Birthday 43 Things: Take Two

A year ago today, I completed a meme for which I had been tagged by the inimitable Daphnewood. It seemed like a good birthday thing to do then, and it seems like an equally good birthday thing to update it now. The idea is to think of (that's the hard part), and then list (that's the easy part) 43 things I'd like to do before I die.

First, here are the things from the original list that I've now done, with appropriate commentary:

1) learn the words to the Danish version of 'Happy Birthday' (there are several verses.) I've learned the first verse, and have decided that this is, in fact, enough, thank you very much.
2) get my Portuguese back to where it was. In July, it was back pretty much to where it was. It may not be there in a few months, but I know I can get it back whenever the opportunity arises.
22) be family reunified (this relates to my visa status in Denmark). Done, and even blogged about...now let's see if I can keep it for a while.
32) learn to knit. Yep, I did it. And I'm saddened to report that it was boring, and that I won't be doing it again.
37) learn to make kung-pao chicken. Did I mention that I took a Sichuan cooking class while in Chengdu?
41) see Citizen Kane. I'm not quite sure what the fuss is about this film, but I can honestly say that I didn't not enjoy it...which is to say that it was o.k. Of course, I already knew the 'secret' of Rosebud, which may have been a factor.

Several things I've done in part, or even in large part - I am procrastinating less, and worrying less, and sometimes I even have more patience with people. My Danish is getting better all the time, and I've seen a bit more of China, but I'd like to do more with all of these things, so they're still on the list. And if knitting is so boring, then why crochet? So I'm taking that off of the list, too. So, here is my updated 43 things to do before I die (new items in bold). Wish me luck.

Before I die, I would like to...
1) climb a mountain.
2) start a successful vegetable garden.
3) continue to improve my Danish.
4/5/6) visit all the continents...at this point, this means South America, Antarctica, and Africa (I was in Morocco, but for less than a day, so it doesn't count).
7) own my own house.
8) have a job where I earn enough that I can afford a mortgage.
9/10/11) have articles or papers published in at least 5 academic journals, 5 large-circulation publications, and the Weekly World News
12) retire before I'm 80.
13) learn how to build websites by building my own.
14) learn how to take professional quality photographs.
15) get a tattoo.
16) make my own cross-stitch designs.
17) learn to meditate.
18) live to see and enjoy my 101st birthday.
19/20) travel around India and China.
21) learn to speak and write Mandarin Chinese.
22) see at least part of the world from a inside a hotair baloon.
23) stop procrastinating so much.
24) get into better physical shape.
25) find a job that I look forward to going to almost every day.
26) complete a PhD.
27) decide what I would like to do a PhD in.
28) radiate self-confidence.
29/30) see more of California and the rest of the US.
31) stop worrying so much about all sorts of things.
32/33) start and successfully run my own business/consulting firm.
34) learn to weave cloth on a floor loom.
35) earn enough money to hire someone to clean my house for me.
36) learn how to network at social events.
37) learn to salsa, and/or samba.
38) learn to make clam chowder.
39/40) read José Saramago and Peter Høeg in the original.
41) decide the whole kid/no kid debate before menopause.
42) have more patience with people.
43) appreciate how many things that I wanted to do could not be included here because I've already done them.

So, now it's your turn. Yes, I am talking about you. You don't even have to wait for your birthday. I look forward to reading your list.

My boyfriend the rock star

Actually, I'm also a rock star. Apparently, my Chinese stage name is Hello. I must be very popular in China as people, total strangers, call to me on the street there. They wave and look very happy to see me. However, my rock stardom is nothing compared to that of my tall, blond, bearded boyfriend, coincidentally also named Hello. He is a Chinese rock superstar.

Yes, people wave to him on the street. Yes, they call out 'Hello, hello!' They also ask to get their photographs taken with him. Sometimes they want a photo of themselves shaking his hand. Those who are too shy to speak to him directly will sometimes take his photo anyway. He's also been videotaped, for example at the summit of Emei Shan, because everyone knows that there is nothing to video way up there otherwise. On rare occasions, he'll have someone follow him around for a while, presumably to bask in the glow of his fame.

I'm not quite sure what kind of music my boyfriend Hello does, but it seems to appeal especially to tiny old toothless women, who will often come over to have a nice little chat with him. They find it especially amusing when he replies, which makes sense as he says really funny things, like 'I'm sorry, I don't speak Chinese'. His music also appeals to young girls, by which I mean under the age of 5. One little girl, walking on top of a small ledge, hand in hand with her father, was so excited to see the great Hello and so involved in calling out 'Hello, Hello' and waving, that she lost her balance and fell. We believe she emerged unscathed.

Because my boyfriend is a rock star, my penchant for always trying to take his photo makes me a papparazzi. As Hello tends to comandeer my camera, this is not an easy task. However, I was able to use the occasion of being on the top of the not-yet-completed Three Gorges Dam to get him to pose for a photo anyway.

More photos will be arriving shortly, not of Hello as he is good at evading my lens, if not all of the other lenses which were pointed at him on our trip; but of Southwest China, which, if it isn't also a rock star, deserves to be one.

When the mist clears, I may post photos

But as it is now, I'm just trying to get back into the non-holiday life, including blogging. And it's not easy - it's amazing what 2 weeks of almost no internet access will do to one's addictions routines. I will perservere regardless, and I will succeed, perhaps even soon. In the meantime, have a wonderful weekend.

*photo: Big golden multifaced misty Buddha at the summit (almost) of Emei Shan*

Long road to China

This is not our destination, and this is certainly not the weather we expect, in Chengdu, in August. But the saying still applies. The House of Fortune will be boarded up and locked until the 22nd of the month. See you then.

IKEA kids

IKEA, like other businesses, is constantly working to expand its range. This is an example from the new IKEA kids collection, being piloted in Portugal. As you can see, they are very stylish, and are sold pre-assembled. The price point is attractive, but as always with IKEA products, there is always the question of quality. This means you should check any kids you may wish to buy carefully; however, these particular kids seemed to be pretty well manufactured. I believe the gameboys are sold separately.

A breakfast invitation

In honor of my last full day in Lisbon, at least on this trip, please join me for my usual Portuguese breakfast. If it's not breakfast time when you read this post, you may, if you like, come back later. But of course, breakfast can be eaten at all times of the day, or night. I've taken you to my local pastelaria, and taken the liberty of ordering you a galão de máquina (milk with a shot of expresso, preferably though not always served very hot), and a torrada (thick toast, cut into sticks and dripping with butter). I encourage you to follow my ritual, pacing the galão so that you have some liquid for each toast stick, with a bit remaining at the end to wash it all down. I prefer to eat the sticks on the end, those with more crust, first, followed by the softer sticks in the middle, but you may of course choose your own eating strategy. While you eat, I will tell you a breakfast story, or is it a parable?

The other day, I walked into my usual breakfast place - I'd been going there for two weeks already, so I considered myself a regular - and my usual server was not there. I was a quarter of an hour later than normal, it was hard to find a seat (I don't normally stand at the counter except at lunch), and the man who took my order was, well, a bit distracted and a bit ditzy. It made me ill-at-ease. But then, my food arrived, and it was perfect; the torrada not too dark, not too light, with enough butter (and I have the grease stain on my trousers to prove it - the phrase 'dripping with butter' here is not a metaphor); the galão also the perfect shade, and really, really hot. Just the anticipation of indulging in such a repast turned all well with the world again. Yes, living proof of the power of breakfast.

I hope you've enjoyed it...and next time, may I suggest breakfast at your place? I look forward to whatever will be on the menu.