Is it May yet??

I'm ready to start these 40 weeks!!  May 1st cannot get here fast enough!!

I was doing more research tonight on the tea party & it's hitting me that May is slowly going to be here.  And then I realize that I have to get my friends to clear their schedules to get in on the fun. 

So yes, we got hit with more snow the other day here in the Big Apple & according to the news, we are due for more later this week.  While I love snow, I'm really ready for spring!  I'm tired of the piles & piles of snow everywhere.

By the way, I spent today looking for a tea set.  I checked out a few stores & even searched on-line.  I am going to avoid looking for a tea set for at least a week.  I'm done typing tea sets in search engines & coming up with nothing that really impresses me.  While I have found a reasonably priced tea set on one site, I can't decide between two patterns & neither one really screams BUY ME! 

However, I did buy a serving set for the scones & petite fours I am going to have at my tea party.  And I am pretty much certain that I am inviting my cousins for the first tea party.  It would be nice to have them over.  I don't get to see my family too much & I am certain they would have a good time.


The list...
1 - full body massage
2 - take a hike
3 - frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC
4 - Gravity Hill in Bedford, Pa
5 - learn to speak Spanish
6 - read 'War & Peace'
7 - get a tattoo
8 - take Salsa lessons
9 - take a cooking class
10 - get set up on a blind date
11 - hostess a tea party
12 - ride a Harley
13 - buy 40 different pairs of socks
14 - get a make over
15 - get 40 people to join me for a picnic in a park
16 - go whale watching
17 - eat a papaya...I've never had one
18 - cook a Thanksgiving dinner
19 - sing karaoke w/some friends
20 - visit the gravesite of Billie Burke, Glenda from 'The Wizard of Oz' in Vallhalla, NY
21 - learn sign language
22 - paint my bedroom
23 - clean out the living room closet
24 - go to Niagara Falls
25 - Spend the day in Philadelphia
26 - go on a "spiritual Retreat"
27 - rodeo riding
28 - bungy jumping
29 - walk across the Brooklyn bridge
30 - go to the Statue of Liberty
31 - start a book club
32 - go skinny dipping
33 - go on a photo taking tour of Queens
34 - ask out a certain guy at the gym
35 - get a group of people to walk in the Breast Cancer walk at Jones Beach
36 - write the next great American novel
37 - go to a movie every day for one week
38 - learn to knit
39 - go to a Zumba class
40 - go to a hot yoga session
41 - try the belly dancing class at the gym
42 - visit a state/city that you've always wanted to visit
43 - try pole-dancing
44 - chop down your own Christmas tree
45 - donate to a charity you never thought you would give money to
46 - volunteer at a soup kitchen
47 - volunteer at an animal shelter
48 - go Christmas Caroling
49 - horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
50 - ice skating at Rockefeller Center
51 - make holiday cards & gifts for 2011
52 - trip to Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC
53 - go to Junior's for a slice of cheesecake
54 - volunteer at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary
55 - go to Sylvia's in Harlem for chicken & waffles
56 - take a trip to the Long Island vineyards
57 - check out the Montauk lighthouse
58 - visit a cranberry bog
59 - go see a Broadway play
60 - visit Mark Twain's house in CT
61 - go to Atlantic City & lay down a $50 bet
62 - hot air balloon ride
63 - stock car racing
64 - white water rafting at the Delaware gap
65 - take a picture w/the Naked Cowboy in NYC
66 - go to Medievil Times
67 - go to a Murder Mystery Dinner
68 - go for dinner at Havana in NYC
69 - go to the circus
70 - go to a football game
71 - go cayaking
72 - Fleet Week in NYC
73 - Circle Line cruise around NYC
74 - Hayden Planetarium laser show
75 - Hershey Park, PA
76 - visit a dude ranch
77 - take a photography class
78 - bike riding with Hippie Dave
79 - go on a vacation alone
80 - go to the beach looking for seashells with Hippie Dave
81 - Howe Caverns
82 - go see the Mets at Citifield
83 - rock wall climbing
84 - fly a kite
85 - archery w/Anthony
86 - go to the Halloween parade in the village
87 - go to the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria
88 - go line dancing
89 - Governor's Island
90 - ride the Staten Island Ferry
91 - ride the Roosevelt Island tram
92 - go to a midnight movie show w/Tracy wearing your jammies
93 - go to the Noguchi Museum in LIC
94 - go to the King Manor Museum in Jamaica
95 - go to the Fisher Landau Center for Art in LIC
96 - go to the Sculpture Center in LIC
97 - go horseback riding

#11 Hostess a tea party...

I love a good cuppa tea. On a cold night a good cuppa hot tea will warm your soul and on a hot day a good cuppa cold tea refreshes your mind. So it's no surprise that I want to have a tea party...and here we are again on the topic of my blog and the reason you are reading these words.

I've been doing research on a few of the things I have decided I am definitely going to do. I am researching costs, planning the best dates for things & that includes my tea party.

For starters, I have a menu planned out. I found several recipes for tea sandwiches and I am already tasting the cucumber mint sandwich that sounds like it would be yummy. Plus I have a recipe for scones that I know comes out yummy. The petite fours I'll buy at a local bakery. I don't have the knack for making them.

I've also been hitting the web to find the most important items for my tea party...the tea set. I'm going girlie on this mission. I'm going to find the perfect set & all the matching accessories...like the teapot, the dessert plates, strainers, teaspoons, honey...oh yes, I'm going all out.

For starters...I found a great website for teas & accessories.
Check it out --> http://www.adagio.com/.

I ordered a glass teapot, a few sample packs, & a small sample bag of Amber Sugar Crystals.

The glass teapot is pretty good...so far. Keep in mind, I did just get it tonight. It's a 42oz glass pot with a metal infuser included. I love using loose tea & sometimes the strainers aren't the best option as they sometimes let pieces into the cup. This infuser is perfect! It has the right size holes to allow the water to flow through the loose tea to make a flavorful pot of tea.

I have never used Amber Sugar Crystals before...but had heard they can enhance flavored tea. For $2 I figured I'd try a bag. I have to say...yes, they are good. They didn't overly sweeten the tea.

As for the sample packs of tea, I bought a few different flavors to get a feel of what their tea is like. I ended up ordering Ceylon Sonata, White Monkey, Spearmint, Coconut, & a Berries Mixed Sampler pack.

The Ceylon Sonata is black tea from Sri Lanka. According to the site, this tea is a perfect afternoon tea. The reviews were really good for this flavor, so I got it.

White Monkey...yes, that really is the name of the flavor! Come on...I had to buy it if only for the name alone! So according to the site, White Monkey is a green tea from the slopes of the Taimu mountains in the Fujian province of China. It's supposed to be 'noticeably sweet, and infused with a fresh, delicate scent'. I love green teas and this one had some positive reviews. Okay, okay...plus I love the name.

Spearmint...mmmm...I love spearmint. It can be soothing when warm and refreshing when cool. I know this is going to be a favorite even before I brew a pot.

The Berries Mix Sampler is a set of black teas in various berry flavors. There is strawberry, raspberry, blueberry & forest berry. I picked out this variety because I love berry flavored teas. I can't wait to open this pack & try them all.

I started with the coconut tea. I love coconut flavored anything. I love the tropical smell. I love the feeling of being whisked away to a beach where I am laying on a lounger with an umbrella over me as I watch the ocean waves crash against the shore. (Damn...that's poetic!) So I brew the new tea in my brand new glass teapot. I scoop a few scoops of this amazing smelling coconut tea into the metal infuser. As I have water boiling in another teapot on the stove, I am instantly loving the smell of the coconut tea. I take note that there are pieces of coconut mixed in with the Ceylon black tea leaves.

As I work out these words to form this blog entry, I am sipping on a lovely hot cup of the amazing coconut black tea. Oh this is so yummy! The glass pot is going to be emptied before I can get this entry posted!! It's so good. I love the coconut smell filling my apartment. I love the feeling of sudden calm after a rough week.

I ordered a few sample packs from this site being none of my friends had heard of it. (I'll later find out in a Facebook post that my friend Kathy has ordered from this site before. She will suggest various flavors for me to try. Thanks Kat!) If the rest of the samples are anything like this first pot, I did good. I lucked out. And I'd like to add that this site works pretty quickly at filling orders having received the order today after placing the order only two nights ago! I am already impressed. Plus they have a message board for tea fanatics to get together. Guess who joined it tonight?? (Yup...this dork!)

I love that you can read reviews from people who have bought various things from this site. And I love that you can obviously leave feedback for others. I know I am going to have a lot of positive things to say...at least for now.

So my mission tonight is to find the right tea set. I have found a few that I like & a few that I'm not too impressed about. I know the cost is running through various budgets. I found a pretty set for $15, but I'm not over the moon about it. And then I found a set that I would love to own...but it's over $300. Yikes! So there is still plenty more research to be done before this tea party can be set.

But yes, folks, #11 hostess a tea party is a definite!

Wait...need to pour a second cuppa tea...

Okay...I definitely need to buy the big bag of this tea. It gets better with the second cup! I'm going to have to ice the rest to try it cold.

By the way, if anyone knows of a good site for teacups and saucers sets plus accessories, I would love to know of them! While I have found several, I am still not set on a pattern yet. Like I said, I want to go girlie. I might end up with a pretty floral patterned set, but I am open to any and all suggestions.

The list of suggestions has grown a little since my last entry. And there is still time to get in on the fun. I'm not done picking my list of 20 things...so feel free to make some suggestions. Remember, it's 40 things to do over 40 weeks to celebrate turning 40 this year.

May will be here soon enough. I can't wait! I'm looking forward to getting these missions started.

Here's the list as of tonight...

1 - full body massage
2 - take a hike
3 - frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC
4 - Gravity Hill in Bedford, Pa
5 - learn to speak Spanish
6 - read 'War & Peace'
7 - get a tattoo
8 - take Salsa lessons
9 - take a cooking class
10 - get set up on a blind date
11 - hostess a tea party
12 - ride a Harley
13 - buy 40 different pairs of socks
14 - get a make over
15 - get 40 people to join me for a picnic in a park
16 - go whale watching
17 - eat a papaya...I've never had one
18 - cook a Thanksgiving dinner
19 - sing karaoke w/some friends
20 - visit the gravesite of Billie Burke, Glenda from 'The Wizard of Oz' in Vallhalla, NY
21 - learn sign language
22 - paint my bedroom
23 - clean out the living room closet
24 - go to Niagara Falls
25 - Spend the day in Philadelphia
26 - go on a "spiritual Retreat"
27 - rodeo riding
28 - bungy jumping
29 - walk across the Brooklyn bridge
30 - go to the Statue of Liberty
31 - start a book club
32 - go skinny dipping
33 - go on a photo taking tour of Queens
34 - ask out a certain guy at the gym
35 - get a group of people to walk in the Breast Cancer walk at Jones Beach
36 - write the next great American novel
37 - go to a movie every day for one week
38 - learn to knit
39 - go to a Zumba class
40 - go to a hot yoga session
41 - try the belly dancing class at the gym
42 - visit a state/city that you've always wanted to visit
43 - try pole-dancing
44 - chop down your own Christmas tree
45 - donate to a charity you never thought you would give money to
46 - volunteer at a soup kitchen
47 - volunteer at an animal shelter
48 - go Christmas Caroling
49 - horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
50 - ice skating at Rockefeller Center
51 - make holiday cards & gifts for 2011
52 - trip to Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC
53 - go to Junior's for a slice of cheesecake
54 - volunteer at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary
55 - go to Sylvia's in Harlem for chicken & waffles
56 - take a trip to the Long Island vineyards
57 - check out the Montauk lighthouse
58 - visit a cranberry bog
59 - go see a Broadway play
60 - visit Mark Twain's house in CT
61 - go to Atlantic City & lay down a $50 bet
62 - hot air balloon ride
63 - stock car racing
64 - white water rafting at the Delaware gap
65 - take a picture w/the Naked Cowboy in NYC
66 - go to Medievil Times
67 - go to a Murder Mystery Dinner
68 - go for dinner at Havana in NYC
69 - go to the circus
70 - go to a football game
71 - go cayaking
72 - Fleet Week in NYC
73 - Circle Line cruise around NYC
74 - Hayden Planetarium laser show
75 - Hershey Park, PA
76 - visit a dude ranch
77 - take a photography class
78 - bike riding with Hippie Dave
79 - go on a vacation alone
80 - go to the beach looking for seashells with Hippie Dave
81 - Howe Caverns
82 - go see the Mets at Citifield
83 - rock wall climbing
84 - fly a kite
85 - archery w/Anthony
86 - go to the Halloween parade in the village
87 - go to the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria
88 - go line dancing
89 - Governor's Island
90 - ride the Staten Island Ferry
91 - ride the Roosevelt Island tram
92 - go to a midnight movie show w/Tracy wearing your jammies
93 - go to the Noguchi Museum in LIC
94 - go to the King Manor Museum in Jamaica
95 - go to the Fisher Landau Center for Art in LIC
96 - go to the Sculpture Center in LIC
97 - go horseback riding

The teapot with the coconut tea...

The Pink Piggy Bank episode...

The other night I ran out of toilet paper. I hate when that happens. So I decided to head down to my local supermarket to replenish my TP stock. While in my bedroom I walk passed this table, hit the corner of it & set off a chain of events which will lead to this blog entry.

By kicking the corner of the table, I jostled my pink piggy bank & she decided to attack my feet.

Relax.

I have rather quick reflexes & I am able to move my foot out of the way of the falling pig.

The pig hits the floor with a loud jingling of the coins sound, but luckily she doesn't break. Although later on I will notice she has a chip in her ear.

Upon picking up the pig I realize there is some weight to her. I'm guessing she weighs about 25 to 30lbs. Then I start to wonder how much change she is carrying in her belly.

Hmmm...

I take the stopper out from under her belly & let the coins fall out onto my bed. I start picking out quarters & pretty soon I am holding $15. I decided to relieve the pig of her entire coin content...just to see how much she holds.

Off to the supermarket I go carrying the pig's belly contents in a Ziploc bag. I figure I'll use the Coin Star machine to rid myself of these coins.

Just a note...for those of you that haven't seen a Coin Star machine...it's a machine that obviously counts your spare change. For a small fee (9%) you can turn your change into bills. You simply drop the coins into the slots & let the machine do all the work of adding it all up. Once done, you get a receipt to take to the customer service desk to get your money.

As I dump my coins into the machine, I'm quickly surrounded by the sound of the clankings of quarters, dimes, nickels, & pennies being swallowed into the machine's belly. I chuckle as the sound reminds me of being in a casino in Atlantic City & I want to yell 'Jackpot'.

After about 20 minutes, the sounds stop. The machine is ready to pay me.

Cue the drum roll here...

The total turns out to be $117!!!

Woohoo!!
Jackpot!!

So yes folks, I picked up some very much needed toilet paper!

For the record, I have since refilled piggy's belly. She's going to be the keeper of the coins & I will turn to her if I need some loot to pay for one of my 40 weeks. I've been doing research on some of the suggestions for my 40 weeks. Some are going to cost a few bucks to do. Mostly the trips of course. Some require overnight stays while some just require transportation for a day. I'm going to have to start planning these out real soon. Especially if overnight stays are involved.

On my way home from a wonderful training session Monday morning, I will get an invitation to dinner with my friends Craig & Sara. Craig had won a turkey in a raffle & they wanted to make a turkey dinner. Count me in! Craig is quite the chef & will prepare a yummy meal of corn, mashed sweet potatoes, & yes, a 19lb turkey! (For the record Craig, everything was wonderful!)

Turkey always reminds me of Thanksgiving & the huge feast my mom would prepare. Mom in the kitchen as the apt filled with these yummy scents from her foods. I miss it now that my parents live in another state. But I do love our Thanksgiving dinners with my brother, sister-in-law & her mom. We still manage to fill the house with great smells of great food.

So cook a Thanksgiving dinner is on my list. I'm thinking more & more about doing that one. My friend Raul wanted to know if I plan on doing this one on Thanksgiving. Good question Raul. The answer is no. I'm definitely going to make a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, sweet potato pie, green bean casserole & mom's famous noodle pudding. I'd love to be able to pull off making a huge meal. I'd love to have my friends get together for a feast at my home.

Karaoke night is also set. I'm already clearing people's schedules to make sure they all show up. I'm just still working on the guest list...although Sara & Craig are in! In fact, I secretly think Sara is going to be the best out of all of us! I've already figured out the date, location & time for this one.

For the record, the book club is going to happen, but it's not going to be one of my 40 things. I've gotten a lot of positive feedback on it & everyone wants me to start it sooner. I'm thinking I will pick a book, send out an e-mail to everyone & set up a date for when we are to get together to discuss it. I am looking forward to doing it. I think it would be fun. Plus I've been working on a reading list & it has grown from a list of ten books to nearly a hundred!

And I'm going to eat a papaya. It's also not going to be one of the 40 things I do. No, I'm going to eat a papaya because I have always wanted to taste one. So anyone have any suggestions on how to pick a good one?

There is still time to add more suggestions to my list. I'm still planning on picking 20 things & leaving the other 20 up to you my dear followers. So be ready to get interactive. I'm looking forward to all your crazy ideas on what I need to do to celebrate turning 40.

Here is the list as of tonight....

1 - full body massage
2 - take a hike
3 - frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC
4 - Gravity Hill in Bedford, Pa
5 - learn to speak Spanish
6 - read 'War & Peace'
7 - get a tattoo
8 - take Salsa lessons
9 - take a cooking class
10 - get set up on a blind date
11 - hostess a tea party
12 - ride a Harley
13 - buy 40 different pairs of socks
14 - get a make over
15 - get 40 people to join me for a picnic in a park
16 - go whale watching
17 - eat a papaya...I've never had one
18 - cook a Thanksgiving dinner
19 - sing karaoke w/some friends
20 - visit the gravesite of Billie Burke, Glenda from 'The Wizard of Oz' in Vallhalla, NY
21 - learn sign language
22 - paint my bedroom
23 - clean out the living room closet
24 - go to Niagara Falls
25 - Spend the day in Philadelphia
26 - go on a "spiritual Retreat"
27 - rodeo riding
28 - bungy jumping
29 - walk across the Brooklyn bridge
30 - go to the Statue of Liberty
31 - start a book club
32 - go skinny dipping
33 - go on a photo taking tour of Queens
34 - ask out a certain guy at the gym
35 - get a group of people to walk in the Breast Cancer walk at Jones Beach
36 - write the next great American novel
37 - go to a movie every day for one week
38 - learn to knit
39 - go to a Zumba class
40 - go to a hot yoga session
41 - try the belly dancing class at the gym
42 - visit a state/city that you've always wanted to visit
43 - try pole-dancing
44 - chop down your own Christmas tree
45 - donate to a charity you never thought you would give money to
46 - volunteer at a soup kitchen
47 - volunteer at an animal shelter
48 - go Christmas Caroling
49 - horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
50 - ice skating at Rockefeller Center
51 - make holiday cards & gifts for 2011
52 - trip to Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC
53 - go to Junior's for a slice of cheesecake
54 - volunteer at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary
55 - go to Sylvia's in Harlem for chicken & waffles
56 - take a trip to the Long Island vineyards
57 - check out the Montauk lighthouse
58 - visit a cranberry bog
59 - go see a Broadway play
60 - visit Mark Twain's house in CT
61 - go to Atlantic City & lay down a $50 bet
62 - hot air balloon ride
63 - stock car racing
64 - white water rafting at the Delaware gap
65 - take a picture w/the Naked Cowboy in NYC
66 - go to Medievil Times
67 - go to a Murder Mystery Dinner
68 - go for dinner at Havana in NYC
69 - go to the circus
70 - go to a football game
71 - go cayaking
72 - Fleet Week in NYC
73 - Circle Line cruise around NYC
74 - Hayden Planetarium laser show
75 - Hershey Park, PA
76 - visit a dude ranch
77 - take a photography class
78 - bike riding with Hippie Dave
79 - go on a vacation alone
80 - go to the beach looking for seashells with Hippie Dave
81 - Howe Caverns
82 - go see the Mets at Citifield
83 - rock wall climbing
84 - fly a kite
85 - archery w/Anthony
86 - go to the Halloween parade in the village
87 - go to the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria
88 - go line dancing
89 - Governor's Island
90 - ride the Staten Island Ferry
91 - ride the Roosevelt Island tram

The Pink Piggy Bank...

Thank you Craig & Sara for dinner!

The other night I had dinner with some great friends, Craig & Sara.  As the fates allow, Craig is my 'brother from another mother', who also happens to be my upstairs neighbor.  I've known Craig pretty much my whole life.  Sara is Craig's hottie wife, who has become to me the little sister my parents didn't see fit to adopt for me.  Together they are that cute couple that make you believe in the fairy tales, the American Dream, soulmates.  Add in their two adorable babies, Mikayla & Connor, & they are the American Dream.  Mikayla who can melt the heart of the most frigid of life forms & Connor who has a toothless smile to make even the Joker burst into tears of joy.  Yup...my upstairs neighbors...the perfect family & the best people to spend time with.

So there we are having this delicious dinner & no Craig, the steak wasn't overdone at all!  Craig, who I have to say, is a great dad is at the table entertaining Mikayla, but also entertaining me & Sara.  Craig is busy singing 'Jingle Bells' & Mikayla is accompanying him.

Craig & I then start to reminisce about the time we went Christmas caroling as kids.  Our neighbor Sam had organized a group of the neighborhood kids to go caroling one year.  It was a blast!  We would get together in Sam's apt & practice the songs.  After weeks of practice, we went out around the neighborhood singing.  I loved it.  I remember getting hot chocolate from one of our neighbors & after we were done, Sam gave us all gifts.  She was sweet like that.

Ahhh...the joys of Christmas caroling...

Hey...wait...isn't Christmas caroling on my list of 40 things to do to celebrate turning 40?

Why yes...yes it is!

So here is the opportunity to bring up my blog mission & ask for some help.  I just love bringing up this blog mission any chance I get!!

I explain my mission to get 40 things to do over 40 weeks to celebrate turning 40 & I see Sara's eyes light up.  Jackpot!  I know my little sister will find things for me to do. 

After our delicious dinner & deightful dessert ~ homemade apple pie & ice cream, Mikayla is lulled to sleep with us singing 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star', then Connor is fed & laid down for a nap.  Craig tries to fight off sleep, but loses the battle & goes to bed.  Sara & I are now alone to talk.  And talk we do!

First up...start a book club.  Sara is ready & raring to go for this one.  She has already made up a list of books to read in her head.  She mentions a few & I am definitely adding them to the list.  I love to read.  I have been wanting to join a book club, but haven't found one that I like.  So starting one of my own is a great idea.  I've already started asking some friends if they would be interested in it.  I'm getting some positive responses.  I figure this is the way to read some books I wouldn't have otherwise read on my own.  I hope to get a good group to really discuss books & agree to meet monthly.

Karaoke night...oh yes, this is definitely making the list.  I know Sara secretly wants this one to happen.  Allow me to explain...I hear Sara every morning singing with Mikayla.  I'l be rushing to get ready for work & I'll hear 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider'.  Sara has a beautiful voice.  She could very well be the next American Idol.  As for me...well...remember Wiliam Huong & his version of 'She Bangs'?  Yea, well, he is better than me.  He could won the American Idol title if it was down to the two of us.  But I can laugh at my own faults & still enjoy myself.  So karaoke night is on!  I even know the place to go & I'm going to plot the right night to go. 

The picnic in the park...Sara loves this idea too.  She thinks it would fun to get people together.  She wonders if I can do it & I do too.  This is seriously moving up on the list of to do.

Hot air balloon ride...Sara thinks this is a fun idea.  I'm starting to wonder on this one.  The cost could be high, but maybe I can get the funds somehow.  I would love to get up in a hot air balloon.  Just the photography part of it alone makes me interested in making this one happen.

Hostess a tea party...Sara laughs at this one.  I believe I called it 'my girlie thing to do'.  I actually have something in mind for it.  Maybe even doing it twice for the fun of it!

Niagra Falls & trip to Philly...both interest Sara.  She mentions she & Craig had gone to Philly on a road trip & how much fun they had.  I would love to go to Niagra Falls to see the water & to Philly for a good Philly Cheesesteak sandwich.  So both are in the must do list.

Later on Sara will post some suggestions on Facebook.  I have added them to the list. The one that made me laugh...take a picture with the Naked Cowboy in New York city.  OMG!  I've seen the Naked Cowgirl & thought it was funny seeing her.  Seeing the dude would be even funnier.  Think about it folks...some guy in his tighty whiteys...OMG!  Okay, I'll think about it.

Her suggestions of going to Medievil Times & a Murder Mystery Dinner are great.  Both are fun.  I haven't done either, but always wanted to. 

So the list is growing.  I even got a few ideas from some friends at work.  I love that people are getting into it.  I am looking forward to working out the small details & to be able to start these weeks.  I'm looking forward to 40 weeks of fun. 

Here is the list today...

1 - full body massage
2 - take a hike
3 - frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC
4 - Gravity Hill in Bedford, Pa
5 - learn to speak Spanish
6 - read 'War & Peace'
7 - get a tattoo
8 - take Salsa lessons
9 - take a cooking class
10 - get set up on a blind date
11 - hostess a tea party
12 - ride a Harley
13 - buy 40 different pairs of socks
14 - get a make over
15 - get 40 people to join me for a picnic in a park
16 - go whale watching
17 - eat a papaya...I've never had one
18 - cook a Thanksgiving dinner
19 - sing karaoke w/some friends
20 - visit the gravesite of Billie Burke, Glenda from 'The Wizard of Oz' in Vallhalla, NY
21 - learn sign language
22 - paint my bedroom
23 - clean out the living room closet
24 - go to Niagara Falls
25 - Spend the day in Philadelphia
26 - go on a "spiritual Retreat"
27 - rodeo riding
28 - bungy jumping
29 - walk across the Brooklyn bridge
30 - go to the Statue of Liberty
31 - start a book club
32 - go skinny dipping
33 - go on a photo taking tour of Queens
34 - ask out a certain guy at the gym
35 - get a group of people to walk in the Breast Cancer walk at Jones Beach
36 - write the next great American novel
37 - go to a movie every day for one week
38 - learn to knit
39 - go to a Zumba class
40 - go to a hot yoga session
41 - try the belly dancing class at the gym
42 - visit a state/city that you've always wanted to visit
43 - try pole-dancing
44 - chop down your own Christmas tree
45 - donate to a charity you never thought you would give money to
46 - volunteer at a soup kitchen
47 - volunteer at an animal shelter
48 - go Christmas Caroling
49 - horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
50 - ice skating at Rockefeller Center
51 - make holiday cards & gifts for 2011
52 - trip to Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC
53 - go to Junior's for a slice of cheesecake
54 - volunteer at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary
55 - go to Sylvia's in Harlem for chicken & waffles
56 - take a trip to the Long Island vineyards
57 - check out the Montauk lighthouse
58 - visit a cranberry bog
59 - go see a Broadway play
60 - visit Mark Twain's house in CT
61 - go to Atlantic City & lay down a $50 bet
62 - hot air balloon ride
63 - stock car racing
64 - white water rafting at the Delaware gap
65 - take a picture w/the Naked Cowboy in NYC
66 - go to Medievil Times
67 - go to a Murder Mystery Dinner
68 - go for dinner at Havana in NYC
69 - go to the circus
70 - go to a football game
71 - go cayaking
72 - Fleet Week in NYC
73 - Circle Line cruise around NYC
74 - Hayden Planetarium laser show
75 - Hershey Park, PA
76 - visit a dude ranch
77 - take a photography class
78 - bike riding with Hippie Dave
79 - go on a vacation alone
80 - go to the beach looking for seashells with Hippie Dave 

2011...nearly time to start the 40 weeks!!

Happy New Year everyone! 
Welcome to 2011!!

I'm sitting here listening to the birds chirp & wishing it was spring.  We got hit w/a big snow storm the day after Christmas & then again w/a little snow the other night.  I am done.  I used to love the snow, but now I am tired of it.  I am ready for spring!  Plus I am in a rush for May to get here so I can start my 40 weeks of fun. 

I have been talking w/my friends about these 40 weeks.  A few are starting to get in on the fun & have volunteered to come along on some of these missions.  I am even thinking about the Christmas caroling one...maybe some friends will have to get in on that one.

I'm not going to pick the final list till April...so there is still time to offer more suggestions.  And I want some more choices.  Please keep in mind...I want something fun to do, but something I can afford to do.  Day trips are fine...as long as I can make it work...financially of course.

So here is the latest list...

1 - full body massage
2 - take a hike
3 - frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity in NYC
4 - Gravity Hill in Bedford, Pa
5 - learn to speak Spanish
6 - read 'War & Peace'
7 - get a tattoo
8 - take Salsa lessons
9 - take a cooking class
10 - get set up on a blind date
11 - hostess a tea party
12 - ride a Harley
13 - buy 40 different pairs of socks
14 - get a make over
15 - get 40 people to join me for a picnic in a park
16 - go whale watching
17 - eat a papaya...I've never had one
18 - cook a Thanksgiving dinner
19 - sing karaoke w/some friends
20 - visit the gravesite of Billie Burke, Glenda from 'The Wizard of Oz' in Vallhalla, NY
21 - learn sign language
22 - paint my bedroom
23 - clean out the living room closet
24 - go to Niagara Falls
25 - Spend the day in Philadelphia
26 - go on a "spiritual Retreat"
27 - rodeo riding
28 - bungy jumping
29 - walk across the Brooklyn bridge
30 - go to the Statue of Liberty
31 - start a book club
32 - go skinny dipping
33 - go on a photo taking tour of Queens
34 - ask out a certain guy at the gym
35 - get a group of people to walk in the Breast Cancer walk at Jones Beach
36 - write the next great American novel
37 - go to a movie every day for one week
38 - learn to knit
39 - go to a Zumba class
40 - go to a hot yoga session
41 - try the belly dancing class at the gym
42 - visit a state/city that you've always wanted to visit
43 - try pole-dancing
44 - chop down your own Christmas tree
45 - donate to a charity you never thought you would give money to
46 - volunteer at a soup kitchen
47 - volunteer at an animal shelter
48 - go Christmas Caroling
49 - horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
50 - ice skating at Rockefeller Center
51 - make holiday cards & gifts for 2011
52 - trip to Smithsonian Museums
53 - go to Junior's for a slice of cheesecake
54 - volunteer at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary
55 - go to Sylvia's in Harlem for chicken & waffles
56 - take a trip to the Long Island vineyards
57 - check out the Montauk lighthouse
58 - visit a cranberry bog
59 - go see a Broadway play
60 - visit Mark Twain's house in CT
61 - go to Atlantic City & lay down a $50 bet