Happy end of April!
Today marks the end of my original “101 Things in 1001 Days” list I created back in August 1, 2020. A lot has happened in the past 1001 days since I wrote my original list mid-pandemic – in isolation in our Vermont home, with a very uncertain future under an unstable president, still employed at my old job, and just beginning to consider grad school.
My original list was inspired by Mackenzie Horan of Design Darling! She started her first list in 2011 and just began her fifth one on April 25. Her lists are a combination of must-dos, personal and professional goals, and fun aspirations she sets for herself for the next 2.75 years.
As I’ve worked my way through my original 101 in 1001 list, I’ve appreciated that it is not meant to be a high-pressure, “you must complete all the tasks” list, but more of a way to grow as an individual. As in my previous list, I’ve included professional and educational goals, personal goals, goals for this blog, health goals, creative goals, and a whole section devoted to purely fun activities. If I can get to all 101 that would be incredible, but I’m not going to feel bad if I only make it to 10. This list will help give me things to look forward to and includes challenges that encourage me to grow, and I’m very grateful to Mackenzie for sharing her journey through her previous lists.
I completed 40 out of 101 items on my original list, which I’m honestly very proud of due to the ongoing pandemic restrictions and various major life changes that occurred during that time period. A few accomplishments I’m particularly proud of are reading 122 books (my original goal was 80), applying and getting accepted to graduate school, creating a media kit, finding a group therapy session in DC, and going on Birthright to Israel before aging out. This list served as a reminder to hit some milestones during a generous amount of time so I can enjoy each experience without stress.
My new 101 in 1001 list contains a lot of the same goals such an continuing to expand my mind through reading new books and watching documentaries, as well as incentives to travel and get out of my comfort zone. I hope you all get inspired to push yourselves and maybe create a 101 in 1001 list of your own!
Without further ado, here is my 101 in 1001 Days List!
Start Date: April 30, 2023
End Date: January 24, 2026
Personal Development (0/18)
- Read at least 100 books (4/100) – Sleeping with the Enemy; Happy Place; Virtually Yours; The Power of Cute;
- Put $150 into my savings each month for six months
- Vote in the 2024 elections
- Renew my driver’s license in 2024
- Try at least 10 new-to-me DC restaurants (0/10)
- Have a no-spend month
- Try out five new recipes from a cookbook (0/5)
- Learn to make a signature cocktail
- Watch at least five documentaries about topics I’m unfamiliar with (0/5)
- Learn how to make pierogis on my own from my family’s recipe
- Volunteer at least 10 hours for a cause I believe in
- Write a letter to an author whose work I admire
- Unplug completely for 24 hours
- Wake up at 7am every day for a week
- Learn how to change a tire
- Complete at least 50 of these 101 in 1001 goals
- Beat my past 101 in 1001 record of 40 goals completed
- Get back to pre-pandemic strength levels
Professional and Academic Development (0/6)
- Graduate from Grad School
- Update my Resume after graduation
- Update my Linkedin after graduation
- Get a side job dog walking or babysitting
- Secure a summer 2023 internship
- Get a job after graduation in 2024
The Blog (X/13)
- Launch my blog redesign
- Design a new “about me” page
- Update my DC travel guide
- Attend at least 5 blogger meetups (0/5)
- Host an Instagram Q&A
- Consistently post at least 4 times a month to the blog for 4 months straight
- Update my O&O Facebook page
- Do a giveaway on my blog
- Participate in a blogging challenge (Blogtober/Blogmas)
- Create a custom logo for the blog
- Write at least five “how to” posts (0/5)
- Reach 4,000 followers on Instagram
- Do a museum photoshoot
Health (0/9)
- Not eat out or get takeout for a whole month
- Do 30 pushups continuously
- Take vitamins every day for at least one month
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day for a week
- Try a 2-day juice cleanse
- Try one-out-of-my-comfort-zone exercise class
- Go vegan for 2 weeks
- Do one form of the splits (increase flexibility)
- Find out my blood type
Friends and Family (X/11)
- Mail care packages and send flowers to my mom and dad just because
- Do a Virginia winery tour
- Attend two weddings (one family, one friend)
- Go to a sunflower field
- Go leaf peeping in New England
- Spend a weekend at a Getaway House
- Spend a day golfing with my dad
- Treat dad to a Yankee game (virus dependent)
- Do a spa day with my mom
- Treat mom to a Broadway show or musical (virus dependent)
- Go on a cousins girl’s trip
Home (0/6)
- Organize my bookshelf by color
- Keep my bedroom clutter-free for three months
- Get two herb plants and keep them alive/Begin an herb garden
- Scrutinize my closet/beauty/wellness products and donate, organize/store, sell, or toss all the things I never wear or use
- Take all clothing that requires tailoring to a professional tailor – including vintage pieces
- Do a deep clean/organization of my paperwork
Travel (X/10)
- Visit at least 6 new states
- Travel to at least 3 new countries (0/3)
- Take a solo trip
- Plan a vacation with high school friends
- Do a girls-only road trip
- Return to Nantucket at least twice (0/2)
- Go on one tropical vacation
- Return to Newport, RI and visit the mansions
- Visit two more national parks
- Visit a new continent
Art and Creativity (X/4)
- Visit at least 5 new museums
- Take three art classes
- Draft a comic, graphic novel, or book
- Learn calligraphy/lettering
Just for Fun (1/23)
- Go to at least three concerts (0/3)
- Go to at least five after-hours museum events (0/5)
Leave a 100% tip for great service– Tuesday, May 2, 2023 at Grace Street Coffee- Pay for the person behind me at a coffee shop
- Do DC restaurant weeks 2023 and 2024
- Learn to style my hair (learn how to French braid)
- Go on five romantic dates with strangers
- Watch 10 classic movies I’ve never seen before (X/10)
- Take a cooking class
- Take 3 official dance classes
- Host a tea party
- Host a dinner party
- Go horseback riding again
- See Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway
- Have a Marvel Marathon in chronological order
- Get a tattoo
- Go to a murder mystery dinner party
- Pickle my own food
- Submit my DNA test
- Celebrate my Golden Birthday (31!)
- Attend one Fashion Week Show (NY or DC)
- Do a graduation photoshoot
- Have a portrait done of me in a favorite outfit
- Go to a local fair
Let me know if you’re inspired to start your own 101 in 1001 or a personal bucket list!
XOXO
Parisa
Opals & Obsessions 