll say half credit here.

4 - Taken a Ferrari for a test drive. I’m going to say half credit here as well, ‘cause I had a Viper for a weekend, and I’ve driven a Lamborgini (AND I didn’t stall it!).

5 - Been inside The Great Pyramid. The only other countries I’ve been to are Canada and Mexico.

6 - Held a tarantula. It tickled as it walked around on me. They’re quite fuzzy, you know.

7 - Taken a candlelit bath with someone. Until the hives appeared, he didn’t believe that I was indeed allergic to bubble bath. That relationship didn’t last much longer than the bubbles.

8 - Said "I love you" and meant it. To family, friends, pets, all manner of creatures great and small.

9 - Hugged a tree. Some of my best friends are trees.

10 - Bungee jumped. From a railroad bridge in Pennsylvania. I didn’t really think about the whole getting back down part until it was really too late. Then I went and did it again, once I got the hang (so to speak) of unclipping myself and falling into the water.

11 - Visited Paris. See #5 I’ve been to Paris, Ohio. Does that count?

12 - Watched a lightning storm at sea. Sitting on the beach in Southern California, watching it approach over the Pacific. One of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.

13 - Stayed up all night long and saw the sunrise. I am a nocturnal creature. In my happy place, I go to bed as the sun’s coming up. Too bad my job doesn’t agree with that.

14 - Seen The Northern Lights. Sometimes, they are visible in the lower 48. Once, while flying to Seattle, I saw them from the air and that was REALLY neat.

15 - Gone to a huge sports game. How do you classify huge? Professional? Yup – baseball, football (zzzz), soccer, hockey, NASCAR. A couple of them were capacity crowds.

16 - Walked the stairs to the top of The Leaning Tower Of Pisa. See #5.

17 - Grown and eaten your own vegetables. Yum. Tomatoes, corn, peas, green peppers, squash, watermelon, musk melon, apples, cherries, plums, pears, etc. You’ll never find the same quality in the store.

18 - Touched an iceberg. There aren’t many of them lurking around Ohio. Or Chicago, for that matter.

19 - Slept under the stars. Frequently. Sometimes, I even meant to, instead of just falling asleep on the pool furniture.

20 - Changed a baby's diaper. Yuck. One reason I have no desire to produce any of those things on my own.

21 - Taken a trip in a hot air balloon. I came close several times – they fly (float?) over my parents’ house all the time.

22 - Watched a meteor shower. Several times. The best was inadvertent. I was VERY lost somewhere in Texas, or possibly New Mexico and there wasn’t a light to be seen for miles – except for the stars, and the meteors. Very cool experience. Never did figure out where the hell I was.

23 - Gotten drunk on champagne. Mimosas with some of my best girlfriends. Yummy and a wonderful time. The right friends can make even hangovers kinda fun.

24 - Given more than you can afford to charity. Every penny I gave while in college was really more than I could afford.

25 - Looked up at the night sky through a telescope. One of dad’s friends had one. We went to their house to see a meteor shower once when I was a kid.

26 - Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment. I tend to get the giggles when I’m scared stiff. Either that, or I get really p*ssed off. In this case, I was delivering a eulogy in front of several hundred people that I didn’t know, was struck by how my dead friend would have reacted to me in this situation and just lost it. *sigh* That impressed the hell out of ‘em.

27 - Had a food fight. A couple in the school cafeteria growing up, and every year, a friend’s family had a huge tomato fight in their garden with all of the extra, rotten tomatoes. It was tons of fun.

28 - Bet on a winning horse. Half credit here, ‘cause it was not an official race, and I was riding the winning horse.

29 - Asked out a stranger. Yeah, and for all my blather about equality, I’m glad I’m not a boy. It was terrifying.

30 - Had a snowball fight. Please, I grew up in the snow belt. What the hell else are we going to do for 8 months out of the year?

31 - Screamed as loudly as you possibly could. One Halloween, for reasons that currently escape me, we had a contest. I think I popped my own eardrums.

32 - Held a lamb. I grew up rural. I’ve held all sorts of baby farm animals.

33 - Seen a total eclipse. In primary school, I can remember the teachers all herding us out into the driveway. They’d made puddles in the parking lot, and we watched it in the puddles and they yelled at anyone who looked up at the sun.

34 - Ridden a roller coaster. I LOVE roller coasters! We used to go to Cedar Point and Geauga Lake every summer.

35 - Hit a home run. Not very athletic. I’ve BEEN hit by home runs. It hurt.

36 - Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking. Too self-conscious for that sort of thing.

37 - Adopted an accent for an entire day. It was a dare from an Australian friend. Way harder than you’d think.

38 - Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment. I was drunk, but who cares. It was a great 60 or so seconds.

39 - Had two hard drives for your computer. Is that bad? Cut me some slack, I’m an engineer – I’ve installed more than that in my computer.

40 - Visited all 50 states. Not yet. I’m working on it.

41 - Taken care of someone who was wasted. Routinely. We take turns.

42 - Had amazing friends. All friends are amazing. Anyone who can put up with me for any length of time is astonishing.

43 - Danced with a stranger in a foreign country. In Canada. In a casino. I was wearing a fabulous dress too. Sometimes off the wall bachlorette parties are really cool!

44 - Watched wild whales. I’m going to say half credit here, ‘cause while visiting my aunt in Seattle, I spent several minutes starting at glimmery things that she still swears were orcas. All I saw were waves, but it coulda been whales.

45 - Stolen a sign. Many of them, of all sorts. I’m currently eye-balling a sign for a retirement home that’s an old people crossing sign. One of the people is hunched over with a cane, and the other one is either helping them along, or about to push them over. Either way, it’s really funny.

46 - Backpacked in Europe. See #5

47 - Taken a road trip. Too many to count. The biggest ones were to and from my little adventure in California. (That’s when I got so lost in Texas. Or New Mexico.)

48 - Gone rock climbing. See #3. I’ve clambered around on all sorts of rocks, but never with any more gear than a rope and a prayer. Oh, and once, a stick. I really thought I was going to die that time.

49 - Midnight walk on the beach. As previously mentioned, I’m nocturnal. And I spent several months living in Southern California. I’ve actually walked along beaches on both sides of the country at midnight. I enjoy it, and I really miss having an ocean next door (stupid land-locked states).

50 - Gone skydiving. Not yet. It’s on the list, right next to hang-gliding, of things to do before I die. Hopefully I’ll live to check it off and move on.