just_the_things | Entries tagged with thing 62

62. Use my oral irrigator

I got this oral irrigator/water pick for Christmas and hadn't opened the box. So I took it out, charged it, and tried it out. Apart from the bit where I got water absolutely everywhere, it went fairly well. I thought it felt all right and was effective. It's not going to replace brushing or flossing for me, but it seems like it would be a nice supplement. I plan on keeping it in my main floor bathroom for convenience and because that's the bathroom with the working electrical outlet.

62. Build Tower Bridge out of LEGO

I worked on a little bit of this for many days until, suddenly, I had a Tower Bridge! It was the largest set I've ever assembled, and some of the techniques used were things I never would have thought about. I bought this set as soon as it came out in 2003, and I had a really great time assembling it, finally.

( More photos )

62. Watch Torchwood series 4 (Miracle Day)

After the events of CoE, I had a hard time imaginging enjoying this different Torchwood. So I hadn't really wanted to watch it. But after seeing John at a con last month, I decided to just go ahead and watch it. I felt emotionally distanced from it; it wasn't my Torchwood.

But once I started watching, I realized I was glad to be able to enjoy thiis next chapter in the Torchwood adventure. I started watching it yesterday and finished it today. It was definitely different, and it was definitely missing a lot of what I love most about Torchwood. But there were still Jack and Gwen. There was saving the world. There were lots of moral questions. And there was a lot of hurt!Jack; that helped, too. I ended up really liking this season and am so glad I made myself watch it!

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

I actually had enough saved up for this payment a few months ago, but I did say "May" in the wording, so last month I transferred the money over to checking and set up a deposit for May 6. Thanks to interest, I was able to put a little more in there than intended and I still have a good start on next year's payment. I'll definitely keep this on next time's list. Being able to save up a little and save thousands of dollars in interest? Totally worth the $5 a day hit that I don't even feel any more.

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

I transferred money out of my special savings account for this project and made the payment on May 8.

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

I set up a payment this month for my mortgage that is the normal payment + the amount of a payment to be applied directly to the principal. I'd feel better about this if I'd been able to save up the full amount of the payment, but there wasn't enough time between December and now at $5 a day. With the math done right, I won't have this problem again next year.

Also, I ran into three unexpected expenses this month of over $5000. Thank goodness my federal and state tax refunds came in and are able to cover a little of that. I'm going to have to dip into my savings account for the rest. But my house needs siding, my car needs new tires, and my cat is very ill and needed surgery (with possibly another surgery this weekend). So May is just a month of bad timing for me this year. However, it is the month during which I bought my house, and with the automatic savings plan in place, I won't have this issue again next year.

But this has been officially done for May 2013.

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.

62. Take the train to Hogwarts (Harry Potter Theme Park)

Accomplished! I took the train down to Orlando! There were certainly good & bad moments, but on the whole I enjoyed the experience.

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!

Here's the wrap up of my first list of 101 Thing in 1001 Days. I accomplished 50 (so about half) of the things. Not a great result, considering at the time I made the list, I thought I would do them all. But, I did try hard and I got a lot more done than I would have without the list. So even though it was a half-fail, I'm still glad I did it.

Self-Improvement/ Personal

1. Take a basic car maintenance class/workshop
I did look for such an animal but I couldn't find one anywhere. I even called my car insurance place and they didn't know of any locally. So I was unable to complete this one.

2. Sign-up for a dating service
I checked out a few online dating sites. I even started my profile for one. But, in the end, I chickened out. Bad self image is my biggest hurdle.

3. Stay in touch with college friends I’ve reconnected with
Didn't do so well with this. I did reconnect with some of them, but I haven't been in contact as much as I wish I'd been.

4. Keep in touch with my KS better- 3/10/10
I've done a bit better here. And now that Kate tweets, it's easier to say hi every so often on top of e-mail & snail mail. I love my KS *hugs*

5. Re-write weekly schedule and try better to follow it
Yikes. I did try to follow it at first, but it was a pretty strict schedule and, honestly, my life has changed so much that a schedule re-done 1001 days ago just didn't work for me for long.

6. Learn basic sign language (i.e. more than what I know already)
I learned a little, but have forgotten most of it now. I need to make a more serious attempt at this in the future (a future monthly project, perhaps)

7. Learn how to tie a tie- 04/20/08
Every time I go to tie one, I have to look up the instructions to refresh my memory. But I generally have the right idea.

Health & Fitness

8. Lose 15+lbs
This SO did not happen. I'm still a fatty. LOL!

9. Work out at least 3 times a week
I did have periods of time where I worked out this much. But for the most part, I didn't work out at all for months on end.

10. Start wearing pedometer again and keep track of steps walked- do sit-ups if I fall below my average

melydia even gave me a new pedometer (after the batteries in my old one died) but I didn't like the new one as much (couldn't calibrate it to my pace/walking style) so I had doubts about its accuracy at times. In the end, I didn't keep up with this one either.

11. Floss at least 5 times a week if not every single day
I definitely improved on this for a while, but I went through periods of doing well and others where I did not so well. On a whole, i call this a fail but I know I need to keep up with this.

12. Drink & finish a bottle of water every week
I made an attempt at this, but I just really hate the taste of water. Couldn't do it for the long term.

13. Go to the optometrist (it’s been 9+ years) and get new glasses- 6/22/07
I still have my glasses, and they're wonderful

14. Go to the gynecologist (haven’t been since I was in college)- 12/12/07
Actually, I should go again...

15. Get juicer out of storage and start using it
I never made any effort on this. Which is a shame.

16. Start taking Centrum vitamins again
Once again, for a while I was doing well with this, but then I lapsed and didn't keep up

17. Walk to the library at least once a month (weather permitting)
I made this goal back when I was going to the library to buy used books every Saturday afternoon. Now I volunteer at that library on Monday nights (used to be Thursday nights) and it's too dark when I'm done at the end of the night to safely walk home. So this one became unrealistic very shortly after I made it.

Good Things

18. Try 5 times to give blood
I did give it a good shot a few times. When I made the goal, I didn't realize what a problem it would be for me to give blood. After more complications arose, it made it virtually impossible for me to donate blood. What a shame, because I used to be so good at doing it every few months like clockwork.

19. Grow hair out to 10+ inches past chin and donate to Locks of Love- 03/10/10
My hair is SHORT now! But I hope my hair will go to help a kid who needs/wants it

20. Send 30 care packages to soldiers through AnySoldier.com
I managed to send 10 out of 30, which isn't too bad at all. I made the goal of 30 back when I sent 1 every month and I just wasn't able to keep up with that pace. But it's still 10 more units out there benefitting from what I've sent.

21. Donate 100 books to charity/the library- 03/29/09
With Accio Books last year, this was done in practically one drop off. LOL

22. Buy 10 things for Toys for Tots- 12/19/07
It's a nice program, and it was fun looking for toys that I thought kids would like.

23. Raise $250+ for AIDS Walk Washington- 9/27/07
Thanks to the generosity of family and friends, I more than exceeded this goal!

24. Get involved with the Cairn rescue group somehow
I did sign up, but I haven't built any pages for them. I feel guilty for letting that slip.

25. Buy fruit at a farmer’s market- 07/02/09
Nom nom nom! I wish there were a farmer's market closer to my house that was open when I wasn't working so I could visit it regularly.

26. Put a recycling bin in the laundry room and empty it myself regularly- 3/10/10
I let this slide for a while, but I've been pretty good about storing up recycling and then taking it up on trash/recycling night

Home/Things

27. Get rid of 5 boxes of things in my room/storage unit
Actually, I have another box of stuff to go. But a full 5 boxes? VERY close but no cigar. I could stretch it and say this was finished, but, honestly, I fell a little short.

28. Separate laundry (don’t just wash all at once on cold)- 3/10/10
I've actually been doing a phenomenal job at this. Seriously, my laundry skills have improved significantly over the past 1001 days.

29. Clean from 3pm-5pm every Sunday- no excuses!
I have no excuse, I just didn't do this

30. Make small fixes to car (paint in front, dome light, reflectors on holes, side shade)- declared finished on 3/13/09
My car looked nice!

31. Keep car gas level at least half full at all times
Fail. I did manage to do this for a while, but there were some pretty important times my tank was definitely on empty.

32. Clean out car (even vacuum)- 8/17/09
I did clean it out a few times (both my last car and the new one)

33. Start making smoothies again
I didn't even make ONE! But we might be getting a blender at work, which means I'll have an excuse to eat/drink yummy soon. A little late for the 1001 days though.

34. Pair down closet and move all clothes out of Simon’s room
I did give away several boxes/bags of stuff. But I still have about 20 things in the upstairs closet I need to get rid of.

35. Clean out/sort Outlook Express Inbox
I am beginning to believe I will never get this mess sorted

36. Back up computer completely once every two months- 3/10/10
I have been backing up quite a lot, and my external hard drive is awesome. Except during the past month, my computer won't recognize it. ACK! I spent some time tonight trying to figute it out, to no avail.

37. Buy a display cabinet and put things in it- 07/02/07
I love my display cabinet so much

38. Get/buy some sort of cataloging software & catalog all books, CDs, tapes, DVDs, video games, and videos
My entire collection isn't yet in there, but the majority is, and I've been keeping up with my new purchases.

39. Go through Real Simple magazines and create a binder of useful pieces
I have a big binder of these, but lately I've thought it would be better to put them all in plastic sleeves instead of punching holes in the flimsy pages. So I'm going to have to re-do what I've already done and then work on all the new issues.

40. Go through digital camera cards and print/save/delete all photos
I'm lazy when it comes to my photos, apparently

Hobbies

41. Register all books waiting to be registered for BookCrossing
At this point, it seems unlikely that I'll ever be 100% caught up on this. I have several hundred unregistered at the moment.

42. Make/refine my BookCrossing car kit- 08/12/07
I still use it

43. Write & submit another BookCrossing article- 09/09/07
I'm proud of my articles

44. Start a state map postcard for book trade on BookCrossing
I'm shy and never worked up the courage to start this

45. Create the Around the World in ? Days Challenge on BookCrossing
Ditto. I acquired 2 copies of the book, but by then I learned that someone else did something fun with the book and I lost my nerve.

46. Send out 25 Ray it Forwards at BookCrossing (books I've actually read first)
Not even close! I did send out some, which is good, but not 25!

47. Create a BookCrossing iCal (publish it?)- 12/29/07
I created it, yes, but didn't keep up with it.

48. Start a Fannish BookBox- 07/06/08
I did one round of an online bookbox before I decided I don't like online bookboxes.

49. Start an LGBT BookBox- 07/06/08
I have since set out two different LGBT bookboxes!

50. Start an LGBT BookRelay and keep it going
Someone else created one, but I participated in it for a while

51. Start an anime BookRelay and keep it going
Someone else created one of these as well, but I participated in it for a while, too

52. Make a better list/system of books I mail out (spreadsheet) and keep up with it
I created a nice spreadsheet, but didn't find it as useful as I had hoped it would be. So I stopped using it.

53. Clear 50 books off my To Be Read bookcase- 09/25/09
Hardly feels like I made any dent at all, but I did read them

54. Watch every nominated movie from the Academy Awards (excluding foreign film) from 2007-2009
Wow. I honestly thought this would be no problem. But I didn't even come close to watching them all

55. Get a P.O. Box and do PostCrossing; send out 50 postcards- 3/5/10
I still have my PO Box (love it) and I sent 50 postcards out!I got some great ones back, but I probably won't keep up with PostCrossing much in the future.

56. Finish my website portfolio- 6/5/09
It's not perfect, but it exists :-)

57. Add to Max’s scrapbook
I actually couldn't find it for the longest time. But I recently un-lost it and plan to pick it back up again.

58. Catalogue Eeyore collection- 01/04/09
I love having a catalogue/list of all my Eeyores!

59. Find out about displaying my Eeyore collection at the library- 12/02/08 through 12/30/08
I am so proud that I got to do this

60. Get a new library card (mine is 20 years old and almost in pieces)- 11/10/07
I love my new library card!

61. Learn how to play Mahjong- 07/29/07
I could probably use a refresher course, and apparently I learned the Chinese version, not the US one. But now I know how it's supposed to be played.

62. Decide what big thing to build out of LEGOs and begin planning- 08/03/07
I built amazingness and displayed them at my first LEGO convention as a participant in 2009

63. Bring TG’s Realm website up to date- 01/31/10
This is one I am especially proud of. I did massive updates.

64. Bring Kintail: the Dreamscape & BookCrossing websites up to date
I wish I'd done as much to this site. I've updated parts a little, but it's not completely done.

Fannish Stuff

65. Make Remus & Sirius sock puppets
I still want to do this!

66. Catch up on Stargate
I bought the whole thing on DVD, so I should be able to get this done during the next 1001 days without problem

67. Catch up on The 4400- 08/17/07
What a great series. I cannot believe they cancelled it just when it was getting amazing.

68. Catch up on The Dead Zone- 12/13/07
DITTO! The ending was amazing. I want more!

69. Finish Farscape series
I came close. Just one season & the Peacekeeper Wars left

70. Finish Gabaldon series to date (reread Outlander-Fiery Cross and read A Breath of Snow & Ashes)
I re-read the first two books and bought the newest. I've got a long way to go with it.

71. Mark up Harry Potter paperbacks with post-its
I really thought this would be useful, but I use the Lexicon so often instead, that maybe I don't need to do this after all.

72. Go to at least one hockey game every season- 9/15/09
I am so happy that I accomplished this one! I saw them win 1 game out of the 5 I went to, I think (so I think I'm 3 in 7 for my whole life). Maybe I'm jinxing them and shouldn't go any more...

73. Read the entire Hornblower series of books- 03/29/09
Oh Horatio, how I love you!

Work

74. Finish archiving the Chronicle and complete the Photo Archives
Chronicle: yes. Photo Archives: still in progress.

75. Get everyone moved to Adobe CS3- 02/18/08
We're all on CS4 now

76. Get a new graphics card for my PC and set up monitors- declared finished on 03/12/09
This was the bane of my existence for so long. I'm glad I completed it finally

77. Bring goodies to work bi-weekly- 3/10/10
Okay, maybe not exactly bi-weekly, but I did bring in a LOT of stuff, and that was my whole point of this goal.

78. Update Webmaster/Admin html manual
I have updated it several times, but it needs a total overhaul now

79. Update Software Inventory & keep it updated!- 09/14/07
Hmm. I did finish that huge project, but I didn't keep it updated throughout 2009.

80. Bring caricature of self to work and put on wall- 08/17/07
It's still there.

Writing

81. Do & win NaNoWriMo 2007, 2008, etc.- 11/25/09
Many, many words written! And I finished my 2009 attempt last month.

82. Keep an ongoing master list (spreadsheet) of all stories I finish- 3/10/10
I absolutely love my spreadsheet of stories. It's a great resource and fun to compile

83. Finish 5 more Strokes stories- 03/10/10
My Strokes boys need more love. But I definitely wrote at least 5.

84. See about doing the Writers’ Roundtable twice a month- 07/25/07
We still have 2 meetings each month.

85. Make one entry every month to my Rectacular journal
Now that I have a separate Twitter account for recs, I've been updating it more easily and frequently. Not quite every month, but an improvement.

86. Finish 25+ WIPs which have been waiting/ignored for a while
Wow. 25. Really? What was a thinking. I tried, though. And I'm happy of the ones I did work on and especially the ones I finished.

87. Submit something to be published
Didn't even try. I'm making next time's goal 5 submissions as a penalty. LOL

88. Start a file of rejection letters- 03/10/10
It's a nice file folder. I hope it doesn't get too full

89. Enter more dreams in my dream journal
Often I said to myself "Kate, that was an amazing dream. Go write it down in your journal" and then I would forget and be lazy and just not do it. Bad Kate.

90. Read 5 books on writing
Um, I am drowning in books. I've read parts of many, but only finished 1 completely.

Miscellaneous

91. Start reading slash-dot and try to keep up with techie news- 3/10/10
I have the RSS feed on my browser and I pay attention to it much more than I used to. Not as much as I should, but I'm more aware on a whole of things that are going on in the Tech world

92. Set up a special savings account and put $1 into it every day for a total of 1001 days- 3/10/10
I am so happy I made this goal. Now I have more than $1020 to spend as I see fit!

93. Go to a Free-For-All Friday at Mix 107.3
Nope. I didn't do this. What a shame.

94. Get a new computer with a flat screen monitor- 06/01/08
I love my new computer, even when it doesn't cooperate with me.

95. Go to the International Spy Museum in DC (for the first time)
I gave my family money for tickets on Christmas a few years ago, but we haven't gone. I did step inside the entrance because I won tickets to the Spy in the City contest. But that was for a GPS tour of the city in a hunt, not something inside the museum

96. Go to the Zoo (see new Asia section & new panda before he’s gone)- 10/05/08
I'm glad I got to see him before he left for China

97. Go to Mount Vernon to see the new museum/exhibits/theaters- 03/07/10
I wish I'd known to watch the full intro movie. But apart from that, I had an excellent time with friends!

98. Visit a lighthouse- 10/31/09
I didn't get to go inside, but I did see one :-)

99. See the Washington Capitals practice at their new facility- 01/02/09
I love Kettler. My boys have such a nice home now (and so much closer to where I am, too). I really want to take my mother there soon.

100. Keep a separate 101 LiveJournal- 06/13/07
You're looking at it!

101. Start a new 101 list when I’m down to my last few things to do- 03/10/10
I've got a new list. I'll post it next! Wish me luck!

Current Mood: accomplished

62. Decide what big thing to build out of LEGOs and begin planning

Well, there's good and bad to this thing.

Good: After several years of thinking, I finally decided what I really want to build and take to a convention.

Also good: I started planning it out: I made a list of parts I needed, even bought a few sets online that contained pieces I need for it. I searched BrickLink for parts and possibilities. I even took out every single Lego I own, re-sorted them in order to take a mental inventory.

Also also good: I bought some small bins at Walmart on the way home today (99 cents each- and thank you, Virginia's tax free weekend!). Now I have a shoebox-size box of just castle pieces, a box of castle minifigs and horses, 4 bins for four different colors (white, blue, red, and yellow), and my original 4 boxes of everything else divided up by type and color. I cleared off a whole shelf in my video cabinet just for Legos, and I'm thinking I might try to clear off another when I start building... because all the sets won't fit in their boxes as-is on the shelves. Oh, and I got an expanding file holder thing and divided instructions and images cut from the boxes into sections in the file (castle, house/town, pirates, Star Wars, Harry Potter).

Bad: For the first time in, like, 7 years, BrickFest is NOT being held here! They're only doing the Portland one. And though I would love to go to Portland to show my Legos, that happened in April so unless I can build a time machine with my Legos, I'm out of luck.

ARG! Wouldn't it figure that when I finally decide what to build and I get all excited and start planning/buying, there's no reason to build it? I mean, I could go ahead and slowly build it... but do I just keep it sitting around for a year or two? *sigh* Honestly, it will take me a while to assemble and build- especially as I've never built anything so massive... and I'd really like to start right away while the idea is fresh.

I don't want to post what it is at the moment. I double there's any risk of anyone reading this and copying, but you never know. I will, however, say that it's Harry Potter and it's pretty damn easy to guess from there, knowing me :-) The design I sketched out makes it look like a birthday cake... so it'll need some refining, I'm sure. And lots more blocks than I have. So we'll see. But the point is: I have decided and I have begun planning.

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101 Things in 1001 Days

the things never stop

Entries tagged with thing 62

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