It's been a good Saturday, if only because I was able to catch up with old friends and Skype with J for about an hour. J and I send each other at least a half dozen emails every day (if not more), but being able to talk is a rarity because the Internet bandwidth downrange is ridiculously inadequate and Skype constantly cuts out. There are just too many servicemembers trying to talk at the same time to loved ones back home, and there isn't sufficient bandwidth to support so much video chatting. Most of the time, J and I struggle with pixelated images and strain to make out each other's sentences over the background din of other conversations and games of pool; today was slightly better, and it really was good to see J's face again. Sometimes I worry that if I go for long stretches without "seeing" him, I'll become too desensitized to his absence.
So I was perusing my old blog from 2007 (hey, I'm couchbound and am trying to move as little as possible), written when I was still in grad school and living in Boston, and I came across this list of Things to Do Before I Die. Funny how much life has changed and how my priorities have shifted since then. I'm thankful that I left the Ph.D. program and moved to D.C. when I did. I'm gratified that I've been able to cross Machu Picchu, Paris, and Japan off of my list. I'm amazed at how my path has diverged so greatly from where I thought it'd take me, yet things turned out better than I could have imagined.
Anyway, here's the list from 2007, with some commentary in brackets--
I. Life Skills
1. learn to surf well [Really? Why? How? I loved surfing while in Costa Rica, but it's not like I was planning to move anywhere that'd allow me to make a habit of it.]
2. regain fluency in French and Spanish
3. enter a mountain bike race
4. become a better snowboarder
5. become an expert kayaker
6. run the New York and Boston Marathons [Argh, blasted hamstring tear has been plaguing me since the Miami Marathon in 2006...I'd be happy to be able to run a half-marathon these days.]
7. climb El Capitán in Yosemite National Park [Do they actually let people climb the thing? I think I'd be happy just to hike it. Probably should do more research.]
8. become fluent in German [Hmm, an interesting choice. Did I know something back then?]
II. Career [Well, most of this isn't relevant anymore, now that I'm no longer pursuing a career in academia.]
1. publish an article
2. publish my dissertation
3. write the biography of a great statesman
4. enter public service [YES. Am so glad I did.]
III. Random Other Stuff
1. attend a Wimbledon final
2. live abroad for one year
3. go to a county or state fair in the Midwest [I've been to many fairs since, and I'll never get tired of going.]
4. hang glide [Ehh, not as high of a priority anymore. Jumping out of a plane was good enough.]
5. visit LegoLand
6. visit a dairy farm that makes cheese [I still love cheese like nobody's business.]
IV. Travel
1. South America: Peru (Machu Picchu in particular), Galápagos Islands [Machu Picchu was beyond amazing.]
2. Caribbean: Cuba
3. North America: Alaska, Pacific Northwest (esp. Portland and Vancouver), Montana, Grand Canyon
4. Europe: Italy (esp. Rome), Greece, Paris, Vienna
5. South Pacific: New Zealand, Australia/Great Barrier Reef
6. Africa: Mauritius, safari in Kenya
7. Asia: Japan [Japan was lifechanging, to say the least.]
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