My Bucket List

I'd never been one for the idea of bucket lists. Not to say I never said anything about bucket list items, but they were by and large jokes, like a threesome with two supermodels. Or they might be the kinds of things I'd never likely get to do, but they were fun to daydream about one day doing, like climbing Mt Everest. But recently I read a story about someone diagnosed with cancer and very little odds of surviving and instead of going into chemo and hoping that small chance came through, he decided to hike the Pacific Coast Trail. I don't think it was a bucket list idea for him, at least not the way the story read, but for some reason it got me thinking about things I want to do before I die (which I hope isn't any time soon, but one never can be sure).

So I thought about the things I want to do and there are literally thousands, but once I removed the fantastical and things that would require me to win lots of money to make happen, the list got a lot smaller. The list got even smaller when I thought about things that require someone else to make happen, like marriage and babies and all that. And then I narrowed it down to things I think I could do alone and still enjoy myself. Sure, they'd be funner with someone else, but I think I could go on my own and still have a good time. I was left with five things, at least that I can think of in the relatively short time I've been thinking about it.

Before I go into the list, I know some people think getting a book published or something like that might be on the list, but it most definitely is not. I can barely write a couple thousand words of a story before I lose interest in it, the idea of going for hundreds of thousands sounds like a whole lot of hard work. And while it would be cool if someday I did have the self-discipline to do it, there's no guarantee of ever getting published. So it doesn't seem like a good bucket list type item. Anyways, on to the list, which is in no particular order.

• See the Calgary Flames play at the Saddledome in Calgary. I'm not the sports fan I used to be, but if there's one sport I still enjoy, it's hockey. And the Calgary Flames happen to be my favorite team. I'm not sure how they got that honor - I'm guessing when I was young the first game I saw had them playing and they won - but I always thought it would be amazing to go see them play live. And to hang out in Calgary for a bit; seems like an alright city if I can get the past it also seems a bit country.

• Hike the Appalachian Trail. I know the story I read was about the Pacific Coast Trail, but I've daydreamed of hiking the whole Appalachian Trail since I first heard of it. Also, being a west coast guy, I feel like the east coast would make it all that much more of an experience for me. Of course this is a bucket list item that'll have to wait until later in life, like when I'm retired and it'll be OK for me to be away from my real life for six months.  

• See the Chicago Cubs play at Wrigley Field vs. the LA Dodgers. I'll be honest, baseball bores me nearly to tears these days. But when I was a kid, I loved it. And I loved the Dodgers. One way I was guaranteed to be able to watch the Dodgers play was when they played at Wrigley Field, since all Cubs home games were televised where I lived. I could pass a whole afternoon laying on the couch watching them play and I would just imagine myself there, especially whenever a Dodger player hit a home run. And while the adult in me would likely be praying the game doesn't go into extra innings so he could hurry up and leave, the kid in me would be having the time of his life. Though if it ever does happen, I'll be rooting for the Cubs this time around (since I don't really care about baseball any more, may as well root for the home team; it's what Harry Caray would've wanted).

•  Compete at the IBJJF Pan Ams. This is the one I think most likely to happen first, though still a ways away (as I get other shit in life sorted out). It's not actually the biggest tournament in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but it's still pretty big and always the one I thought would be coolest to go to. I'd certainly love make "getting gold at Pan Ams" the bucket list item, but a lot more goes into that than just me getting there. 

• Hike Hadrian's Wall. Some friends of mine attempted this once, but the weather turned to crap on them and they had to bail. Still, it sounded like an awesome experience. Of course, this is the item least likely to happen on this list, due to the cost. But I think with the right planning, and maybe with less financial misfortune in future years, I could make it happen. I've been in love with Britain since before I even had the amazing opportunity to live there. Living there not only helped me to love it more, but to fall madly in love with its history. And while I daydream about going back there constantly, I think if I could only go back to do one thing, it would be to hike along that ancient Roman Wall. Plus I'm pretty sure I could do the hike in less than a week, even if I stop at every pub I pass along the way.

So there it is, a bucket list of the little adventures I think I could realistically pull off and enjoy by myself. And not one video game among them.