Saturday, May 12, 2007

101 in 1001 Days

The Mission: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 my part).

Why 1001 Days? Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as new year's resolutions. 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 or outdoor activities.

Some common goal setting tips:

1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.

2. Stay Focussed. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.

3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.

4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.

5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.



And of course, the list...

Stitching /Crafting

1. Pull an all nighter.
2. Finish a QS HAED design- finished 10/21/07, pic here.
3. Start and finish a full-sized HAED design. (in progress)
4. Start and finish another Teresa Wentzler.
5. Stitch Mirabilia's Santa's Magic. (in progress)
6. Frame the finished Santa's Magic so it may hang over the fireplace at Christmas.
7. Stitch and finish a stocking for Erich.
8. Stitch and finish a stocking for me.
9. Learn to make a biscornu- Finished 8/2/07, pic here and here!
10. Learn to make a flat fold.
11. Participate in a round robin.
12. Participate in a stitching exchange- DD exchange 5/15/07, pic here.
13. Attend a major needlework show.
14. Enter one of my stitched pieces in a competition.
15. Buy a sewing machine.
16. Learn how to use the sewing machine.
17. Dye my own fabric or floss once.
18. Finish Erich's afghan. (in progress)
19. Frame my finished Our Father piece for Erich's grandmother- Completed 5/09
20. Buy furniture for the craft room- Completed 8/08
21. Reorganize my stash- Completed Spring 2009
22. Organize my freebies (in progress)

Home

23. Paint main level- kitchen and living room.
24. Paint the dining room.
25. Paint the half bath.
26. Paint the computer room.
27. Buy nice bookcases and install in the living room- Completed 8/08
28. Fill the new bookcases with our book collection- Completed 8/08
29. Recarpet dining room.
30. Recarpet family room.
31. Paint the porch.
32. Buy a new vacuum- Bought a Dyson and we love it!!
33. Buy a carpet steamer/cleaner- completed 11/07
34. Buy living room furniture- completed 10/23/07
35. Buy patio furniture.
36. Buy a new refrigerator.
37. Buy a big freezer.
38. Reorganize the kitchen cabinets- Completed 6/09 to accomodate baby stuff
39. Set up the big aquarium again.
40. Paint and decorate the upstairs bathroom.
41. Paint and decorate the master bathroom.
42. Frame and hang family photos in somewhere in the house- Completed 8/08
43. Organize the basement storage room- Completed 9/07
44. Get shelves installed for storage under the basement stairs.
45. Plant bulbs in the front yard flower beds so I can have Spring flowers:)-Completed 11/18/07
46. Grow my own tomatoes or other veggies.

Travel

47. Stay overnight on Mackinac Island again- 9/08
48. Go camping at least once- Completed 7/08, going again 10/08
49. Go on a major cross-country road trip with Erich.
50. Go back to Las Vegas (planning in progress for 5/2010)
51. Attend a Nascar race somewhere other than Bristol. Brickyard 400 7/29/07
52. Attend a professional sporting event other than racing.
53. Go on a long weekend trip with Erich for our anniversary.
54. See the ocean- don't care which one. Completed 6/08- saw the Atlantic
55. Go on a cruise.
56. Go to Six Flags.
57. Go to a new amusement park with my parents and brother.
58. Visit my aunt and uncle when they move back to California.

Cooking

59. Learn to make a cheesecake from scratch.
60. Learn to make 3 new fish dishes. (in progress- made scallops with broccoli and mushrooms, parmesan and herb tilapia)
61. Make my own angel food cake.
62. Make my own bread from scratch.
63. Make spaghetti sauce and meat balls from scratch.
64. Buy new cookie sheets- SIL bought me some for Christmas 2007:)
65. Organize my "Recipes To Try" file.

For Me

66. Lose 5 lbs. Completed 6/26/07
67. Lose 10 lbs. Completed 4/08
68. Lose 20 lbs.
69. Lose 30 lbs.
70. Lose 40 lbs.
71. Start a yoga program once a week for at least 3 months.
72. Make another hair donation to Locks of Love. Completed 4/08
73. Find a new, shorter, easy-to-care-for hairstyle. Completed 4/08
74. Participate in Sunburst even if it's only the fun walk.
75. Have a spa day.
76. Have my wedding dress dry cleaned and preserved.

Family & Fun

77. Work with Leland so that we can leave him out of the crate when we leave home for a short time (2 hours or less).
78. Work with Leland so that we can leave him out of the crate when we leave home for a longer period of time or for work (6-8 hours).
79. Teach Leland to catch a frisbee. (in progress)
80. Teach Leland 5 fun tricks. (in progress)
81. Have a child-either through my own pregnancy or adoption, whatever works out. (in progress)
82. Have pictures done of my brother and me (and DH if I can talk him into it) for my parents.
83. Throw a big party for my parents' 30th anniversary.
84. Take my brother on an overnight trip somewhere fun over summer vacation.
85. Ride in a hot air balloon.
86. See another Cirque du Soleil show.
87. See a feature-length movie in IMAX.
88. Have the extended family over for a summer barbecue.
89. Have the extended family over for Christmas Day- Completed 12/25/2007
90. Host a cookie exchange at Christmas time.
91. Host a wine tasting party.
92. Have a picnic lunch with Erich in the park and spend the whole afternoon there.
93. Have dinner at a fancy, expensive restaurant with Erich and get whatever we want- Completed 1/6/08, we went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for my birthday.
94. Have an all day movie marathon with The Lord of the Rings films (extended edition of course!).
95. Read/listen to audiobooks of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
96. Find and purchase another collector's editon set of The Sixth Sense to replace the one that got lost- 7/5/09
97. Read the Dark Tower books by Stephen King.
98. Pick up the last Harry Potter book at a midnight release party with all the other crazies.
99. Buy a Wii so we can play the crazy sports game and Zelda, of course. Completed 7/07
100. Play all the way through the latest Zelda game- Twilight Princess.

And Finally...

101. Make another 101 list when this one ends and carry over the unfinished items.