Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Count it!
However, I was not nearly that cool looking when I beat Mississippi Queen on Guitar Hero 3 with 100%. I actually played with a pretty boring style, just sitting down and chillin'; unlike how playing guitar hero is portrayed in TV and movies where the player is jumping around, doing spin moves, and playing behind their head, plus they are hitting every note (rediculous!). Here is the actual picture of me completing this task:
I am very happy that I have finally finished a whole task, though.
I have some other progress updates on some other items too. First, I now have 4 of the 50 state quarters (#55) that I need: Iowa, New York, Rhode Island, and Missouri. Next, I visited a museum (#63) today with my friend Julia, which is only leaves 4 more left to go. It was a contemporary art museum in LA called LACMA. It was much more boring than I hoped, but I did learn a little more about Andy Warhol. All-in-all it has been a pretty productive day; hopefully there are many more of these to come...
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The sweet taste of failure
This past Thursday I went bowling with Bryan (aka Bubba) in an attempt to try to finish #25. My previous best score was a 163. So, getting a 173 or better may seem like a completely random number, but a 172 is the highest that I have seen anyone that I have played with get. I will have to say that it was the luckiest game of bowling in the history of the world, but that is where i set my goal. So, on the second game of the day -- the best game of bowling to me because I'm warmed up but my arm is not yet jello -- I was down to the final ball on the frame and all i needed was 6 pins to get a 173. I figured that it was a guarantee that I would get it since I was doing pretty good all day. I threw the ball and it looked perfect, so I turned around with the satisfaction that I knew I had completed my first goal... but it was not meant to be. I somehow got only five pins, which had to have been due to some laws of physics being broken when I wasn't looking because I thought I nailed it for sure.
This Saturday I then tried my luck at #24 on my list, which is beating the aforementioned Bryan at "his" sport of tennis. We typically play 3 set matches, and I have lost everytime!! This match was about as close as I could get to beating him though, with him winning 7-6, 7-6 by winning the tiebreaker in both sets.
On a positvie note, I have one movie out of the way of the 150 that I need (#15): Paranormal Activity. This was possibly the scariest movie I have ever seen. I'm glad I was wearing brown shorts to the theater so that it didn't show the fact that I shit myself it was sooo scary... jk. Ok, it wasn't that bad! But I did sleep with a light on the night after seeing it and every little noise freaked me out.
#60 is going well. So far I have cooked American (a burger), Italian (pasta), and Chinese (stir-fry).
Sunday, October 18, 2009
And it begins...
The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.
The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).
Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.
Some common goal setting tips:
1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.
5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.
List Key:
In Progress
Completed
Start Date: 10/19/2009
End Date: 7/16/2012
And now for the list:
- Run a marathon
- Bench press 300 pounds
- Drink only water for a week
- Take a yoga class
- Go skydiving
- Play a poker tournament in Las Vegas
- Build my own computer
- Read 5 non-school related books (0/5)
- See Linkin Park in concert
- Go snowboarding
- See 2 Lakers games at Staples Center (0/2)
- Play a hand with a poker pro online
- Change my own oil in my car
- Do a backflip
- Watch 150 new movies (8/150)
- Eat something that I have grown myself
- Buy a handle of Patron
- Do an ollie on a skateboard
- Go skinny dipping in the ocean
- Go a week without using a computer
- Visit 2 national parks outside California (0/2)
- Eat at a vegan restaurant
- Write a poem
- Beat Bryan at tennis
- Score 173 or better at bowling
- Complete an internship
- Give $5 to a homeless person
- Do not speak for a day
- Donate blood
- Play a round of golf every 6 months (0/5)
- Make a vodka watermelon.
- Graduate college!
- Buy a hat and wear it 5 times (0/5)
- Shoot a gun
- Eat a habanero pepper
- Carve an awesome pumpkin
- Go on a road trip to at least 6 different states (0/6)
- Cook something with saffron
- Go paintballing
- Learn to speak basic French
- Play a song on the guitar
- Bake a pie from scratch
- Get a professional message
- Take a cooking class
- Memorize all the states and their capitals
- Get a fauxhawk (even if its just for a day)
- Go to the beach and see 3 sunrises (0/3)
- Watch a movie from each of the past 50 years
- Get CPR certified
- See a play
- Make something from wood and nails
- Win a fantasy football league
- Go to a 49ers game
- Go to a professor's office hours
- Collect all 50 state quarters (44/50)
- Go wine tasting
- Make back-to-back half court basketball shots
- Eat at a famous chef's restaurant
- Buy an original painting
- Cook 10 different countries cuisines (4/10)
- See a game show live
- Eat at a sit-down restaurant by myself
- Go to 5 different museums (1/5)
- Go to a fruit festival
- Build a big sand castle
- Go inside a lighthouse
- See 3 movies in 3-D (0/3)
- Get a new ipod
- Buy 10 lottery tickets
- Go to 3 music festivals (0/3)
- Go to a film festival
- Visit a zoo
- Eat breakfast before noon for 2 weeks
- Sell something on ebay
- Type at 60 wpm or faster
- Go to a comedy club
- Go to an all you can eat sushi restaurant
- Play a song on the piano with chords
- Send a card to my parents in the mail randomly
- buy and decorate my own Christmas tree
- Figure out which type of wine I like the most
- Attend a car show
- Get in a water balloon fight
- Go in a maze
- Bake a loaf of bread
- Go to a drive in movie theater
- Decorate my apartment for 3 different holidays (1/3)
- Put down $50 on a single hand of blackjack
- Go in a sauna
- Take on a eating challenge at a restaurant
- Make a fire from just rubbing wood together
- Complete a 1000 piece puzzle
- Get an autograph from a sports star
- Learn how to juggle
- Go to church by myself twice
- Learn how to play backgammon
- Go to bed before midnight for a week
- Buy something at a swap meet
- Get 100% on a guitar hero song on hard difficulty
- Take a picture of each item on the list being completed
- Volunteer for 1 hour for every item that I do not complete