100 lifetime goals

The Northfield Public Schools use an 8th Grade arts, communication and English program called ACE to which a fourth of each day is dedicated. ACE includes a number of traditional projects such as designing cereal boxes, writing and illustrating children's books, reading "To Kill a Mockingbird," and gathering 100 life goals.

This evening I dug up my list. For your enjoyment, this is what I wanted from life at age ... 14? However old you are in the spring of 8th Grade. Perhaps in future posts I will add some! Or delete.

1. Speak French fluently
2. Live in England for about a year
3. Speak at least four languages fluently (May 2000 amendment specifies English, French, Italian and German)
4. Play a game of Bridge and win
5. Read the entire Bible many times, once every two years (so far isn't working out )
6. Be a servant of others
7. Visit Prince Edward Island
8. Visit France
9. Visit Russia
10. Visit Australia
11. Get married
12. Run five miles without stopping
13. Play a high school sport (oops, missed that one )
14. Play in a big, famous orchestera/symphony (does Sioux City Municipal Band count? :) )
15. Make All-State Band (decided not to audition. Maybe earning a music scholarship is close enough)
16. Be Valedictorian (my high school doesn't have valedictorians... and wouldn't have made it anyway)
17. Keep in touch with Liz (college student friend of our family at the time) for her or my entire life (don't know where she even lives)
18. Be a Junior Posse (tour guide) at Northfield Historical Society (done June '98)
19. Be the Junior Curator coordinator my sophomore summer (summer assistant to the museum director) (done June '99)
20. To have two dogs named Monsieur Bob and Pete
21. See an Agatha Christie play in London
22. Not hate anyone
23. Have a lead role in a big play
24. Not be self-centered (hm, scratch that one)
25. Learn more about World War II
26. Read "Les Miserables" in French and English
27. Spend more time with my dad (check)
28. Encourage others
29. Be a counselor at Big Sandy Camp (take that off the list)
30. Practice my clarinet more
31. Learn to drink coffee
32. Learn to play the piano well
33. Have obedient, un-spoilt children
34. Keep my bedroom clean (good thing my roommates aren't reading this)
35. Sponsor a child
36. Grow a garden successfully
37. Write a story I like and finish it ("story" needs to be clarified)
38. Go skiing
39. Give my children lots of opportunities and support their dreams (gag, gag)
40. Own a beanbag chair (check! Ha -- I just threw it away on Tuesday)
41. Play more tennis
42. Not snitch chocolate chips (what a waste of space)
43. Not live in a nursing home
44. Use a pair of crutches
45. Make a pot of chocolate frosting and eat it with a spoon
46. Never go on a cruise
47. Be more decisive at Molly's (She and I would always defer to each other's wishes)
48. Always keep in touch with friends
49. Go on the Corkscrew (Valleyfair rollercoaster) (check)
50. Keep Doggie Bear and give him to my oldest child
51. Have a big trampoline
52. Meet someone who writes fortunes for fortune cookies
53. Never make my children eat beets
54. Never taste a brussels sprout
55. Find out how they get the Ms on M&Ms
56. Witness more
57. Stay in shape
58. Send Lucy around the world and collect culture letters (don't even ask)
59. Build an igloo
60. Collect friendship bracelets from different countries (lol)
61. Spend times at the Minnesota Historical Society archives (I don't remember doing it but I have it checked off)
62. Sing a solo
63. Go hiking in the Appalachians
64. Be a foster parent
65. Find out how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop
66. Smile more
67. Watch "Schindler's List" (check)
68. Use chopsticks correctly (semi-check)
69. Have a porch swing at my home!
70. Have grandchildren who call me Nana (maybe not)
71. Learn ballroom dancing (One of the Willems tried to teach me to waltz ... I didn't really catch on.)
72. Build a house of cards, 4+ stories
73. Memorize verses
74. Never have very short hair
75. Not send my kids to daycare
76. Remember how to perform CPR
77. Not procrastinate so much (ha...ha...ha ha)
78. Go to college (check check!)
79. Buy people flowers (check)
80. Not take drugs/smoke/drink at all (the last might need some amending)
81. Be in the Light (score for DC Talk)
82. See a live dolphin (I think I already had when I wrote this)
83. Not own a firearm
84. Not leave others out
85. Not feel sorry for myself (oops)
86. Go to Disneyworld (check)
87. Go to the Boundary Waters
88. Get a 4.0 for at least a quarter (check)
89. Fly a kite successfully
90. Go in a hot air balloon
91. Build a snowman every winter (not always working)
92. Be more organized
93. Not climb a mountain (what kind of goal is that?)
94. Never hit an animal with my car (strike)
95. Never live in a place with overgrown grass if I can help it (what?)
96. Keep track of calculators (those pesky pricy graphing ones... but I did it!)
97. Don't put people down
98. Not be crabby
99. Get into Advanced English for at least part of a year (checks from then on after that one semester)
100. Never get over busy if I can help it (ha)