30 Things to Do Before I Turn 30

I’m going to be thirty in exactly a year and a half. Instead of doing what my instincts and flair for the dramatic would want (cringe, assume the fetal position, and commence mid-life crisis), I thought I’d embrace the romance and adventure that aging brings and “with mirth and laughter, let old wrinkles come.” --Shakespeare

My friend Allison, whose affinity for lists rivals mine (and whose creativity definitely trumps mine), made a list of things to do before she turns thirty, a marvelous idea that I have now blatantly copied. I must say, making a list of affordable, non-gimmicky, realistic things to do with limited means and time is challenging. I mean, I’d love to “travel the world” and “read a thousand books,” but it’s not going to happen. And daredevil-ish stuff like “sky dive” or “bungee jump,” or overcoming a fear like “hold a tarantula” or “go clubbing” are just as unrealistic, not to mention entirely undesirable.

Here’s the list:

1. Read fifty books…starting now.
2. Eat a lobster.
3. Memorize the Gettysburg Address.
4. Go to the Grand Canyon.
5. Learn to drive a stick shift.
6. Take the train to San Diego for a day.
7. Learn to skateboard.
8. Ride the Giant Wheel at the Spectrum.
9. Try out for JEOPARDY!
10. Climb Saddleback Mountain.
11. Walk across Hoover Dam.
12. Purchase an iPhone.
13. Rent beach cruisers in Venice Beach and bike to the Santa Monica Pier.
14. Cook a meal from scratch and host a themed dinner party.
15. Read the entire Bible.
16. Learn the Hoedown Throwdown dance from the Hannah Montana movie.
17. Have a really great, cinematic kiss in the pouring rain.
18. Buy dinner for a family behind me in a drive-thru.
19. Take a tour of Warner Brothers Studios in L.A.
20. Do something unexpected with my hair.
21. Grab an in-theater dinner at The Regency San Juan Capistrano Theater.
22. Finish my master’s degree.
23. Visit the Long Beach Aquarium.
24. Lead a small group of college-age girls.
25. Stay at the Montage.
26. Visit Salvation Mountain.
27. Attend a movie premiere in L.A.
28. Do a photo shoot with Nicole Leever.
29. See a symphony concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
30. Have a really, really great 30th birthday.

What else should I do before I turn thirty?

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." --C. S. Lewis