Visit a church in Tennessee
It just wasn’t a priority, and that’s just being honest.
Visit 2 coffee shops {1. Billy Goat Coffee Cafe 2. Rembrandt Coffee}
Hit $3,000 in Poshmark sales {2,793 as of 7/30/17}
Visiting Washington and then packing for going home is what held this back, I think. At some point I stopped listing new inventory and packed a bunch of stuff, meaning all of my inventory wasn’t accessible for shipping and had to be marked as not for sale. It was a small hiccup, so I’m not beating myself up over this.
Get a manicure
I decided I actually didn’t want to spend the money. Insert the shrug emoji right here.
Buy 3 things for the wedding {3 of 3}
Make macarons
Okay so it was MEANT TO BE – I saw my sweet friend Amber post a picture of some macarons she’d just baked and a light bulb went off in my head because making macarons was on my 101 list! I added it to my July Goals and asked if she’d be down to help – which she was! She surprised me with the flavor (coconut mocha WHAT!) and helped me make them. They were so tasty and now I feel like I could make a fair attempt at making macarons on my own. Who knew they were so specific in how they’re made?!
Total June goals accomplished: 60%
Thaaat’s a D-. Yikes! Barely passing, haha.
August Goals
List all of my Poshmark inventory
Hit $4,000 in Poshmark sales
Post 10 blog posts
Read 2 books
Redo my Whole 30 mocha post
Make a list of 25 things I like about myself
Try a new recipe
Get rid of all but 50 pens
Get rid of all but 5 nail polishes
Buy fresh flowers
Here’s what’s up with these goals, y’all. In case you missed it, Justen and I got an apartment (YAY!) that I’ll be moving into as soon as I get myself back home. I’m currently 100% unsure about my whole income situation, so I’m looking at this transition as if I’m going to have to work. my. butt. off. Poshmark has been going well for me, and I have a bunch of inventory to list (it’s only $0.80/lb in Nashville, y’all!!!) so I’m going to dream big and work hard. It’s scary but exciting.
My goals are partially related to all of that. They’re all about putting up guardrails to protect myself from apathy and move myself more towards the mental/physical/emotional space I’m wanting to be at.
I have seriously been so excited to start my new 101 in 1001 list. I’ve been doing them for SIX years, and while I’ve never finished all 101 things (I actually finished less during round 2 than I did during round 1), I have fallen in love with having a list of 101 things to do in 1001 days. This 101 things to do in 1001 days thing is actually called the Day Zero Project, and here’s the nitty gritty as written on their site, Day Zero Project.com:
The Challenge: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 your part).
Why 1001 Days?Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple challenges such as New Year’s resolutions or a ‘Bucket List’. 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, study semesters, or outdoor activities.
It’s a great way to have some sort of filter through which to live your life, plan your days and spare time, and learn what is really important to you. And it’s 100% yours.
Ever since I posted my newest 101 in 1001 list, I’ve had a LOT of people reach out to me and tell me they want to start a 101 in 1001 list, and I wanted to help walk you through that!
You’ll first need a list. Here’s what I’ve learned about making a list:
101 is a crap ton of things to do. Coming up with the list of 101 things to do might actually be harder than doing the things, so be forewarned. Write down any and all ideas that come to you, and let yourself get caught up in a brain storm for these ideas.
Brainstorm in categories. What were my financial, health, relational, and personal goals? I spent a lot of time looking at other people’s 101 in 1001 lists for ideas that aligned with those goals I had. Keep in mind that this isn’t a bucket list. This isn’t a list of everything you’ve ever wanted to do in your life, and it’s not a list of things you’ve never done. It’s simply a list of things you’d like to do within 3 years. They don’t even have to be monumental or have any real reason, they just have to be something you decide on doing.
Do a little research on the cost of things. On my last list I wrote that I wanted to stay at Treehouse Point and ride in a hot air balloon. Both were very expensive things I ended up not being able to afford, and I would have definitely written something else in their place had I known.
It’s okay to keep some goals secret. I have secret social media goals I want to accomplish and I don’t publish those publicly. I track and monitor my progress in my bullet journal, but I don’t post updates about it. You could do this for money, weight or other personal goals.
This isn’t a bucket list. We’re not brainstorming all the things you’d like to do before you die, this is just a list of 101 things you’d like to accomplish in the next 2.75 years. It’s more than a to do less and less than a bucket list. Is there a closet you’ve been avoiding purging? Crafts you’ve been meaning to make? Places you’ve wanted to go, shows you’ve wanted to watch, things you’ve wanted to do… but never made it a priority? Put them on this list.
It doesn’t have to be glamorous. Renewing my passport, bowl over 100, finish listening to every song in my iTunes… none of those are glamorous, but they’re things I probably wouldn’t prioritize doing if it wasn’t for a public list I got to cross them off of.
Your 101 in 1001 is personal. You can look at a zillion other 101 in 1001 lists and still come up short of 101 things because stuff other people want to do just doesn’t interest you. Maybe you don’t want to run a marathon, see sights overseas, pay off your house, try eating a squid, give up coffee, etc. That’s fine. Make your list about you and your life.
Take things you like to do and be intentional about doing it more often. I’ve always had a goal to try different coffee shops, and I always finish this. I love finding new coffee shops, but if left to my own devices I’ll just earn free gift cards to Starbucks and go there. Having a list of different coffee shops I’ve gone to encourages me to do something I love to do anyway. My last list said to try 35 shops and this time I’m trying 50, because once I hit my goal I fell back into the Starbucks habit (and true story, I’m sitting at Starbucks right now).
After you have your list, I recommend making it public. Not only is it good accountability, it also gives you the opportunity to keep track and share your success! Plus you might encourage someone else to start one, too! It’s really fun to be able to look at the things other people are wanting to accomplish and seeing if you could help them at all.
A 101 List is a brilliant way to push yourself a little out of your day-to-day life and choose to live intentionally. Thanks to my last 101 list (which I didn’t even finish!) I was able to do things I wouldn’t have made time to do otherwise – like walking across the Golden Gate Bridge, celebrating random holidays, and touching an elephant!
Have I convinced you yet?! Let me know if you have or are interested in starting a 101 in 1001 list. Drop me a line below and/or link me to yours! Also shoot me any questions you might have and I’d love to help!
A few weeks ago Ernie asked me if I’d want to drive to Florida with him. He had a gig and the 9 hour drive and quick turn around would be a lot to do on his own. It took me like half a nanosecond to say yes, so on Saturday we woke up literally before the butt crack of dawn and hit the road.
As we were driving, I commented on the sun rising and I suddenly realized that I would be seeing the sun rise and set on my first day, which was on my 101 in 1001! How. brilliant. I ended up crossing off quite a few things from my 101.. keep reading 🙂
We drove through Georgia, stopping to get some peach cobbler.
We listened, of course, to Bruno Mars most of the way. Naturally, right?! and then we finally hit Florida and made our way to The Club Continental, where Ernie’s gig was. It was so beautiful and despite the bugs and humidity, I probably could have spent a long time looking at how beautiful the place was. I walked around a little bit and took some pictures before getting tired of the bugs and the way the air fogged up my camera.
Ernie’s show was right on the water, and as I watched the sun set, I realized I’d driven all the way from Washington to Florida over the past 3 weeks. Literally sea to shining sea, just like America the Beautiful. I saw it all.
The evening was pretty fun except for that moment when Ernie started singing “Pony” and I straight up walked out, haha.
I did a little reading and retired to bed early because I’d been so. exhausted. This wasn’t the worst view to wake up to:
“Stand in the Atlantic Ocean” has been on my 101 in 1001 days lists since 2011. There’s no way I was going to be in Florida and not make a case for me standing in the ocean. We didn’t have much time, but I told Ernie that I literally just needed to stand in the Atlantic Ocean, snap a picture and then we could go. So he dropped me off, I walked across a beach like I’ve only seen in a movie (the whitest sand I’ve ever seen and colorful umbrellas and sea shells all over), took my sandals off, let the ocean wash over my feet, took some pictures as proof and ran back to the car.
On our way back we saw signs for the original Chick-fil-A which you know I was all over, and only like 30 seconds later did I have the sobering realization that it was a Sunday and therefore I would not be able to indulge in a chicken sandwich from the first ever Chick-fil-A. But you’d better know that didn’t stop me from still seeing it. What the heck, first Chipotle and now Chick-fil-A? ALL. THE. EYE. ROLL.
TODAY IS DAY ONE OF A NEW 101 THINGS TO DO IN 1001 DAYS LIST.
This is my THIRD 101 list! That means I’ve spent almost 5.5 years of my adult life living with these lists. My first one, I accomplished 46 of the 101 things. My second one, I accomplished 44. This year, let’s shoot for at least 51 can I get an amen?! I’m learning about what is realistic and what isn’t – basically I keep re-learning what I wrote in my post about what I learned the first time I attempted the 101 in 1001 Days list.
101 in 1001 Part 3.
start date: june 9, 2017
finish date: march 5, 2020
number completed:
percentage completed: bold ones are works-in-progress.
Finances 1. Have a positive net worth
2. Do a debt free scream
3. Attend Financial Peace University
4. Pay off my car
5. Hit $10,000 total sales on Poshmark
6. Have a No Spend Month
7. Save my change and splurge on day 500 and 1001
8. Earn $250 in free gift cards
Others 9. Hold Lucy & Layla
10. Send 101 letters
11. Leave a $20 tip for a bill under $10
12. Send Hannah a birthday card each year (2018 / 2019)
13. Send Cillian a birthday card each year (2018 / 2019)
14. Send all Wedding Thank You’s
15. Take a picture with my birthday buddies
16. Convince someone to start a 101 in 1001 list
17. Send 101 Christmas cards
18. Send 25 Valentines
Adventure + Explore 19.Sleep under the stars
20. Go on 20 hikes
21. Visit a new state
22. Watch the sun rise and set on the same day
23. Renew my passport
24. Stand in the Atlantic Ocean
25. See Crater Lake
26. Visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
27. Create a Day in Vancouver guide and post on my blog
Health + Wellness 28. Complete 2 rounds of Whole 30
29. Lose 45 pounds
30. Go to bed before 10 pm every night for a week
31. Finish 3 StepBet Games
32. Upgrade my Fitbit
33. Complete a TIU Challenge
34. Consume 64 ounces of water every day for 2 weeks
35. Run 101 miles
Blog-related 36. Accomplish my secret social media goals
37. Host a 30 day photo challenge
38. Blog about each completed number
39. Review 5 months of Birchboxes
40. Post 200 new blog posts
41. Clean up my blog’s “draft” folder
42. Do a Project 12
43. Post an empties post every month for a year
44. Set 10 goals a month for a year and finish 90 of them.
45. Organize the files on my external hard drive
46. Post a blog every day for a month
Eat+Read+Watch+Hear 47. 50 different coffee shops
48. Create a signature espresso drink
49. Try 5 new restaurants
50. Try a new recipe every month for a year
51. Grow a plant I can eat
52. Memorize 3 of my favorite recipes
53. Take a cooking class
54. Make macarons
55. Learn how to make my own batch of tea
56. 10 concerts
57. Read 50 books
58. Keep a shelf empty and fill it with books as I read them for a year
59. Re-read the Bible
60. Re-read the Harry Potter series
61. Watch all of the Harry Potters movies
62. Watch 20 movies that Justen wants me to see
63. Throw or attend an Oscars party
64. Watch all of the Oscars best pic nominees before the Oscars
65. Watch all of the Star Wars movies
66. Finish listening to every song in my iTunes library
Self 67. Cancel Netflix for 3 months
68. Buy fresh flowers once a month for (at least) 1 year
69. Work for myself
70. Bowl over 100
71. Wear earrings every day for a month & get rid of any I don’t wear or like
72. Get rid of all but 50 pens
73. Create a new 101 in 1001 list
74. Write 1,000 words a day for a month
75. Make a list of 25 things I like about myself
76. Complete the 5000 survey (found here)
77. Marry Justen Martian
78. Memorize “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”
79. Get rid of all but 5 nail polishes and don’t buy any more until I’ve used those up 🙂
80. Wear a different outfit every day for a month
81. Buy 5 things from Etsy
82. Document 5 ordinary days in pictures
83. Celebrate 10 random holidays
84. Attend a pro sports game
85. Donate blood
86. Buy 10 vinyls
87. Complete a 1000+ piece puzzle in one day
88. Take 101 photos with my Instax
89. Learn how to identify 5 different constellations
90. Use up 25 smelly things
91. Incorporate 5 essential oils into my daily routine
Make + Create 92. Turn a skirt into a dress
93. Organize my craft supplies
94. Paint my desk
95. Take 101 pictures of things that make me happy
96. Get a learning to write workbook and finish it with my left hand
97. Send 20 care packages using Birchboxes
98. Finish 2 journals
99. Finish my list of 1001 things I’m thankful for.
100. Make a meal using only food purchased at the Farmer’s Market
101. Write a letter to be opened on day 1001.
Right now it is the wee morning of Thursday, September 11th, 2014. You’re at the Halter’s 1114 house in Tennessee. Today you almost cried talking to Ernie about how desperately you’d like to move to Nashville. You also had a Chick-fil-a sandwich that messed you up pretty bad.
Of primary interest to me is where you’re currently located on the day this posts, nearly 3 years later. Are you still in Portland, working at Moore Street? or did you decide to stop with all of the plane tickets and relocate to Nashville? Who do you spend the most time with these days?
Today the worries that plague you are: the idea of moving to Nashville, specifically insurance related things. Your dad moving to the Philippines sooner than you’d like. Telling the boy you like how you feel. Do these things matter to you today?
I hope you are full of grace. For others, but primarily – and most difficultly – for yourself. Who cares if you barely crossed off 50 things on your list, like v.1 (oops)? It’s about life, experiencing it wholeheartedly and with a daring sense of adventure even in the mundane, daily tasks. I hope you have completely cut out gluten and dairy, for your own sake. Except, perhaps, for the cheese on Chipotle bowls and now Chick-Fil-A because you’re pretty in love with it today.
Here’s a little bit of what life looks like for you these days:
CURRENTLY
Reading: Holy Curiosity
Listening: just took “Red Meets Blue” off of repeat. Loving Ben Rector like always.
Watching: Depending on the season: Catfish, Hannibal, STUPID Pretty Little Liars (BET YOU STILL DON’T KNOW WHO A IS), trashy Real World challenges and OF COURSE CRIMINAL MINDS.
Wearing: Lauren Conrad everything.
Smelling: Well how about this: you would love Vera Wang Princess.
Eating; CHICK-FIL-A IS AMAZING. But always Chipotle.
Drinking: Pines Coffee. Either a Stephanie Bear or an almond milk Honey Lavender Latte
Missing: everyone. always. all the time. forever.
Okay. My 101 in 1001 list is like… 79.42% over. Like.. what the actual… but okay. I’m just going to sit in total shock and awe over that one.
I haven’t done an update on how my list is going in like… A YEAR. OVER a year. Whaaatttt. It’s time, y’all. Let’s do some updating.
#8. CELEBRATE 5 RANDOM HOLIDAYS
I’ve celebrated 5 of them. National Peanut Butter Day in Nashville, TN right after I first started. National Apricot day with my friend Rhoda. National Popcorn Day with the kids at my church. National Oreo Day when I made an oreo dessert to take to our friends’ house for dinner. and OBVIOUSLY baked cookies on National Cookie Day. Boom. 5 random holidays done. I’m thinking for my next 101 in 1001 I’m going to add more than just 5, because they were REALLY fun to celebrate!
#14. SLEEP UNDER THE STARS
After MONTHS of “does this count? does this count? does this count?” I finally decided that one 100%, absolutely counted. This past summer I was able to be a counselor at camp for a week, and I straight up slept under the stars.
#15. 35 DIFFERENT COFFEE SHOPS
Boom. Done. Always my favorite one to finish – and then I think “I should have a higher number!” Definitely going to up this one for next time. Want to know something CRAZY? 15 of the 35 coffee shops were located in the Vancouver/Portland area, the rest were out of town!
#17. SLEEP IN 30 DIFFERENT PLACES
Wait – this one might be my favorite to finish! I love seeing how many different homes I’ve been welcomed into and how many late night conversations this number represents.
#18. GO TO AN AQUARIUM
Justen is the best. After my car was totaled and during the time I was off work, he drove me to Seaside to go to the Seaside Aquarium. It’s not big, but I LOVED watching the sea lions, reading all about the fish and I kind of freaked out about the octopus. They are such weird creatures.
#23. GO TO A PRO SPORTS GAME
Speaking of Justen and how great he is, he got us tickets to see the Portland Trail Blazers. He incorrectly blasted all over social media that it was my first game but he was WRONG – I just want to clarify in case any of you saw his tweets or whatever. They played Bruno Mars multiple times, which made me happy. But the Blazers lost and the food was overpriced and those two things really disappointed me. I did also see a square of the original #pdxcarpet which made up for the other two things about the loss and the food.
#34. WATCH ALL OF THE STAR WARS MOVIES
Last year my friends and I had a Star Wars Marathon and I officially watched all of them – PLUS I saw the newest one. Who knew that while Darth Vader was bad, Emperor Palpatine was even worse?! I could probably do with one or two more viewings to really understand the movies but you know. Until then.
#40. LEARN HOW TO MAKE AN OMELET
Okay so my dad taught me how to make an omelet, and I decided that I really do not have the culinary skills for that and I decided to always just stick with scrambles. Is that bad of me? Anyone else? Why are omelets so hard to make? Or am I just an over exaggerator? Or both?
#67. ACCOMPLISH SECRET BLOG/SOCIAL MEDIA GOALS
I think that in my head, setting and achieving social media goals would mean I’d “made it,” blog-wise. Wrong. I’ve TWICE had to expand my goals, which is SO COOL – but that makes me feel like the goals were too attainable and weren’t something that required the amount of work I was wanting to put in. Noted for next time. 🙂
#71. WIN 5 GIVEAWAYS
Ugh, you guys. ENTER GIVEAWAYS! Every so often I enter giveaways and win and I’m like “YES! I always wanted $75 to Bed, Bath & Beyond and a tube of toothpaste!” It’s actually really awesome, you guys. I needed a new toilet seat and who wants to drop money on a toilet seat? Guess what… I didn’t have to because I HAD A GIFT CARD TO BED, BATH & BEYOND. I won that giveaway after I’d won the others, but seriously… enter giveaways. My theory is this… someone has to win, right?! 🙂
#89. HAVE 10 PEOPLE CHANGE THEIR FB PROFILE PICS TO PICTURES I’VE TAKEN
This one was really cool, because the main thing was I couldn’t ask. Every time I got one of those Facebook notifications that someone had changed their profile pic to one of my pictures I got SO EXCITED! I LOVE seeing pictures I’ve taken on people’s Facebook profiles. and speaking of…
#90. BE PAID TO TAKE PICTURES Two days in a row, you guys. TWO DAYS IN A ROW. I’m really starting to fall in love with photography. Over the past few months we’ve been able to take pictures for people and just recently people have started paying us! SO COOL. Here are a few of the maternity photos we took for Justen’s brother and sister-in-law:
#92. ATTEND 5 WEDDINGS OMG y’all, weddings are my favorite. I’ve had the privilege of watching so many of my friends get married, and good news THEY ARE ALL STILL MARRIED… praise hands, y’all.
#93. WIN A GAME OF CATAN AGAINST 3 PEOPLE Let me be honest. First I won a game of Catan Jr and I decided that if I never won a game of grown up Settlers of Catan, I’d count this as a win. But this past Labor Day at Lummi Island, we played Settlers of Catan… AND I FREAKING WON.
THIS IS MY WINNING CARD + POST-WIN SELFIE
With these, I have finished 28.71% (29) of my 101 in 1001. Y’all, I have GOT to get on this, because this 101 in 1001 list is kicking my butt.
Few questions for y’all.
Have you ever done a 101 in 1001 list? What do you think would be cool things for me to add to my new one (which would start next June)? and any of y’all want to help me cross some things off my list?!
I live in the Pacific Northwest, where I love to drink coffee and adventure. I blog because I think life matters too much to let it go by without noticing.
