Remember the times in elementary school when we would celebrate the “100 days of school?”
If your school didn’t do that you were missing out. It was a time when school children and faculty and teachers and parents would come together and celebrate the monumentous number that is 100 and more importantly what the number 100 means. In relation to school, 100 meant that the year was almost over, so like any sensible educational system would do, a party would be held in order to recognize what an exciting number 100 is. I remember having to bring in 100 of some sort of small item, like Cheerios or M&M’s. I would count them out at home (ever so carefully) and my mom would double check my math (which was needed). Then we would go to school and do some super-fun activity with our 100-counts of an item.
To celebrate 100 once again, because this is my 100th post on WordPress, I decided to count out, or write out (I should say) 100 things that I want to do (in no particular order of importance). It’s not a bucket list because I don’t know if a) I will want these things to happen in the future or, b) if they will indeed end up happening.
Feel free to skip around, just know I slaved over this for you, and then number 100:
Madi’s List of 100 Things She May or May Not Do
1. Read all of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s books, short stories, etc.
2. Make fairy houses
3. Learn to not be grossed out by raw meat (touching, smelling, looking at)
4. Hold a piglet (again)
5. Buy a ceiling-high bookshelf and fill it with a lot of my favorite books, keeping them alphabetized and following the dewey decimal system
6. Get my license
7. Eat a whole pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in one sitting, and don’t give a darn in the world about it
8. Own three cats at one time
9. Name pets or potential car literary characters or novelists (Zelda, Hemingway, Theodore, Ophelia, Montresor, etc.)
10. Jump off of a high rock, swing, bridge (landing in water, preferably) and yell YOLO
11. Have a bigger closet
12. Complete a marathon, race, or something, all for a good cause
13. Help a chicken cross the road
14. Keep up a blog
15. Learn to forgive
16. Learn to forget
17. Learn to love
18. Marry a really cool guy who will most likely have a good job (or can at least cook and touch raw meat)
19. Cut down on saying “like” and “um” whenever possible
20. Pretend that books are dominos and knock them down
21. Have a lemonade stand for Alex (cancer)
22. Do some yoga
23. Ride a horse
24. Master Magic the Gathering and make everyone think I’m so cool
25. Beat my boyfriend at Mancala (seriously though, he wins everytime time)
26. Pull an all-nighter
27. See Lady Gaga in concert
28. Volunteer at a food pantry
29. Host a writing workshop for kids or young adults
30. Write a novel
31. Laugh at the fact that I think I can write a novel
32. Get a chocolate facial
33. Spend a whole day with my mom
34. Donate money every month to help homeless pets
35. Pet every cat I see
36. Strive for equality
37. Graduate college
38. Consider going for my masters
39. Think of all the people that wronged me, write a song about it, and get someone who can sing better than I can
40. Become Zumba certified
41. Learn how to cook a Thanksgiving dinner
42. (to go with 41) Cook for a big group of people (and don’t cry)
43. Ponder the idea that no one will read this post
44. Donate gently used clothing to help someone who needs it
45. Pay for someone’s groceries
46. Name a ficus fern (0:50)
47. Look for the bare (bear) necessities
48. Travel to Italy
49. Accept the fact that there are bad people
50. Try a raw tomato again and see if I like it
51. Overcome my phobia of stinkbugs
52. Live in a city
53. Become a reporter
54. Write thank you notes to everyone who has impacted my life
55. Be a foster home for cats that are moving from shelter to shelter, and hopefully get some adopted
56. Read Anna Karenina
57. Do a juice detox
58. Continue to drink immense amounts of coffee
59. Visit places on BuzzFeed’s list of areas to visit before the world ends, mainly stopping at “The Lost City of the Incas”
60. Pick up trash alongside of a highway
61. Learn to crochet
62. If 61 is completed, donate homemade crocheted scarves to homeless shelters
63. Host a 1920’s party and make everyone dress and act the roles of a famous 1920’s character (I’ll be Zelda Fitzgerald)
64. Bake a lot of cookies every winter
65. Save up money so my children can afford (so I can afford) college
66. If college tuition is higher (much higher) in the future, forget 65 and run away to a different country or planet
67. Build an igloo/snow-fort so amazing, an eskimo would shed a frozen tear
68. Get another tattoo
69. Continue collecting mugs (I think I’m almost at 100!!)
70. Listen to a Justin Bieber album (or some other artist I don’t like) and see if I can appreciate their music
71. Finish painting my room
72. Sky dive
73. Bungee jump somewhere tropical
74. Ride on one of the fastest trains in the world (take that Septa!)
75. Climb a tree to the tippy-top
76. Grow a garden
77. Write a short story for WordPress
78. Get my eyebrows waxed
79. Learn to surf
80. Take a road trip after I graduate college
81. Make a quilt
82. Quit my bad habit of biting my nails
83. Go yard sale hopping and try and find really cool things
84. Take a pottery or ceramics class
85. Swim with the manatees
86. Try one of the hottest peppers in the world
87. Go to Nifty Fifty’s (haven’t been there in probably 14 years)
88. Stay in a cool hotel just because
89. Order a coffee at Starbucks with a long name
90. Partake in a flash mob
91. Convince everyone that I’m actually a princess from a faraway country
92. Visit museums
93. Build a tree house
94. Steal a Madison Avenue street sign
95. Eat at an expensive restaurant
96. Get a book signed by any of my favorite authors (the ones that aren’t deceased)
97. Be on television
98. Go dancing
99. Puddle jump in a rainstorm
100. Be myself
Now that you’ve read this all the way through, it’s time for you to know what you’ve earned…nothing! But in all seriousness, you did get to see how cool the number 100 is. Just knowing that I’ve spent countless hours, minutes, probably well over 100, on this blog is something worth noting. See if this compares to counting out candies for your seven year old to take to class.
Moore with Madi 
What a list! Now I hope you can appreciate why I do things like eat a sliver of Moruga Scopion even though I know it won’t be pleasant. The story you can tell down the road is what really makes the experience worthwhile, in my opinion. Nobody wants to be a boring old person with no stories! Anyway I won’t comment on all of them, but for the pepper one you’ve had jalepeño so that counts. Also I blame 25 on my mom. I never won any games growing up, she was ruthless. And you accomplished 97 last week! Being in a ram suit counts.
I think it would be neat to make a serious list of things you definitely want to do, then tuck it away and check back in a while, like 10 years. Sorta like a time capsule. And see how much you were able to do in that time without even thinking about it.
It’s true. If you don’t have an idea of things you want to do (when you grow up, while growing up) things just get confusing and boring. Like there are obvious things that I want to do (have a house, drink coffee, travel) but what do I really want to do? Who do I really want to see? What things do I want to experience? What kind of culture do I want to see? The list was a funny semi-serious thing, but I do want to have a somewhat bucket list and try and have an interesting life. I don’t know how I feel about a bucket list per se, because i don’t want to have to mark things off a list, like I just want to have a general idea and then if I do it, I do it! But I’m glad I’m already crossing some off the list 🙂
I like this list. It has a wide variety of challenges. And as previously noted, you have accomplished a few already. Have you forgotten our summer of fairy houses all over the backyard?? Also having some serious and not so serious goals is always good. It gives you drive and purpose and when you feel your life getting a little too “boring” you can think of your 100 things. I particularly like #33. And if I’ve learned anything from being part of your life for 19 years it’s that I believe you have it in you to accomplish every one of these plus 1000 more!!
I loved those fairy houses. Seriously believe fairies go in them. I like having the drive and purpose and things to shoot for in the future. I wonder why you like that one! 😉 Thanks for reading, and I hope I can accomplish everything I want!