8. Buy a Canon EF f/1.8 50mm lens for my DSLR
56. Get a decent full time job in my field after I graduate
65. Plant a tomato plant so I stop buying the little tubs of cherry tomatoes for $5 at whole foods
66. Plant a blueberry bush…antioxidants are good plus blueberries are just yummy

Working full time is draining.  During the day I’m completely fine, but as soon as I walk past my bedroom door I am pretty useless.  There have been multiple days where I’ve taken 6pm-8:30pm naps, and not of my own volition.  I am going to give myself some credit and say the warm weather stimulates the urge to just laze around and sleep all the time.

Work is great so far, I’m working in biological manufacturing for Agilent Technologies.  So far I’ve only gotten to work with RNA isolation, but excited to start diving into microarrays which is supposed to be my main area of work.  Great environment, nice people, health coverage, and a non-desk job…I am lucky to not be one of those people who hates going to work everyday.  The only downside is the commute but once we move out of West Campus and I35 traffic, I’ll be much happier.

Matt got me hooked on David Eddings.  I’ve finished the Belgariad series and am now working on the Mallorean one.  Thank goodness for half price books

21. Sell something completely random on eBay

To be fair, it wasn’t completely random.  I had bought a pair of boots of eBay that didn’t quite feel as comfortable as I wanted.  So I relisted them and sold them.  My first eBay sell!

57. Redeem all those random coins lying around my room and assorted purses for actual cash

Didn’t actually redeem them for cash, but they all got used towards buying donuts or vending machines.   Now I’m left with a few pennies.

58. Find an efficient way to keep track of my finances that I won’t be fed up with after a week

Check out mint.com .  I am able to budget and link all my accounts there so I don’t have to login to multiple sites to track my finances

This isn’t a screenie of my account but shows you how pretty the interface is

17. Legally buy alcohol
Finally turned 21, oh how lovely it is

23. Get another pet

25. Go horseback riding

28. Get a new bike because mine was stolen, after 9 years of loving care and attachment
Bought one for $15 off craigslist, pretty normal Walmart quality purple bike.

33. Join a new recreational sport for fun; right now it’s either sailing or archery because I don’t like contact sports
Doing taekwondo and ballroom dancing.  I’d do archery but joining the club as a senior isn’t as fun when I have to quit soon.

40. Find a face lotion I actually like and would buy again
Boscia is my new favorite brand, pity the stuff is $30 a tube

51. Take a real cruise

53. Open up a Bank of America savings account
Opened, have not yet linked it to direct deposit yet.  Because I’m too lazy to find the form at work.

79. Meet another online friend in person

Done, thanks to Mr. Thornmisfor sending me ridiculous amounts of gold even though he doesn’t play anymore.

Also ordered my nifty Moo cards, which shipped all the way from the UK, and apparently went through the Deutsche Post. International mail is always awesome. On the back it’s got my name, phone number, email, and other contact information. Not bad for free

Very belated post, but we went to the Melting Pot for Xuan’s birthday last week. Very yummy, although those girls are crazy. Cheese dipped in batter then fried…that’s a heart attack waiting to happen. Very yummy chocolate fondue, very yummy cake. Our waiter was a foreign guy who had a french accent, which was highly entertaining.

Now for final exams….

]]> http://jessaroo.com/2008/05/101-and-fondue/feed/ 0 http://jessaroo.com/2008/04/mozarts/ http://jessaroo.com/2008/04/mozarts/#comments Tue, 22 Apr 2008 05:52:56 +0000 Jess http://jessaroo.com/?p=22 1. Create at least 1 HDR shot a week, because they’re so awesome looking

Apparently I need an insanely high grade on my test on Thursday. I’ve been camping out at Mozart’s now that the weather is beautiful outside. Generally very quiet and relaxing, especially on the bottom deck. However, every once in awhile an obnoxious group of people sits at the table right next to mine. There are 3-4 other people working or studying down there, but this group completely ignores us and start chatting and laughing, much to the chagrin of everyone trying to concentrate. It’s midday, the entire cafe is empty and there are plenty of other spots to sit at, so learn to be considerate and move.

Another annoyance…the people passing by on boats, with the stereo blasting Fergie and 50 cent. I’m glad you are outside, having fun and partaking in a healthy recreational activity, but is there really a need to turn the volume up so high? We can hear you loud and clear from several hundred feet on the other side of the lake.

Minor complaints, only a small fraction of the time I’m there.

Easily spent six hours there today. Free wifi, wall plugin for my laptop, a good strong coffee and amazing cheesecake, plus a great view…not a bad deal I think. Knocked out 40 pages of textbook reading, which may not sound like much, but when there is no filler or fluff and every detail and diagram must be committed to memory, that’s a hell of a lot to get through in one sitting.

54. Find all my furniture for the condo for less than $20 a piece on Craigslist (treasure hunt!)

So far so good. I found that I actually get home faster if I get off the stop before if the bus is packed or lots of people need to jump on. The fresh air is pretty nice, we’ll see how it goes when the heat kicks in.

I got a nightstand of Craigslist for free practically, minus gas expenses and a $2 touchup marker from Lowe’s. Now I just need a bed, dresser, and desk, all of which I can’t really get until the end of summer anyways.

I went to Kenichi, a fancy sushi restaurant downtown for Tian’s 20th birthday. Expensive, but pretty food. Apparently it’s a hip place to go because both the restaurant and the bar were packed with young executives and scene goers.

Hanging out in Mary and Lucy’s room, waiting for everyone to get there. We were still half an hour late for our reservation. Oops.

Sushi roll, called “Aleutian Island” on the menu and cost $10

The birthday girl cutting the cheesecake that took an unfortunate tumble in the car. It was still delicious though

I’ve seen quite a few people jump on this bandwagon. Here’s the premise, copy pasted verbatim from the website.

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organising and timing some tasks such as overseas trips or outdoor activities.

Here’s my list so far….

START: Thursday, April 5, 2008

End: Thursday, January 1, 2011

KEY: IN PROGRESS COMPLETED

Creative

1. Create at least 1 HDR shot a week, because they’re so awesome looking (1/143)

2. Draw a tattoo

3. Learn how to make sushi

4. See a show on Broadway

5. Learn and perfect that Chopin piano piece I’ve been taking a go at once every month for the past two years

6. Find a new favorite author and buy at least two books authored by him, because I only buy books I really enjoy

7. Buy the audio cable to connect my digital piano and computer

8. Buy a Canon EF f/1.8 50mm lens for my DSLR

9. Actually sew a pillow, instead of looking at fabric and going “Oh, that’d be a cool pillow”

10. Redeem my MOO cards from Flickr before the deadline

11. Redeem my free photostory book from Amazon.com because I paid them lots of my money for a camera

12. Write at least one blog entry a week

13. Watch and photograph a sunrise

14. Send something to Postsecret

Fun Stuff

15. Go to a John Mayer concert

16. Finally get my epic flying mount on World of Warcraft (yes, I know, you’re shaking your heads)

17. Legally buy alcohol

18. Go to a wine tasting

19. Go to SXSW

20. Watch a super early showing at the movie theater

21. Sell something completely random on eBay

22. Curl my hair once a month

23. Get another pet

24. Teach my cockatiel how to sing a song

25. Go horseback riding

26. Play Darkfall, if it ever comes out. This list is giving them plenty of time to release it.

27. Beat Majora’s Mask on N64

28. Get a new bike because mine was stolen, after 9 years of loving care and attachment

29. Be a guest at someone’s wedding

30. Actually dress up for Halloween

31. Buy a pair of socks and not have one go missing when this ends

32. Solve a rubik’s cube

Wellbeing

33. Join a new recreational sport for fun; right now it’s either sailing or archery because I don’t like contact sports

34. If I am going to be less than 15 minutes late to a class, I have to attend instead of convincing myself that it’s not worth the embarrassment of walking into the lecture hall through the extremely loud doors, garnering a glare from the professor, and that I’ve already missed enough material that I’ll have to review the entire lecture on my own anyways

35. Go without the internet for a full week

36. Get my braces off

37. Whiten my teeth

38. Get my eyes checked and switch to new contacts because the night ones are pretty useless if I don’t wear them

39. Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the rest of way home everyday, unless it’s raining, I have time constraints, or I’m sick

40. Find a face lotion I actually like and would buy again

41. Get a health check at least once a year

42. Gain 5 lbs

43. Keep my CPR certification and renew it

44. Go to bed before 11pm for a week

Travel and tourism

45. Go to New Zealand

46. See Matt at LEAST once every 6 months, for sanity’s sake

47. Take a picture of myself at the Eiffel Tower

48. Visit Greece

49. Go visit the Umluaf Sculpture Garden in Austin, TX

50. Go surfing, anywhere, and not make a complete ass out of myself

51. Take a real cruise

52. Take a picture of every airport sign I travel through

Money

53. Open up a Bank of America savings account so I can access my money in Australia for free

54. Find all my furniture for the condo for less than $20 a piece on Craigslist (treasure hunt!) [Nightstand]

55. Save $10,000 outside of living expenses

56. Get a decent full time job in my field after I graduate

57. Redeem all those random coins lying around my room and assorted purses for actual cash

58. Find an efficient way to keep track of my finances that I won’t be fed up with after a week

59. Donate $1 for every item on this list I don’t accomplish

Domestic/Housekeeping

60. Organize and file all my old TAMS schoolwork sitting in my parent’s garage

61. Get a new driver’s license when I turn 21

62. Completely clean out and sort my closet and dresser every month

63. Make a list of everything perishable I buy at the grocery store and update it so I don’t throw out moldy food I never used a month later

64. Keep my organic herb garden alive

65. Plant a tomato plant so I stop buying the little tubs of cherry tomatoes for $5 at whole foods

66. Plant a blueberry bush…antioxidants are good plus blueberries are just yummy

67. Learn two new recipes a month

68. Clean out my computer and reorganize all 80+ gigs of files and folders instead of having things saved everywhere

69. Paint my bedroom

70. Buy a shoerack that can hold my collection

71. Make my bed everyday for a week

Relationships

72. Talk to both my parents once a week

73. Eat lunch with 10 people I haven’t seen in several months

74. Use my newfound photography knowledge and take portraits of my entire immediate family

75. Send my cousin Phillip a card/present every birthday

76. Bake and decorate 10 birthday cakes for family/friends

77. Message or talk to Matt at least once a day

78. Still be with Matt and happy when this list expires

79. Meet another online friend in person

Future

80. Fill in the next 20 spots as the 2 years, 8 months, 27 days progresses

81. ________________________________________

82. ________________________________________

83. ________________________________________

84. ________________________________________

85. ________________________________________

86. ________________________________________

87. ________________________________________

88. ________________________________________

89. ________________________________________

90. ________________________________________

91. ________________________________________

92. ________________________________________

93. ________________________________________

94. ________________________________________

95. ________________________________________

96. ________________________________________

97. ________________________________________

98. ________________________________________

99. ________________________________________

100. ________________________________________

101. ________________________________________