Task 30/30: When in doubt...say yes.
Complete: NEVER!
Written: December 15, 2008
There are MANY things that I did this year I had never done that just didn’t seem worthy enough for their own post at the time. In reflecting on the other 29 tasks I have completed, I think it is completely remiss to not state how many other things got done this year, both that I had never done, and even that I had done that I managed to do in the midst of this madness. It is very neat to me that I not only did 29 pretty significant things during my 13 month project, but I did all this other stuff as well that I am going to sum up into this one neat little themed project called “LIVING MY LIFE LOUD.” I did a lot of things this year and it felt like I was always on the go or always going through security somewhere for something, but wow, I don’t regret a moment of going!
Places
(New!) New Years Eve @ the Santa Cruz Clock Tower
(New!) Denver – January 10-14 - I had never been to Colorado and it had been years since I had seen snow and way too long since I had seen my good friend, so off I was. It was an awesome, but cold trip of catching up and exploring one of the oldest gold mining towns in the west.
(New!) Rosicrucian Museum, San Jose - February 9 (Mentioned in Winchester Mystery House post.)
(New!) Gruene, Texas - February 17 - Side trip from Austin visit where we made the side trip to San Antonio for Bull riding.
Farmington, Missouri - March 3-9 - Visiting Family
(New!) Philadelphia – April 7-8 – Most of the attention about my big east coast trips went to Broadway, baseball and museums, but in between all that there was a stopover in Philly. Since I was taking the train and the train was going through Philly, it seemed silly to not get off for a night or two. Since I had wanted to do some train tripping in California, this week was a nice substitute for the experience. I really thought that if I lived out there, it would be hard to keep me from bouncing around the eastern seaboard with the help of Amtrak. Granted I was sick while I was in Philly, so there was less excitement than I had wished, but it was a good pace for the middle of my adventure. I saw the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross’s house and Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence was signed, along with dozens of other important old buildings. I also had deep fried macaroni with tomato soup that I still dream about at night.
Birthday Dinner @ the Red - May 27 - While we always end up there for Pt II of Bday activities, this time, I just decided to make it the main event.
Birthday Party @ The Saddlerack, Fremont - the Cowboy Bar - May 30 - Gave people a chance to reenact the bull and me a chance to really check out the local cowboy bar.
(New!) Camping in Big Sur and Viewing Elephant Seals at Piedras Blancas – June 26-28 – One of my bestest girlfriends was turning 40 and decided that she wanted to spend her time celebrating among the beautiful natural elements of the central coast. This would be fabulous if I was into sleeping in beautiful, natural elements instead of just photographing them and going home. But it was her 40th and only a short time before she was going to move away, so I was determined to be a trooper and head out anyway. Unfortunately, we experienced some awful fires this season and the main highway down the coast to Big Sur was closed, leaving only the very hairy drive over the mountains through the military base. There was a second where I thought of canceling, but with no way to notify my friend who was already off on her cell-phone free zone adventure, and everyone else pulling out at the last minute, I knew I had to go.
While the drive there was pretty scary, and absolutely overheated my brakes to the point of failure, thankfully at the bottom of the hill, it was an absolutely amazing trip. I am so thankful for those few days to make memories on the coast, camping on grass overlooking the ocean. It was perfect and I am so very glad I did it, I think we had a fantastic celebration. On the drive home, I decided to take the “long” way home, which meant down south past Piedras Blancas and the elephant seals living there. I had stopped here before and seen some pretty inactive elephant seals once or twice before on drives up and down the coast, but saw nothing like this time. The males were so active and vocal and nothing like the emaciated ones I saw at Ano Nuevo as part of the project earlier in the year. It was such a wonderful site, but I hadn’t showered for 3 days and smelled of campfire with a long drive ahead, so I took off, but smiling.
Burning Man 2008 @ Black Rock City, Nevada - August 23-September 1 - Third Time is a Charm.
(New!) Discovered Manresa Beach in Santa Cruz, Visited the Golden Gate Nation Recreation Area on Hwy 1 North, and discovered Stinson Beach. I also saw dozens of unique sunsets and started the 60 second sunset project.
Trade Shows
(New!) MacWorld, San Francisco – January 15-17
(New!) WonderCon, San Francisco - February 21-24
(New!) New York Comic Con, New York City - April 16-20
San Diego Comic Con, San Diego – July 22-27
Siggraph, Los Angeles – August 11-13
Musicians & Performances
(New!) Tim Bluhm with Steve Poltz and the Cynics @ the Crepe Place, Santa Cruz - January 26
Ryan Adams & the Cardinals @ the Catalyst, Santa Cruz – January 29
(New!) Devil Doll @ Continental Club, Austin - February 15
(New!) Colin Gilmore @ Flipnotics, Austin – February 16
Steve Poltz and the Cynics @ the Crepe Place, Santa Cruz - April 13
Juvenators @ the Wharf House, Capitola - June 7
(New!) Dance Odyssey Student Dance Night @ Louden Nelson, Santa Cruz - June 14
(New!) Hayes Carll @ Don Quixote’s, Felton – June 18
Indigo Girls @ the Catalyst, Santa Cruz - June 25
Matt the Electrician (solo) @ the Crepe Place, Santa Cruz - July 19
(New!) Tom Freund with Matt the Electrician @ The Crepe Place, Santa Cruz - November 14
(New!) Oasis with Ryan Adams & the Cardinals @ Oracle Arena, Oakland - December 3
Musicals
(New!) Mamma Mia @ American Musical Theater, San Jose - April 26
(New!) Beauty & the Beast @ American Musical Theater, San Jose - May 18
(New!) A Chorus Line @ Currant Theater, San Francisco - July 13
(New!) Spring Awakening @ Curran Theater, San Francisco - October 4
Other Fantastic Things Of Noteworthy Presence in 2008
Birthdays & Bonfires, Beltane, 4th of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving & cocktail gatherings!
(New!) Jury Duty in September - Dismissed.
(New!) Got my eyebrows waxed for the first time.
(New!) Celebrated weddings, pregnancies and sending one of my friends to live abroad!
(New!) Voted for the first African American to be the next President of the United States - Barack Obama!
And with all those little things wrapped up into one big thing summarizing what an amazing year I've had, I am going to call this PROJECT COMPLETE! Watch for additional reflections coming soon on what all of this meant to me and all that fun stuff about carrying it into the future and what I'm going to do for 31! For now, just enjoy the links, and help me toast and cheer and celebrate that this has been a very worthwhile project.
I'm so very proud.
Review the Final Complete Project List Here.
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