100 in 2010

I am a fan of the grand gesture. In some ways, you can look at this list as a grand gesture-I do it every year, even though I know that there's a decent chance I won't be able to do all of these things in the coming year. But I do it anyway. And this year I've given a fair amount of thought to that. I considered not doing the list at all, because it could be seen as setting myself up to fail. But I don't see it as a failure, and I never seriously entertained the notion of not doing it. And I think I know why. It's my way of setting goals, of articulating what I would like to do. And I need to do that periodically.

So here we are again. And this year, contained within my grand gesture is another grand gesture. I'm calling it Project Hometown Tourist. I've lived in DC for almost ten years, and the number of things I've never done, never seen, is absurd. So this year, I will do it, one thing a week whenever possible. And while I don't usually record my progress on the Big List on my blog, this part of it I will. If you'd like to accompany me in this project, just let me know.

As always, there are a few things on the list that I've chosen not to share.

100 in 2010

Project Hometown Tourist
1. Go to the top of the Washington Monument
2. Tour the White House
3. Tour the Capitol
4. Ice skate at the Sculpture Garden
5. Go to Jazz in the Garden
6. Go to Screen on the Green
7. Visit the Hirshhorn
8. Visit the Natural History Museum
9. Visit the American History Museum
10. Visit the National Portrait Gallery
11. Visit the American Art Museum
12. Visit Mount Vernon
13. Take a Duck tour
14. Visit the Anacostia Community Museum
15. Visit the Alice Paul House
16. Visit the Udvar-Hazy Center
17. Visit the Supreme Court
18. Visit the African Art Museum
19. Visit the National Museum of Crime and Punishment
20. Ride my bike along the C&O Canal
21. Visit Eastern Market
22. Visit the Museum of Women in the Arts
23. Tour the National Cathedral
24. Visit the National Building Museum
25. Go to an event at an embassy
26. Visit Brookside Gardens
27. Visit Hillwood Museum and Gardens
28. Visit the Basilica at CUA
29. Visit Meridian Hill Park to see the drum circle
30. Visit the Franciscan Monastery
31. Go to a DC Rollergirls match
32. Go to a DC United game
33. Go to First Friday in Dupont Circle
34. Visit the Corcoran
35. Visit the Phillips Collection
36. Read a book on the National Mall
37. Have drinks at a rooftop bar
38. Eat at Ben’s Chili Bowl
39. Visit the US Botanic Garden
40. Visit Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
41. Visit the Library of Congress
42. Visit the World War II Memorial
43. Visit Dumbarton Oaks
44. Visit Theodore Roosevelt Island
45. Visit the National Gallery of Art
46. Visit Arlington Cemetery
47. Visit the monuments at night
48. Attend at least one event during the Cherry Blossom Festival
49. Attend the Drag Races
50. Attend a performance at the Kennedy Center
51. Attend a play at a DC theater I’ve never visited before
52. Visit the Newseum

Professional Development/Learning/Work Related
53. Read one professional development book per month
54. Take at least three Arabic classes
55. Write two booktalks per week
56. Take an ASL class
57. Keep up with my work blog
58. Take the bus to work at least 3x per week
59. Get involved in a professional organization
60. Apply for certification in Maryland and Virginia

Home
61. Buy a house or condo
62. Plant a garden
63. Waste less food

Health/Fitness/Personal Development
64. Do yoga at least 2x per week
65. Keep a food log
66. Personal
67. Take my lunch to work at least 4x per week
68. Limit fast food to 1x per week
69. Begin attending church
70. Read the entire Bible
71. Go kayaking
72. Take lessons in a musical instrument
73. Drink 48 oz. of water daily
74. Learn to salsa
75. Try krav maga
76. Take the Mensa test
77. See a dermatologist

Financial
78. Stick to a cash-based, zero-based budget
79. Pay off credit cards
80. Put all money from extra work into my savings account
81. Roll everything into AIG account
82. Increase the amount I contribute to my IRA.
83. Write a will and a living will

Social
84. Have friends over for dinner at least 1x per month
85. Join WIN
86. Join Young Benefactors of the Smithsonian
87. Personal
88. Keep the book club going
89. Join or form a stitch and bitch group

Writing
90. Write a novel
91. Join or form a writing group
92. Post to my personal blog 2x per week
93. Write in my paper journal at least 3x per week
94. Personal

Travel
95. Visit at least two states I’ve never visited before
96. Spend time at Alexandria Bay
97. Go to Canada
98. Go camping

Environmental
99. Buy as much as possible from a farmers market
100. Start composting