Does this time of year tends to bring out your reflective nature?  Maybe it’s the shorter days and longer dark periods.  Could it be it’s the end of a calendar year, or the beginning of a new year?  Then again, it could be a phase of life where you wonder what’s next.  One way to reflect and open yourself to new opportunities is to create a Bucket List.  To inspire you, I’ll share my story and then after give you some resources to make your own.

My Bucket List, revisited

I did a “Bucket List Challenge” back in 2016, and after all that happened in this year, I thought I’d take a new look at that list.  When I admitted I struggled to meet the “101” items, someone suggested I add things I’ve already done.  In my research, I came across a woman who created a list of 1,000 adventures for her bucket list.  She even wrote a book “Bucket List Adventures” (legally required side note: this does have affiliate links…so if you buy through my links, you will be helping fund my future adventures.  Thanks!)  1,000! Hmmm…

Looking at her list, I noticed that many checkmarks off her bucket list seemed more to be adventures she’s already had, and then added post-event.  A big difference between us is that a majority of her adventures involve a ton of foreign travel and spending money. You know my philosophy – adventures happen, they aren’t always planned! (That’s when the best ones happen!) I also believe adventures happen anywhere – even (especially?) your backyard.  Listening to my reader, plus this woman’s list, I’ve decided to add a few to my list.  To be upfront with you, many of the “done” items added have happened over my lifetime. 

My updated Bucket List

The original challenge was to list 101 Bucket List items to do before I die.  To live a life filled with adventure and no regrets.  In this revision, half of the items are adventures I’ve had.  Which, by the way, is not a complete listing.  These are the ones I remember at the moment and willing to share.  I’ve moved some from my 2016 list into the “done” half (yay!).  The others are still in the “to do” or, as I like to call it, the “envisioning” half.

Gone done & did part of the list

1. Walk a different way home/take a different route
2. Get lost without a GPS to help me find my way, discover it’s an adventure
3. To have adventures of all kinds, and share them with others
4. Inspire others to have adventures
5. Sky Dive with my best friends  
6. Eat fire
7. Walk on fire
8. Pose naked for a professional photographer (in a human-sized bird nest, no less!)
9. Attend an adventure-filled event in the middle of the desert (Burning Man)
10. To ride a dragon
11. To ride a land frigate under full sail
12. Meet the founders of Burning Man
13. Attend a Burning Man regional (any)
14. Meet one or more of the movers & shakers of a massive cultural shift (The Merry Pranksters)
15. Build a sweat lodge, participate in supporting others on a Vision Quest
16. Snuff medicinal tobacco
17. Hold a wild baby wallaby
18. Participate in Frog Medicine ceremonies
19. See a live David Bowie concert
20. Ride a hot air balloon in Australia
21. See a priest bless a 25’ wide frying pan filled with paella in Spain
22. Ride a motorcycle in Mexico
23. Go parasailing
24. Live on a houseboat
25. Live in Paris
26. Sail under the Golden Gate Bridge
27. Sail on a Tall Ship
28. See Grand Central Station from the middle of the big windows
29. Wear my wedding gown as part of a bar crawl/social statement in Manhattan
30. Attend underground parties in NYC
31. Attend a burlesque show, and a boylesque show
32. Meet Oprah, Gene Kelly (of “Singing in the Rain” fame), Sting, Michael Douglas, Andy Warhol, Matt & Kevin Dillon, Jennifer Hudson, Woody Harrelson, Jaques Torres and other celebrities.
33. Attend a concert featuring at least one of the Beatles (Paul McCartney)
34. Attend, photograph and participate in the world-famous Mermaid Parade in Coney Island
35. Climb a church bell tower
36. Climb the crown of the Statue of Liberty
37. Participate in a protest march in Washington DC
38. Ride a float in NYC’s famous Halloween Parade
39. Get a tattoo
40. To redefine the meaning of Adventure in pop culture
41. Travel across America by car or RV
42. See the funny roadside attractions all over America
43. To build my own art project at Burning Man
44. To fully trust my own instincts
45. Learn to hula hoop, including at least one cool move
46. To have cool blue hair, while it’s still trendy
47. Give a speech to a room full of strangers
48. Know I healed someone with reiki
49. Take an acting class
50. Research my ancestor, Hannah Spencer
51. Be paid for having fun
52. Be paid for giving (good) advice
53. Help build a tiny house
54. Go off the grid
55. To create fun itineraries for others to follow
56. To be quoted as an inspirational speaker
57. See 45^th degree parallel spots across the country, across the world
58. Develop a meditation practice
59. To grow a healing garden
60. Leave inspirational notes in random spots at stores for shoppers to find
61. Switch careers from corporate to entrepreneur
62. Become an expert on chocolate

Envision for Someday (the future half of the list)

Travel-related

1. See the Aurora Borealis in both hemispheres (aurora borealis and aurora australis, technically)
2. Mardis Gras in New Orleans, attend and maybe even participate in the parade
3. Have a sari made for me in India
4. To island hop in Greece with special friends
5. Participate in a hot air balloon festival in the southwest
6. Touch a glacier before they are gone
7. Pet or bathe, but not ride, an elephant
8. See the Grand Canyon with my sons
9. Camp in a customized/restored camper in Oregon wine country
10. Tour Frank Lloyd Wright homes all over the country
11. Drive all of Route 66
12. Explore the Caribbean in pursuit of pirate lore
13. Laze days on a beautiful sailboat in warm waters
14. Have big laughs over delicious dinners with loved ones, in a house with a kitchen & dining area that overlooks turquoise waters (even a cove)
15. Visit Africa’s cocoa country
16. Attend an astonishing magic show (preferably at Magic Castle in LA)
17. Take cooking lessons in Mexico
18. Attend the Southern California Burning Man regional
19. Create art with the artists who made El Pulpo Mecanico
20. Go material shopping at the sources (i.e. Hong Kong)
21. See the sea glass beach in Northern California
22. Hike in the Redwood forest
23. Be fit enough to run in a marathon, mudder and/or climb art at Burning Man
24. Go on a meditation/yoga retreat
25. Visit all of Oregon’s covered bridges
26. Go horseback riding on a beach
27. Houseboat tour down a European river
28. Visit with friends all around the country.
29. Go gold mining in a gold rush town

Not everything is about travel!

1. To own custom-designed, well-fitting clothes
2. Upcycle clothing and have the end products admired & desired
3. Learn to sing at least one song (on key)
4. Take a self-defense course
5. Feel confident about giving tarot card readings for others
6. Become good at belly dancing
7. Hang out with Helen Hunt, Susan Sarandon, and/or Cameron Diaz
8. Create a Muppet character with someone from Jim Henson’s company
9. Have an out-of-body experience while alive
10. Advocate for an issue important to me
11. To have a positive, mass, impact on cleaning the environment
12. Create online courses that teach having an adventurous outlook
13. Develop an Adventure Outing kit
14. Put together an online course involving chocolate
15. Fly in a helicopter over towns I’m interested in to see them from a different perspective
16. Connect with my spirit guides on a deep conversational level
17. Research speakeasies with friends and create my own guide
18. Decorate/remodel a house completely according to my own vision
19. Learn how to weld
20. See my sons eyes light up with love for their partner, for their children
21. Crack a whip expertly
22. Spin fire
23. Publish a book and see it on the best seller list
24. Write a novel and have it turned into a popular movie
25. Create & sell a line of greeting cards using my photos
26. Print postcards to gift at Burning Man’s post office
27. Meet Elon Musk of Tesla and learn about all his ideas
28. Hang gliding to feel the rush of wind
29. Create an extensive ancestry report for my sons
30. Build a tree house big enough to hold a compost toilet far enough away from the sleeping area
31. Learn how to sew better
32. Create an outfit as I see it in my imagination
33. Be so successful that I am able choose multiple charities and causes to support

Your Turn

Take out a journal, a piece of paper or whatever is easiest.  Start writing your Bucket List.  If you want more on how to do this, check out my article from 2016 “Bucket List Challenge”.  Since then, there have been many sites and apps created to help you too.  Below are some suggestions (side note – I am not an affiliate for any of these.  Just ones I found I like).

APPS/SITES

Bucket List Maker by MeTA Inc. “Do you have a list you want to do in your life?”

Buckitdream “Create Your Dreams. Effortlessly capture your own dreams, or browse any of our expertly curated Bucket Lists and choose the ones that are perfect for you.”

Bucketlist.org “Your dreams, made possible. Discover your bucket list and explore over 7,683,581 goals.”

Bucketlist.net “Together we can fulfill each other’s dreams. Bucket List Ideas, Advice And Support To Live Life To The Fullest.  Sharing Life Goals & Swapping Favors.”

Buckist, “in short for bucket list, is a simple application that helps keeping track of your personal wishes, bucket ideas and much more!” (Android only)

iWishBucketList “Most inspiring and powerful app
to accomplish your Lifetime Goals!”

SoonForever “What are you watching, reading, tasting, playing, digging, doing next? Soon is your everyday bucket list, a place to keep and discover things that will enrich your life.”

FUN ALTERNATIVES

Bucket List Generator If you’re stuck for ideas, this is fun!

101 Planners/Bucket List Print a customized list

Will Smith’s Bucket List on Facebook Watch