So Long

And by so long I don't mean goodbye, even though you might wish that after reading this.

I mean...this post is going to be SO LONG.

But, my dear friend Maria sent this to me and asked me to blog it, not that I ever take blogging requests, but I like her and she thinks exercising always needs to be followed by lunch out, so simply for that reason, she is my friend.  

And keeping with the lonnnng  theme...that last sentence was really long, wasn't it?

=0)

A long time ago (aha!) I did something similar  for my 100th post, way back when I only had 100 posts.  So, consider this in honor of my 400th and something post.

The idea is to bold the things you have done.  Oh, and there are 200 of them.  200.  Feel free to yawn.

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars (on the beach, in a sleeping bag)
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper (let's see...have I?)
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain 
9. Held a tarantula 
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped 
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise 
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game (mother of sons, thankyouverymuch)
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping (when I was younger, thinner, braver)
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar 
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run 
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day 
51. Gone scuba diving 
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class (does Tae Bo count?)
59. Been in a movie
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job (not really fired, but let go after Christmas.)
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing (from Berlin to Prague in a storm...after traveling for 20 some hours with 3 young kids, one of whom was still nursing.  BUT...this does remind me of my friend Kathy, who boarded a flight...in Italy, I think...fell promptly asleep and woke up thinking it was the quietest, smoothest flight ever.  Took her awhile to realize the plane had yet to leave the tarmac!  Funniest thing I EVER heard!)
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi (I want to like it, but I don't)
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover (I have read Genesis alot, because I always start there)
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name (married)
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch 
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language (lived for 7 years in international family housing)
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream (daily)
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you (just last week sold the necklace I made and was wearing to a woman I was sitting next to at the Dr.)
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair (probably the only woman in OC who dyes her hair brown)
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four paws
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe.
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway (or equivalent to your country) play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird (ok...I didn't think of the right kind of bird.  I have never shot a real live bird, but sadly, I've been known to shoot the bird, if you know what I mean)
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in a historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage (6th grade...The Girl who Couldn't Cry.)
131. Asked for a raise (I ask my husband for one all the time...he always just smiles.  Hmmm)
132. Made a hole-in-one 
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Ran a marathon (ok...I did run a 5K once and I didn't come in last, but I did come in 2nd to last.  It's fine, I did beat the 92 yr old man AND the guy with no legs.  For reals.)

136. Learned to surf (and it was lovely to watch, too)
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class (sadly, yes)
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo 
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment (not well)
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David (big hands)
147. Had your portrait painted (at Disneyland)
148. Written a fan letter (Shawn Cassidy.  dreamy)
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss (I wasn't very good at it)
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight (daily.  It's on my drivers license)
156. Gone on a diet (and I do every time the 1st falls on a Monday)
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunch box
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera (have I told you my Vienna opera story?)
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a camp fire
189. Kept a blog (shocker!!!)
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Written a letter to the Editor of a major newspaper