I am Beth, a List Maker
I jot lists on paper and I fill my brain with mental lists. I thought writing a blog would unclog my brain a little...and I could have some fun sharing!
WHY LISTS?
I make lists to inspire and document. They don't usually help me get things done. In fact my lists usually distract me from the things that need to be done.
Lists Long Ago
As a kid I made lists, usually for documentation. This is a photo from when I was 11 and living in Italy with my family. There were so many new things to see and observe, I had to record it all in little spiral notebooks. One book held a list and descriptions of suspicious characters. Another book recorded all the steps I climbed, in domes and bell towers and museums during our 6-month stay.
I look a little worn down by all my list making in this photo.
Lists for Fun!
Here is a photo representing a list I made for my 50th birthday, a few years back. It was an inspiring list of 50 things I wanted to do to celebrate my birthday. My sister had to fly in from Oregon to help with this challenging and exhausting week of oddball activity!
Here is the website my sister made to capture the week: http://www.tributewebdesign.com/beth/list.html
13 Lists
At this point, I have 13 lists on my Beth Lists website. Some blogs share about challenges that have been completed, but most are on-going. However my 12th and 13th are just long pages. Weebly decided to cut me off. I've reached the limit, of blogs that Weelbly allows on a website. That can't stop my happy habit of sloppy blogging and listing!
#1- Diverse Dining
This is the list that prompted me to create this website and my first blog. I began in 2011 with a goal to enjoy as many culturally different dining experiences as I could in one year. By July 4, 2012 I reached my goal of over 50 different countries. After a year, I learned that dining experiences are as exciting or entertaining as you make them. I decided to continue exploring and blogging about all the curious places that are out there in the food world...ethnic, regional or just plain odd!
#2 - 55 Strangers
I started this one on my 55th birthday in April 2012. Each week I added a new person to the list. The people I wrote about were ones I remembered meeting briefly in my past 55 years. Each person made some kind of impression on me. In stores, on trains, in waiting rooms...you never know how many interesting people are out there in the world! I reached my goal of 55 in April 2013, but have continued to add strangers to my list.
#3 - Little Bear Adventures
I keep a 2-inch stuffed bear in my camera bag. It's a ridiculous excuse to get down on my knees and see the world from a different perspective. He's been to a lot of places and had a few adventures with balloons, candles and champagne and car tires. I started blogging about Little Bear's adventures a few years year ago. But after a while, L.B.'s strong personality got in the way and he took over the blog writing.
#4 - Quilt Adventures
I have a 25 year old quilt that has never rested on a bed. Since I made the quilt, it's gone on at least 100 imaginary adventures with the stories I tell to children. In recent years I've gathered seniors around the quilt in centers and nursing homes to encourage their stories. Now the quilt travels with me and becomes a tool to bring children or adults together in places far from my home. I've been collecting stories about these quilt adventures and in 2012 I began blogging about what I've learned along the way.
#5 - Barbie Bucket List
I started this list as a teenager, long before I'd ever heard the term bucket list. I used a discarded diary to scribble a list of things I wanted to do in my lifetime.
To parachute was on the list, along with some more unusual goals, like Live with the Amish. I've tried to share some of the fun I've had along the way while working on some of these challenging and odd goals.
#6 - Mom's Picnic List
I started this list on Mother's Day 2013 to honor Mom and her love of picnics. Since I inherited Mom's picnic enthusiasm, I have a lot of picnic photos and memories. My plan was to spend a year sharing some of the recollections and to also create some new picnic memories! Since Mom was a mother for 60 years, I set my goal to share at least 60 picnic memories! The year ended, the goal was met and the picnics continue!
#7 - 90 Notable Nights
As a child I adored Holiday Inn and Howard Johnson's. I loved knowing there would be tiny soaps and swimming pools. In my "old age" I have learned to embrace the unexpected and enjoy the surprises... good and bad that come from staying away from chains. Starting in January 2014, I embarked on a new goal (with the help of my husband Don, who is a good sport and a good sleeper) to spend a couple years exploring some of the oddest and most unusual hotels, motels and inns we can find. By 2016 I went beyond the goal of 90 Notable Nights! However, now Don and I are hooked and the list grows!
#8 - 57 Celebrations
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Turning 57 is not that special, unless you were born in 1957. On April 9, 2014 I celebrated my Birth-Year-Birthday by starting a NEW LIST! I'm not sure if anyone else in the world celebrates the year their age matches their birth year, but I decided it was a great excuse for fun.
As you can see by the photo of me dancing behind my brother, I have always been intrigued with the fifties. I decided my new list should help me spotlight the decade that I only experienced as a baby and toddler. My goal was to have 57 mini celebrations, of the fifties! It gave me an excuse, to step back in time and enjoy a little of the music, foods, art and trends of that era! That special year came and went, but the blog remains to share those silly celebrations! |
#9 - Happy List
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This list started on May 27, 2016. It was the gloomy news of being diagnosed with Breast Cancer that got the list started. But it has become the happiest of my lists. I spent 7 months posting daily photos that made me smile. I loved the distraction of focussing on wonderful places I've visited, or funny happenings in my past. In 2017, I decided to continue posting at the end of each month... sharing the moments that made me happiest, in month before.
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#10 - Not So Happy List
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This list started in a notebook, before my cancer was positively diagnosed. It is a list of complaints.
I'm pretty good at keeping things positive, but I'm human. I can't always bottle up the things that make me fret or worry. Sometimes I need to vent about a few things that annoy me. So here it is. This is the not-so- positive list of all lists. But, usually by the time I've shared a gripe... I've found something to feel good about. |
#11 - 60 Celebrations
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On April 9, 2017, I found a way to make my landmark 60th birthday, more tolerable. I gave myself permission to remove the zero from my age and embrace the girl I was when I was 6. I also gave myself the challenge of coming up with 60 mini celebrations over 12 months.
This year, I will let the memories of that special age inspire me. I had some fun brainstorming the things that delighted and entertained me back in 1963-64. Yay for a year of making snow angels and doing The Twist! Yay for being 6 again! |
#12 - 18+ Dance Adventures
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I was kind of joking when I said my New Year's Resolution for 2018 was to "Do More Dancing!" But the more I thought about it, the more eager I became. I had just returned from a trip to Thailand where I'd had a couple of amusing, spontaneous dance moments. I began thinking back to other comical or fun dance memories, I've had over the years. So 2018 will be my Year of Dance! I will take on some new and challenging dance adventures and recall some of the craziest ones from the past! Oh boy for Y.O.D!
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#13 - The Texas Twenty List
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I decided to begin the new decade with a new list! For the year of 2020, I'll celebrate the state, where I live.
I have not always been a big fan of Texas. But after 20+ years as a Texas resident, I've grown to love and appreciate so many things. Each month I'll focus on one of those special things. Whatever it is... food, people, scenery... I'll create a list of 20 examples to back it up! Yeehaw for these new lists! |