Day 78: My Bucket List

1. Get a piercing. (did when I was 18, lip and ear, both still pierced)
2. Get a tattoo (did August 2007, I was 22, plan to get more though)
3. Go SkyDiving
4. Go to the Olympics (planning on London 2012)
5. Go to London. (done twice so far)
6. Go to Paris (been there once so far, want to go back)
7. Go to Italy
8. Go to all 50 states.
9. Get married.
10. Have children
11. Go to Las Vegas (went in 2009)
12. Ride in a hot air balloon.
13. Go back to college. (went back in fall of '08, been attending since).
14. Be debt free.
15. Own a house.
16. Live alone.
17. Walk on the Wall of China
18. Go to Mackinaw Island
19. Go to Joshua Tree National Park
20. Drive on Route 66
21. Celebrate New Years Eve in NYC.
22. Learn to run a mile without stopping.
23. Ice Skate in Rockefeller Plaza (2003)
24. Walk through Central Park.(2003)
25. Create a book of my photography.
26. Be thankful every day.
27. Own season tickets for the Detroit Pistons.
28. Build a computer. (2007)
29. See the sunrise from a mountain top.
30. Go to Australia
31. See the Giant Stone Heads of Easter Island.
32. Go white water rafting.
33. Go exploring in a cave.
34. Be a great son, boyfriend, husband, father and hopefully grandfather.
35. Smile everyday.
36. Laugh everyday.
37. Join a photography club.
38. Teach someone else something.
39. Impact at least 1 persons life for the good.
40. Help a complete stranger.
41. Ride horses on the beach.
42. Go on a picnic, and have crackers, cheese, fruit and wine.
43. Own a telescope
44. Worry less
45. Become closer with my family, and ensure that I have a close family of my own some day.
46. Get accepted into the nursing program at HFCC. (December 2008)
47. Become a registered nurse.
48. Learn to play the piano/keyboard again.
49. Make love on the beach under the stars.
50. Own some cool fish.
51. Weigh less than 200 lbs, and never go back over.
52. Be more punctual.
53. Fall in deep passionate unconditional endless love.
54. Don't pick stupid fights.
55. Don't sweat the small stuff.
56. Not be so loud.
57. Never go to sleep angry.
58. Don't put up with bullshit from anyone.
59. Be more assertive.
60. Live like I'm dying.
61. Go to the Kentucky Derby.
62. Scan/Digitize all of my pictures.
63. Learn to cook more.
64. Take a picture every day for a year.
65. Take my camera with me more often.
66. Be more considerate of others.
67. Go to a Michigan bowl game. (Orange Bowl, performed halftime show with BHS marching band, January 1, 2000)
68. Go to the Michigan vs OSU football game. 
69. Meet a celebrity and get a picture taken with them. (once so far....Willy Horton)
70. Go to Hawaii
71. Own a brand new car.
72. Go on a cruise.
73. Read a new book once every 2 months.
74. Become  better photographer, per-sue classes, and side work in it.
75. Make some money on the side with my IT/Computer skills.
76. Kiss in the rain.
77. Kiss under the stars.
78. Witness a miracle.
79. Own a boat.
80. Be a part of a team.


[This is a work in progress, as I come up with more, and complete more, I will edit it further]


[Those items in bold, have yet to be completed, items not bold I have done]

Day 68: Effort

“In all human affairs there are efforts and there are results, and the strength of the effort is the measure of the result” - James Allen

Apply some effort, some real thought, with physical, and mental activity, to achieve your goals. Don't be careless, do things half heartedly, applying little to no effort; and then expect great results. You will only disappoint yourself. It's one thing to disappoint others, but when you disappoint yourself it's much worse. It hurts, and is very frustrating.

If you have something you want to achieve, if you have something you truly desire; then putting forth 110% effort 100% of the time should be very little to ask for. Anything worth achieving, is worth working hard for. Success does not come easy.

Don't give up when you make mistakes, or things don't go exactly as you plan them to. As long as you know you put in all the effort and thought that you could, then there is nothing else you can do. Just do your best, and you can't be disappointed in yourself. The outcome may not always be what you wanted, but you'll know you did all that you could.

You can't control everything. You can't control the outcome. You can only control yourself, and your actions. What others do, and what the outcome is, are out of your control. Just do your part, and let the rest do it's part. Take each day one day at a time, waking up, and striving to do the best that you can.  Don't be disappointed by others, or the outcome. Just let things be what they are. Nothing ever goes as you expect it go to. You just have to let things be.

Don't stress about the little things. Let things be. Put 110% effort 100% of the time with everything in your life.

Day 67: Exams

“Why Study For Exams.... Are they not about what you know, not about how much you can cram into your head the night before?”

Took 2 exams tonight. Got an 80% on the first one, and not sure how I did on the 2nd one. Second one was a lab exam, with only 25 questions. Professor gave us 3 of the answers on the lab exam, so I know I've got at least 3 right. Hopefully got a lot more than 3 right.

Life is like one big exam. You face challenges, and learn new things every day, and then some days you take exams. You face those big challenges, those big decisions, and you have to use what you've learned in the past, to make the best choices. The choices you make, decide your future. Make the choices that you desire, and your heart desires, and you'll be headed in the right direction toward your happiness and success. Make bad choices, without thinking things through; and you'll be headed for failure.

Always think things through. Try your hardest. Use what you've experienced, what you've been through, what you've learned, to help you make the right choices. Listen to what your heart and mind are telling you to do. Which one is speaking louder? Which one do you trust more? Which one is smarter?

Sometimes you need to reflect back on your past, and think about decisions you've made. You need to look at the mistakes you've made, and the successes you've had. Learn from the mistakes, and from the successes. See where you can improve, and what you're best at. Don't get discouraged by your mistakes, and failures. We all make mistakes. No one is perfect. You just have to get up, brush your knees off, and keep on going. The journey is long, but it is worth it. Keep running.

Don't just cram the night before. You need to retain the information. Retain your memories, retain your knowledge. Think strong. Live strong. Be confident in the choices you make. Be confident in the life you live. Learn something new every day, and apply it to your life.

Day 66: Subconscious

“We must realize that the subconscious mind is the law of action and always expresses what the conscious mind has impressed on it. What we regularly entertain in our mind creates a conception of self. What we conceive ourselves to be, we become.” - Grace Speare

What is in your subconscious mind? What are your thoughts, memories, dreams, goals, regrets, hopes, failures; that your mind is holding on to?

Our mind is made of up 2 parts, the conscious and the subconscious. The subconscious is much greater than the conscious mind. The conscious mind you can control directly, while the subconscious mind is programmed and filled with information gradually over time from the conscious mind.

Sometimes you need to realize what is in your subconscious and sort through the information, and clean it up. Remove the negative, and organize the positive. The subconscious mind is not able to tell the difference from reality and imaginary, so be handle it with care. Your deepest feelings, dreams, views, goals, behaviors, emotions and instincts, all lie within your subconscious mind. Keep yourself in check with your subconscious mind. Know what your subconscious mind wants, and determine if that is what your true heart desire are.

Don't allow your subconscious mind to control you. Your subconscious mind is your reality check litmus paper for your desires, emotions, actions, and instincts. Your subconscious mind, is filled with things from your past. Some memories, and feelings are buried so deep, that you have nearly forgotten them, yet they are controlling your thoughts and actions.

Don't allow your past to determine your future. Who you were, is not who you have to be. Who you are today, is what is most important. Wake up each day, be positive, and be who you want to be. Take every day one step at a time. Every day, live life to the fullest. Be the person you want to be, and don't let your past failures, pitfalls, and lapses of judgement, define who you are.

Day 62: Organization

“Organize your life around your dreams - and watch them come true.” - Unknown

I need to get my life my organized. Organize and sort my belongings. Remove the clutter. Remove the unnecessary. Remember what it is important, and place it as such in my life.

I need to organize my mind, and life; and focus on attaining my goals. Remove the stress. Keep things organized, neat, and tidy. Let things be. Be more responsible. Be an adult. Grow up.

I need to stop postponing removing the trash in my life. The thoughts. The ideas. The ignorance. I need to just remove them, and move forward head first. Face my battles on my own. Overcome my fears on my own. Overcome my insecurities, weaknesses, and frustrations on my own. I need to be proud of who I am, but recognize my faults, and my failures. I need to better myself, and continue to work harder to be who I want to be. Organize my thoughts, and my goals. Retain my focus, and keep it where it belongs, on the the future.

I need to remove the bad habits in my life, the bad behaviors, the irrational decisions and reactions. I need to create new, good habits, good behaviors, and be more rational with my decisions and reactions. I need to be a  kinder person. I need to be more considerate. I need to stop being so serious all the time. I need to learn to take a joke, and not take everything so personally. I'm too sensitive.

Organize my thoughts, my life, my mind, my goals, my achievements, my failures. Work towards my future with organization, good intentions, good actions, and focus.

Day 55: Relaxing

“Try to relax and enjoy the crisis.” - Ashleigh Brilliant

Life isn't easy. Everything doesn't always go the way you plan, and that's good and bad. It's life. It's how everything is meant to be.

Sometimes you just have to sit back, and relax, and let life be. That's what weekends are for, to enjoy, breathe in, and relax. Enjoy life. Enjoy your day. Enjoy doing absolutely nothing.

What if you could have a relax button in your life? You're under stress, you hate your job, you're frustrated with everything around you; and you just want to crumble and break. Push the relax button, and make it all go away.

Sit back, and get a new perspective on things. Take everything a little less seriously. Life is too short to be serious all the time. Life is too short to have regrets. Life is too short to be stressed out. Change what you can, and accept what you can't. Understand that things you can change, usually take work, and aren't going to change over night. You have to wait things out, and sometimes you just have to smile and fight your way through it.

If it was easy would it really be worth it?

I need to take more time to relax and destress my life. Stop worry about the things I can't change right now, and know things in the future will be better. Change what I can change. Focus on my goals, and don't let stress and doubts prevent me from achieving them.

Failure is not an option. Stress is a choice. Relax. Breathe in. Breathe out. Smile. Repeat.

Day 47: Plan

Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire and begin at once, whether you ready or not, to put this plan into action. - Napoleon Hill

I need to create a plan for action for my life. A plan for my future, for my goals, and how I expect to reach them. I can't continue just living life, thinking that life is just going to happen. I have to take actions, and make things happen in my life for me. I have bits and pieces of the plan in action right now, but the plan is not perfected. It's incomplete.

I need to figure out how I'm going to become a Nurse. Am I going to sit on this wait list forever, and eventually become a Nurse in several years? Or am I going to transfer schools, and become a Nurse sooner? I need to explore my options.

Am I going to live in Michigan forever? What am I going to do right now to be able to survive until I become a Nurse? How am I going to survive while I go through Nursing school? Am I going to continue to work at the same job that I hate all the way through Nursing school?

Should I explore my photography skills, and start taking photography classes as well. Something I could make an extra income from, if I developed my passion in it further. I should start offering my computer services to make extra money as well. I need to work harder for me. I need to do better. I need to study harder.

Life isn't just going to all of sudden happen. I'm not going to wake up some day and all of sudden be a Nurse, making the salary that I desire, with the wife, dog, and 2.5 kids. It doesn't happen like that. You have to work for success. Anything worth achieving is not reached easily.

I need to determine what my goals are, and make a plan to achieve them. With steps that I can actually take, and notable accomplishments along the way, to see my progress. Determine my goals, make a plan, and put it in to action.