Birthday To Do List

In no particular order, my birthday to do list:

Learn the game of cricket. Not to play, but to watch. I want know all about the rules, the scoring system and the whole works. The game is old school, full of traditions. But there are a lot of excitement and emotion in a game, with a lot of strategies and calculations involved. Like football, it’s a second religion in some parts of the world.

Polish my networking skill. Correction: acquire networking skill. You can’t polish something you do not have. I’m not very good with strangers, creating small talk. There are a lot of awkward silences after the exchange of pleasantries.

Run a marathon. At least one, hopefully this year. A lot of people think I’ve done this. No, I haven’t. I had done a couple of 10Ks. That’s it. Running a marathon is test of double D (not cup size): determination and discipline for a man (or woman).

Complete a triathlon. A lot of people think I’ve done this too. No, I haven’t. Strictly speaking, I’ve done a third of a triathlon. I did the swim leg in a team event. Swimming in the ocean in a competition is a whole different ball game I tell ‘ya. A hell lot tougher! Then you have got to cycle and run. So going to die after that, but I think it’s an experience worth dying for.

Go scuba diving in the Galapagos Islands. I didn't do it when I was traveling in Ecuador back in 2001, as I was on a shoestring budget. In hindsight, trading a week in Galapagos for a month in Chile is not really a wise move afterall. I’ve been kicking myself in the balls ever since. Ouch!

Further my sign language course. Glad to report I’ve already registered for Level 1 class at the Y. Class commences mid May. I can hardly wait.

Learn to inve$t: forex, mutual fund$, unit tru$t, $hare market, commoditie$ market, realtie$, etc. I want my money $ to work for me. I want to make more money $. Money $, money $, and more money $$. Chine$e gene$ $eriou$ly kicking in, full bla$t! More money! $$

Keep my hair long. I used to have long hair back in college days, close to shoulder length. I want longer hair. But that would have to wait, as my office is a rather prim and proper place. For Pete’s sake I wear a tie to work.

Speaking of how stiff and boring my office is, I want to work in a place where I can wear shorts to work. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? UPS!

Find a cause, something I’d get involve on a regular basis, some sort of volunteer service to the public, because there's more to life, a heck of a lot more. Give back, like American Idols.

Travel to Africa. Mount Kilimanjaro, Maasai Mara, Victoria Falls, Swaziland, River Nile, the Pyramids, Morocco, Kalahari Desert…

Hike and camp in Alaska, preferably in summer. See midnight sun.

Get my own place, either a condo or a house, so I can walk around naked. The nudist in me is dying to jump out. Hahaha! I’m leaning towards buying a condo, then totally turning it into my shagedelic bachelor pad. Groovy baby!

Get a dog (when I get my own place). Something sizeable and goofy. A German shepherd or an English pointer maybe.

Take a course in photography. Get serious with it. Whether it a weekender crash course or long distance correspondence, I hope to improve my skills. Those ‘good photographs’ all these while, they are merely flukes.

Go out more and encounter more like-minded activity partners while hiking, diving, taking pictures, surfing the net, volunteering, etc. It’d be great making new friends and hanging out with a new bunch from different backgrounds but share a common interest. I want to meet ambulance drivers, novelists, nurses, police officers, coroners, trapeze artists, bankers (and their daughters), timber tycoons (and their daughters), neuro-surgeons, morticians, punk rockers…

Whew... Long one. I think that's about it.