I turn 28 today and the countdown to 30 is starting to tick.
It’s a little crazy sometimes, because I still feel awkward and gawky and 18. The mouthful of braces I’m currently sporting probably doesn’t help. But, then I look back at when I actually was 18 and realize that, yeah, things have changed quite a bit and I’m a real life actual grown-up, with bills and a career and a 401k and adult hobbies*.
*Mortgage and children not included
Anyway. I’ve been trying to get better about setting goals… and reaching them. For as long as I can remember, I had two life goals: 1. Be a journalist. 2. Live in Chicago. I accomplished the first at 22 and the second at 25. Now I’m 28. And, while I am beyond in love with my job/ company/ coworkers/ have no plans of leaving any time soon/ etc., the past three years have been filled with a lot of “OK… you did this. And you did it 20 years sooner than you thought you would. Now what?”
I sat down just before my 27th birthday and made a bucket list of 30 things I wanted to accomplish in the three years before I turned 30. I don’t think I ever posted it or published it anywhere, though, so I figured I’d share it now that I’m a year in.
So, the (updated) list of 30 things I’d like to accomplish by 30:
(Some affiliate links in here, heads up.)
Visit Paris.(I went on my 27th birthday in October of 2016!)- Take yoga teacher training.
Have a byline printed in the Chicago Tribune.(This happened earlier this year!)Own a Burberry trench coat.(I bought the Sandringham in London last year… no regrets!)- Go to a Detroit Lions game.
- Run a half marathon.
- Finish learning Spanish.
- Code a website build-out for a Tribune special project.
- Go hiking somewhere (mostly) off-grid.
- Spend a weekend in New York City.
- Take a wine tasting class.
Learn how to play chess.- Go to an ONA conference.
Own a KitchenAid mixer… and learn how to use it.(Christmas gift 2016… thank you Mom!)Own real luggage… and then travel with it.(Bought a real suitcase in early 2017!)- And, on that note, visit 10 new U.S. cities outside of Michigan and Illinois. (So far since turning 27, I’ve seen Nashville and Cincinnati/ northern Kentucky. I’m heading to Boulder/Denver next week, and other cities on my want-to-see-before-30 list include Boston, Portland, NOLA, San Francisco, Austin, Philadelphia and Anchorage!)
- Learn how to make latte art.
Open a 401(k) at the Tribune.(Did this in November of 2016… still procrastinating on transferring my old employer’s plan over, though.)- Learn how to play a song on the piano.
- Take a floral arrangement class.
- Get my teeth fixed. (Seriously… this one is a process. I’m halfway through a year of orthodontic treatment, and should hopefully have an implant in by next year!)
- Take a cooking class.
Take an architecture cruise of Chicago.(Did this one in August of 2017!)- Take a day trip to Starved Rock.
- Bike the entirety of the Chicago Lakefront Trail.
Name/ locate every single country on a map.(Successfully aced that Sporcle quiz in June of 2017! Now, on to world leaders!)- Own a pair of designer heels.
Join a book club.(I did this one two months ago!)- Find the perfect vegetarian chili recipe.
- Job shadow an overnight reporter at the Tribune.
Whew. Looking at this list now, I’m realizing that I was probably a liiittle too ambitious when I put it together a year or so ago. But, it’s not a competition, and nothing’s going to go horribly wrong if I don’t end up completing every single thing on this list.
Do you have a bucket list? What’s on it? Let me know in the comments!
(Oh, and PS: The confetti cupcake is from Sweet Mandy B’s! Yum.)
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Happy birthday, Randi! It really does hit you how close you are to 30 when you hit 28.
Starved Rock is so pretty, especially in the fall!