The Robot King Will Achieve: 101in1001

I'm a sucker for lists and memes and organized systems, so yeah, I bought into this one.  I haven't posted lately because I've been trying to get this list done.  But I can't think of 101 tasks yet, so I'm going to post it to the public and start it today!

Start date: August 1, 2007
Last possible day to check off tasks: April 27, 2010
* = in progress
strike-through = completed

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.

 

1. Obtain 5th kyu rating.
2. Bike somewhere far away (overnight trip?).
3. Body fat below 30%.
4. Bike 50 miles at one time.
5. Get a pedicure.
6. Learn to perform basic maintenance tasks for my bike (change a flat, patch a tube, clean the chain, adjust the brakes).
7. Install fenders, pumps, lights, racks, etc. on my bikes.
8. Get a new saddle for my bike.
9. Be able to do 20 baby push-ups, no cheating, all the way down. (Achieved 8/27/08)
   
10. Be able to do the splits in at least one direction.
11. Be able to do 100 situps and 100 lower ab situps.
12. Get a tattoo.
13. Eat out no more than twice per week for 8 weeks (lunches included).
14. Go to the damn dentist already.
15. Try 50 local restaurants/stores I haven't tried before. (50/50)  
1. Common Roots  Yay beer!
2. Yummy Um, and wow.
3. True Thai YUM--but freaking slow
   
4. SoHo Cafe -- pretty good late night pizza
5. Red Sea Bar & Cafe  It was LAME.  The food was fine, but the atmosphere was pretty weak and the service wasn't very good either.  Plus it's near the U, which makes it a pain.
   
6. Atlas Grill  Excellent mojitos and eggplant appetizer
7. Cliquot Club Cafe  Pretty okay
   
8. Restaurant Miami  Good steak salad, painfully awkward atmosphere.
9. Salsa a la Salsa -- good banana dessert, fine food
10. Namaste Cafe -- Great chai.  Order the food a bit spicy.  Everything we had was so tasty!
11. Galactic Pizza   Yeigh for tasty hippie pizza delivered by superheroes!
12. Camdi  Yummy cheap Vietnamese.
13. Red Stag Supper Club I wholeheartedly love this place.  Classy, eco-friendly, and best of all--delicious.
14. Duran's Station (Albuquerque) Great tortillas!
15. Maria's (Santa Fe) Good food, atrocious service.
16. Breckenridge Brewery (Denver) Generic food, decent beer.
17. That random Celtic place in Denver next to Delaney's  Pretty okay
    
18. Jay's Cafe  Small and kind of cute, I think I prefer Signature
    
19. Red Dragon Not as toxic as you might expect!
20. Liquor Lyle's Not as toxic as you might expect, either.
21. Cafe Latte Eh.
22. Black Sea NOM NOM NOM
    
23. La Puerta Azul. Bad service, but the food is okay.  The beans are great!
24. Blue Mountain Stone Bead Co.  I totally got suckered into spending WAY too much money.
    
25. That crazy store that sold dragons Um, they sold dragons and gave me this CRAZY beaded Santa Claus wall hanging thing.
    
26. Mead's Department Store  100% pure awesome.  Cheap Chuck Taylors
27. Cat-man-do Eh
    
28. Boca Chica Eh
    
29. Shish  Tasty and TONS of food.
    
30. Dixie's
31. Open Book's Cafe
32. Global Village  White people can be seriously annoying
    
33. Hard Times Cafe  Super good fresh hashbrowns
    
34. Dubliner (no food?!)
    
35. Great Waters Brewery Pretty good beer, big and tasty dessert
    
36. Duplex over-priced and a little too pretentious
    
37. Italian Pie Shop eh
    
38. Birchwood Cafe  The muffin I had was good, but they skimped on the bike commuter breakfast!  C'mon we are HUNGRY!
    
39. Welna II Hardware Awesome
    
40. Z103 Bar and Grill (Fergus Falls)  You know you're in trouble when the guy who takes your order is confused by requesting green onions on a baked potato (chives seemed like a stretch)
    
41. Jazzy Fox (Fergus Falls) SO GOOD and so not at all frequented by the locals.  Lovely live piano playing and really good food.
    
42. Victor's 1959 Cafe
43. Lentil as Anything (Melbourne)
44. Rattle and Hum (Cairns)
45. Miss India (Brisbane)
46. Bough House (Yulara)
47. Amerikagar (Singaporean in Melbourne)
48. C.C. something (Melbourne, near Dancehouse)
49. Bakery near Trista's apartment (Brisbane)
50. Mango Jam (Port Douglas)
51. Garden Valley Family Restaurant and Cocktails (Mauston, WI)
    
52. Band Box Diner
53. Moscow on the Hill
54. Safari Restaurant
55. Ecopolitan
56. Taste of Thailand (Minneapolis)
57. Manana
58. La Brasa
59. Bulldog in NE
60. Heartland
61. Bombay to Deli
62. Amazing Thailand
63. Marla's Indian/Caribbean
64. Seward Cafe
65. Cliche
66. Calhoun Vacuum
67. Bobby Bead
68. Heartbreaker (is this even local?)
69. Little Szechuan Chinese Cuisine
70. JunBo Chinese
71. Christos
72. Little Tijuana
73. Bombay Bistro
74. Lucia's
75. Broder's Southside Pasta Bar
76. Town Talk Diner
77. Shiraz Fireroasted Cuisine
78. Steeple People
79. Tatters
80. Everyday People
81. Via's Vintage
82. Re-Cycle
83. A Baker's Wife
84. Hyderabad House
85. Cafe Levain
86. Barbette
87. 112 Eatery
88. Cosmos (dessert)
89. Sea Salt
90. Southtown
91. Ted Cook's 19th Hole BBQ
92. Scott Ja Mama's
93. Three Seasons
94. Peppermint Twist
16. Get 8 hours of sleep every night for three weeks.
17. Get 10 massages. (2/10)
1. at work
2. in Port Douglas with Trista
   
18. Keep my regular weekly log of weight/measurements/mileage for one year.
19. Sign up for one session of ballet
20. Sign up for one session of contact improv
21. Sign up for one strengthening/stretching class
22. Keep a record on fitday.com for 64 days in a row. (34/64 on Sep 30 2008)*
23. Enter and finish a bike race/large organized bike ride. Minneapolis Bike Tour, baby!
    

1. Read Weatherford's Genghis Khan book
2. Take a drawing class.
3. Take a language class*.
4. Actively pursue the study of Mongolian--weekly for 8 weeks, 1.5 hour study sessions.
5. Take a singing class.
6. Take a writing class.
7. Take a sewing class.
8. Get TEFL training.
9. Read 17 nonfiction books. (4/17)*
1. Siberian Dawn, Jeffrey Tayler
2. In A Sunburned Country, Bill Bryson
3. Cold Beer and Crocodiles, Roff Smith
4. All-New Square-Foot Gardening, Mel Bartholomew
5. Wild Mind, Natalie Goldberg
   
6. Freakonomics
7. Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson
8. A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson
9. A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson
10. God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, Christopher Hitchens
11. The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements
12. The Diary of Anais Nin, Anais Nin
13. How to Live Well without Owning a Car
14. Dharma Punx, Noah Levine
15. Brecht on Theater: The Development of an Aesthetic, Bertold Brecht
16. Rebels and Radicals
17. Martha Graham's autobiography
18. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
19. People's History of the United States, Howard Zinn
20. Do You Speak American?
21. The Art of War, Sun Tzu
22. Guns, Germs and Steel, Jared Diamond

Familial

1. Visit mom on her birthday.
2. Visit Trista on her birthday.
3. Call my parents and sister every week for 8 weeks in a row.
4. Call Grandma Wilma and Grandpa Claude and Grandma Betty every two weeks.
5. Ask Grandma Wilma to do an oral interview/oral history.
6. Ask Grandpa Claude and Grandma Betty to record an oral history.
7. Send 2008 New Year's cards to extended family, friends, and those I have lost touch with (0/infinity).
8. Contact 10 friends whom I have "lost touch with". (5/10)*
1. Holly!
2. Alex T.!
3. Natasha!
4. Kim
5. Brittany
   

Creative

1. Write two complete pieces. (1/2)*
1. S.C. Article
2. Complete 3 freelance design projects. (0/3)
1. Wendy's Project*
2. Cinema Rev project
3. Finish 3 knitting projects. (3/3)
1. Crocheted washcloth
2. Crocheted washcloth part deux (is this cheating?!)
3. Scarf
4. Rent a writer's studio for three months.
   
5. Organize and back up my photographs.
6. Submit a story for publication at least 10 times or until someone publishes it. (0/10)
7. Do Rosanne's Creative Process for 64 days straight (preferably more). (0/64)
8. Post in my vox/somewhere on the internet twice per week for a month.
9. Put a Mad King Thomas video on the internet.
10. Keep an illustrated journal for a month.
11. Write a poem a month. (7/33)*
1. just write a poem -- 08.7.25
2. empty my head -- 08.07.29
3. annie hall looks like my mom 2008.8.11
4. oatmeal 2008.08.28
5. nothing happens 2008.08.29
6. Every other night / at home on my dirty beige carpet 2008.09.02
7. I love AT&T 2008.09.11
   
12. Enter a photograph into a contest.  (This could also be fulfilled by going to a portfolio review at the MN Center for Photography.)
    

Material

1. Buy a computer.
2. Buy PhotoShop/similar product.
3. Don't purchase any new clothing or books or music for 3 months (used only).
4. Clean out my filing cabinet at home.
5. Practice one-thing-in-one-thing-out for two months.
6. Organize data on old computer.
7. Back up data on old computer.
8. Donate/recycle old computer.
9. Consolidate all music (CD/digital) on one computer.
10. Back up my data on work computer/Paul's computer.
11. Get curtains.  (And hang them.)
12. Decorate apartment with all those things I haven't put up. (Remaining items: Family photos, Rock On, Aussie stuff)
    
13. Get my paintings from Mongolia framed. (0/2)
14. Download, save, print all my old journal entries in some kind of archival format.*
15. Investigate buying a house*.
16. Empty out that box of mending and get it mended!
17. Get a library card for the Minneapolis Public Library. 
    

1. Go to Seattle.
2. Go to Chicago.
3. Go To Mexico.
4. Go to Boston.
5. Go to Canada.
6. Go camping (with a tent).  (Port Douglas, Uluru)
   
7. Travel to a new country. (Australia)
8. Travel outside of North America. (Australia)
   

1. Quit my job.
2. Get a new job.*
3. Pay off unconsolidated student loan debt.*
4. Save $1 per day. (1001/1001)
   

1. Go to MN Center beginner's zazen 7 times. (0/7)
2. Meditate 31 days in a row.
3. Play Devil's Horsemen.  And Genghis Khan on the NES
4. Make a list of 20 fiction books I've been wanting to read and finally read them.
1. Cryptonomicon, Neal Stephenson
   
2. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
   
3. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Robert Heinlein
   
4. Lord of the Flies
5. The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand
   
6. The Once and Future King *
   
7. Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
8. Naked Lunch, William Burroughs
   
9. Invitation to a Beheading
10. The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien
    
11. The Eye of the World, Robert Jordan
    
12. Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury
    
13. One Hundred Years of Solitude
14. Middlesex, Jeffrey Eugenides *
    
15. High Fidelity, Nick Hornby
    
16. Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley *
    
17. Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Dave Eggers
    
18. Love in the Time of Cholera
19. The Corrections, Johnathan Franzen
    
20. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Phillip K. Dick
21. Main Street, Sinclair Lewis
    
22. For Colored Girls..., Ntozake Shange
5. Read all the books I own but haven't read, or give them away.*
6. See 25 non-dance concerts. (19/25)
1. Balls Cabaret with MV
2. It's a Meaningless Life
3. Claude Wampler, PERFORMANCE (Career Ender)
4. The Crimes and Confessions of Kip Knutson, A Hockey Way of Knowledge, Deke Weaver
5. Rockstar Storytellers: Tore My Heart off my Sleeve 
6. Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles (Filk 'n Waffles!)
7. Global Harmony Chorus
8. ExerciseEXORCISE
9. Romeo Castellucci and the Societas whatever they were called, Hey Girl!
10. Bedlam Romp (February Bleeding Hearts)
    
11. Bedlam Romp (March Semi-Formal)
12. When We Look
    
13. Marc Bamuthi Joseph's the break(s)
14. Maximum Verbosity, Alice in Biffyland
15. Lady Day
16. Mila Vocal
17. All Rights Reserved: A Libertarian Rage
18. The Gypsy and the General
19. Derive 2
    
7. Go one day without speaking.
8. Attend an NFL game.
9. Go on a minimum three-day, Tara-only retreat.
10. Own a plant that I like.
11. Finish this effing list of 101 things to do. (101/101)
12. See The Man Who Fell to Earth.
13. For every incomplete task on the list at the end, donate $10 to kiva.org.
14. Make the next list of 101 things to do.
15. Make yogurt 6 times. (0/6)
16. Make ice cream 6 times. (1/6)*
1. Raspberry ice cream
   
17. Try six recipes from the Spicy Food Lover's Bible (6/6).
1. Peppered Croutons
2. Ginger curry pumpkin bisque
3. Dal curry (sweet Jay it was hot)
4. Broccoli Mustard Soup (wow, white pepper seriously smells like the giraffe house at the zoo)
5. Black Beans and White Rice and also Cuban Sofrito
6. Garlic ginger green beans
   
18. Donate blood.
19. Write 6 letters to congresspeople, newspapers, crappy stores, etc. when something goes wrong.  (5/6)
1. Requested funding for the 26th Ave N Greenway from Mayor RT Rybak.
2. Complained to United Airlines for Flight from Hell.
3. Wrote to Minneapolis Public Schools re: scary/mean busdriver.
4. Wrote to MetroTransit re: unreliable buses
5. Letter re: private family situation
   

Completed: 20

Suggestions?  Comments?  Ideas?

I'm gonna get crackin'!

Ideas for replacement goals:
Finish 5 craft projects that have been stymied/not started and sitting around 4evar.
Don't bring any new plastic bags into the house for three weeks.
Develop and practice 3 new recipes for food that I usually eat at restaurants or cook from a can/box/etc. (aloo gobi, spanish rice, x)