Life List (HopefulLeigh)

After the grand fun of working on 31 Things Before Turning 31, followed by 32 Things Before Turning 32, I decided it was time to focus on dreams large and small with no specific deadline. I've been drawn to the idea of a Life List for awhile. It's fun perusing other people's Life Lists. You learn a lot about them, for one thing. But it can also inspire a few dreams you never knew you had before.

At the heart of all of this is the hope that God would use my life for His glory and that I will each day become more and more the woman He's created me to be.

Places to Go

Drink champagne in Champagne, France
Visit the rest of the United States: Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky (4/12), Maryland, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, Hew Mexico, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania (10/12), Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas (11/12), Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming
Attend a White Sox spring training game
Go to a World Series game, preferably with the White Sox
Visit 5 other MLB baseball stadiums
Go on a Mediterranean cruise
Have a drink at the Signature Room
Eat at The Girl and The Goat, or whichever restaurant chef Stephanie Izard is currently connected to
Go on a mission trip
Visit Martha's Vineyard as the locals do (with Heatherly)
Hike part of the Grand Canyon again
Make a wish at Trevi Fountain in Rome
Visit these National Parks: Acadia (Maine), Badlands (South Dakota), Big Bend (Texas), Bryce Canyon (Utah), Carlsbad Caverns (New Mexico), Crater Lake (Oregon), Everglades (Florida), Glacier (Montana), Grand Teton (Wyoming), Joshua Tree (California), Redwood (California), Yellowstone (Wyoming/Montana/Idaho), Yosemite (California)
Tour the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam
Retrace Christ's steps in Israel
Get a taste of Jane Austen in England- and don't forget high tea
Go back to Thailand, this time for Loy Krathong (sky lantern festival) and riding an elephant
Go wine tasting in Napa
Eat at The French Laundry
Visit 5 local wineries
Say a prayer at a concentration camp in Germany or Austria
See the rest of Ireland...ideally visit this beloved country every few years
Finally visit the source for my 6th grade country report: Switzerland
Go to Africa
Dine at all of the Nashville Originals restaurants (Still need to eat at: 417 Union, 55 South, Bound'ry, Chago's Cantina, Copper Kettle (2/16/12), Cork & Cow, Cross Corner Bar & Grill, Crow's Nest, F. Scott's Restaurant & Jazz Bar, Flyte, Germantown Cafe, Holland House, Jimmy Kelly's, The Listening Room Cafe (1/20/12), MAFIAoZA's (3/23/13), McCabe Pub, Midtown Cafe, Nero's Grill, The Pineapple Room at Cheekwood, Red Pony, Saffire Restaurant and Bar, South Street, Suzy Wong's House of Yum (1/12/12), Table 3, Tin Angel (5/15/12), Valentino's Italian Ristorante, Watermark Restaurant, Wild Iris, Yellow Porch)
Find a place where "everybody knows your name"
Cross the border, Canada-style
Wear a fabulous hat and sip on a mint julep at the Kentucky Derby
See a Bollywood film while in India
Hike or bike El Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James) in Spain, a well-known spiritual pilgrimage
See a Broadway show in NYC
Drive down the Natchez Trace in the fall. Preferably on a motorcycle. With a cute guy.
Attend a puppet show at the downtown Nashville Library's children's theater
Stand on the downtown pedestrian bridge while the sun sets

People to See

Meet Ozzie Guillen, Jermaine Dye, Aaron Rowand, or any member of the 2005 World Series champion White Sox team
Spend time in the PA version of Gilmore Girl's Stars Hollow with Suzannah of So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter
Face to face writing talk and accountability with Annie of Six Ring Circus
Determine who is more obsessed with their team by going to a White vs. Red Sox game with Heatherly (GO WHITE SOX!)
Meet the following blog/Twitter friends (not an exhaustive list): Alise of Alise Write (4/29/12), Anne of Modern Mrs. Darcy (2/24/12), Caleb of Confessions of a Funeral Director, Ed Cyzewski, Elora Nicole (11/1/12), Jen of This Gal's Journey, Jennifer Luitwieler, Jen of The Blah, Blah, Blahger (9/14/12), Jessica of Meet the Buttrams (3/31/12), Katie of Cakes, Tea, and Dreams, Kim of New Life Christian Fellowship (1/16/12), Katie of Texas North, Kristin Herdy, Kristin of Halfway to Normal (4/26/12), Laura of Hollywood Housewife (2/24/12), Leanne of Ironic Mom, Lore Ferguson, Marla Taviano, Megan of SortaCrunchy (2/24/12), Natalie Lloyd, Renee of A Quiet Anthem, Sarah Bessey (9/14/12), Shawn Smucker (3/31/12) , Tamara of Tamara Out Loud (3/31/12), Tony & Katie Alicea
Annual Girls Weekend with Tracy and Erin
Gate 5 Gang reunion
Host a college friend reunion weekend
Be the best auntie possible for my nieces-in-love (and any future nephews-in-love)
Visit my cousins Clara and Emily in San Francisco
Go on at least one more trip with Jill. Bonus points if people 1) ask if we're related 2) proclaim their drunken love for us 3) BRENDAN.
Mentor someone(s)
Visit Karin in Austin (11/12)
Meet up with Kibibi now that we're both in the South
Visit Linda in Seattle
Thank Francis Chan for the impact Crazy Love had on my life
See a celebrity other than American Idol contestants while at Whole Foods (Kelly Osbourne at Musicians Corner)
Shake hands with the president of the United States, current or former
Attend a talk/lecture given by Anne Lamott
Go to the park with Amanda and her kids. It doesn't even matter which park. (8/11/12)

Things to Do

Attend a writing conference
Publish my first novel
Write books as my full-time job
Win an award for my writing
Marry a man who loves me for the woman I am and loves God even more
Be known for at least one amazing annual party
Host a monthly dinner for whomever is around
Have the sort of home that friends, family, and neighbors know they are always welcome to stop by and sit a spell
Plant a big vegetable and herb garden
Buy a CSA share (summer of 2012)
Volunteer
Get my well-worn copy of A Prayer for Owen Meany autographed
Run a 5k, crazy though it may seem
Try sushi
Read books by the following classic Christian authors: Schaeffer, Bonhoeffer, Nouwen, Chesterton, Buechner, Manning
Read everything by Madeline L'engle that I haven't already read: An Acceptable Time, And Both Were Young, And It Was Good: Reflections on Beginnings, Anytime Prayers, The Arm of the Starfish, Bright Evening Star, Camilla, Certain Women, A Circle of Quiet, Dance in the Desert, Dragons in the Waters, Friends for the Journey – with Luci Shaw, A Full House, Glimpses of Grace – with Carole Chase, The Glorious Impossible, A House Like a Lotus, Ilsa, The Irrational Season, The Joys of Love, Ladder of Angels, Lines Scribbled on an Envelope and Other Poems, A Live Coal in the Sea, The Love Letters, Madeleine L’Engle Herself: Reflections on a Writing Life – with Carole Chase, Meet the Austins, Miracle on 10^th Street, The Moon By Night, The Ordering of Love: The New and Collected Poems of Madeleine L’Engle, The Other Dog, The Other Side of the Sun, The Risk of Birth, The Rock That is Higher, A Severed Wasp, The Small Rain, Sold Into Egypt: Joseph’s Journey into Human Being, The Sphinx at Dawn, A Stone for a Pillow: Journeys with Jacob, The Summer of the Great Grandmother, Troubling a Star, The Twenty-Four Days Before Christmas, Two-Part Invention, Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art, The Weather of the Heart, A Winter’s Love, Wintersong – with Luci Shaw, The Young Unicorns

Read all of the books that I own but haven't quite read yet
See how many books I can read in one week
Pay off my student loan
Laser hair removal
Continue recording the family tree
Live in a house with a window seat
Have a guest room for visitors/missionaries/friends needing a place to crash for awhile
Figure out a Lifestyle Cap
Buy a house
Find favorite ethnic food restaurants in Nashville, especially Thai and Indian
Sample every flavor at Jeni's Ice Cream
Establish local medical care, instead of staying outsourced in Illinois
Attend a Bluegrass Underground show
Horseback riding lesson, for real this time
Make sausage (Grandpa's famous recipe) with my cousins- something our family hasn't done the last 5 or 6 years.
Perfect my own fried pickle recipe
Attend a tea tasting or a class about tea
Surprise someone in a big way
Own something Chanel
Redesign HopefulLeigh
Go on a spiritual retreat of sorts
Attend Taize services at least a few times a year
Rescue a dog or cat from an animal shelter
Serve on a Sunday morning at the Downtown Presbyterian Church's weekly homeless breakfast, then ask for a tour of the sanctuary
Take the elevator to the top floor of the Batman Building