20. Learn to make origami animals

Box with lid

Woof!

Animal shmanimal. I can makes origami boxes (without directions!) and (with directions) origami dogs. I much prefer the boxes, since they are useful.

17. Go to Ann Arbor and see my brother’s family

Originally, this goal was to go to the top of Mt. Washington, NH. However, in light of this being MY list and ME getting to decide if I wanted to substitute items on it, it changed.

Over the last weekend in March/first weekend in April, Amy and I had the chance to go see my brother’s family in Ann Arbor, MI. Amazingly enough, it had been three years since we’d all seen each other! My folks flew out for the weekend and the seven of us spent a wonderful day together. Of all the items on my list, this one was definitely my favorite, the most meaningful, and the one that most NEEDED to happen. Three years? Never again!

Three happy girls

12. Go to 4 (Wellesley College) sporting events

Field Hockey

I attended 4 sporting events this year which I wouldn’t normally have gone to. Initially, this was going to be Wellesley College-specific (since I work here), but as the year went by, circumstances found me at a strange variety of sporting events that I believe qualify as “not normal” for me.

1. Field Hockey at Wellesley College – I attended a game against Wheaton College (MA) with my friend and colleague Erin R back in the fall. I have no idea who won, because it began raining in the middle of the game and we left.
2. Girls Basketball – Waltham HS vs. Wayland HS – I helped Amy “scout” a high school basketball game in January.  What surprised me wasn’t how low the score was (I remember playing in junior high and the scores were low then too) but that I actually picked out some things that the top players were doing consistently, that the CCHS coach used when preparing his team to play both their teams, and that knowledge helped shut those girls down! Cool! (But not cool enough that I’d ever want to do it again… haha…)
3. Boys Soccer – I went to watch a U13 game this weekend. Amy’s colleague has a son who plays, it was near us, the day was lovely, so I went. Take-away: boys that age are  smelly, and that team could have taken on my O30 women’s team and wiped the field with us.
4. Junior High Softball – The softball field across the street from our house is extremely busy this spring, as the Natick High School fields are being repaired. I have watched more junior high softball than I care to admit this spring, solely for the train-wreck factor. And yes, I fully realize that I will rot for making that comment, especially given my utter lack of ability in softball and throwing in general.

So. Four different types venues, four different age ranges, four different sports… I think I’ll probably stick to hockey and minor league baseball for the most part, but this was fun to do.

22. Participate in the National Day of Silence on April 15, 2011

I am going to give myself a grade of D+ on participating in the National Day of Silence. Having to work – and to be at the Help Desk – and to manage students – kind of put a crimp into a big chunk of this day. Fortunately, I was able to spend the entire second half of my work day in silence. But then I went out after work with friends. So I probably was silent for 15 hours of the day and un-silent (?) for 9. Better than half, but still not so great. Alas. Kind of  a dud goal for me. Maybe next year I’ll do more on NCOD – seems like that would play into my chatty nature a little bit better than this did.

35. Try Bikram Yoga

Thanks to a well-timed Groupon, I scored a 10-visit punch card to Birkam Yoga Natick for a very good price. Since I have a couple of weeks off from work (oh, painting the house, how I love and loathe thee), it seemed like a good time to try out this particular brand of yoga – hot, prescriptive, and athletic.

6 Huron Drive, Natick MA

Okay, first truth time here: I’m not flexible. Nor do I enjoy spending a lot of time contemplating where I fit into the universe. And frankly, I hate sweating. So the choice of very bendy, heated YOGA? Weird, but that’s exactly why it was on the list.

And second truth time here: I enjoyed it. Sure, tomorrow when I go I’ll bring a bigger towel (and a second towel as well) and will wear far fewer clothes. But I’ll go back, which is probably the biggest surprise to me. I think what appealed to me about it was the athleticism involved – there is a lot of good balance work, and (as I said earlier), it’s a bendy brand of yoga. As it turns out, I’m a pretty goal-oriented person (shocking, shocking) and being able to walk out of there feeling like I had a workout was really appealing. Besides, I want to get better at being bendy – it can only help me in hockey and crossfit!

So: score one for hot, bendy yoga that would have made me sweat even IF the room hadn’t been heated up.