30 things for 30

So turning 29 was way scarier than turning 30.
One of those "Shit! What am I not doing with my life and how ..." kind of things.

So about a year ago I wrote a list of stuff that I thought I should do - things that would make the whole decade-change-aging an event of sorts - or at least meaningful and worthwhile. Of course a couple months (if not weeks) later I'd dismissed the whole thing as a joke and waste of time.

But then I figured well... if I want to do these things anyway, why not? What if it's not about 'achievements' by a deadline and more about having fun and making the most out of being 30-ish.

So here was my list and how it turned out:

MENTAL:
- study Portuguese @ UCL - the course drained me of all motivation and joy so I bought a kids book called 'A Professora Lobisomem (The Werewolf Teacher) and self-studied instead - way better!
-trumpet lessons? - best thing I did this year!! This was for another far-away wedding I couldn't get to
-dance class? swing? - nope - and not sure why this went in the mental and not physical category - also why so many categories?? 
-learn to read music - yup - along with the trumpet, just don't expect me to the play the rhythm on the page if it isn't what's in my head
-more veggie cooking - kinda, having trouble turning veggie book recipes into anything other than ok-to-mediocre meals - maybe it's the crappy London veggies

PHYSICAL:
-swim open water mile - swimming regularly twice a week but no incentive to really push past my 30 mins routine - I should probably just sign up for an event 
-climb 3 mountains - not sure if I've even done 3 hills - but have started to take the stairs out of Russell Square underground each morning "We advise customers to not take the stairs unless in an emergency - it is equivalent to a 13 story building" Aren't I tough!?!
-2star canoe/ eskimo roll - I did a white water course in the spring and then with no more opportunities on the horizon got bored and stopped going along to the reservoir
-cycle to work - nope - still get niggling knee pain a bit too often to make me feel like it's a good idea
-Wild Goose Qigong - just finished learning the moves for the first 64 - now need to polish
-make something - like what?? don't know what my dumb 20-something self was thinking
-grow veg - disastrous - of 10 bean, 3 courgette, 5 kale, and 3 broccoli plants planted all but 2 beans were obliterated by a late frost and then one of those was eaten by slugs. I now have one bean plant - 3 inches tall with 3 beans on it!! WOO! Tomatoes did better but have yet to ripen... we'll see

TRIPS: Mostly a dream category with little success, apart from visiting my sister in Seville
-self-led canoe trip - X
-camping trip - X
-bivvy on mount - X
-Seville

-Brazil? - this is still a possibility for xmas

SOCIAL:
keep more in touch w/ Doug / Pin - massive fail
party - success despite torrential downpours

live w/ M? - nada

WORK: - another thinking-out-loud category with zip to account for
-CELTA trainer
-present at a conference
-work abroad again
-do a stint at Crisis?
-vso?
-Brit Council

LONDON:
- A-Z nationality restaurants - promising start that seems to have fallen by the wayside, too much K-Korean restaurants
- galleries - I used to be cultured honest...
- leave once a month! - pretty close (since xmas): Liverpool Seville Paris Liverpool Cambridge Lisbon Algarve Whitstable

- more LIVE music - I've got six shows coming up in September!

I decided as I was going along to extend the list from by 30 to around 30. So who knows maybe I'll tick a few more off yet!
PS - there's not actually 30 things but it made a better title