My Bucket List

After watching the movie, "The Bucket List," I had to wonder why I had never made up such a list. It's the kind of thing that would appeal to me. Except for one tiny problem. I guess I had never really wanted to contemplate my own death. I still don't. But I've come to realize that making a list of things I would like to do before kicking the bucket, isn't the same thing as planning my demise. It's just recognizing that it's inevitable as they say, like taxes.

So, here is my list, in no particular order. It will evolve and change before I actually do die, but it's what I'm thinking and feeling right now. What? Did you expect me to say "pass" instead of die? No siree, if you are going to think about death, might as well call it what it is I say!

Visit Italy again
Write and publish a book
Take my grandson to a baseball game
Go to my children's weddings
Travel to a new exciting far away place
Have one more FUN job
Stay at the Plaza Hotel for a long weekend
Decorate a whole house EXACTLY as I please
Live at the ocean
Win the Lottery

OK, you probably think by now that I'm a trivial person. So let's examine this list.

Visit Italy again.
The one and only time I've been to Italy I was all of 17 years old. It was a first class trip all the way. It was wasted on my youth quite frankly. We stayed for three weeks I think, and also visited Switzerland and Paris. It was very nice, but as I said I was way too young to thoroughly appreciate it, and the memory of it is quite faded. This next time I want to stay at least two weeks and savor the visit as an adult.

Write and publish a book.
I've never done this and it's a life long dream of mine. Preferably a successful book.

Take my grandson to a baseball game.
Some of my fondest memories with my children are bringing them to Shea Stadium for games. This could really come under the heading of do quality stuff with my grandson. Of course, I'm hoping there is more than one grandchild.

Go to my children's weddings.
I have two sons in their twenties. I would love to see them both happy and well. The wedding part is mostly symbolic, they don't have to be married to be happy obviously.

Travel to a new exotic far away place.
I have a terrific traveling companion. We have been to several places but I would love to go somewhere exotic and different, like somewhere Asian. It could be anywhere the climate isn't awful but I want to see something beautiful and exotic.

Have one more FUN job.
I don't know how many of these one is entitled to in a life time. I've been lucky to have had a couple, but I could use just one more if you don't mind.I'm not talking about working at Disney World. I'm talking about something productive and worthwhile that helps people and makes the day go by like magic. That's a fun job to me, and I'm happiest doing that kind of thing.

Stay at the Plaza Hotel for a long weekend.
I'll give you that this one is trivial. But hey, being indulgent to oneself isn't the worst thing in the world and frankly if I knew I was dying in a few months this would have to be arranged. It's something I've always wanted to do. With someone or alone. I've stayed in some really great hotels and I know that the Plaza isn't what it used to be, but I still want to do it. Shoot me.

Decorate a whole house EXACTLY as I please.
This may sound trivial but it's really not. It's more like a test to see if I can do it. I've either always had to take someone Elise's taste in to consideration, or I haven't had the finances available. I'm not even sure I can do it. It takes some talent to get a house to express who it's inhabitant is.

Live at the ocean.
Even if only for a while, this is something I've always wanted to do. I want to feel the salt on my skin everyday. I want a house close enough to the ocean that the walls smell like the sea. I've always said I wanted to end up like the old ladies one sees sometimes in beach communities - wearing mu-mus and flip flops and having tanned skin and long hair. I want to have the peace and luxury of sitting in a bar listening to fish stories and Jimmy Buffet. It is my ideal life and this is a wish list right?

Win the Lottery.
Aha gotcha! I know this isn't going to happen. Just as I know there is no way to make it happen. It's kind of like if I put this on this list I won't die. Ever. Sorry, but I'm still not comfortable with the whole idea.

Now, before you go saying, but you said this is a list of things you want to do before you kick the bucket, it is. It's just not all realistic unless I meet up with a CEO of a corporate conglomerate and he thinks it's a nifty idea to grant me my wishes. Well, that's not likely to happen either. One can dream. One can set goals. One can do things to bring themselves toward their dreams and goals. Hopefully the process is almost as much fun as accomplishment.

Thank you for allowing me to indulge myself.