101 Things to Do Before You Die | Category Archive

Thing to Do: Participate in a Big Wheel Race

May 19, 2013 by Jessica 0 Comments

About a month ago I participated in probably one of the zanier events of my life. I mean, don’t get me wrong. Probably visiting a nudist resort or doing the pantsless subway ride were probably crazier but deciding to join in a one mile big wheel race was up there. Luckily I found someone to do it with me (because honestly, when you do crazy things, you kinda want someone to be crazy along with you).

A friend from work (and the same who joined me to go whale watching), Amy, decided she was up for it and, to get into the spirit, we decided to dress in an 80s theme. You know, since that was the decade it was last appropriate to ride these things. I looked around to borrow a couple of big wheels from friends who had kids but with no prospects we actually had to purchase a couple from Wal-Mart. I’ll admit, these are not true BIG wheels but they got the job done. And, for $25 a pop, they held up for us, unlike so many others…

Because this race required that you brought your own big wheel, I feel like it wasn’t as well attended as it could have been. If, instead, they had big wheels provided, there would have been many more. But for $15 (after a LivingSocial deal), could you really complain? There were LOTS of people dressed up, which is what I love about these type events. Whether it’s The Color Run or The Warrior Dash, more people are wearing costumes and silly things than NOT.

Luckily the course was almost all downhill. When the start sounded, people immediately began pedaling, pushing, or generally using their big wheel as a kind of scooter or skateboard, with a knee or foot on the big wheel while they pushed with the other. The original idea was that we would just kinda push ourselves while on the trykes but was getting us nowhere fast. I decided to try to see if I could wedge my feet into the pedals, and sure enough, we could actually pedal the damn things!

Within 3 minutes of the start, things started to fall apart…literally. I’d wager about half of the big wheels were no longer together by the end of the race with wheels coming off and rolling away, handlebars coming off in people’s hands, and big wheels generally disintegrating. A guy dressed up as Mario had his big wheel fall to multiple pieces in front of me. Luckily he yelled “Watch out for the banana peel!” and sure enough, Mario-Kart-style, I had to swerve around a banana peel that had been left behind from the carnage.

With big wheels now only broken parts, most people began walking. Amy and I joined them, less because of the state of our wheels and more because the car bringing up the rear was directly behind us and we needed to pick up the pace.

With the finish line in sight, we again started pedaling. We both had GoPros on the front of our trykes but I just haven’t had the time to edit the video (that and I suck at editing video and the video is pretty shaky). SO…I’ll give you this gem of a video to give you an idea of how much of a dork I looked while riding this thing. Also, as you can see, Amy and I are the last on the track; that black SUV is the car bringing up the end of the race.

Like all the crazy things I do, I enjoyed it. How can you not smile while pedaling like a crazy person on a tiny tricycle?

I have some fun plans ahead with fly fishing and hiking in the mountains, trapeze lessons at the end of June, Orlando and Universal Studios in July (where I’ll get another Roller Coaster checked off the list), and … Running with the Bulls in August!

What does YOUR summer look like?

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bucket list, Entertainment, Excitement, life list, Sport and Activity

Big Wheel Race, Raleigh

Thing to Do #35 (40/40): Visit All NC Breweries

May 2, 2013 by Jessica 1 Comment

(Photo to the right is a beer from my last batch of homebrew. My beer gives good head!)

When I started this goal back in the Fall of 2011, I did say I would only hold myself to the breweries that were currently listed. At that time, there were 49 brewpubs and production breweries. I’m glad I made that rule because as of June 2012 there were 61. And as I have personally been to 2 in the last few months that just opened this year and have plans to go to yet another this weekend that just opened a few weeks ago, I’m sure that number is a good deal higher.

Here’s an update to which breweries I’ve visited. The original list is first and then the additional ones I’ve been to are at the bottom. As of May 2, 2013, I have been to:

Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company

Craggie Brewing Company

French Broad Brewing Co.

Green Man Brewery

Highland Brewing Co.

Lexington Avenue Brewery

Oyster House Brewing Co.

Wedge Brewing Company

Pisgah Brewing Co.

Nantahala Brewing Company

Carolina Brewery – Chapel Hill (DONE: Oatmeal Porter)

Top of the Hill Restaurant and Brewery (DONE: Old Well White)

Four Friends Brewing

Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery

The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery

Ass Clown Brewing Company

Bull City Burger and Brewery (DONE: Bryant Bridge Gateway Golden Ale)

Fullsteam (DONE: El Toro/Working Man’s Lunch)

Triangle Brewing Company

The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery

Huske Hardware House Restaurant & Brewery

Mash House Brewery & Chophouse (DONE: Raspberry Porter)

Aviator Brewing Company (DONE: Black Mamba Stout)

Southern Appalachian Brewery

Loe’s Brewing Company

Olde Hickory Brewery

Liberty Steakhouse and Brewery

Mystery Brewing Company (DONE: Gentlemen’s Preference)

Carolina Brewing Company (DONE: Carolina Winter Porter)

Weeping Radish Farm Brewery

Outer Banks Brewing Station (DONE: Hugh Hefeweizen)

Mother Earth Brewing Co. (DONE: Window Pane Raspberry)

Hops Grill Brewery

Carolina Beer Company

Catawba Valley Brewing Company

Old North State Winery and Brewery

Big Boss Brewing Co.(DONE: Bad Penny)

Boylan Bridge Brewpub (DONE: Pullman Porter)

LoneRider Brewing Co. (DONE: Shotgun Betty)

Natty Greene’s Pub & Brewing Co. – Raleigh (DONE: Wildflower)

Roth Brewing Company (DONE: Raleigh Red)

Sapphire Mountain Brewing Company

Dry County Brewing Company

Heinzelmannchen Brewery

Frog Level Brewing Company

Red Oak Brewery (DONE: Hummin’ Bird)

Front Street Brewery

Foothills Brewing (DONE: People’s Porter)

Also:

My original goal for this year was 7 breweries and I’ve already been to 6. So yeah, I’m probably going to reach that goal.

There’s only two Triangle area breweries I haven’t visited yet but 4 more are slated to open this year (one this weekend!). Most of the ones I haven’t visited yet are in the Mountains (mostly Asheville) or in Charlotte. Gotta get around more!

40 Before I'm 40, Achievement, Entertainment, Recklessness

beer, breweries, craft beer, drinking, NC

Thing to Do: Go Hang Gliding

April 21, 2013 by Jessica 3 Comments

Hang gliding has definitely been one of those things I’ve always wanted to try. Luckily for me, one of the best places to do a beginner’s lesson is right in my own state. Jockey’s Ridge State Park’s high dunes and great winds has attracted people interested in flight since…well…the beginning! (Heard of a couple of brothers named Orville and Wilbur?)

Booking a beginner’s hang gliding lesson with Kitty Hawk Kites (who, also, have pretty much been doing this since the beginning of hang gliding as a sport) meant I got 5 flights off the dunes after a short classroom session. Unlike lots of other things I’ve done, like tandem skydiving, I was actually mostly on my own. The instructor was there to correct for wind gusts but I was under my own power, controlling the glider myself.

The video looks kinda lame but you really do feel like you are flying! You run as hard as you can and after several steps you realize the ground is no longer under your feet. You feel like you are soaring really high, although in actuality I was no more than 10 feet or so off the ground (my instructor is 6’4″ so you get the idea) and I guess I probably only went 100 feet or so. In the video I did actually manage to land on my feet although I only did that 2 of the 5 tries. Even if you don’t land on your feet, you have sand to land on, so no worries about too many bumps and bruises.

You could also choose to be dropped from a plane a mile up and tandem glide down but I chose to opt out of that because 1) it’s crazy expensive, and 2) in my old age, I’ve managed to get quite a bit of motion sickness from these type activities. I really didn’t want to spend the money and just be miserable As much as I really wanted to do this, I still think the excitement of flying under your own power was still better than just riding along tandem with an instructor…even from 6,000 feet up.

I really enjoyed this but I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to afford the lessons to get licensed. I’m discovering that all the super fun things to do are just way too expensive!

So who out there has done this? Who would be willing to do it off a cliff or a mountain side?

101 Things before you die, 40 Before I'm 40, Achievement, bucket list, Entertainment, Excitement, life list, Nature, Sport and Activity, Travel

dunes, flying, hang gliding, Jockey's Ridge State Park

2013 First Quarter Report

March 31, 2013 by Jessica 0 Comments

Ok, so based on the list of Goals for 2013, I’ve gotten a good bit of work done in the first 3 months of the year. Always room for improvement but not too shabby!

#2 Swim with Whales: Ok, well…this was a fail but it WAS an attempt so I’m counting it as done for this year. Something to try again next year.

#8 Sell a piece of art (and realize my childhood dream, which is #28 on the 40/40 list): Nothing yet.

#46 Scuba Diving: Continue practicing my SCUBA skills by going at least once this summer. Gonna use my new GoPro to capture the excitement that is the murky depths of the rock quarry.

#52 Read the Greatest Books Ever Written (#7 on the 40/40 list): Supposed to be working on at least 2 this year. Nada so far.

#65 Shout ‘Drinks Are on Me!’ in a Pub or Bar (#17 on the 40/40 list): Not yet.

#84 Learn to Ski (#32 on the 40/40 list): Went in January and had a blast.

Goals from my 40 Before I’m 40 List:

#1 Be Able to Do a Pull Up: Very much working on it. I can lift 100 pounds so far. About 35 pounds to go.

#11 Learn to Rock Climb: Went rock climbing on Pilot Mountain for “real” rock climbing a week ago. That’s where the photo above comes from. Post to come.

#12 Take a Cooking Class: Nothing yet.

#18 Watch the Top 250 IMDB List/Watch All of the Oscar Best Picture Winners: Nothing yet.

#25 Drink All the Beers on the GQ List: Nothing yet.

#31 Learn to swim (#87 on the 101 list: Conquer Your Fear): COMPLETED!

#35 Visit all of the NC Breweries: The original goal was to visit 7 this year. I’ve visited Trophy Brewing and Raleigh Brewing thus far.

#36 Learn How to Ballroom Dance: Nada yet.

From the Sports List:

#18 Attend a rugby game (and learn the rules): Nope

#19 Attend a cricket game (and learn the rules): Nope

Things not on an official list but still want to try:

I want to take a Stand Up Paddleboard lesson this spring or summer.
I COMPLETED a really awesome ropes course adventure in February.
I’ve scheduled fly fishing lessons for May.
I’ve scheduled hang gliding in April.
I’m doing a Big Wheel race in April!
I plan to go on the Flying Trapeze in June.
I’d like to try the Neon Splash Dash
There is talk about going backpacking but I’m not sure about this one. Backpacking is an expensive endeavor and I’m not even sure I would like it (after all, I just went camping for the first time last year). I think I’ll try it for a weekend and see how I like it.

Think that’s enough? What’s on YOUR goals for 2013?

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drinking, films, dancing, Flying Saucer, reading, beer, SCUBA, Shakespeare, rugby, diving, Sushi, cricket, rock climbing, ski, whale watching

Thing to Do: Complete an Epic Ropes Course

March 15, 2013 by Jessica 1 Comment

I know, I know. You’re thinking, “What’s the big deal about some lame Ropes Course? Aren’t they for team building, along with trust falls and other touchy feely stuff?” And yes, they are. But they can also be epic. Like the one I completed last weekend.

I’ve done the team building stuff with ropes courses before. Those are usually, at the most, a few feet off the ground. I think, maybe once, I did a ropes course in Girl Scouts that was probably 10 feet up in the air. But this, my friends, is fifty-five feet in the air. And how do you get off? By zipline or a giant swing. Awesomesauce.

When I first learned about the Durham Parks and Rec’s High Ropes Course in Spring 2011, I immediately added it to “my list.” Intended primarily for organizations and businesses to use for team building exercises, once a month Durham Parks and Rec opens it up to the general public. After a year, I finally secured a spot.

Technically, kids 7 and up and do this, so it’s not that scary. And the way the course is set up, you can choose the obstacles you want to complete. I did skip the “Gauntlet” and another line that seemed to employ a good bit of upper body strength. You only get an hour so I felt rushed and didn’t want to hold anyone up while I tried to complete those two obstacles. Perhaps next time I’ll just head straight up and do the more challenging ones on the second and third levels.

The video (shot with my brand new GoPro!) is pretty long, so look in the video information to skip to the highlights. Definitely go to the end to see me do the giant swing. You can’t tell much from the shot but there’s a good bit of a free fall at first, probably only 10 feet or so, but it’ll give you a jolt!

I do think I’d like to go back and do the tougher obstacles, as well as try to depend less on my own rope and see if I can cross things without hanging on to it for dear life. I’m pleased with the camera angle (I was using a chest harness instead of a helmet cam); I think it was more stable than a helmet cam would have been but there were sometimes I think a helmet cam would have better captured what my feet were doing/what I was seeing.

So what do you think? Would you do this? Would you think this to be exciting? Or are you “Meh.” about this type stuff?

Achievement, Entertainment, Excitement, Recklessness, Sport and Activity

Durham, Durham Parks and Red, NC, Ropes Course

Thing to Do #2: Swim with Whales

March 3, 2013 by Jessica 4 Comments

Photo Credit from The Virginia Pilot

So in the book, Thing to Do #2 before you die is to swim with a multitude of oceanic creatures: dolphins, sharks, whales, and tropical fish. Although the title implies to literally swim with them, the entry form does allow for a simple sighting of said creature. I have successfully (and literally) swam with dolphins, sharks, and tropical fish. I was kinda hoping to check of this last one with a whale watching trip, which is actually something that I had on the original list I created back in high school. Being a typical girl, I was obsessed with whales when I was younger and for a brief time wanted to be a marine biologist to study whales. And, honestly, I’m surprised it’s taken me this long to finally schedule a whale watching trip. But better late than never. When I discovered that the Virginia Aquarium ran whale watching trips January-March each year, I set about making plans.

Amy, a friend at work, had been interested in coming along on one of my adventures and when I suggested whale watching, she was on board immediately. In anticipation of the trip, I searched online to see if it had been a “good year” thus far and found this article and this article that buoyed our hopes for seeing a whale. You see, whales sightings are not “guaranteed.” I really had gotten pretty excited about the possibility of fulfilling a childhood dream and besides, who wants to drive 7 hours round trip and take a 2 hour boat trip only to be disappointed?

We left Raleigh at 7am and made good time, arriving to pick up our tickets with plenty of time to grab breakfast before boarding the boat. Immediately upon leaving the dock area, we were greeted with a huge pod of dolphins, which followed us the entire trip. I’ve seen dolphins in the wild before, although seeing them is always a pleasant surprise. Besides, I had never seen this many at one time.

After watching the dolphins for a good long while, we went south where the morning boat had sighted a whale earlier. After traveling for an hour, we apparently had reached the point but after only 10 minutes or so, turned around to head back. I honestly was a little taken aback; we had never left the shoreline at all but instead had just run parallel to it for an hour. I had completely expected to go out to sea. Knowing that the trip was only supposed to last 2 hours, I knew we probably weren’t going to see a whale that day. Although the dolphins continued to play in our wake, when the boat turned, Amy and I were no longer in the sun. The wind and February chill became too much and we went inside to keep warm for the return trip.

I knew a sighting wasn’t guaranteed but knowing the morning boat had seen one and that there had been so much success all year long, I was pretty disappointed.

Oh well. There’s always next year to try again. Plus, my friend Jessica lives in New England and has been on many successful whale watching trips. I may just go up to visit her and take advantage of her whale watching mojo!

How about you? Have you ever been on a whale watching trip? Or just seen one in the wild on a completely separate boat trip?

101 Things before you die, bucket list, Entertainment, Excitement, life list, Nature, Sport and Activity, Travel

Virginia Aquarium, Virginia Beach, whale watching, whales

Thing to Do #84: Learn to Ski

February 10, 2013 by Jessica 4 Comments

Ok, so skiing was actually really fun this year! I think in looking back at last year I was so sick, I just didn’t have the energy it required to give it a fair shake. I was nervous going this year because I remembered not really having a great time last year. But once I was out on the bunny slope, it all came back really quickly and I was easily better than I ever was last year within the first hour.

Last year I had a lot of frustration from not picking it up quickly. I don’t mean to be immodest, but I’ve been pretty active all my life and most physical activities have come easily to me. With how quickly I got back to it this year and immediately exceeded where I was last year, further makes me think that I was just really weak from being sick last year; if I hadn’t been sick, I would have been able to pick it up much more quickly. (It didn’t hurt that this year there was actual snow as opposed to mostly ice last year).

After an hour getting reacquainted with skiing on the bunny slope, I headed out to the greens and skied those for the remainder of the day and the next. I took two ski lessons last year and I kept trying to apply what I remembered my instructor telling me to do. Like all things, it just takes time to “feel it” (you can tell me all day to stand up straight and lean forward but when I’m sliding down a mountain, what I WANT to do is squat down and lean back, AWAY from the big scary mountain in front of me).

I managed to only fall down once and that was on the first run of the second day. (Well, 3 times if you count the 2 times falling off the chair lift, which, honestly, is incredibly embarrassing). By the second half of the second day, I could finally even keep my skis together and parallel a good bit for most of the way down, with only minimal “snowplowing” at the steeper points. I’m not saying my stance was nice and tight or anything, but I kinda looked like I knew what I was doing.

Still didn’t get a picture again this year (Who wants to carry around a camera or phone while skiing?) but the photo above is of the bunny slope. I didn’t want to mess with my new GoPro that I got for Christmas as I thought I had enough to worry with in just re-learning how to ski but I saw a lot of people with them so I definitely will use it next year. That’ll be some fun video!

So officially now I can really say I can ski! And, even better, that I actually enjoy it. Can’t wait for next year!

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skiing, Snowshoe, West Virginia

Goals for 2013

January 23, 2013 by Jessica 3 Comments

Photo Credit

In looking at my list, so many things that are left involve travel. Well, I hope to get out and visit at least one new country this year but otherwise I’m going to have to find things a bit closer by to do.

#2 Swim with Whales: Technically I wouldn’t be swimming with whales but I do plan to go on a whale watching trip out of Virginia Beach in February. Hope to see a humpback on its migratory path!

#8 Sell a piece of art (and realize my childhood dream, which is #28 on the 40/40 list)

#46 Scuba Diving: Continue practicing my SCUBA skills by going at least once. Gonna use my new GoPro to capture the excitement that is the murky depths of the rock quarry.

#52 Read the Greatest Books Ever Written (#7 on the 40/40 list): I didn’t do ANY of these last year! I mostly have really long ones left so out of the 10 remaining, I’m going to tackle 2 this year. As ONE of these things to read is the ENTIRE works of Shakespeare, I also want to see 2 plays performed live.

#65 Shout ‘Drinks Are on Me!’ in a Pub or Bar (#17 on the 40/40 list): I’m waiting to go my bar on a Tuesday afternoon at 3pm. I can swing buying drinks for 5 people.

#84 Learn to Ski (#32 on the 40/40 list): I went last year but I take “learning” to mean something you do multiple times in an effort to improve. So I’m going again.

Goals from my 40 Before I’m 40 List:

#1 Be Able to Do a Pull Up: I started working seriously on this late 2012. I’m up to lifting about 90 pounds so I only have 50 more to go.

#11 Learn to Rock Climb: Continue with going to the indoor rock climbing wall but I’ve also scheduled a trip to go to Pilot Mountain for “real” rock climbing.

#12 Take a Cooking Class: I want to sign up for a Sushi making class.

#18 Watch the Top 250 IMDB List/Watch All of the Oscar Best Picture Winners: Watch 25 this year

#25 Drink All the Beers on the GQ List: Drink 10

#31 Learn to swim: I’ve signed up for beginner lessons. No more doggie paddling for me!

#35 Visit all of the NC Breweries: I went to 13 last year but admittedly I’ve now visited all the ones near me. Travel is now required to visit the rest. Visit 7 this year

#36 Learn How to Ballroom Dance: I went for one lesson but I think I’m going to try to attend one of the dance studio’s “dance socials” to practice

From the Sports List:

#18 Attend a rugby game (and learn the rules): There are actually some local teams

#19 Attend a cricket game (and learn the rules): There’s actually a local league!

Things not on an official list but still want to try:

I want to take a Stand Up Paddleboard lesson
I’ve scheduled a really awesome ropes course adventure in February.
I’ve scheduled fly fishing lessons for May.
I want to go hang gliding.
I want to go on the Flying Trapeze
I’d like to try the Neon Splash Dash
There is talk about going backpacking but I’m not sure about this one. Backpacking is an expensive endeavor and I’m not even sure I would like it (after all, I just went camping for the first time last year). I think I’ll try it for a weekend and see how I like it.

Think that’s enough? What’s on YOUR goals for 2013?

101 Things before you die, 40 Before I'm 40, Achievement, bucket list, Entertainment, Excitement, life list, Life Management, Miscellaneous, Nature, Recklessness, Relationships, Sport and Activity, things before you die, Travel

beer, cricket, dancing, diving, drinking, films, Flying Saucer, reading, rock climbing, rugby, SCUBA, Shakespeare, ski, Sushi, whale watching

2012 Fourth Quarter Report

January 18, 2013 by Jessica 0 Comments

Although I felt like I didn’t do that much in 2012, I really have made good progress on my original list. There’s never been a year where I accomplished every single goal I laid out for myself but that’s no bother because inevitably I also manage to do lots of things NOT on the list too!

My Goals for 2012:

#8 Sell a piece of art (and realize my childhood dream, which is #28 on the 40/40 list): Dang. Another year where I didn’t do this. Shame on me.

#46 Scuba Diving: COMPLETED! Went to the Rock Quarry in July to keep up with my SCUBA skillz. Was relieved and proud to say that I actually remembered how to do it. As long as I keep going regularly, hopefully I won’t forget.

#52 Read the Greatest Books Ever Written (#7 on the 40/40 list): I’m failing at reading on the list, but I’ve been tearing it up in regard to books I want to read. Which, after years of reading books I’m supposed to read, has been really nice. Total for the year includes: the newest Sookie book, Dexter is Delicious, The Hunger Games, The Help, The Children of Men, Fight Club, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, Wicked, Less Than Zero, and Living with Miss G.

#65 Shout ‘Drinks Are on Me!’ in a Pub or Bar (#17 on the 40/40 list): Moved to next year.

#68 Save Someone’s Life (#8 on the 40/40 list): I was on pace with 3 pints donated so far for the year. (I’ve donated 7 total pints for lifetime). But then I started reading articles about how donating blood builds up scar tissue and makes it difficult for you to potentially get IVs and things you may need later in life. I don’t know. I need to do some more research on this.

#84 Learn to Ski (#32 on the 40/40 list): COMPLETED!

#93.5 Get Your Name in the Ring of Honor: COMPLETED!

Goals from my 40 Before I’m 40 List:

#1 Be Able to Do a Pull Up: Starting in late October I started working out at the gym with the “assisted pull up” machine. So far my max lift is 90 pounds; only need 50 more. Didn’t accomplish this one but I’m working hard on it for 2013.

#11 Learn to Rock Climb: COMPLETED! I’ve been a few times but would like to go more. Definitely want to go “real” rock climbing next year.

#18 Watch the Top 1,001 Films: About halfway through the year I kinda changed my plans and I’m actually kinda working more on the IMDB Top 250. Of these, I’ve watched a total of 191 (although this list is always changing, which can be frustrating).

#25 Drink All the Beers on the GQ List: Drank 10 of 20 (20 was my goal this year)

#35 Visit all of the NC Breweries: COMPLETED! The original task was to visit 10; I visited 13. This year I have been to: Natty Greene’s, Big Boss, Aviator, Bull City Burger and Brewery, Lonerider, Roth, Mystery, White Street Brewing, Carolina Brewing Co., Red Oak, NoDa Brewing, Birdsong, and Foothills.

#36 Learn How to Ballroom Dance: COMPLETED-ish! I did take one private dance lesson. I’m supposed to go back for a group lesson and then a “dance social.” But the one private dance lesson showed me I have a long way to go!

#37 Start Using Coupons: I’m kinda halfheartedly doing this. Baby steps.

#38 See a Movie in a Drive-In Movie Theater: COMPLETED!

From the Sports List:

#18 Attend a rugby game (and learn the rules): FAIL! I missed the opportunities this year.

#19 Attend a cricket game (and learn the rules): FAIL! I missed the opportunities this year.

~~#24 Attend the Kentucky Derby~~: This didn’t happen this year. No worries!

One of my favorite things to do is to take advantage of opportunities as they come up, even if they aren’t on the list! After all, the true spirit of the list is to get you out of your comfort zone. So far this year I have also:

I attended two Roller Derby Matches
I visited Natural Bridge
I went Indoor Skydiving
I went to a concert by myself (twice. I went to see Dave Matthews in December and it was truly wonderful. I’m definitely going to concerts by myself from now on).
I did most of the Warrior Dash
I went camping for the first time, climbed Grandfather Mountain, and managed to cross off Thing to Do #37: Make a Fire Without Matches (I went camping again at the beach in August and started a fire even more quickly and efficiently so I can actually say the first time wasn’t a fluke!)
I went Zorbing
I went to Bonnaroo
I made beer (three times; the first and third time was pretty great, the second time was a bit of fail but that’s what you get when you drink whilst making beer!)
I went to Niagara Falls and went into Canadia for the first time! (Adding to my work on #36: Visit Every Country)
I raised $1,000 and rappelled down the side of the building at the “Over the Edge” event.
I got colorful at The Color Run
You know when you look on a map and see that pointy part of NC that juts out into the ocean? I went to that exact point of Cape Hatteras and watched the waves crash together. Rather cool. Still haven’t been to the top of the lighthouse though.

In my personal life:

There have been so many successes that aren’t even on the list, and in many ways I feel this has been the most successful year of my life. Professionally I continue to be satisfied and challenged by my work; a promotion in July brought a bit more stress and work load but I’ve enjoyed the new challenges.

Personally, I’ve discovered a lot about myself this year. It’s been a great time for self-reflection and looking inward. I’m still trying to work on some things but overall I feel better about having figured some things out.

Also in the personal realm, I’ve continued to keep the weight off from last year. I no longer diet; I rather eat what I want. But I do continue to attend Zumba 3 times a week. Through Zumba I’m still the same weight (anywhere from 139-143), but I’ve actually lost another dress size. At my biggest in April 2011 I weighed 164 and was a size 10; although I’m still 10 pounds more than what I was in college, I’m the smallest size I’ve ever been at size 4 (in college I was a size 8). Next year’s goals will hopefully see me finally do a pull up.

Financially I guess we could always wish for a little more but through contract work and my day job, I’ve managed to continue to maintain the lifestyle I want while being single. I became a landlord this year and that’s actually going well so I’m pleased with that decision and I have little by little been able to rebuild my wardrobe through Goodwill purchases and consignment shops.

Overall I guess I would say 2012 was somewhat quiet and subdued; not quite the like the year I had in 2010! But if we gauge our success not in trips and adventures but in happiness and security, I’d easily say 2012 was by far my most successful year yet.

How was your 2012? What are you looking forward to for 2013?

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beer, blood donation, books, Drive-In Movie, film, pull up, reading, rock climbing, Scuba dive, ski

Thing to Do #35 (40/40): Visit All NC Breweries

November 25, 2012 by Jessica 2 Comments

(Photo from Beer a Day)

My goal for the year was to visit 10 NC Breweries. Well, I’m an overachiever and visited 13, bringing my overall total up to 17. This year I have been to: Natty Greene’s, Big Boss, Aviator, Bull City Burger and Brewery, Lonerider, Roth, Mystery, White Street Brewing, Carolina Brewing Co., Red Oak, NoDa Brewing, Birdsong, and Foothills.

Natty Greene’s (restaurant) – Went to the one in Raleigh. I like their beers well enough as they are distributed pretty well. I’ve voluntarily drank their beers at sporting events and have even bought a few 6 packs. They are located in a trendy party of town but just on the other side of the tracks, so there’s always seating available.
Big Boss (taproom) – Another brewery that’s well distributed although I don’t like their beers as much. Not a very clean finish on the ones I’ve tried. The taproom itself is like the basement of your local fraternity house but definitely a low key place to hang with friends.
Aviator (restaurant) – Another brewery that’s well distributed but I haven’t had the occasion to drink theirs as much. Very much a happening place for the otherwise sleepy little downtown of Fuquay-Varina. Good barbeque too.
Mystery (taproom/food truck) – When I went, they had just opened their doors and their taproom is the unfinished backroom of their warehouse brewery (which is common). Sitting on mismatched chairs, listening to music operated by someone’s iPod playlist, and grabbing food from the local food truck. Works for me.
Bull City (restaurant) – GREAT burgers. And the beers are ok too. Cool little place that I’ve already been back to.
Lonerider (taproom) – For breweries that have their loading dock double as their taproom, Lonerider is a pretty chill little place. They are adding on to the taproom for some badly needed expansion as the day I was there, it was standing room only. Plus, they have some of my favorite local beers; Shotgun Betty (Hefeweizen) is a regular purchase of mine.
Roth (taproom/food truck) – If you are near Lonerider, Roth is just down the street. However, their taproom that doubles as their loading dock doesn’t have the charm of Lonerider. And unfortunately, their beers aren’t my style either.
White Street Brewing (taproom/order food in) – A brewery that only opened at the end of the Summer, they have really invested a lot of money in their taproom in the way of furniture and big screen TVs. The beers were ok and even though the facility is really nice, like a lot of things in Wake Forest, it reeks of money and lack of general charm or personality.
Carolina Brewing Company (tour) – An established micro brewery, probably one of the older ones in the state. Lots of distribution. Honestly, I’ve had all of their beers before and was very “meh” about them all. Different story completely AT the brewery – so much better (fresh beer matters!) The tour is Saturday at 1pm; get there on time, fill up your full pint glass a couple of times before the tour (at which time they turn the taps off), and then fill it up a couple of times again after. All for free. Best deal around for how to spend an otherwise quiet Saturday afternoon.
Red Oak (tour) – This brewery is right beside I-40 and anyone driving the stretch of road between Raleigh and Greensboro has seen it a hundred times. Their tours are only Friday at 3pm so getting off work early to head over is required. Tour costs $10 and then all the samples you can get before last call. They do have a nice little landscaped seating area where you can enjoy your brews.
NoDa (taproom/food truck) – This was a pleasant surprise. A happening little place with big screen TVs and nice facilities, but not at the sacrifice of character. The place was standing room only and a food truck outside offered much needed sustenance.
BirdSong (taproom/food truck) – Another brewery that has JUST opened, it shares a parking lot with NoDa. For convenience, head there and Heist Brewing down the block for a mini brewery tour of Charlotte. The outside deck has a great view of the Charlotte skyline but the taproom inside is quite small and the live band was quite loud.
Foothills (restaurant) – A brewery that has been established for quite some time, it has serious distribution all over NC. The facility was nice and was pleasant to visit although the food was a bit lacking.

NC Beer by the Numbers from Wort & Yeast

North Carolina boasts more craft breweries than any state in the American South. My rule is that if any are added while I’m doing this goal, I’m not going to break my neck trying to go to any new ones added after this date (although I’ve since been to 3 that weren’t on this original list). Another rule is that I have to have drank a beer at these places because there are several I’ve visited but didn’t drink a beer while there. The total (original) list is below.

Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company

Craggie Brewing Company

French Broad Brewing Co.

Green Man Brewery

Highland Brewing Co.

Lexington Avenue Brewery

Oyster House Brewing Co.

Wedge Brewing Company

Pisgah Brewing Co.

Nantahala Brewing Company

Carolina Brewery – Chapel Hill (DONE: Oatmeal Porter)

Top of the Hill Restaurant and Brewery