Do you have any ambitious (and/or likely unattainable) life goals?

[Craptacular]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

Starting in the 1980s, I started to document every trip I had made in my life and path they took. Even as a young kid, I had always been interested in maps and geography and considered any family/youth group/personal trips as the highlights of each year. Even as a 7-8 yr old, I paid attention to where we were going and how we were getting there and back.

The reason I started tracking them was to obtain the goal of visiting every single county in the US. ...

That is a pretty cool goal in my book. I haven't travelled nearly as much as you have (I think I have 19 states yet to visit .. 11 of them in the NE), but my parents had an inkling I'd either be a transportation engineer or a cartographer. On family road trips when I was growing up, I always had the map, knew where we were going, and could figure out how long it would take us to get there.

[Franklinnoble]

I always wanted a good job, a lovely wife, and a house full of kids. I've managed that much.

I think raising all three kids into good, responsible adults is an ambitious enough goal. Hell, repairing my decrepit deck is an ambitious goal.

On a more personal level... I've managed to become a published writer (had a newspaper column, wrote for magazines, etc.), but I've always wanted to write books. Not just vanity press crap that nobody reads (although I haven't even accomplished that much), but an actual fiction or non-fiction work that people read and say, "You know, that was a good book."

I don't care if I'm ever on a bestseller list. I'd just like to write a few good books.

[kingnebwsu]

To be a writer on Late Night with Conan. Seriously, that would be my dream job and I know I'd be damn good at it. How would I even get an "audition" or whatever the hell it is writers get? I mean, I figure a lot of people came from stand-up, but that's not my thing at all. Mine is more observational humor. And if you like/watch Conan, you know that's what he's all about.

New York is a long way from Ohio though...

Any tips to get me started?

[Travis]

Honestly, the one I started trying to live around 6 years ago was to try and enjoy as much about life as possible. A lot of my friends think I'm a little 'off' so to speak, but I've had my share of near death moments, and the one thing that taught me is that while it's nice to have life goals, plans, etc, if you don't enjoy as much about your life as you can in the mean time, you'll miss a lot while doing what you can to achieve them.

I tick off Blade as I've turned into the proverbial eternal optimist, but I can't remember the last time I went to bed at night with any sort of negative thoughts going through my head.

[Noop]

I want to be a Senator.
I want to be President.
- I doubt these will ever happen.

I want to be the head coach of Florida State or Miami
- This can happen but I don't think I could deal with the BS that comes along with being a coach.

[Qwikshot]

I made it to Australia before I turned 30 (I got there in late October/early November) therefore beating the deadline by 4 weeks.

I have been to Europe twice (England the first trip around, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic the 2nd).
I have dated a brunette, blond and redhead.
I have yet to have anything worthwhile to be published.
I have seen the miracle of child birth, and the role of parenting; I have also dealt with the heartbreak of being a single dad (e.g. weekend visitation).
I have been to an Eagles game in the new stadium.
I have set foot upon the ground of Citizen's Bank Park.
I think of all the sports I would have liked to have been more into soccer.
I am in a hiatus, but have a goal to get sixpack abs by summer.
I want a better job.
I would like to have written a publishable novel; or played a role in a film (neither of which I believe I will ever have occur).
I would love to win the jackpot (high money prize) in the lottery or at Vegas/A.C.

[CamEdwards]

I have the goal of hiking the Grand Canyon by October of 2008. In order to do this, I will need to seriously lose some weight as well as quit smoking.

I also plan on visiting every minor league ballpark in the state of Virginia this summer, which is fairly ambitious considering I'll have to do it on the weekends and get the blessing of my wife.

I too would like to publish a book, but don't know how easy that would be. I have lots of good ideas, but I lose interest as I'm writing. I need to get over that in order to actually finish something.

[Icy]

Good question as i talked with my wife yesterday about it. I'm so fu*king happy right now, probably the best time in my life so if i'm asked what do i want i would just say "To keep a life that the i actually have for as many years as possible".

- I love my wife, we started to date at 14 and we are 30 now and married since 2 years ago.

- I'm going to be a daddy in 2 or 3 weeks. Of course my first think to ask about is to have a healthy girl, without any kind of problem, but that is out of my control and i preffer to not even think about any problem related to her or my wife.

- I love my work and get good income from it while working from home and without a fixed schedule. I have total freedom, give me a computer and an internet connection and i can work anywere.

- I'm more healthy than ever now, i'm running 6 Miles 3 days per week (when i haven't ever ran before in my life) and i'm going to the gym 3 days per week too.
Lost a a good amount of pounds already and i feel really well.

I feel almost guilty of saying it, but i'm really really happy right now and sometimes even afraid of being too happy, like if something bad could happen to ruin it.

There are other minor things that i would like to do before death, like developing a text sim and to attend to a NFL or MLB game. Both are still possible and are into my plans.

About the things i won't ever be able to acomplish but what i would love, to play myself a football or baseball game, no way in Spain and even less at 30 years old.

[Kodos]

I wanted to run a marathon back during my days as a miler/2-miler/cross country guy. I probably could have done it back then because I was in good shape and was a good runner, but now my running days are behind me.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Icy

I love my wife, we started to date at 14 and we are 30 now and married since 2 years ago.

It's not any of my business of course, but I hope you won't mind me asking:

Am I reading this right, that you dated steadily for 14 years prior to getting married 2 years ago?

Or did you date on-and-off over 14 years and then ultimately settle down with each other a couple of years ago?

(Nothing wrong with either, I'm just curious about dating consistently for 14 years and _then_ deciding to get married. That's a really really long courtship)

[Icy]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

It's not any of my business of course, but I hope you won't mind me asking:

Am I reading this right, that you dated steadily for 14 years prior to getting married 2 years ago?

Or did you date on-and-off over 14 years and then ultimately settle down with each other a couple of years ago?

(Nothing wrong with either, I'm just curious about dating consistently for 14 years and _then_ deciding to get married. That's a really really long courtship)

I know it sounds weird for non Spanish as i have been asked that already by some German or Dutch friends. It's mainly the way of life in Spain.

In most of the north European countries (don't know in USA but i guess it's the same) the young people leaves their parents home early, like at 18, they work while they study to cover the expenses, then rent a home and get married or go to live together. Also the people moves to different cities a lot, change the job a lot of times, etc. As their income grows, they buy a car, maybe a house and then maybe at 40 years old they have more stabillity.

In Spain and probably in Italy and Greece too (south of Europe countries) it's the other way. You study until 24 years old or so, then you look for a job and probably you won't ever change that job or move to another city in your whole life, then you buy a car, then you buy a home (never rent)
and once you have a more or less stable life, you get married or go to live together with your girl. There are exceptions of course, but it's the usual. When we got married, we both a had job, a paid car and a paid home and we were 28 years old. Until then, we lived with our parents. And we are still thought too youg to have kids by most of our friends. That is why familly is one of the most important things in Spain and for the latins in general, we expend 30 years living with our parents, brothers etc.

Yeah, i know your next question, do you wait until 28 to have sex? Of course not, that is why we buy a car as soon as we can

Weird uh?

[Raiders Army]

Originally Posted by Icy

Yeah, i know your next question, do you wait until 28 to have sex? Of course not, that is why we buy a car as soon as we can

Nice!

[Icy]

Dola, just found this stats about Spain to prove what i posted:

- 90% of the youngs betwen 18 to 25 years old live at their parents home.
- 60% of the youngs betwen 26 to 34 years old still live at their parents.
- Spain has the lowest % of rented homes in Europe, only a 15% vs the 57% of the rest of Europe.
- The average age in Spain for youngs to leave their parents home is 31.5 years, the older in Europe.
- The price of houses in Spain has grown a 50% in the last 10 years because the high demand.

There is a high price for all that, right now Spain has the lowest birth rate in the world, with only 1.2 babies per familly.

[CamEdwards]

Originally Posted by Icy

Dola, just found this stats about Spain to prove what i posted:

- 90% of the youngs betwen 18 to 25 years old live at their parents home.
- 60% of the youngs betwen 26 to 34 years old still live at their parents.
- Spain has the lowest % of rented homes in Europe, only a 15% vs the 57% of the rest of Europe.
- The average age in Spain for youngs to leave their parents home is 31.5 years, the older in Europe.
- The price of houses in Spain has grown a 50% in the last 10 years because the high demand.

There is a high price for all that, right now Spain has the lowest birth rate in the world, with only 1.2 babies per familly.

As someone who is looking forward to not having a house full of kids some day, may I just say "Thank God I'm Not A Spaniard". No offense towards Spain intended, Icy.

My eldest step-daughter is now 19, in her freshman year of college. She'll be coming home for a month before going back to summer school, and it looks like she might stay in Oklahoma next summer. I love her to death, but I've got no problem with her wanting to spread her wings a little.

My 15 year old, on the other hand... he'll be the one hoping to mooch off me when he's 22 or 23. I think he's in for a hard lesson in a few years.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

It's not any of my business of course, but I hope you won't mind me asking:

Am I reading this right, that you dated steadily for 14 years prior to getting married 2 years ago?

Or did you date on-and-off over 14 years and then ultimately settle down with each other a couple of years ago?

(Nothing wrong with either, I'm just curious about dating consistently for 14 years and _then_ deciding to get married. That's a really really long courtship)

Makes me feel a little better about the fact that I have been with the same girl for almost 8 years and we're not married yet, but intend to.

[KevinNU7]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

Starting in the 1980s, I started to document every trip I had made in my life and path they took. Even as a young kid, I had always been interested in maps and geography and considered any family/youth group/personal trips as the highlights of each year. Even as a 7-8 yr old, I paid attention to where we were going and how we were getting there and back.

The reason I started tracking them was to obtain the goal of visiting every single county in the US. My graduate school advisor was also doing this (albeit a much earlier headstart than I) and others had as well (from various articles and books I had read). Since I was single up until my mid-30s and lived in several parts of the country, I traveled extensively throughout that time. What I would do is plan the road trips (whether day-long, weekend-long or week-long) so that I would zig-zag around to pick up as many counties along the way as feasible. This has also cemented my deep love for traveling the back roads, the "blue highways" if you will. There are so many memories of routes, places, people, food and sights from these travels that I still can recall most all of them.

Since being married now for 10 years with a kid, a mortgage, etc., this goal has obviously slowed down quite a bit but I have managed to reach about the 60% point. The highlights include every county in New England (except the two island ones and a couple in northern ME), most all of the Middle Atlantic and every county in the Western US (from the front range of the Rockies westward) except for most of the Nevada ones. I need one more in Hawai'i and have made a little dent in Alaska. The holes on my large county wall map are noticeable, including a big one covering the upper Midwest/Plains (except for a couple cross-regional strips) and a sizeable chunk in the Deep South (most of GA, AL, MS).

What do you do about areas that have realigned there counties?

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by Izulde

1) Become a head soccer coach for a US college or European league team
2) Write at least one novel that gets published
3) Create the text-sim I've been lugging around and publish it
4) Get married to a beautiful girl and have children before my parents die
5) Re-visit Italy and Ireland
6) Travel to the continents I haven't yet: Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica, South America (Asia I can cross off my list when I go on a two-week study tour to Russia this summer)

There's more, but those are the 6 I can think of off the top of my head that I most want to accomplish.

Russia is part of Europe.

[Telle]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

Russia is part of Europe.

Part of Russia is in Europe, and part of Russia is in Asia.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Icy

Dola, just found this stats about Spain to prove what i posted:

- 90% of the youngs betwen 18 to 25 years old live at their parents home.
- 60% of the youngs betwen 26 to 34 years old still live at their parents.
- Spain has the lowest % of rented homes in Europe, only a 15% vs the 57% of the rest of Europe.
- The average age in Spain for youngs to leave their parents home is 31.5 years, the older in Europe.
- The price of houses in Spain has grown a 50% in the last 10 years because the high demand.

There is a high price for all that, right now Spain has the lowest birth rate in the world, with only 1.2 babies per familly.

Wow, quite a few things there that fall under the heading of "I had no idea".
Interesting stuff, thanks for taking the time to explain.

[Subby]

This one is pretty easy - buy a house on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe.

I'll admit that I am not well-traveled, but for the few places I *have* been, Tahoe is the most beautiful place on Earth.


That's probably way down the road though.

My current goal is to hike the Appalachian Trail for a week with at least one of my kids...

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Chris

This one is pretty easy - buy a house on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe.

I'll admit that I am not well-traveled, but for the few places I *have* been, Tahoe is the most beautiful place on Earth.


That's probably way down the road though.

My current goal is to hike the Appalachian Trail for a week with at least one of my kids...

Good to hear, since I'm visiting Tahoe this summer (although I don't think the Nevada side)..

[pennywisesb]

Here are some of my personal goals in no particular order:
1. Visit every Major League Baseball stadium (I'm probably about 1/3 of the
way through)
2. Own a house here in California (which is VERY ambitious now-a-days)
3. Become Chief of a Fire Department
4. Pay for each of my kids ( I still have time to prepare as I don't have any at the moment) to attend college without having to go into debt to do it.
5. Visit every continent
6. Surf Pipeline
7. Visit Machu Pichu (sp?)
8. Visit the Pyramids in Egypt
9. To be completely debt free
10. To play golf in Scottland


Here are my sports goals in no particular order:
1. See the Sharks win a Stanley Cup
2. See the Warriors win an NBA Championship
3. See the A's win the WS (I was only 9 the last time they won)
4. See the Raiders change ownership and win a Superbowl

[Franklinnoble]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Good to hear, since I'm visiting Tahoe this summer (although I don't think the Nevada side)..

If you're visiting the actual town of Lake Tahoe, you're in Nevada. If you're in the California town of South Lake Tahoe, you can walk to Nevada. Or take a boat. Or a jetski... you get my point.

I live about an hour from Tahoe, and I concur - it is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

[Vince]

Originally Posted by NoMyths

He's wrong. The Purdue Alumni association went down there last year, and I had to think long and hard about what kind of financial desolation I'd endure before deciding not to go with them. (Yeah, I want to go too).

That's good to know -- I had some trouble believing that the government was the ONLY access to Antarctica...but then again, I don't really know much about Antarctica, so I took what he said at face value.

[dixieflatline]

Originally Posted by Celeval

Run a marathon. I've never been able to get into serious enough training for it, though, and it'd be tough to keep at it to do so. I ran (well, trained) a half in high school.

A few years back this was on my list as well. I started one of those plans to build up endurance and after a week or two running 13 miles was on the list. After that I didn't see much need in doing another 13. Congrats if you do it though.

Maybe this is going out of style a but playing in a WSOP event is currently bubbling up my list. Probably not the main event because it turns out I suck at NL. I am however, trying for a few of the limit events which also are smaller buyins so easier to win your way in.

[Edward64]

I want to write Science Fiction. A juevenile series like Robert Heinlein.

I want to write Fantasy. A series like George Martin (but maybe finish it in 4-5 years) or fun, light reading like Dave Duncan's books.

I'm resigned to not being able to do this until I quit this rat race, semi-retire and go adventuring with someone like Jacques Cousteau up the Amazon river or diving for wrecks in the Mediterranean.

[Buccaneer]

Originally Posted by KevinNU7

What do you do about areas that have realigned there counties?

The map (and the tally) then is updated to reflect whether I have traveled through the new county. An easy example is the new county of Bloomfield, CO. I have traveled between Denver and Boulder countless times along 36, which so happens to be where the new county was created. Remember, I'm in GIS so making a map like this electronically is a no-brainer, albeit time-consuming.

[Craptacular]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

If you're visiting the actual town of Lake Tahoe, you're in Nevada. If you're in the California town of South Lake Tahoe, you can walk to Nevada. Or take a boat. Or a jetski... you get my point.

I live about an hour from Tahoe, and I concur - it is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

We spent a couple of days in Tahoe last fall on our Yosemite / Tahoe / SF / Monterey trip. We had great weather every day except ... the one full day in Tahoe. We took the gondola up Heavenly, and got snowed on (first snowfall of the season). Oh well, I won enough at the casino to pay for our two nights at Horizon (plus we got an upgrade since the people next to our original room were smoking pot), so it wasn't all bad. I'd love to go back in winter and ski!