July 2009 Progress

Completed in July: 3/101
Current Total: 3/101

1. Start using our cloth grocery bags.
It'll be at least another month, probably 2, before I can call this one completed, but I've gotten much better already about remembering to bring the bags. And I forgot how much I like them! They hold so much, I only need 5 or 6 to hold a whole load of groceries, and the handles are so much more comfortable when you're carrying heavy stuff. Hopefully soon plastic bags will be a thing of the past for us!

5. Read 101 books (6/101).
I read 6 books this month. It won't always be so high, but I read more in the summer when there's not much on tv. I was planning to post my favorite book each month, but I didn't read anything great this month. This one was probably the best:


9. Take 1001 photos in 1001 days (123/1001).
Apparently this challenge is going to be way too easy - I didn't realize how many pictures I take! This is my favorite picture I took this month:

98. Watch 5 movies that won the Academy Award for "Best Picture" (1/5).

Tonight we watched Slumdog Millionaire (rented it from the library - love free movies!), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2008. It was pretty good, but awfully depressing!

67. Purge and donate our old clothes.

We were overdue for a big clothing purge. Bill and I went through our dressers and our whole closet, cleaning stuff out, and I purged a bunch of Liam's old clothes too. I had taken a few bags over to one of those clothing donation bins in the Walmart parking lot a few months ago, and we still came up with about 6 bags today!

We had gotten a flyer in the mail a few weeks ago from the Vietnam Veterans of America saying that they would be on our street on July 21st to pick up any donations, and that they especially needed clothes. Super easy, they pick it up off your front porch, whether you're home or not. And they left us a tax deductible receipt for our donation!

28. Swim in a lake

This afternoon, we brought Liam to Sandling Beach at Falls Lake in Raleigh. We had a great time, and all of us enjoyed swimming in the lake. It's so close by, we hope to go back soon. I didn't get a picture of myself in the lake, but this one is close enough! :)

80. Eat dinner at the Mellow Mushroom

On the board with my first item checked off! Chrissy and Paul are in town visiting, and we were supposed to be at the Aerosmith concert last night, but it was canceled last minute, so we decided to go out for dinner and drinks instead. Bill and I had been wanting to eat at the Mellow Mushroom forever, and it was a really nice night for sitting outside enjoying pizza and beer. Mmmm, can't wait to go back! :)

101 Challenges in 1001 Days

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple goals such as New Year's resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Start Date: July 1, 2009

End Date: March 28, 2012