Life List

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Many of the epic things I’ve done weren’t even on my life list to begin with. I’m so thankful to have had the experiences. Here’s the reverse bucket list!

This is a live life list / bucket list, continuously updated.

  • Be someone’s mentor (Big Brothers Big Sisters, 2011-2016)
  • Serve on an organization’s Board of Directors (Austin Food Blogger Alliance, 2019-)
  • Learn to read and write Chinese fluently
  • Fly a kite (2008)
  • TP a house (2008)
  • Register as an organ donor (2009) and bone marrow donor (2018)
  • Make homemade ice cream (Bourbon ice cream, 2012)
  • Make bread from scratch (Challah, September 2013)
  • Bake a pie (Kentucky Derby Pie, June 2011)
  • Make cookies from scratch (Chocolate chip cookies, 2009)
  • Do yoga (July 2010)
  • Donate blood (April 2009)
  • Vote (November 2010)
  • Throw a surprise party (2008)
  • Be an extra in a film or tv show (Friday Night Lights, April 2010, Season 5, Ep. 2)
  • Be a member of the audience in a TV talk show (Jimmy Kimmel Live!, March 13, 2014)
  • Raise a dog baby (adopted Kaira in November 2019)
  • Grow a garden (2021)
  • Get a professional massage (April 2010)
  • Knit a scarf (February 2009)
  • Take a cooking class (Thai, May 2011)
  • Go to a rodeo (March 2012)
  • Graduate from college
  • Ride a Ferris wheel at night (December 20, 2014)
  • Participate in a bake sale for charity (October 2011)
  • Volunteer on a farm (Urban Roots, September 2017)
  • Shoot fireworks (July 2015)
  • Bake a new cupcake recipe every month for a year (2011)
  • Go skydiving (March 2012 and 2015)
  • Go sailing (August 2013)
  • Ride a mechanical bull (March 2010)
  • Run a 5K (LIVESTRONG Challenge 5K, October 2009)
  • Run a 10K (Cap10k, April 2010)
  • Run a half-marathon (Decker Challenge, December 2012; I’ve run 9 total!)
  • Run a marathon (Austin Marathon, February 2020)
  • Go skiing (Winter Park, March 2007; Telluride – 2021, Alta – 2022)
  • Go snowboarding
  • Learn to surf (South Padre, July 2014)
  • Go to a major league football game (Dallas Cowboys, November 2015)
  • Go to a major league hockey game
  • Go to a major league soccer game (Austin FC, April 2023)
  • Go to a major league baseball game (Texas Rangers, May 2009)
  • Go to a major league basketball game (Dallas Mavericks, March 2009)
  • Go camping (McKinney Falls State Park, Fall 2007)
  • Go scuba diving (Certified! June 2015)
  • Scuba dive in 15 countries/places (10/15): U.S., Thailand, Honduras, Belize, Cayman Islands, Egypt, Bonaire, Indonesia, Costa Rica, Dominica
  • Scuba with manta rays (Indonesia, 2019 and Hawaii, 2021)
  • Swim with a whale shark
  • Go rock climbing
  • Go white water rafting
  • Shoot a gun (2009)
  • Ride in a hot air balloon
  • See a show at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre
  • See elephants (Thailand, 2016)
  • Eat at Blue Hill at Stone Barns
  • Sleep in a teepee ( April 2017)
  • Hike Zion National Park
  • Go to Loi Krathong in Thailand (November 2016)
  • See the Aurora Borealis
  • Go on a multi-state road trip (Dallas, Texas to Nashville, TN; 2008)
  • Go on a brewery tour (Live Oak Brewing in Austin, TX; March 2011)
  • Go on a winery tour (Spicewood Vineyards in Spicewood, TX; April 2010)
  • Tour a winery in Italy
  • Go to a drive-in movie theatre (October 2010)
  • Go on a fitness retreat
  • Stay in a five-star hotel (Bellagio, 2004)
  • Go on a cruise (Mexico, 2008)
  • See Machu Picchu
  • Live abroad for at least three months
  • Visit a castle in Europe (Spain, 2013)
  • Tour Norway
  • Visit all 7 continents: Antarctica, Africa, North America, South America, Asia, Australia, Europe
  • Ride a gondola in Italy (2000)
  • See a Broadway show in NYC (Anything Goes, August 2011)
  • Bike across the Golden Gate Bridge (November 2015)
  • Go on an African safari and see the big 5
  • Dine at a Michelin-starred restaurant (The French Laundry, October 2020)
  • Take a road trip in a camper van
  • Eat ramen and sushi in Japan (October 2023)
  • See the Statue of Liberty (August 2011)
  • See/Hike/Camp the Grand Canyon
  • Visit Niagara Falls
  • Walk The Great Wall of China (December 2009)
  • Marvel the Great Pyramids of Giza (October 2018)
  • Visit the Taj Mahal
  • Visit 50 countries (currently 18/50): See destinations here
  • Visit all 50 states (currently 28/50): Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming