#29 - Get A Car

I spent last Tuesday and Wednesday running around and getting everything ready, and I am now happy to say that I have acquired myself a car. She is a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am, four doors, with many excellent features, not the least of which is the fact that she has less than 73,000 km on her, hooray! She handles really well, and has a stereo system that meets my needs. The only complaint I have about her is her paint job. She's a dark teal colour, which isn't such a bad thing, but...there are sparkles. Like sparkly nail polish, or those face/chest sparkles that were so popular amongst my lady friends in the late 90s. It's just a LITTLE girly for me, but it's such a nice car, I'll overlook it. I mean, it's not like I have a Roxy sticker on the back of it, or anything.

#83 - Get some comfy slippers

On Christmas, my parents got me a very nice pair of slippers; warm and comfortable and I wear them almost all the time when I'm in my apartment. I don't know if they will actually stop me from getting the holes that end up taking over my socks, but that's part of the reason for 'em. Slippers: a practical luxury. Not many of them in the world.

Six Months Past: Things Change

So, it's been six months or thereabouts. I'm a bad person for doing stuff. What have I done to cross things off this list?

#7. Graduate SPA program, with thesis. (Progressing.) Finished my last practicum on November 24, 2006; just have thesis to do now. Working on it.

#19. Get back to a size 40. (Progressing.) I lost just about 20 lbs. since September, by cutting out 500 calories out of my diet a day and walking a lot more, including up and down stairs. I haven't cut out all fatty deliciousness; chips and dip, cheesecake, and pie all exist, just in smaller quantities less frequently. It's not a diet, it's just a minor change in lifestyle that's a bitch to keep up. I'll keep working, because I'm still not at that pants size, but I'm definitely smaller. Keep working, Doc!

#34. Eventually complete NaNoWriMo (yeah, right.) (Completed November 30, 2006.) Somehow, in the last month of my practicum, with training for Autism assessment tools, I managed to write 50,000 words in 30 days. As my supervisor said: "I don't know how you manage to do everything you do," and while I could say that about her too, I don't know how I managed to do it either. The proof is in the internets.

#80. Take an unplanned one-day road trip. (Completed September 3, 2006.) Peach and I went to Edson. It was not a whole lot of excitement: drive for 2.5 hours, go to a graveyard, eat at a crappy restaurant, go for a hike at Wabamun Lake, go home. We know how to do it better now, and I'll try again when I have my custom-made "Road Trip Kit".

#85. Finish Scribbler, if only just to have it done with. (Progressing.) My NaNo novel was Scribbler, the book I've had in my head for nine years (two goals in one; I'm sneaky like that), so I have 50,055 words of it written. It's not good, but it's moving through, and even though I've tried to write it a number of times over the years (this would be attempt number four) and I think I have a good handle on the story, I like some of the minor changes I've made so far. Some look like they're heading into big changes, but the backbone's still there. Now it's just time to see if I can keep writing it when it's not November any more.

Between this and my 43 Things page, I'm actually doing...very poorly. But I am trying. So I'm sorry, Doc of the Past, for not being able to get through your list. But really, you were a little unrealistic when you were writing it. I'm just doing my best.

86 - Get a cd burner

Wow, I need to look at this more often than once every three months. When I bought Ninja's computer, it came with a CD burner. Check. And mate. I haven't burned anything yet (although I have a few ideas of what to do), but now I don't have to borrow the burner from the guys upstairs any more. So look at that: I crossed off two things in two days without even trying.

#57 - Get French Press

Wow, I forgot all about this one. About two weeks ago, D!, Peach and I went to IKEA to look for a few things. Peach didn't end up getting anything - although she did look at some interesting lights - and along with a bookshelf for my desk, I ended up picking up a French press. I haven't made any fancy coffee or espresso yet, but it's been great for making tea - especially since I've been needing a lot of liquids lately. So, French press acquired. Hoorah.

#3 - 30 Books

From January 21, 2004 to January 21, 2005, I only read 23 never-before-read books. I was fairly disappointed in myself, so when I made this list, I tried to set a realistic goal that was still a little bit of a stretch for me. I know that there are folks who try to do 52 books in 52 days, but I knew that I would fail miserably at that, so I just set myself 30. It got down to the wire this time, but I still read 30 books from Jan 21-05 to Jan 21-06, so that means that #3 is dealt with. For the actual list, you should go here. Of course, if I don't read 30 books by Jan 21-07, that means this comes OFF the list, but I'll still do my best. (And see, annie, I put it up fairly quick.)

#73 - Loose Tea Hardware

After 2 months of nothing, my latest entry here has me going over all of my goals and saying, "Damn, I was really overambitious when I made this list!" I'm almost positive I'll be getting only 51 of these done, which is just better than half, and then I'll be a lot more pragmatic when (and / or if) I write another list.

My latest and moderate-est addition to this list is that my mother gave me a tea infuser for Christmas. Now, when I originally thought about making loose tea, I thought about one of those mini-presses they have at Steeps, but this little ball definitely fits the bill, and is much easier to clean. So hooray for me, now I can go spoil myself with my own jar of Banana Roobois. Surprisingly delicious.

#69 - Surprise

#69 originally said "Hold Piano Recital." That wasn't a real entry; it was a placeholder entry that took the place of something that could have started some speculation, if anyone had read them all and took it to heart. But now, I am very happy to say, I can replace "Hold Piano Recital" with "Get Engaged", because on September 5, 2005, I proposed to Peach and (thankfully) she said yes. I a very happy fellow, and (secondarily) I have another thing knocked off my list.

(Note: yes, I am aware of the number that corresponds to this entry. That was not intentional, and not symbolic of anything. Perverts.)

#75 - Finish Earthbound

It was an accomplishment over 10 years in the making, but this afternoon, I finished Earthbound, a SNES game that could very well be the best video RPG I have ever played. I will probably rant a little about it later, but I am a very satisfied Doc at this point in time.

This means that after 5 months and 19 days, I have successfully completed 7 items. At this rate, I will be done my 101 list in approximately...136 months. I'm slow, but I'm working on it. Slowly.

Update: Not Much

Nothing much to say. I'm currently mulling over the list to see what I can get up to in August, the longes stretch of free time I'm going to see for a year and a half. I'm thinking I can get four to six things crossed off that month, and then it's another period of slow burn. I did work towards not hitting the snooze button, though; if I don't hit it to-morrow, it will be two days in a row. For me, that is HUGE.

Update: Books

I finished three books in three weeks - Mr. Majestyk & Out of Sight (both by Elmore Leonard), and Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi- bringing the total this year to 12. Despite the fact that I enjoyed all three, I feel a little disappointed. I'm not too happy about that number so far, but I've got a lot of good stuff on the go, and it'll keep me occupied when I'm not reading about Autism Spectrum Disorders and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. I'd just hate to read only what I have to for work & school, because that'd make me hate reading. And that would be terrible.

#38 - Best / Favourite Lists

After entirely too much analysis, editing, and formatting - I even have pie charts and percentile counts - I have finished creating my Favourite 100 Movies I've Seen, 60 CDs I Own, 15 Books I Own, and 25 Graphic Novels I Own. Why did I do this? For two reasons. One, I like making lists. It relaxes me to devote time and attention to stuff that doesn't matter; it's the same reason people like to collect things or follow professional sports. Two, I needed to know which things I own I could get rid of, if I needed to, and still keep the things that were the most important to me. I know you're not supposed to judge yourself by what you own; I've never bought into the "Most Toys" t-shirt philosophy. But my view of the world has been shaped by the things I've read, heard, and seen, and these are the touchstones that remind me of what I've done so far and who I've been along the way.

That was entirely too much reflection on what was a very meaningless task. Nevertheless, I am now able to scratch one more off the list.

#62 - Closet organization

Almost forgot - over the weekend, I cleared out my closets of all the junk that was clogging them, and re-organized them with 90% of that same junk. So a net mass loss of 10% and a net organization increase of ... pi ... means that I have successfully re-organized my closets to reach three times their previous potential. My organization has now reached truly amateur proportions.

#67 - Watch Seven Samurai

Watched The Seven Samurai with Ninja, Nez, and Scotty today. It was magnificent. I watched Rashomon earlier in the week, and even though I feel that was a superior film, there is just something about The Seven Samurai that will stay with me for a long, long time. I'll probably review it somewhere later, but for now, I'm going to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it, and would watch it again with little arm-twistery.

#1 - Pop Culture Lists

When I'm working on something that takes a lot of energy over a long time, like a week of final exams or a run of a show, my body often shuts down a day or two after everything's complete. That happened to me this week: Friday night found me sick and in no shape to participate in much of anything. So my weekend was spent almost entirely within my apartment - not how I imagined it, let me assure you. However, I turned my unfortunate state into something that was remotely productive; I plopped myself in front of my computer and hammered out the rest of my lists. I am completely up-to-date, to the best of my knowledge, and hope to NEVER have to do this again.

For proof, posterity, and curiosity, the results of my inventory are as follows:

Single-issue comics owned: 805
Trade paperbacks owned: 155
Books owned: 331
CDs owned: 574
Movies owned: 161
Movies seen (1979-2005): 1371
Books read (first four months of 2005): 9

That's a lot of crap. It's a wonder I have enough room for all of it. In my head and in my house.

Long-overdue update.

I've decided I'll post here every weekend, in order to keep myself on-task with this list: not working too hard on it recently. Sure, it's mostly because of my exams, but I'm also just really lazy. So...so lazy...

For insurance purposes - and because I just generally like making lists - I have finally catalogued all my books, movies, and graphic novels. (The list of my single issue comics are in progress, and will probably until the end of next month.) I'm also succeeding in keeping my "just read" and "just watched" lists up-to-date, so item #1 is nearly complete. Item #38 (All-Time-Greatest Lists) is also in progress, and I'm really surprised at how easy it is to whittle down my pop culture consumption to the Top Ten Percent. Apparently, I've submit myself to a lot of mediocrity over the years.

The Kow album (#4) is in a state of suspended animation - we're getting it mixed at the moment, and then it just comes down to listening to the final mixes and selecting the tracks. I'm going to need a stiff drink for that practice.

Other than that, there's not much to report. I'll try and wail through three items during this week off I've got, but we'll see how motivated I get.

#72 - See Vicki every week.

I figure that, after five weeks straight of seeing Vicki once a week, I can officially cross #72 off my list. I know the original wording was, "Go to Muddy's with", but frankly, oftentimes a change in scenery is a good thing.

She showed up a little hung-over, but perked up considerably after some ice cream. We wandered around the neighborhood, stopping into a few places here and there, so not only was it an excellent visit - as always - but it gave me a little exercise and fresh air, too. And it was my suggestion. So that was a shock.

We ended the day at my place, where she returned some of my stuff, and she borrowed some of my other stuff. I'm just her lending library.

Famous Mortimer - 91. Pintsize Killah - 90.

Let me tell you people, I was SO hopeful that I could have knocked #78 - Go bowling and attempt to enjoy myself - off the list on Friday at Jago's Beef-n-Bowling Extravaganza. But alas, my competitive nature (coupled with my tendency to become frustrated with things I'm not good at) got the better of me. It was pretty pathetic: when you're hoping that your girlfriend misses a single pin so you're not in last place during a friendly bowling game, you need to re-evaluate your priorities. I did try my best, though, which is the first step. Plus, I think that Famous Mortimer is an excellent bowling name, and one I will continue to use in my further adventures in bowling.

#2 - List of 101 Movies

Last night I finished my list of 101 movies I need to see. And about 10% are ones that Peach would enjoy as well, so that's something to be proud of. I've crossed the first item off my list less than 2 weeks after I started, and I have a small feeling of accomplishment.

Taking the first step.

Working on quite a few items at the moment:

1. Make and keep up to date the following lists: movies I've seen, books I've read; movies, books, comics, and cds I own.
7. Graduate SPA program, with thesis.
21. Finish L5R Epic.
47. Make a book that I can fill with quotes I find amusing.
68. Get all my Magnetic Poetry out of their boxes and on metallic things.
71. See Gwyn and Xeryfyn every month.

I'll be working on #7 for the next two years, though, so I don't really know if I can claim that as something I'm working on. Regardless: I'm actually moving on some of these, which makes me happy. Let's see how long it takes for me to actually cross one off...

Pull the bandwagon over for a sec.

I came across this first through Xeryfyn, and then through a few of the other sites I visit. I immediately wanted to start one of these lists: I'm a big fan of making lists, sometimes because I make them and then behave as though I've actually done what's on the list. Because I'm lazy, you see.

But I made a promise that I'd be a good little bandwagon-jumper and make this list - AFTER my exam week. And, since it's the first official day of reading week, here it is. A list of things to do and who to do it with. I'll be done Monday, November 19, 2007. I'll be twenty-eight. Scary.

My 101 in 1001: (edited for privacy and to protect the innocent)

1. Make and keep up to date the following lists: movies I've seen, books I've read; movies, books, comics, and cds I own.
2. Make a list of the 101 films I haven't seen but should.
3. Read no less than 30 books a year that I've never read before.
4. Record and produce a Kow album.
5. Become knowledgeable about basic computer maintenance and junk.
6. (personal)
7. Graduate SPA program, with thesis.
8. Visit Rock and Roll hall of fame with at least 7 rolls of film; try and recreate the "Tour of The Tyrell Museum" fiasco.
9. Visit Grandma in Montreal with Peach.
10. Own a piano / keyboard OR an acoustic guitar.
11. Own the other one.
12. Get a picture with Peach.
13. Go on a train ride in the Canadian Shield.
14. Do as much Europe as I can handle.
15. Get basic carpentry skills.
16. Learn to play the saxophone.
17. Get Transmetropolitan in trades
18. Memorize 10 knitting patterns.
19. Get back to a size 40.
20. Memorize 20 drinks, 5 of which Peach likes.
21. Finish L5R Epic.
22. Take Peach camping again to show that I can, indeed, be a happy camper.
23. Stop hitting the goddamn snooze button.
24. Go to a shooting range.
25. Try to find one sporting activity that I actually enjoy participating in.
26. Finish Apocalypse Kow: Behind The Music script.
27. Go to a wine tasting tour in B.C.
28. Get three nice outfits, hopefully ones that can mix and match.
29. Get a car.
30. Learn how to do minor maintenance to make sure that car doesn't fall apart.
31. Finish my Spong books to get a handle on my beliefs.
32. Write a manifesto of belief and update it as need be (every year or so, unless you have an epiphany).
33. (personal)
34. Eventually complete NaNoWriMo (yeah, right.)
35. Pay off VISA.
36. Write poetry again. I'd like to put a min limit on it, but I'm afraid that'll be forcing it out if it's too much: once a week for at least two months?
37. Learn enough HTML to make my own look for the Blog.
38. Cull book, movie, and cd lists from #1 to make "All-Time Greatest" lists; 25 or 50 items, depending on original list.
39. Finish Angel Season 5 with Ninja and Jago.
40. Go to Sundance Film Festival.
41. Get a digital camera and learn how to use it well enough to make nice pictures.
42. Get a cat.
43. Start a savings plan.
44. Go to New York. Try not to be annoying tourist. Fail
45. Own a bar-be-queue and not be afraid to cook on it.
46. Learn to drive a manual transmission automobile.
47. Make a book that I can fill with quotes I find amusing.
48. Write 5 true-life essays.
49. Do another one of the "Stay Up All Night Creativity Binges" before my metabolism completely implodes.
50. Go to Comic Con International.
51. Write a letter to Raj about how / if he is an awesome MLA.
52. Write a letter to Rahim about how / if he is a terrible MP.
53. Get a tattoo. I have many ideas, but it's gotta be after I achieve #19.
54. Track down copies of all the JALTCO and MYP plays I can get on tape.
55. Go a week without coffee.
56. Get an iron and an ironing board.
57. Get a french press for truly inspired caffeine creations.
58. Smoke 5 "Excellent" or "Superior" cigars from my cigar book.
59. (hedonism / debauchery)
60. Make a chore schedule and stick to it for 2 months.
61. Read "Infinite Jest".
62. Organize my three closets of terror.
63. Do a "5 pound steak" challenge. Fail miserably.
64. (hedonism / debauchery)
65. Catch and prepare a fish.
66. Go to a different church service every Sunday for a month, trying to figure out exactly what I need.
67. Finally watch Seven Samurai.
68. Get all my Magnetic Poetry out of their boxes and on metallic things.
69. Hold a piano recital.
70. Try and see each of my brothers once a month away from other family members.
71. See Gwyn and Xeryfyn every month.
72. Go to Muddy's with Vicki every week.
73. Get all the necessary hardware to prepare loose tea.
74. Re-paint Peach's ugly old chest of drawers.
75. Finish EarthBound - when I get my SNES back.
76. Perform a long-overdue spring-cleaning on my drawers and knickknacks.
77. Write a letter to someone in Montreal every month.
78. Go bowling and attempt to enjoy myself.
79. Stay at a bed and breakfast.
80. Take an unplanned one-day road trip.
81. Go get another massage from Lloyd.
82. Make my own turkey and stuffing.
83. Get some comfy slippers.
84. Take a dance class.
85. Finish Scribbler, if only just to have it done with.
86. Get a cd burner.
87. Visit Mac and Jo (and all the other people who made their way over there) in Vancouver
88. Take the MENSA exam. Try not to cry.
89. Go to Scotland and England; look up aunts and cousins.
90. Go to the Maritimes; swim in Atlantic ocean.
91. Take a second-language class (not French).
92. Learn basic ASL.
93. Try snowboarding.
94. Make Vanilla vodka.
95. Write a song. A relatively good one.
96. Start a garden. Even if it's an "on the patio because I don't have a backyard" garden.
97. (hedonism / debauchery)
98. Make 15 drinks from my martini book.
99. Write fan mail to Rachael Ray (swoon).
100. Get to 35 reviews on IMDB.
101. Learn to say "Yes, I am a grapefruit" in ten languages. REMEMBER them.

It's an oddly boring list, but I'm oddly boring. So it's a nice fit.