101 Things in 1001 Days

38. Make banana pudding

I've been wanting to make banana pudding for several years now. I finally attempted it!
Pros: It is absolutely delicious, and it looks beautiful
Cons: It's so full of sugar it's probably not that good for me, and I have to eat all 20 servings myself
Pros: I get to eat all 20 servings myself

I did manage to figure out a way to eat it over the course of several days without the cut bananas going bad. I ate all the bananas I cut in days 1 and 2, and then every time I ate more, I added freshly cut bananas to the pudding. That should allow it to keep better for as long as it will take me to get through it all. No regrets, though. It is incredibly delicious!

38. Visit the Washington National Cathedral again

I last visited the National Cathedral when I was in elementary school... long enough ago that I don't remember much about the place except for a gorgeous mosaic, gargoyles, and flying buttresses (I'm still a huge fan of flying buttresses; ask anyone who was in my group during the last day of the Dublin convention when I fangirled a dozen of them throughout the day heehee!). So I put this on my list because it's a place I enjoyed going to (I'll say I was inspired as well, back then) but one I wanted to revisit as an adult.

I decided to go today, because admission and the parking garage are both free on Sundays. I was hoping for the 4pm Evensong, but that was cancelled for the day; drat! So I might have to go again sometime. I did get to hear the bells, though, so I managed to get some music in. I spent a little more than 3 hourrs there in all, enjoying both the inside and outside of the cathedral. I'm a sucker for gothic architecture.

I managed to arrive about 30 seconds before the 1:15pm highlights tour began, so I jumped right in on that. Had a hard time hearing the guide a few times (he had a tendency to mumble through the ends of jokes and off topic comments--such as bringing up Jack the Ripper), but I feel like it was a pretty unique tour and we definitely hit the highlights on the main level well. I went back through again afterward and took a closer look at it all, then I went down to the crypt level, bought some things at the gift shop, walked around the building, went to the bishop's garden, went back inside again for a last look at the stained glass windows and to release a BookCrossing book, and then finally tracked down the Darth Vader gargoyle outside.

The place is definitely a thing of beauty. So much care and detail went into it, and I can appreciate how many lives it has touched over the years.





( More photos! )

38. Save $1 a day in a separate account
62. Save $5 a day and make an extra mortgage payment each year in May

I emptied out my 1001 account from last time tonight (hooray!) and so I'm starting fresh this time around with the 1001 account. ING direct doesn't do daily withdrawals, so I get $7 taken out every week.

I created a new account called Mortgage Bonus and I'm having $35 taken out every week and put into that account. As I won't have a full payment in that account by May, the 2013 payment will have to be supplemented, but there should be enough by then for a good head start.

thingism was nice enough to calculate the milestones along our way. Yesterday was day 100... so today is day 101! Here's a recap of my progress:
Finished: 6

Things 1-33- I decided it would be fun to make a video for each of the projects I finish. So far, 3 down and 33 to go. I haven't decided on my June project yet. I finished a few things that might work for it. I think what I want to do is work on my Ticket Stub book, though.

Thing 35- Despite writing a story a day for LMoM 2010, there were several days I skipped (because I'd written ahead) because of RL commitments.

Thing 38- I've been working on a few of them. Haven't finished any or posted any more yet though

Thing 39- There was a journal I was thinking of submitting to. I sent away for a previous issue so I could get a look at the journal first though.

Thing 41- I've slipped up and haven't been keeping track. Maybe today I should catch up.

Thing 42- I'm so close on this one! Just about 900 or so to go!

Thing 44- I keep thinking about this one. I need to stop thinking and just go DO.

Thing 45- I have read one, but didn't make an entry about it. I definitely need to work on this one. I've got a Do Nothing But Read day coming up in a week, so I'm hoping that will help!

Thing 48- I have several handfuls of snarfs from Georgetown yesterday and a handful from Arlington a few weeks ago. But I'm still only up to about 1,550. Not too bad. I have another 900 days to go :-)

Thing 50- I'm making some good progress here. I think this one will be one I come close to finishing but not completely finish. The problem is markers keep getting put up or taken down/vanishing.

Thing 51- 1 out of 3. But I'm planning on driving back from Florida, so I should be able to get 2 more easily

Thing 53- One is coming up on June 27! I'm working on my list of books to finish & read

Thing 57- I really wanted to go to one before BrickFair, but I keep having other obligations those days.

Thing 60- I desperately want to do this one on my way back from Florida. I'm going to have to research and see which one is a good target.

Thing 62- I have my ticket booked!

Thing 64- I'm getting close to finishing the first doctor's journies :-)

Thing 65- I've started the last season, but it's slower-going because it's not available through streaming.

Thing 66- I just read an awesome Stargate Atlantis fic and so my interest in pickthing this one up has been rekindled.

Thing 69- I've actually started watching my own DVDs more because of this. I really need to count them up. Let me do that today!

Thing 72- I didn't do one for the 2009-2010 season but that season was mostly over by the time I started these goals. So I'm giving myself a pass there.

Thing 75- 9 out of 10. I expect I'll pick up a Diagon Alley album at Infinitus :-)

Thing 76- I still haven't decided if I want to put them on my Hufflepuff banner or not.

Thing 78- Still saving!

Thing 80- I made a really good attempt this month at eating more reasonably and working out daily. I've already started slacking off on it, but I haven't seen any change yet. Damnit. *feels discouraged*

Thing 81- I have been working out the logistics of this lately. I think I'm going to get rid of a LOT pretty soon. I'm tired of clothes with holes or clothes I have never worn taking up space in my wardrobe

Thing 88- I want to make sure I have the right hookups on my old TV before I buy a VCR/Blu-Ray combo

Thing 90- I have some space now in which to store my stuff. Now I just need to DO this.

Thing 92- So far, I haven't missed a month!

Thing 97- I really want to do this

Thing 98- Man, 100,000 is a HUGE number!

It occurred to me today that I have less than a year to go before my 1001 days are up. Yikes! So I thought I'd summarize my progress to date and go through my list to see how probably it is to do the unfinished things.

So far, I've finished 27 out of 101.

1. Take a basic car maintenance class/workshop
I called my car insurance company to ask if they knew of any classes/workshops. And I checked out the adult learning programs in my area. I wasn't able to find anything. Unless one falls into my lap, I probably won't accomplish this one.

2. Sign-up for a dating service
Hmm. Haven't done this. Thought about signing up at a geek dating service but I'm not sure I'm geeky enough for that. And I'm too geeky enough for a regular dating service. LOL But lately I've felt less and less interested in this (life's just too busy at the moment) so we'll see

3. Stay in touch with college friends I’ve reconnected with
I haven't done much on this front, I admit. Bad Kate.

4. Keep in touch with my KS better
Not doing too badly with this one. Could do better. *hugs* I love you, KS!

5. Re-write weekly schedule and try better to follow it
When I wrote my schedule, I truly believed I could follow it just fine. It was realistic. But I'm lazy. LOL So I didn't follow it much. Maybe I'll re-write it again.

6. Learn basic sign language (i.e. more than what I know already)
I learned a little. I really should stick the DVD back in and learn some more.

8. Lose 15+lbs
Yeah... no.

9. Work out at least 3 times a week
Since the demise of my VCR, I haven't worked out much. I need to either start a new routine that doesn't involve my beloved VHS Tae-Bo tape or switch out my VCR with the one my parents just stopped using when they bought their new VHS/DVD combo player.

10. Start wearing pedometer again and keep track of steps walked- do sit-ups if I fall below my average
I still haven't replaced the battery in it in order to use it. I really should, shouldn't I?

11. Floss at least 5 times a week if not every single day
Hmm. Have been slacking on this one as well.

12. Drink & finish a bottle of water every week
I can't even remember making this one! I definitely haven't been doing this. I should. But I just don't like the taste of water.

15. Get juicer out of storage and start using it
Apparently, my juicer IS out of storage. I haven't used it yet, but I should. Maybe when I get some fruit from the farmers market in Thing 25 I'll make something nummy :-)

16. Start taking Centrum vitamins again
I bought some, but stopped taking them after a while. I should start again and make it part of my routine.

17. Walk to the library at least once a month (weather permitting)
I'm not going to do this one. I haven't even tried walking there and back once. I started volunteering there after work on Thursdays instead of going there leisurely on Saturdays. So there's no time to walk there and the walk back would be in the dark, which isn't safe. So I won't be accomplishing this one.

18. Try 5 times to give blood
I've tried 1 out of 5 times. My doctor suggested I not give blood since I have so much trouble with the process (lately it's been the pulse rate, but other times it's the iron or bleeding slowly or them not being able to find a vein).

19. Grow hair out to 10+ inches past chin and donate to Locks of Love
I'm almost there! I just bought some new conditioner a few days ago that's supposed to help prevent split ends in longer hair. So I'm going to see it through another inch or so then chop it off!

20. Send 30 care packages to soldiers through AnySoldier.com
I've sent 8 out of the 30. I've slacked off a bunch with this one (I used to send one or so a month) but I have a bunch of things set aside for care packages. So I'll have to step this up. I want to get this done but, if I fall short, I want to send at least half the goal number.

21. Donate 100 books to charity/the library
I've done 80 out of 100. I'm collecting books to donate right now because of the Accio Books! project. I have about 200. So... that's a little more than 20 :-) I'm planning on donating the kids books to ECHO and the adult books to the library or the hospital where I used to candy stripe (though I haven't heard back from them)

24. Get involved with the Cairn rescue group somehow
I got involved! However, I haven't had time yet to make any of the website pages for the memorial section of their website, as I promised I would. That's awful of me. I resolve to rectify that soon.

25. Buy fruit at a farmer’s market
Last week at a girl scout meeting I met a woman who sells her food at some of the local famer's markets. Apparently there's a really nice one in Kingstowne. So once the spring & summer roll around and the markets open, I'll head over and check that one out some Friday afternoon.

26. Put a recycling bin in the laundry room and empty it myself regularly
I have one there that I've used. But I filled it once and never emptied it. LOL What a lazy arse I am! I feel so embarrassed about that that I'll do better now.

27. Get rid of 5 boxes of things in my room/storage unit
I've gotten rid of 2.5 out of 5. But I have every intention of doing a huge spring cleaning this year and getting rid of A LOT. So I should be able to do this one.

28. Separate laundry (don’t just wash all at once on cold)
I've been doing an excellent job with this one, actually. Kind of proud of myself. I've been separating lights and darks and hots, colds, and warms.

29. Clean from 3pm-5pm every Sunday- no excuses!
Yeah, well, not so good here either. I've cleaned a few times but mostly I have had better things to do 3pm-5pm on Sundays :-)

31. Keep car gas level at least half full at all times
Wow, I totally forgot I made this goal as well. I've been awful about this, but I'll try to do it from now on because it's a good idea. Glad I thought of it at one point. LOL

33. Start making smoothies again
I haven't. Doesn't seem that hard to do, though.

34. Pair down closet and move all clothes out of Simon’s room
I've made a lot of progress here, but there's still a ways to go. I'm hoping to try out the space-saver thing in my wardrobe this weekend. If it works all right, I'll buy a few more and that will make room in my wardrobe for the clothes left in the closet upstairs in Simon's room (which is now Sugar's room)

35. Clean out/sort Outlook Express Inbox
It was clean and organized at one point... but I really need to do this again. Now. Tens of thousands of unorganized e-mails need homes!

36. Back up computer completely once every two months
Ever since I installed FreeByte Backup, I've backed up my important files quite often, sometimes more than once a week. I no longer live in complete fear of losing it all. heehee Definitely a great improvement.

38. Get/buy some sort of cataloging software & catalog all books, CDs, tapes, DVDs, video games, and videos
I have about half my collection cataloged and I'm hoping to get a little more done this weekend.

39. Go through Real Simple magazines and create a binder of useful pieces
I've started this project, but it's unfinished. I bought a bunch of sleeve inserts that should make it easier (no more hole-punching and worrying about ripping pages when I leaf through them in the binder).

40. Go through digital camera cards and print/save/delete all photos
Why haven't I done this yet? I need to do this now! My old camera died so I need to make sure I have all the photos saved off the cards that fit in that camera. Since I've tried out the 'send a file on your computer to CVS to print' and it worked nicely, I am less worried about keeping the cards around in order to print the pretty photos :-)

41. Register all books waiting to be registered for BookCrossing
So close and yet so far. I still have about a hundred unregistered books sitting by my computer. Maybe I'll make a mass effort this weekend.

44. Start a state map postcard for book trade on BookCrossing
Haven't started this yet but I'll get to it. A list of the ones I do & don't have are here: http://www.kintailscape.com/BC/mappostcards.html

45. Create the Around the World in ? Days Challenge on BookCrossing
I'm having second thoughts about this one. Maybe I'll revise what I thought I was going to do for this one.

46. Send out 25 Ray it Forwards at BookCrossing (books I've actually read first)
I've sent 11 out of 25. Not bad but I need to step it up!

50. Start an LGBT BookRelay and keep it going
I've participated a lot, but it hits its slow moments

51. Start an anime BookRelay and keep it going
I've participated a lot, but it hits its slow moments

52. Make a better list/system of books I mail out (spreadsheet) and keep up with it
My list system rocked... but I didn't keep up with it. So maybe it wasn't as good a list/system as I thought it was. I'll have to think about how to do a better job of this

53. Clear 50 books off my To Be Read bookcase
I'm not sure what my current count is, but I don't think I'll have trouble finishing this one within a year (if I haven't already). My last documented amount was 46 out of 50. I'm sure I've read 4 off my bookcase since August.

54. Watch every nominated movie from the Academy Awards (excluding foreign film) from 2007-2009
I still have quite a few left. 84 to be exact. Yikes!

55. Get a P.O. Box and do PostCrossing; send out 50 postcards
I've sent 20 out of 50. I'm not sure if the stamps I have are the proper amount now for international postcards. So I'll check on that next time I'm at the post office and get back into the game here.

56. Finish my website portfolio
Totally haven't done this.

57. Add to Max’s scrapbook
I just figured out where I PUT this the other day. I'll open it up and add some things :-) Maxwell's sitting right here between my keyboard and monitor right now. He agrees. heehee

63. Bring TG’s Realm website up to date
Whoa. SO not done with this. It's a huge project and only getting huger.

64. Bring Kintail: the Dreamscape & BookCrossing websites up to date
Same deal. The BookCrossing website is doing all right, but the Dreamscape needs lots more love. I'm such a slacker.

65. Make Remus & Sirius sock puppets
Aw, why haven't I done this one yet? I must. I really must!

66. Catch up on Stargate
I recently bought the entire series on DVD. So I should be able to get through it now, so long as I can make the time.

69. Finish Farscape series
Having trouble with this one since Blockbuster online has difficulty getting the discs to me. I might have to put this one on hold since I don't think I want to buy the whole series on iTunes just yet.

70. Finish Gabaldon series to date (reread Outlander-Fiery Cross and read A Breath of Snow & Ashes)
So far I earread Outlander and Dragonfly, then began Outlander again for a book club and didn't finish it. I should really get back on this one.

71. Mark up Harry Potter paperbacks with post-its
Haven't done this, but I'd still like to.

72. Go to at least one hockey game every season
Yes! So far, I've managed this one!

73. Read the entire Hornblower series of books
I have just one book left until I'm done with this, so it should be a breeze. I'll be SO sad to finish the series, though! *sob*

74. Finish archiving the Chronicle and complete the Photo Archives
I did finish the Chronicle archives but I have been slacking on the photo archives. I need to get back on top of that project. It feels overwhelming but it'll be worth it when I'm done.

77. Bring goodies to work bi-weekly
Not sure I've managed every other week, but I've certainly brought in a lot a lot more often than I used to. So I consider this a success so far

78. Update Webmaster/Admin html manual
I've done a little work on this but I'm far from finished

81. Do & win NaNoWriMo 2007, 2008, etc.
I did it for 2007 and 2008 and plan to do it for 2009. I guess we'll see in November if I've accomplished this.

82. Keep an ongoing master list (spreadsheet) of all stories I finish
Beyond keeping this list, I've actually enjoyed keeping it! I wrote up a nice recap of everything I wrote in 2008 and could nicely analyze it. I'm really glad I kept this list now (it totally paid off) so am encouraged to keep it up this year.

83. Finish 5 more Strokes stories
I've written 4 of 5 so I think I'll be able to finish this goal within a year.

85. Make one entry every month to my Rectacular journal
I started a new twitter account that feeds into my Rectacular journal (http://twitter.com/rectacular). This makes it quicker to update and quicker means I'm more likely to update. Once a month might still be beyond me but I'm doing a much better job with this.

86. Finish 25+ WIPs which have been waiting/ignored for a while
Um... ACK! I would LOVE to be able to finish 25. But so far I've only finished 2. The likelihood of me finishing so many more in just a year is small since it means I'd have to increase the rate significantly. But at least I've managed a few and maybe I'll finish a few more.

87. Submit something to be published
Hmm. Haven't even really thought about this since my last rejection. I haven't written anything good enough or ready enough. But I'll keep this goal in mind.

88. Start a file of rejection letters
I haven't done, but it's an easy goal so I'll do it soon.

89. Enter more dreams in my dream journal
I keep thinking "I should enter that!" and then I don't and I forget the dream soon thereafter.

90. Read 5 books on writing
I've read 1 of 5 and I have plenty of others to choose from. I'll definitely try to finish this goal

91. Start reading slash-dot and try to keep up with techie news
I get the e-mails and I check it out from time to time at work thanks to the RSS feed in the toolbar. I definitely feel more informed.

92. Set up a special savings account and put $1 into it every day for a total of 1001 days- 06/13/07 (set up special, separate ING savings account with weekly direct transfer)
Easiest one so far since it takes the money from me automatically. I'll have no trouble with this.

93. Go to a Free-For-All Friday at Mix 107.3
I'd definitely still like to do this one!

95. Go to the International Spy Museum in DC (for the first time)
I gave my family money for tickets for us all to the museum. So I'm hoping we'll actually go soon!

97. Go to Mount Vernon to see the new museum/exhibits/theaters
I would certainly love to do this. Maybe in April or June on a weekend when I don't have so much scheduled.

98. Visit a lighthouse
Of all my goals, this is the one I most wanted to accomplish. So I'm going to make this one a priority during the next year. I'm going to do some research and find a nice one not too far away and take a road trip there.

38. Get/buy some sort of cataloging software & catalog all books, CDs, tapes, DVDs, video games, and videos

I've re-cataloged a lot of my collection, though I'm taking a different route this time and going book-shelf by bookshelf. And I'm saving frequently and backing up to external harddrive after every successful save. At 200-something books, my program crashed again and erased the entire file AGAIN! But I had recently backed up at 198 books, so all I had to do was load and re-name the file. Then I needed to re-do the bottom shelf and I was all caught up. I think I've got the hang of it now :-) I'm going counter-clockwise around my room, one section at a time.

My Collection (thus far):
Audio CD (4)
Books (252)
DVD (45)
Games (12)
Manga, Graphic Novels (110)
Software (0)
VHS Tape (10)

I've done:
Books on my desk
Books, DVDs, games, manga/graphic novels on the bookcase to the right of my desk, by the sliding glass door
Books, DVDs, VHS tapes, graphic novels, CDs on the bookcase to the left of my desk, between desk and couch

Need to do still:
DVDs in holders to the right of entertainment center
Books, DVDs, VHS tapes, games in entertainment center
DVDs in holder to the left of entertainment center
Books and DVDs in bookcase to the left of entertainment center
Books and DVDs in bookcase to the left of the bookcase to the left of the entertainment center
Books in my display case
CDs, cassette tapes, and books in bookcase by bathroom
Odds and ends that are lying around or sets too large to fit into a bookcase
VHS tape holder by wooden cabinet
Comics in two file boxes by entertainment center
CDs bought directly online through iTunes

38. Get/buy some sort of cataloging software & catalog all books, CDs, tapes, DVDs, video games, and videos

Today I bought cataloging software from imediaman.com and installed it.

( Screenshot )

So far I've done one bookcase and part of my TV cabinet.

Audio CD (4)
Books (104)
Comics, Manga, Graphic Novels (3)
DVD (78)
Games (2)
Software (0)
VHS Tape (13)

It's a good start! It's also great to be able to tag the ones I've lent out as "lent" and make new status categories- like "autographed" :-) Excellent software. I love it muchly.