A Stolen List

As I am tired and mentally flushed at the moment, I have "borrowed" this from Robyn who had in turn "borrowed" it from her friend.





Highlight those tasks that you have accomplished in your life.



01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink

02. Swam with wild dolphins

03. Climbed a mountain

04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive

05. Been inside the Great Pyramid

06. Held a tarantula

07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone

08. Said “I love you” and meant it

09. Hugged a tree

10. Bungee jumped

11. Visited Paris

12. Watched a lightning storm at sea

13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise

14. Seen the Northern Lights

15. Gone to a huge sports game

16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa

17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables

18. Touched an iceberg

19. Slept under the stars

20. Changed a baby’s nappy

21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon

22. Watched a meteor shower

23. Gotten tipsy on champagne

24. Given more than you can afford to charity

25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope

26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment

27. Been engaged

28. Bet on a winning horse

29. Asked out a stranger

30. Had a snowball fight

31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can

32. Held a lamb

33. Seen a total eclipse of both the sun and moon

34. Ridden a roller coaster

35. Hit a home run

36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking

37. Adopted an accent for an entire day

38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment

39. Had two hard drives for your computer

40. Visited all 50 states

41. Taken care of someone who was drunk

42. Had/Have amazing friends

43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country

44. Watched whales

45. Stolen a sign

46. Backpacked in Europe

47. Taken a road-trip

48. Gone rock climbing

49. Midnight walk on the beach

50. Gone sky diving

51. Visited Ireland

52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love

53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them

54. Visited Japan

55. Milked a cow

56. Alphabetized your CDs

57. Pretended to be a superhero

58. Sung karaoke

59. Lounged around in bed all day

60. Played touch football

61. Gone scuba diving

62. Kissed in the rain

63. Played in the mud

64. Played in the rain

65. Gone to a drive-in theater

66. Visited the Great Wall of China

67. Started a business

68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken

69. Toured ancient sites

70. Taken a martial arts class

71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight

72. Gotten married

73. Been in a movie

74. Crashed a party

75. Gotten divorced

76. Gone without food for 5 days

77. Made cookies from scratch

78. Won first prize in a costume contest

79. Ridden a gondola in Venice

80. Gotten a tattoo

81. Rafted a river

82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”

83. Gotten flowers for no reason

84. Performed on stage

85. Been to Las Vegas

86. Recorded music

87. Eaten shark

88. Kissed on the first date

89. Gone to Thailand

90. Bought a house

91. Been in a combat zone

92. Buried one/both of your parents

93. Been on a cruise ship

94. Spoken more than one language fluently

95. Performed in a Rocky Horror Picture Show

96. Raised children

97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour

98. Passed out cold

99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country

100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over - Soon

101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge

102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking

103. Had plastic surgery

104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived

105. Wrote articles for a large publication

106. Lost over 100 pounds

107. Held someone while they were having a flashback

108. Piloted an airplane

109. Touched a stingray

110. Broken someone’s heart

111. Helped an animal give birth

112. Won money on a TV game show

113. Broken a bone

114. Gone on an African photo safari

115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears

116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol

117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild

118. Ridden a horse

119. Had major surgery

120. Had a snake as a pet

121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon

122. Slept 30 hours in a 48 hour time frame

123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states

124. Visited all 7 continents

125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days

126. Eaten kangaroo meat

127. Eaten sushi

128. Had your picture in the newspaper

129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about

130. Gone back to school

131. Parasailed

132. Touched a cockroach

133. Eaten fried green tomatoes

134. Read “The Iliad”

135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read

136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

137. Skipped all your school reunions

138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language

139. Been elected to public office

140. Written your own computer language

141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream

142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care

143. Built your own PC from parts

144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you

145. Had a booth at a street fair

146. Dyed your hair

147. Been a DJ

148. Shaved your head

149. Caused a car accident

150. Saved someone’s life



Thats a freaking list!

China 2009

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

- Mark Twain

I have decided to go to China to see my cousin Justin and hang with him for a while. I plan to leave next summer as this will give me time to finish paying off my only debt, my truck loan. This will also give me time to save up some cash, get my paperwork in order, hang with friends/family, and psych myself to leaving the country. I'm looking forward to something new and something different. I have a lot of friends/family here, but besides that I have nothing. My job is great but it is not a career. My love life is non-existent and who knows if that will change. I'm also hung up on someone and I think the distance might finally get me to move on.

The thought of leaving is scary yet at the same time exciting. Even if I don't live there forever and decide to come home, I can at least say, "China....been there, done that." Hopefully I will find a nice gal, a nice job, get along with my cousin, and find what I have been looking for. I'm not sure what it is, but I hope I find it. :)

Love ya guys

- Josh

P.S. Sorry for the ever changing appearance of my blog. It seems everyday I try to find a layout that best suits me and I have yet to find it. I thought it would be easy to find a layout that says who I am, and as of this second I have yet to find it. So heads up, more changes probably coming.

Sometimes It Would Be Nice

Sometimes it would be nice

if our lives were like a book.

Having already been written

so we could take a look.

To read ahead and make sure

the choices we made were just,

that we did not waste a minute,

when every second is a must.

I could use that book right now

as my present choice may fail,

And I am uncertain in myself

with my mind so weak and frail.

I do not know what to do

as everything is out of place,

this chapter of my life it seems

is lost and gone without a trace.

The Ultimate Move

I have a cousin that lives in China. He's been there, I think, for over 5 years and is the closest thing I have to brother. He loves it there as he has a soon to be wife, and says he's never moving back to the States. 3/4 years ago, he asked to move there and hang with him. I was all gung ho. I had gotten my Visa in order, found a decent plane ticket, and had even turned in my notice at my job. Well, sadly some things fell through and I wasn't able to go. Thankfully I was able to get my job back and everything was fine.

It seems every year since then he always tries to get me to come over there. I didn't before because of either A) my job, B) wanting to settle down, C) being scared or D) all of the above.

Well, a lot has happened since then and know I'm am the same position but with a different frame of mind. I emailed him to say happy birthday, and again got the same "you need to come over here man". I don't have that special someone and even though I love my job, I do not see myself doing that for the rest of my life. He said I could live with him rent free and he'd get me a job.

The more and more I think about it the better it sounds. If I did I would sell my truck and get rid of my phone as then I would have no more bills. The thought of being in a new country with new possibilities is quite the high. I still have a ton of time to think about this and it may never happen....but what if it did. Time to think a little deeper :) Love ya guys.

Hobbies

from xkcd.com

Not the greatest hobby but you get to meet a lot of nice people in uniforms. I hope that everyone had a great weekend and that the week ahead is easy and fun. I get off work in 3 hours and then I have 3 days off. Oh happy days.

Love ya guys :)