TT 13 Thirteen things to do before I die

Well, after my adventures with creating my own recipes, which is part of my endless list of goals, I thought I'd continue in that vein and list the

Thirteen things I want to do before I die.

1…. Go skydiving. This desire was somewhat tempered after my brother fell out a plane during Airborne training and got caught up in another parachuters chute, making both of them plummet to the ground. They survived, miraculously, when the other guy got his emergency chute to deploy. I still want to go, but I'll just have to be very careful when I do it.

2…. Perfect my salsa and hummus recipes, as well as any other I can think up. I've been thinking about the perfect guacamole recipe too. Hmm. . .

3…. Become a published author. This has been a dream in the making, and I might be able to do it. . . if I could finish my novel in progress, which, by the way, you can read the first part of here.

4…. Travel around the world, though not necessarily in one trip. There are so many places to see. My first stop: Paris.

5…. Buy and decorate my perfect house. This also includes having the perfect garden. Working for a book publisher that specializes in interior design and garden books add a lot of fuel to my imagination

6…. Learn to tread water. The whole fear of drowning thing does a lot to hamper this ability. I can swim a little, though I always freak out when I'm only surrounded by water and don't have anything to hold onto. This may be one goal I don't completely accomplish, but it won't be for not trying.

7…. Have something named after me, like a flower or a star. After editing a book about gardens and reading all the names of cultivated roses, many of which are named after specific people, I thought it'd be nice to have something that beautiful named after me. Maybe I just need to date a gardener or astronomer.

8…. Visit all 50 states--only 9 left to go. (We traveled a lot when I was younger, all of it in a car. You see a lot of land that way.)

9…. Spend a week at a day spa. That just sounds delicious.

10…. Learn how to really take excellent photos. This would probably include taking a photography class where they show me exactly how to use my SLR. That and a lot of practice.

11…. Raise a flower or plant from a seed without killing it. What can I say, I have a red thumb.

12…. Write a cookbook filled with my own recipes. After editing cookbooks all day long I got the crazy idea that I could do that myself. I never really thought of it before, but it would be a lot of fun, especially the taste-testing part. And besides, number 2 on the list will help with that.

13…. Give birth. Well, that and the whole pregnancy thing. I'm excited for the time when I'll actually get to be a mom. Now all I need to do is find me a good man. That could take a while.