Day 428 - Very Happy

Wow. What an Idiot I am. With (almost) total disregard for my list for 164 days, I have really put myself in a bind.

OK. Its 2010 and I have to get going on this. Fortunetly for me(and my New Fiance) I have completed one of the most important/special goals on the list. So without further ado(yes, that's right)...

#12 - Ask Jen to Marry Me - About 2 weeks before I talked to her Parents and got her fathers blessing and with some help from a family friend at Christo Jewelers in Clinton, I got the ring made and picked it up on the 23rd. Christmas Eve came and after a short walk and a game that Jen and I played when talking about our futures, there was a one-knee proposal and a very happy former girlfriend and new fiance. For all you jerks, She said Yes!



Number crunching is in process to see how far I set myself back...


"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"

Day 264 - Golfing and Caching

30.) Hit a 90 in 18 Holes of Golf

Golfing at Traditions w/ Motts.
2:15 PM Jul 27th from Twitterrific

Back Nine 55.... Got some work to do.
4:54 PM Jul 27th from Twitterrific

Notice how that is where the tweets stop... In my quest to shoot a 90 in Golf I was already 10 over the pace coming off the back 9 at Traditions. In my defense the back 9 is harder then the front, but there is just no way I`m going to go 10 under on the front 9 and as it turned out I did far worse. I carded a 114 on the day. NOT what I needed for the ego or a confidence boost, but I am trying and somebody a million years old said that counts for something. Anyway, I`m not doing the list to try so I`ll work on it and get it done.








#77 - Do 250 Geocaches: (61/250) now (66/250) - 26.4% Complete
Got to Jens` late last night and had nothing to do until she got out of school today so I looked up some caches and there happen to be 7 FTF`s in Brooklyn. A FTF is a first to find. That means it has never been founf by anybody else yet. I set out and actually got 2 of them. My first two FTF`s. I also got 3 others, but the cords were wrong on one of them and I couldnt locate another one... Good Times! We will probably do some more this weekend, so I`ll keep you up to date!


Traditions Golf Course has won the battle but I will win the war...

"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"

Day 259 - Key Lime Pie

Well I was getting bored last night and to be quite honest, worried that I wasn`t making any progress on my list, so Jen and I decided to make a pie. We choose Key Lime Pie, probably due to the fact that we were wishing we were on vacation in Ohio with everyone else and Key West was the last place we went. It was very quick and easy... could not make the meringue because we didn't have any Cream of Tartar, but next time I will be sure to whip that up...


#24 - Learn 50 New Recipes: (13/50) now (14/50) - 28% Complete
Oreo Truffles
Buffalo Chicken and Cheese Dip
Cheesy Potato Casserole
Grilled Vegetables in Caramelized Italian Dressing
Cheeseburger Chowder
Eclair Cake
Minestrone Soup
New and Improved - Turbo Inside Out Burgers
Italian Marinated Pork Chops with Perogies and Onions
IceBox Cake
Teriyaki Steak and Potato Croquettes
Mango Peach Salsa
Golden Grahams S'mores Treats
... Key Lime Pie



Recipes available upon request...

"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"

Day 242 - 101 in 1001 Progress Report

 

My buddy Brian did one of these posts and I liked it so I thought I would do my own, mostly for me but I think someone somewhere might like to see this too...

I am actually, for the first time, getting a little worried about the ambitiousness of my list, and yes that is a word. No seriously its actually in the dictionary.

Main Entry:am·bi·tious
Pronunciation:\am-ˈbi-shəs\
Function:adjective
Date:14th century
1 a: having or controlled by ambition b: having a desire to achieve a particular goal : aspiring
2: resulting from, characterized by, or showing ambition
— am·bi·tious·ly adverb
— am·bi·tious·ness noun

Legal: ambitious. (2009). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary.
Retrieved June 10, 2009, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ambitious


OK, OK, Sorry!!!

By the Numbers:

% Complete of 1001 Days - 23.76% (242 days)
% Days Remaining - 76.24% (759 days)

% of Goals Completed - 17.82% (18 Goals)
% of Goals and Goals that are OnTime - 24.75% (25 Goals)

WOW... That is crazy!!! At least to me it is... 26.76% of the Days Complete and I am actually more than 1% ahead of the game... To get to 25 I, obviously, added 7 goals that I mathmatically was OnTime for ...

These include:
72.) Read 50 Books (10/50)... Im almost done with 2 more!
71.) Vote in Every Election (1/1)
77.) Do 250 Geocaches (59/250)... I have to update on 4 more.
90.) Send 35 Letters to Friends (14/35)
100.) Make at least 5 Trips a Year to Visit Friends (4/5 Year 1)
24.) Learn 50 New Recipes (13/50)
36.) Go to 2 of 5 Best Parties in the World (1/2)


The problem with these numbers is that I picked off some of the easier ones in the beginning. I still need to Visit 6 Different Countries, Fend off Malaria, Increase the Oxygen Level for All of Mankind, Save Way To Much Money, Become The Hulk and Learn Mandarin Chinese... Should be a cake walk!!!!

But..
"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"

Day 229 - Beer Coaster Collection

#95 - Do Something with Coaster Collection - So I have collected a beer coaster for I would say about 80-90% of the bars that I have ever been to. I have coasters from Germany, France, Amsterdam, Key West, New Orleans, Hawaii and everywhere in between. I don't know how it started but everytime I walk into a bar I pick a couple up. Here are a couple of my favoites:


Kailua Kona, Hawaii

Key West, Florida

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Germany

Amsterdam

So getting to what I did: I was talking to my friend Pat and he was telling me how he was going through his old records and he sais he had them all on one wall. And the records just consumed the whole wall and he said it looked amazing. I told him that was an amazing idea and that I would be stealing it! I was cleaning and organizing the new diggs on Friday and I started the project. It took about 2hrs but it was def worth it. Some of them have fallen down already but I just replace the tape and stick them back up. Its pretty sweet I think. Come over and check it out for yourself.



I'll change the counter, cross it off the list and update the progress bar!

"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"

Day 224 - Night Caching / Ramen Noodles

#77 - Do 250 Geocaches: (59/250) now (61/250) - 24.4% Complete
Jordan, Teagan and I decided to do some night caching on Monday night. We left around 8:30 and after some research in the car for the right coordinates we made our way down the trail. Now I know what you are thinking... Not too smart! It actually wasn't that bad at this time and we found it after some searching. The not smart part came when we got greedy and went for another one that was further down the trail. Well it all worked out in the end. With the use of the flashlights on the iPhone and retracing our steps we found two caches in about 45 mins and we left the trail and got in the car a little after 9:15. It was pretty dark then, dark enough to use my high beams driving back... 2 caches closer!

So random thoughts:
Living on my own has really opened my eyes to how much things cost. I have also learned some things you might not think about regularly, or even at all. For instance...

#1 - In general, the more salt the product has in it, the cheaper it is... Example: Deli Cheese: $5.99/lb. Each-Slice-Individually-Wrapped-Cheese (yes that is the official name): 50% Higher Sodium 1.69/lb... same goes for cold cuts, chicken, and microwavable-meals.

#2 - I have also learned that the reason the cabinets and refrigerator are always stocked is because my mother went to the store often. Hint: Looking inside the refrigerator numerous times isn't going to make food appear.

#3 - How the hell is Ramen so cheap? I went to the A&P that's near me and I got a 6pack of Ramen for $1.69. That is 28cents a meal! Ill repeat that because it bears repeating... two dimes, a nickel and three pennies... 28cents a meal. This is crazy right? Well I got ripped off. You can get a 12pack of Ramen for $1.89 at Walmart. $1.89 or 15.7cents a meal. The packaging must cost more than that. The ink to write "Ramen" on the package must cost more than that! Its insane!



#4 - They don't make Value Brand Deodorant. Does not exist. I don't know why, seems to me with all this technology we could reverse engineer some of it and get it on the shelves. Shampoo, yep. Mouthwash, sure. They even make Value Brand Viagra, I have seen the commercials! Deodorant, no way!

#5 - With alot more extra time on my hands I have come to realize a couple of things. TV took up a large part of my life and I didn't even watch alot of TV(or so I thought). I can only read so much in a day. I only go to 5 websites. Well maybe its 10, but there is no reason to check my bank account daily. Why am I checking to make sure they took out the debit for the gas I bought? And finally, it has rained ALOT lately. Being outside has just not been an option!


Well that's it for now. Randomness has come to a conclusion...

"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH

Day 221 - Donate Blood

#40 - Donate 1 Gallon of Blood (8 Pints): (1/8) - For all you math majors out there there are 8 Pints in a gallon and so I will do the countdown and tallying with pints. Each donation has to be at least 56 days apart.=, so I figured I had to start on it so I didn`t run out fo time. The technician told me that each donation can help to save up to 3 lives, so that is awesome! I am glad I went.






Also working on:


#77 - Do 250 Geocaches: (47/250) now (59/250) - 23.2% Complete
Jen and I did another 6 caches including one of our biggest nemeses. It was dreary out but we still had a good time, like always. I did 6 by myself when Jen was at Merries` Bridal Shower. I have to catch up with the logging on geocachers but I will do that as soon as finish off this post.


In Other News:
I moved and got my own apartment in Old Lyme. I am excited about it and will be starting a new diet, and excerise program on Monday as a part of the New Place - New Erik thing I am working on... I need to cross off soem of the things on the top of the list so push ups, crunches/sit ups and running are all a part of the plan. I will keep you updated. Monday includes the first run of the 8weeks to a 5k as well. So it`s going to be a busy week but it has to happen. Enough is enough!

I will leave you as I always do:

"YOU CAN HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WANT IF YOU WANT IT BADLY ENOUGH"