Subtle Things, and Goals & Dreams

I've never truly been satisfied with where I am.

This can be a good and bad thing. I don't settle for mediocrity, I don't like being stagnant. I am ambitious, and always looking towards the future.

But in the same regard, I also miss out a lot on what my life surrounds me with and offers me. I am so focused on reaching my destination, that I don't take in the joy and beauty and realization that occur during the journey or process.

This is a list of 24 things that I want to accomplish before I turn 24 (an old friend inspired me to do this!). This list both encompasses my need to improve and plan and push ahead, but also settles me and helps me to remember to stop and absorb the subtleties that life presents.

1. Graduate with my BA in Child and Family Studies from PSU. 
2. Contact a naturopathic doctor and get started on a holistic and spiritual journey towards health. (Yes, I put something on my list that I already accomplished, because that's the kind of person I am.) 
3. Become a yogi. Namaste. 
4. Maintain a deactivated Facebook account in order to separate myself from social media and present myself and my life in a more honest way.  5 months down! 
5. Hike Multnomah Falls, Angels Rest, and Oneonta Falls (Update: We've hiked this three times and love it!), among other gorge-ous (see what I did there?) trails. Update: 6/5 -- Punch-bowl Falls Hiked! Update: In August, we hiked to Triple Falls in the Oneonta Gorge. Update: Hiked to Wahclella Falls! 
6. Blog at least once a week. 
7. Get those tattoos you've been wanting forever.  I got 4 tattoos last year :)
8. Dance again. In your living room in your underwear, and in dance classes with friends. 
9. Narrow it down to a list of two grad schools and begin the application process. (Lewis & Clark, and Concordia?)  Update: Officially accepted into the MAT program at Concordia starting in  January! 
10. High school jeans, baby. (At least by the end of the year). 
11. Pay off all credit card debt, and one auto loan. 
12. Finally preserve my wedding dress, after fitting into it one last time. 
13. Say "no" to things that do not benefit me. 
14. Alternatively, find the courage to say "yes" more. 
15. Read at least 10 books on my reading list. (Currently: Amy Poehler's Yes, Please ; Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging out without Me? And Other Concerns.) 
16. De-clutter and simplify my home of material items. Do I really need that coffee maker, considering I don't drink coffee?
17. Take time off. From everything. 
18. Attend a concert. (Foo Fighters? Mumford and Sons? John Mayer? DMB?) Foo Fighters were so good. :3 
19. Cook more! 
20. Make time for friends and family. 
21. Do something once a day that does not revolve around school, work or chores. Nourish yourself. 
22. Start a 401k and savings plan. 
23. Attend counseling on a regular basis. Learn to sit with your emotions and anxieties, and move past them. 
24. Run a 5k. Even though I despise running. Because boobs. 

There you have it! Hopefully these goals and my accomplishment of them will foster and inspire some more blog posts. (Ahem, goal #6). 2015 is looking pretty swell.