The Fabulous Fifty

I wanted to create a runner's up category to capture things that I want, or would like to do, but have too many caveats attached to make it on a list of things I will do this year.  1. Tattoo plans (I have many) 2. Ham Radio License 3. Get a Dog (with apologies to Luna whom I will love forever) 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

 I brought my sisters Tarot cards back with me from the UK... so time to learn about the Tarot.

When I was an Army Cadet, many decades ago now, I was a member of a competitive first aid team, meaning that we would travel locally and compete against other first aid teams in mocked up disaster scenarios. This involved very detailed training. After we had won a particular event our team had been invited to become members of the Mount Washington Ski Patrol. I had never skiied before, and being quite young still figured that meant we would wait in a warm ski lodge in the mountains for people to come to us for help. My bubble was burst when it was explained that the expectation would be I would ski to the injured party.  What?  I had just completed an intensive course on treating horrific ski accidents. I had a VIVID image of what splintered fiberglass did to a human body that I couldn't shake. I was not going to be caught on skis! Crazy talk!  So I declined. And I have never put a ski on my feet. It's one of the last hold outs of things that scare me that I haven't confr...

I'm going to a concert (hopefully if the pandemic allows). I have tickets for the Mötley Crüe/Def Leppard/Poison/Joan Jett concert here in Edmonton on Sep 4th 2022. Of course, Harvey the Rock and Blues Bear will have to accompany me! 

I have always wanted to try silk sheets but it has always seemed too extravagant to me before... but I think this might be a year for a little extravagance.

It's been years since we've last had a proper family portrait done. I'll be on the look out for a photographer and a location for this year. 

This was my sister Vikki's favourite book. Before I left the UK last year, after she had passed, her husband gave me her personal copy of Watermelon , and told me that she always gave copies of it as gifts to her friends, and that she would want me to have her edition. 

This one sounds easy, and maybe it should be, but it's not and that's why it is here.

When I studied religion in university I loved Buddhism. I had an amazing professor who really made it come alive for me... but I wasn't ready for it then. Too many distractions, too many important things to be, too many attachments, not enough true acceptance. I'm not saying I am now ready, and I am certainly not a monastery worthy specimen. But I am ready to be a student of things that will enrich my daily experience of life. And with thus declaration, a return to the eight fold path begins. As a refresher, The Teachings of the Buddha is in my audible library.

Its time to teach myself Optimistic Nihilism . Obviously, the philosophy of Kurzgesagt is a decent place to start.

I have been a student of human spirituality for a long time, and yet, even through academic and personal study, I have never found what I would call my "spiritual home." So, after 50 years, I guess it is time to make my own religion. 

Just as it sounds, an open house where people bring gifts in exchange for some amazing Duncan BBQ and probably Tiki drinks. This will have to wait for warmer weather.

It's been 18 years since we first stayed at a theme room in the Fantasyland Hotel on our wedding night. So I thought it was about time to once again include this on a list of things to do. This time we chose the "Victorian Coach Room" which was indeed, an experience, as I will illustrate in pictures soon.  Marked as completed!

  My Dad used to take me to the car races as a child. I didn't mind the heat, the smell, or even the overwhelmingly loud noises... probably because it was just he and I. However I do much prefer the racing of horses. And since I live in a place with a nice track, and I always mean to go see a race but the plans have thus far fell through, I shall add it here on my list of things to do. Thoroughbred racing starts again April 30th and I might explore this option .  

 My Father used to always exclaim " Youth is wasted on the Young ." As I age myself I am starting to understand what he was getting at - when I was young I was strong... but I didn't understand this strength would be fleeting, so I didn't use, value, or nurture it. Now I struggle (insert joke about my back hurting after a nap here) with a loss of core strength and some mobility issues and with a bit of a bruised ego I'll admit I am not as strong as I once was. It might even be true to say that I will never again be that strong, that ship having sailed (goodbye, the ship of my youth). BUT that doesn't mean I cannot be strong again. I am not talking about body building here. What I am aiming for is to use my muscles, regain some core strength and hopefully expand my range of mobility. I've already started this process with my Physiotherapist, and my care team is working on trying to resolve some of the issues currently keeping me from being as active as I wa...

This is something that I have had to put off for the past while, my knee injury, foot surgery and then the pandemic. My father loved his motorbike, and his travels on it, he relished the stories he had to share.   UPDATE: Due to Vertigo I have not been allowed to drive for months. The ENT feels that maybe in Sept she would allow me to drive again, and that's beyond what I consider the window for learning to ride. We shall see, but this might have too, once again, be put off.

I am not great at schedules. Being a neurodivergent human I am GREAT at ideas (illustrated by this list). So I have this idea that I would like to pick three days each week where going for a walk is one of the things I make time for, without exception. I love walking, and there have been times in my life when I couldn't walk (because of injuries/operations) and during those times the yearning to walk, to move, to use my body as a human body was meant to be used, was s strong I would even dream about it. I know something could happen anytime to take it from me again, so I want to make it something special I enjoy while I can.    I am thinking Monday, Wednesday, Friday, so that it becomes a normal part of my week and not something I put off until "downtime."  photo credit

<iframe frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://youtube.com/embed/qQzdAsjWGPg" width="480"></iframe> "And now the end is here And so I face that final curtain My friend I'll make it clear I'll state my case, of which I'm certain I've lived a life that's full I traveled each and every highway And more, much more I did it, I did it my way" As previously mentioned (# 33 ), I have had an intimate companion in death, a character who has always been there, walking beside me, everywhere I go. Sometimes it trips me up a bit, but because of this I have accepted the concept my own death, and its reminds me to live my life in the moment and take opportunities as they come. And for that, I am grateful. Of course, having thought about this on a daily basis for 50 years I have opinions on what I feel my perfect death would be, and naturally these have evolved for me through out my existence. When I was young  and sti...

My mother (for reasons unknown) would tell me as a small child that she was so sad that I was going to die. She told me numerous times that I had some weird disease that would make it so I died at a young age, that I'd never get old.... never live long enough to have babies. Being given this information repeatedly at such an impressionable age had several impacts on me, it made me want to be a mommy more than anything. It made it so I think about death more than the average person, and perhaps as a small unintended gift from my Mother, made it so I try harder to live life in each moment. The biggest impact it had though is something I still struggle with as I become 50 years old. I can't plan further than a year ahead in my life because my brain doesn't expect me to still be around. I've never had a "five year plan" as I couldn't wrap my head around it as a meaningful concept. Matter of fact, until the past 10 years or so, my retirement plan was simply to ...

Find a place to start doing Yoga again

I loved when I practiced the Artist's Way. What I need is a place to go to take some amazing a beautiful photos, just me and my camera.

I have an amazing group of close inner circle friends, and a great group of other friends, all of whom love me and together form a support group that rivals NATO. But these past two years have been really hard socially, and I feel like I might actually have lost some social skillss, so it's a good time to make a new friend.

I just need to drum again and more. The last drum I made hasn't even really been touched and I need to find time to change that.

It's in my blood and family history, and when I was 19 I did study under a third generation Wiccan priestess. I think it's time to explore more of this and find the connection to my people.

Some things are safely tucked away to preserve the memories attached to them, but they are only meaningful if they are held/felt/remembered once ina  while. Also I have some things that it's time they could be out again.

Because I've never been before, and maybe also go to Wood Buffalo National Park , another UNESCO designated World Heritage Site that I haven't visited yet. 

Plan a great hike experience

1. Never Split the Difference  is the book that Wesley gifted my during Jolabokaflod 2021. 2. The House in the Cerulean Sea was gifted to me by Raven after she finished it and enjoyed it quite a bit and wanted to share. 3. Watermelon was my sister Vikki's favourite book. Her husband Arthur told me that she always gave a copy of the book to friends as a gift and it would only be right that I have her own personal copy to go home with.  4. Ishmael was a book I read when I was 18 and it changed me. I think 50 is a great time to re-read it and see if it stands the test of time. 5. Waiting for the Sea to Boil is a book that is written by a relative who lived in the same house as my father and grandparents and reading about them in this way is pretty amazing. 6. Thief Lord is a book Wesley shared with me when he was younger, we were reading together and never ended up finishing, which is one of my regrets. But we often talked about going to Venice together, and I hope that one ...

They both deserve a final resting place.

I live in a place now where there are many opportunities to garden, and garden in communal spaces as well. I am going to exercise my green thumb this year, climate willing.

I could use a good dose of dog, and so my plan to borrow Lyanna and spend some quality time with her is on my list.

I am a water baby, a pisces. I love the water. When I was a kid I was never more than 10 minutes from jumping in a lake, and have wiled more than a few summer afternoons away just floating in the water. I need more of this in my life. 

 Have car, will travel

Yes, I just moved and I have a box room that I would like (and need) to be the spare bedroom for guests. There are many things in the box room that need to be sorted with care, observed, acknowledged and sent to it's final resting place. I have boxes of artifacts from my Father, Mother, and brother's lives. I have stuff I have kept from my kids childhoods, from my childhood. I have stuff that any and every ADHD person has, materials for hobbies and projects never really started or finished. My special things that haven't been unpacked in many moves. Certainly nothing anyone wants to go through without me if I should happen to die before going through it all. So it's on the list. Wish me luck.

I have always loved a fireplace. And the memories of Christmas and winter gathered around our fireplace as a child are some of the best ones, including how I had to chop the cord of wood when it arrived for the season.  accomplished

I can already see some opportunities to make several of my bucket list items happen all at once, and camping is an easy way to do that. 

 If I try hard enough I should be able to match one of my favourite meteor showers with a camping trip in a place where we should be able to see it well!

 I am not going to put a number on this, mostly because I have some health issues that have recently made it hard to lose weight in the manner that I have in the past, but also I want to set this up for success. Lose 5lbs? That's a win! Lose more, that's gravy! What I really want to do is regain some core strength and convert my lifestyle back to a more active one. And I am currently seeing some specialists and doing physio to help me with those goals. This entry might evolve and change a bit during the journey but it will be some version of this goal regardless. 

Being only two courses away from finishing my degree now, finally, it is time now to bring an end to an academic adventure that has spanned almost 27 years now. When I started my career as a student I hadn't fully considered how being a single mom would have impacted my attendance and ability to give my studies an appropriate amount of attention and there came a moment when I realized that I didn't want to say no to my kids anymore than I had too, and that meant rejoining the workforce while putting my academic goals on hold. Which worked out well enough, no regrets. Was pleased to find out that Athabasca University would honour the university coursework that I had previously completed at the University of Calgary, and while my degree will be different than I had originally intended, I will soon be able to graduate with my BA and apply for convocation, which hopefully will be an in person event I can share with my family. I am, for the record, currently enrolled in one of the t...

Despite living in Alberta for 26 years now, there still remain a few treasures I have not yet seen. Head Smashed-In Buffalo Jump is one of those places. A UNESCO designated World Heritage Site that is thousands of years old, it has immense cultural value to the plains people. I see that there are some events on June 21st, which is National Indigenous Peoples Day, which I think would be wonderful but also might detract from enjoying the quiet solitude of the place... will have to give some thought to planning this grand adventure, but will also definitely be visiting Writing on Stone Provincial Park  while we are there! 

Number 2 on my list is exploring the mountains - Jasper, Banff, other - perhaps even with my sister Kate if she get's her butt out here this year! #50thingstodoat50

One thing that has been pre-empted by the pandemic, is our trip to Cuba. We put it off in 2019 as we had traveled to Vietnam earlier that year and instead opted for what ended up being an amazing road trip to the Okanagan for Duncan's birthday. We thought we'd have loads fo time to plan for it to happen the next year, and well both 2020 and 2021 had significant challenges to actually carrying that plan out. So here it is, my number one on my #50thingstodoat50 list. 

And by Pyramids, I mean the  Muttart Conservatory  here in Edmonton. I have lived here for 19 years and despite meaning to visit the Muttart, each year slips by without me making it happen. So this is the year!

The Riverside Bistro at the Marriot downtown offers a unique dining experience, little private "pop-up" domes with amazing and spectacular winter views of Edmonton's river valley. These little "igloos" can fit a party of 6 and are great for celebrations during the pandemic, but also offer their own allure. When we were driving by one day I pointed to them and exclaimed we should book one and then my darling daughter reserved one for my birthday! Very excited!