A New Project: 25 before 25

This blog is meant to serve many purposes and now it's time for me to start my very first blog project, and this will be the place where I will share my successes (and even failures) during this project. I have created a "25 before 25" list that I have been creating and thinking about for the past month. In part, I was inspired by my sister's 30b430 Project on her blog but now that I am a recent college graduate, I want to start thinking about myself more (in a non selfish way!) and doing more things for myself that will make me feel happy and accomplished. These are 25 things that I would really like to try and complete over the next couple of years. Some of the goals are small and could be completed tomorrow if I really wanted to, but they are things that I have always wanted to do. Other goals are a lot bigger and will involve a lot of planning or may not even happen in the next couple of years (due to financial reasons). But why not dream BIG.

So now it all begins... Here is an intro to the next 25 future blog posts that will occur over the next couple years of celebrating myself and what someone can accomplish when they put their mind to it :)

1. Go on a road trip.
This is something that I have always wanted to do. And I'm not talking just a road trip up to the U.P. here, folks. I would love to road trip out to the west coast and camp along the way. Road tripping is the best way to see all of the wonderful sights around you, in my opinion.

2. Visit family in the Philippines.
This is another thing that I've always wanted to do, but money always gets in the way. This is a trip that I would love to take with my mom and sister's and be able to meet that side of the family. I would at least like to have a ticket booked in the next couple of years.

3. Learn how to can and make my own jam or something...
I have an obsession with ball jars, and why not put that obsession to use by learning how to can and making my own jam or tomato sauce. Jon's dad grows his own raspberries, so maybe I can take advantage of that sometime this summer and make it happen.

4. Live in another state.
This is something that may or may not happen, but with the way my job search is going I could possibly get a teaching job in another state. I love Michigan but I would like to experience another surrounding.

5. Get engaged.
By the time that I turn 25, Jon and I will have been together for 7 years. That's pretty crazy to think about. He is pretty much the love of my life (LOML) and someone I couldn't imagine my life without. Getting cheesy over here, but hopefully you catch my drift.

I feel like this was just yesterday when we were awkward little 17 year olds. 

6. Get my first teaching job.
This is something that I really want and hopefully it will be something that I can achieve within the next couple months. I didn't just work my butt off for these past 5 years to not be able to start my career!

7. Start a master's program
I know I just graduated with my bachelor's degree, but it's never too early to start thinking about what I can do next to further my education. Maybe even find a teaching job that would help pay for my master's? We'll see.

8. Learn how to play a song on my ukulele.
For my birthday, my roommate at the time and Jon went in on a gift together and bought me my very own ukulele. Mind you, I was going through a mild obsession with Zooey Deschanel (and the band She & Him) and I really wanted to be super cool and play the ukulele. I'm lucky to have a musical background, now I just need to put it to use.

9. Travel abroad.
The whole meaning behind this blog when I first started it was to follow me along as I did my student teaching in Germany. If you have followed along with this blog or know me personally, you know that the trip didn't work out and I finished up my first part of my student teaching locally. At this point, it doesn't matter what I'm going there for or how I get there, I just want it to happen.

10. Fly a kite!
This must be a joke, right? During my whole 22 years on this earth, I have never flown a kite. I can't believe it myself. I actually have two kites sitting in the trunk of my car, but haven't put them to use.

11. Camp out on a beach.
I live in a pretty beautiful state and am lucky to have some pretty great beaches not too far away from me. It would be ideal to just camp out on a beach right next to Lake Michigan or another one of our beautiful great lakes. Anybody know a perfect spot where I can do this?

12. Start running again/Run a 5k or marathon.
I started actually running for the first time last summer and it sadly only lasted for a few months. It was something that I really enjoyed doing, once it didn't kill me to run for 2 minutes straight! I did run a 5k last summer but it was more of a fun one than a serious one (The Color Run). It would also be ideal to build up my running stamina and be able to at least run a 10k or even a half marathon.

13. Get another tattoo.
I got my first tattoo back in November and ever since then I have been wanting to get another one. I have been looking and planning for this too and making sure that I find one that I am absolutely in love with, has some sort of meaning, and I won't regret in a few years.

14. Save money/Pay off debt.
Before all of my travel goals, this is something that I would like to accomplish first. I made it through my entire college career off of student loans, so I am sadly in a lot of debt from that. I'm also the worst at saving money, so that is something that I need to work on and improve.

15. Go on a self-led Michigan breweries tour.
I live in a pretty awesome city that supports craft beer. I would love to travel around Michigan to some of these breweries and just sip on some tasty beers.

16. Go on an awesome hiking trip.

I went on a pretty awesome hiking trip a few years ago up in Pictured Rocks. I haven't been able to experience anything like that since that trip. If I am able to make my road-trip goal happen, this is something that can accompany it. Maybe a good ole' hike in the mountains? 

17. Learn how to knit/make my own scarf.

This is something that I have wanted to do since high school. I tried learning but just never took the time to take it seriously. Homemade items hold so much more meaning than just a regular scarf you can buy from the store. I would love to make my own scarf to keep myself warm during the cold winter months in Michigan.

18. Go to Disney World.

Yes, I have never been to Disney World. We never took any big family trips while we were growing up so I sadly missed out on this experience as a child. The only reason I would mainly go now, as an adult, would be to go to Harry Potter Theme Park. 

19. Eat clean for a month.

This goal can be completed if I can set aside my love for sweet treats and the occasional beer. 

20. Go WWOOFing.

I believe that I have previously mentioned this organization before but it stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. If I am unable to find a teaching job for the fall, this is something that I would like to take a couple months doing. This is also something that I would also love to do during the summer months.

21. Do more random acts of kindness.

This can be a variety of things. While I am spending the next couple of years focusing on things that make me happy, I also want to spend some time making other people around me happy. 

22. Bike to South Haven and back.

I would love to ride the Kal Haven Trail out to South Haven, camp there, and then ride back. Just to say that I have done it would feel pretty amazing. 

23. Purge on a lot and live minimally.

As I look around my apartment, I feel overwhelmed by the amount of stuff that I have in my possession. I am unfortunately cursed with an impulse to buy things that I don't need but just look cute or I have spent a lot of time convincing myself that I need it. Moving is a pain due to the amount of things that I own. I would love to be able to just pack up in a few hours and not feel so overwhelmed.

24. Lose the weight I have always wanted to.

This is something that I have been working on for a while. I will lose weight and then gain it back. I don't want to lose it just so I can be skinny, I want to lose it so I can just feel better in general. Carrying around unnecessary extra weight isn't doing wonders for my body.

25. Attend a music festival.

I would love to attend a music festival, like Bonnaroo, Coachella, or Lollapalooza. So many of my favorite bands play at festivals like these, so it would just be awesome to experience some good music all in one place. 

The Summer of Concerts.

This summer may have only just started but it has been off to a great start. For the past three weeks I have had the pleasure of going to a concert (or two) each week. All of these concerts were ones that I was extremely giddy about upon finding that they were even playing near me. I'm also lucky to have a boyfriend who is down to go to all of these concerts with me (even though he doesn't share my extreme excitement about them!) Can I also add that every single one of these shows was sold out?! Heck yeah.

The line-up goes like this:

1. June 10th: The Postal Service 

2. June 17th: Lord Huron

3. June 18th: Lord Huron (Round 2)

4. June 24th: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes

This is probably the last time that The Postal Service will tour together and it's been a middle school dream of mine to see them live. I will always be blown away by Ben Gibbard and his ability to put on an amazing show, no matter who he is performing with.

I wouldn't have heard about Lord Huron without my sister suggesting them to me on Spotify, but they have grown to be my absolute favorite band as of lately. You also may be asking yourself why I saw them two days in a row. Good question! Let's just leave it to the fact that I am an extremely dedicated fan. The show was also in Grand Rapids, so my sister and I were lucky enough to feast upon some Yesterdog after the show.

No offense to the show in Grand Rapids, but the show that LH put on in Lansing blew me away (and was way better) and just solidified the fact that this band is truly amazing. It also helped that I was right in front of the stage and tall people weren't ruining the experience for my short self. And I got to meet Ben, the lead singer. I mean, come on. If that smile on my face doesn't convince you that this show kind of changed my life, then I don't know what to tell you!

                                             

                                               

 Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes played a sold out show that is basically right down the street from my house. It is kind of amazing living so close to a concert venue. They make you feel so happy during the whole concert, despite being hot and sweaty, getting beer spilled on you, and having to be obnoxiously close to everyone around you. After the show, Alex even played a mini-concert in the alley. Can you say AMAZING! This band can do whatever they want and get away with it, I swear.

Now I'm on a concert hiatus, at least for a couple weeks until my next one in July. There is truly nothing better than a concert, full of live music from a few of your favorite bands during the summer time.

Ever since November...

The silence on the blog has been going on since November, and for very good reason. From November until April, I was working my butt off trying to finish my undergrad (and graduate!), working, and trying to keep sane during such a hectic time in my life. It all paid off and I am officially a college graduate!

It was also a special day because my oldest sister graduated with her master's and we were lucky enough to be in the same ceremony and have all of our family there to cheer us on! 

I felt so lucky to be surrounded by all of the people that I love and who continuously supported me during these past 5 crazy years.

Another thing to reflect on that has happened since November is an awesome trip that I took out to San Francisco with my mom and sister's. It is so beautiful out there and I look forward to our next opportunity to make a trip out there. We got the chance to finally meet my cousin Kate and also spend some much needed time with our Lola and Lolo. It was truly the happiest 5 days I've had in a while and it was a much deserved break. 

         

      

This trip was the best trip that I've had in a long time. It came at the right time, especially when I needed it the most. I needed a break from all of that school stuff, and this allowed me to just relax and have fun.  There was a lot of time bonding with my sisters (which is kind of rare these days), lots of good food, the best tarts I've ever had, walking all over San Fran to the point where my feet hated me, riding bikes across the Golden Gate Bridge (!!!), seeing my grandparents, cool alleys, and beautiful weather. 

There are other bits and pieces of things that have happened since November, but these are the ones that resonate the most with me. The summer has officially started and the weather is starting to heat up. I am busy looking for a real teaching job (which is a job all in itself) and trying to enjoy my summer as much as I can. A lot has happened so far and I plan on being more present in this whole blogging situation, so a few more updates are in store. I am also working on a sort of blog "project" which I am looking forward to sharing with you. 

I will leave you with a song by my favorite band. I had the pleasure of seeing them two nights in a row and was blown away by their presence and I am still unable to shake off the happiness of being able to see them and be in their presence. (More on this later...)