I'm doing 39 things
It’s been about 2 years since my last entry on this topic! I’ve had a few short trips since then. I spent 17 days in Japan around last June; my first trip that was in a truly “foreign” country. It was a fantastic experience. The people are polite beyond belief, everything is perfectly clean and the food is fantastic.
Now to the present plans. I’m working toward “the trip of a life-time”. I want to do an around-the-world trip, on the cheap. I want to spend 3 months in Asia, 3 months in UK/Europe, 3 in the USA and 3 months in South America.
I think that by getting involved in things like WWOOFing and couchsurfing.com I should be able to keep expenses to a minimum. I’m going to have to spend some time dreaming up exactly what it is I want to do on this trip. I options are only limited by dollars.
harryflies's Life List
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1. learn to play slide guitar
2 entries . 2 cheers11 people -
2. write my first song and record it
1 entry . 7 cheers2 people -
3. get out of debt
38 entries . 23 cheers11,219 people -
4. travel
13 entries . 13 cheers7,641 people -
5. live on a yacht
2 entries . 5 cheers12 people -
6. get better at speaking in public
4 entries . 13 cheers312 people -
7. roadtrip across the USA
1 entry . 8 cheers6 people -
8. run the new york marathon
8 cheers86 people -
9. practice and promote sustainable living
1 entry . 7 cheers3 people -
10. learn German
6 cheers4,596 people -
11. learn french
3 cheers10,791 people -
12. learn spanish
2 entries . 2 cheers15,796 people -
13. go hiking in Canada
6 cheers2 people -
14. swim with dolphins
1 entry . 3 cheers7,457 people -
15. practice and promote environmental conservation
5 entries . 5 cheers1 person -
16. cycle around Great Britain
6 cheers4 people -
17. learn about the stock market
2 entries . 4 cheers35 people -
18. run a marathon
2 entries . 2 cheers10,740 people -
19. see the northern lights
2 cheers17,163 people -
20. hike the Great Wall of China
4 cheers28 people -
21. go on an archaeology dig
3 cheers17 people -
22. build furniture
2 cheers125 people -
23. build a wicked hat collection
3 entries . 6 cheers1 person -
24. play funk
1 entry . 1 cheer1 person -
25. build a photo-journal of stencil art I find
4 entries . 2 cheers1 person -
26. get my pay errors corrected
1 cheer1 person -
27. build a recording studio
2 entries . 2 cheers122 people -
28. know how to solve a rubik's cube
1 entry . 2 cheers350 people -
29. learn how to play "Duelling Banjos" and take all comers
3 entries . 3 cheers5 people -
30. make my own T-shirts
3 entries . 1 cheer343 people -
31. enjoy Fall 2007 by having one new and fulfilling experience in October, November, and December
1 entry . 4 cheers17 people -
32. Get my teeth straightened
2 entries . 6 cheers84 people -
33. be an adventurer
12 entries . 2 cheers15 people -
34. fly
4 entries . 8 cheers1,876 people -
35. perform solo at the Club
1 cheer1 person -
36. get into a Masters program
1 entry7 people -
37. have another ebay "garage sale"
1 entry . 1 cheer1 person -
38. use my time wisely
2 entries41 people -
39. excel in my studies for 2009
1 entry1 person
How I did it: Not pushing myself along the program too quickly. Had to give my body time to adapt and improve. Use ice on your tender spots, it works. Stretch a lot. Read how I did it…
How I did it: Sort through all the unwanted "stuff" and build 3 piles... sell, donate and trash. The most laborious part was the selling. I decided to use Ebay. It gets things sold but it takes a lot of time to write the listings, take photos, package the items and respond to emails from buyers.Towards the end, a lot of stuff shifted from the "sell" to "donate" category. Read how I did it…
See all "How I Did It" stories...
I’ve finally passed a significant break-even point where my assets are worth more than my debts. It felt like a weight had been lifted, to know that I was finally adding wealth, not just reducing debt.
My plan is now to continue to save until I can afford to do the my dream world holiday travel and still have some cash to come home to. It’s getting closer every day.
I have finally begun a post-grad program. I’ll be studying part-time so if I stick to the course I’ll have a masters in statistics in 3 years. I should be able to get a related job before completing the course, perhaps within the next 18 months.
So I’m starting off with a couple of subjects; a foundational mathematics course (I could use the refresher) and an intro to Epidemiology.
I would like to keep open the option of changing to a full-time program that will take 2 years, but will have the potential to lead to a PhD. To do this I’d have to get my debts cleared (or close enough), relocate to Melbourne (which I’d like), and adjust to living on about half as much income as I have now.
