Been There, Done That!

So, do you have a Bucket List?  I do. Like most, after the movie of the same name came out, I made a list of things that I want to do before I kick the bucket.  My list includes the usual...places to visit, adrenalin adventures, life goals.  But as I made the list, I began to think of things that I have already experienced, and I decided to start writing them down.  My "Been There, Done That" list ended up being much longer than the Bucket List!  Now, it's not necessarily a list of goals accomplished, but of things that may be great stories for my grandkids one day.  And I've found that often as I check something off my Bucket List, I add a couple of things to the Done That list.  How fun!  It's been a great way to focus on the joys that life brings.  So try it!  Write down some of the things that make your life story uniquely yours.  And keep adding...think of the stories...

Here's mine: 

Check!!!

• Palmyra
  
• Danced on a flat bed truck under the stars
  
• Crossed the Line, Dateline, Pacific
  
• Learned to dive
  
• Learned to surf
  
• Kissed whales & looked into their eyes
  
• Flashed the Coasties as they flew above me in their chopper
• Swam with an oarfish
  
• Pet a manatee, dolphin, penguin
  
• Assisted in surgeries in Africa
  
• Drove the Bronco on two wheels
  
• Released sea turtles, one named after me
  
• Won a pull-up contest with all the crew of a tallship where I  volunteered, but let the Captain win by 1 for the sake of his ego
  
• Volunteered with NOAA
  
• Hugged a baobab tree
  
• Took my mom on safari, to pet the whales, & to an island where clothing is optional
  
• Got a tattoo in Tahiti for crossing the line
  
• Hugged a NY firefighter
  
• Saw a leopard in the wild…went on safari, listened to lions from my tent, watched elephants bathe while I drank my morning coffee
  
• Was homeless & lived with an ocean view
• Put a message in a bottle in the ocean at the equator
  
• Salsa-ed with the locals
  
• Learned Spanish in Spain
  
• Saw the Eiffel Tower, Monet’s garden, the Running With the Bulls, Central Park, a rainforest, untouched coral, moon-rise on the water, bioluminescent dolphins, 
  
• Won a photo contest
  
• Put a roof on a house
  
• Cooked fry bread with a Navajo woman
  
• Belly danced around a fire under a nearly full moon to the music of live drums
  
• Saw the northern lights, from the entrance of my igloo where I slept
  
• Went dog sledding
  
• Saw a wolf in the wild
  
• Stood on the frozen ocean
  
• Was offered a job as a “carnie” to run an ice cream stand at the fair
  
• Won a dance contest w/ a young hot partner
  
• Rappelled down a water fall into a river in my dry suit after hiking through a slot canyon outrunning a thunder storm
  
• Met my father!

Dance it out!

Are you a Grey's Anatomy fan?  I am!  One of the things about the show that makes me smile is the way Meredith and Christina dance it out when they are stressed or upset.  I love it and have adopted it into my world.  Not only when I am stressed or upset, but when I just need a pick-me-up, or need to shake something off, or am feeling low on energy.  And it is great!  I highly recommend it!

Here are my top three songs to dance around the house to:

"In These Shoes"  by Kirsty MacColl

"Say Hey (I Love You)"  by Michael Franti & Spearhead

"Unravel"  by Lynn Miles

Happy dancing...

We Need the Night

We can't understand the day without experiencing the night.  We cannot know the depths of joy without feeling sorrow.  We can't have life without death.

Happy Day of the Dead!

My whole perspective on this holiday has changed after my time in Mexico.  In general, our culture views death as negative, but is that necessarily true?  It is part of the natural process...  One's view of death is typically dependent upon one's belief, or lack thereof, of an afterlife or God.  But no matter our belief system, can't we spend a day celebrating a life?  The Day of the Dead is not about the dead person, but an honoring and a remembering and a celebration of their life.  

So celebrate!  Celebrate the life of someone you loved!  AND celebrate the life of someone who you are blessed enough to still have in your life...