FB’s personal list of 25 things she’d love to do


1. Chop like a professional chef

You know what I’m talking about. With their bent knuckles and insanely fast chopping skills…. *envious*

*runs out to buy celery to practice*

2. Speak French

I’m workin’ on it!! But I still need time to absorb and start using French to translate what I’m saying in English in my head… But I’m embarassed to use it around real Frenchmen and Frenchwomen…

Accomplished: January 2010

4. Read all the books in my must-read pile

I only have about 4 or 5 in there, but I just haven’t sat down with it and really powered through them. I usually reach for my Anne Bishop or Sophie Kinsella…

Accomplished: January 2010

5. Use up and pare down my bathroom products even further

I could probably get rid of my B&B defrizz silicone liquid, or a bunch of other things, but it’s hard to pick and choose!

Update: Shampoo (Physique Conditioning Shampoo). That’s all I use on my hair now.

6. Clear my debt completely

I totally forgot about this one.
Soft goal date: Mar 2009.
Hard goal date: Dec 2009.

Accomplished: October 2007

7. Organize my photo albums

I have a ton of pictures.. I should either scan them in and/or organize what I have and toss the duplicates, as well as arrange them in the pretty silk-covered photo albums I bought specially for my VERY important photos.

Accomplished: March 2009

8. Learn how to stop criticizing myself

I’m really quite self-conscious at times. I want to just let go, and belt out a song in the middle of my office one day…

Update: Done! LOL

9. Become a better billards (pool) player

I really, really love the game. I’m just not very good at my angles and estimating where the ball will go and why.. but all that takes is practice.

10. Become more flexible

I’m going to get back into stretching every day and I’ll feel flexible enough when I can do the splits both ways (legs in front and side-by-side) 🙂

11. Learn how to censor myself

Sometimes I’ll just say whatever’s on my mind without thinking about who’s hearing it or is around me. That’s a really bad habit of mine, and I’m trying to be more quiet and reserved rather than such an open book.

Update: MUCH better at this. 🙂

12. Go scubadiving in a gorgeous coral reef

.. but only if it won’t disturb the sea animals and their habitat!!

13. Eat healthier

I really want to be careful about what I eat, but sometimes when chocolate is right in front of you, you just can’t help it.

Update: I bring my lunch every day as of Jan 2008, haven’t had (much) chocolate, and no fast food whatsoever.

14. Learn how to make my mom’s recipes

She made me all of these beautiful handwritten recipes in about 10 binders with pictures and photographs (I wish I wasn’t such a brat and had helped her type them out and/or organize them), but I haven’t even practiced many of them except for Chicken Pot Pie..

15. Learn how to play a Rachmaninoff Prelude on the piano

I can play the piano.. but I’ve never gotten a hold of a Rachmaninoff Prelude to play and practice.

16. Play J.S. Bach’s Double Violin Concerto on the violin

Again.. I have the music, I just haven’t touched my violin in a year or so (too hard to travel with it). I’d like to learn the First Violin and Second Violin parts.

17. To be able to chill out on a grassy knoll and relax

I mean completely relax. Nothing to do, nothing to see, no one to talk to, just staring up at the fluffy clouds and thinking about life.

Accomplished: October 21st 2007 😀

18. Learn how to sew

I have the sewing machine.. again, too hard to travel with one.

Update: Umm.. don’t have a machine any longer.

19. Start a garden

Need a house first, but I’ll be growing delicious herbs to start!

20. Get back into designing and playing with graphic images

Those hours were probably the happiest of my life. In fact, I may do one right after this list.

21. Apologize to my exes

I’m sure I wronged a lot of them. I’d like to see them today and bury the hatchets, so to speak… And to really tell them why I broke up with them and/or hear why they broke up with me.

Accomplished: August 2010

22. Start a scholarship fund

This is when I’m older. I’d like to do something like give $5000 to a deserving student each year, to reciprocate for all of the scholarships I was given as a student.

23. Start a non-profit organization teaching personal finance

Once I settle in a city, any city, I’d love to either hold night classes, and/or individually help people learn how to budget, organize their finances, and pay down their debt.

24. Read the newspaper back to back everyday

I think I’ll start doing this on Monday.

Accomplished: November 5th 2007 for a week in a row, and going.

25. Improve my handwriting

I’m such a typer… I haven’t handwritten anything long in ages. It’s also because I’m embarassed about how awful my writing is.

So bloggers and readers, what are the 25 things you’d like to do?

About the Author

Just a girl trying to find a balance between being a Shopaholic and a Saver. I cleared $60,000 in 18 months earning $65,000 gross/year. Now I am self-employed, and you can read more about my story here, or visit my other blog: The Everyday Minimalist.