Too much Time and Never Enough

Time is a valuable thing. It's constantly moving. You can't pause it. You can't get it back. Pushing forward. It can comfort you knowing it will pass. Make you anxious as seconds tick away. Hinder you by not leaving enough. Pass you by completely oblivious that it can multiply from minutes to hours to days to years. And for me, wanting to make every moment count, I can never have enough and yet unable to fill every second. Not wanting to waste such a perishable enigma. Trying to move in tango with the hour hand, stumbling over the minute hand, swept aside by the second hand. I cling to the clock. And still have lost another minute when all is said and done.

Sing with a band at a bar…check

I started off the New Year checking one item off my mini bucket list. My friend bravely agreed to let me sing with his band, Down Wilson at our neighborhood bar, the Tortoise and Hare on New Year’s Eve. I am realizing that my self-indulgent journey requires some strategic planning. There were some minor glitches.

Here is how I locked in my singing with the band. All great ideas are formulated over too many cocktails. One random Sunday Fun day, which started off as a nice leisurely girls’ brunch and ended up a 10 hour tour de Arlington, resulted in my booked gig. So how you might ask was I able to close this deal? Mind out of the gutters people! It was with a promise to sing Miley Cyrus’ song Party in the USA.

Now I am not in the least bit vocally equipped with the voice of a pop star, let alone a teeny bopper pop star, remember I am going on 30 and she is maybe 16. I was a classically trained singer and mostly performed in musical theater productions. I can sing "folky" style music similar to Jewel and Sheryl Crow. My tone and range match nicely with that genre. So why would I suggest Miley as my “ace up my sleeve?” Did I mention we had been drinking? It always sounds like a good idea at the time. Also I think it was on the radio at the bar and everyone was dancing or singing along and we all thought it would be a great upbeat song.

We schedule a mini jam session at my house to rehearse the Miley song. I am a little nervous because I don’t want to make an a$$ out of myself or let my friends down. The jam session goes well and after a few glasses of wine I feel pretty confident. I even tacked on another song, Aerosmith’s Dream On. I think everything could work out fine. I have two weeks to practice before my debut.

Then I get laryngitis. Of course! One week with no voice equaled no practice. All that confidence quickly diminished. I can’t back out because I posted my debut on Facebook to 500 of my closest friends and I can’t let them down. However my voice did come back with 5 days to spare before show time. I spent those final days diligently singing to myself in the mirror, in the shower, in the car, in my cubicle.

THE BIG MOMENT
I chug a glass of wine and step on stage, my friends are strategically placed at the front of the stage armed with a camera to record my performance. The band starts my first song, Dream On. I start singing however it looks like I start miming. I have never sung with a live band. All the instruments are right next to me. In theater the band is in a pit. I can’t hear myself and I know better than to yell in the microphone but no one else can hear me. But the show must go on and I keep performing the first two measures in silent opera form. Luckily my friend turns up the microphone. And let’s be honest the most important part of Dream On is the end so who cares if anyone heard the beginning. And guess what I nailed the high notes…take that Steve Perry!

I am so pumped when the song is over and can’t wait to see the video. Well there is no video. I didn’t think to charge my camera before the event and the camera dies 15 seconds into my debut.

The video doesn't matter because my confidence is back. I take some shots and relax until my next song. The Miley song comes up in the bands second set and is a bit of a blur (partially due to the shots). My girl friends recruited a parade of other girls from the bar (most of which they met in the bathroom line) to come up and dance. Oh and apparently there is some sort of structured dance to the song. I have no clue what this dance is but who cares everyone is out on the dance floor doing an interpretive and somewhat clumsy version of it. I just remember that there was lots of “nodding my head like yeah” and “moving my hips like yeah.” Even guys broke out of their closet...I mean shells and were out there dancing and singing along. I even pulled off the hold-the-mic-out-for-the-crowd-to-sing-into move.

All in all it was a great experience. I felt like a rock star…even after performing the cheesiest song in history. Thanks Down Wilson and all my friends. Now on to my next bucket list item…

Things to do before 30

So I am marking one item off my list of things to do before I am 30 and starting my own blog. I have wanted to start blogging for a while but never knew what I wanted my content to be. I am one of those people who like to know a little about a lot as opposed to a lot about a little. I also saw blogging as a huge undertaking, almost a second job and wasn’t sure if I could keep up with it. Plus I have a huge fear of indefinite commitments. So I plan to prove one of my favorite quotes wrong: “a plan is just a list of things that don't happen” from the Way of the Gun

I want to make a list of things to accomplish before I am 30. Yes, a semi-bucket list. Of course given that I am prone to procrastination I only have one year left in my 20s. I just turned 29 but a year is a realistic timeline for me to dedicate to this blog and my goals.

You might be thinking this is lame...well, I would like to hear from anyone who has turned 30 and not tried to cram in some last minute goals before a new era begins. If you haven’t, then you are probably a well-adjusted human being, more so than me. I spent the majority of my childhood wishing I was older and now I wish I could stay in my 20s forever. I have reached a, as my father put it on my birthday, precipitous year. I plan to make this year action packed.

So what do I expect to accomplish this year?!? I am not sure. I spent most of my life setting goals I push aside, starting projects I don’t finish, and abruptly ending relationships without giving them time to develop. Don’t get me wrong, I do accomplish some things. I love to make things happen but if they require ample amounts of time over an extended term then I lose focus (blame it on my self-diagnosed ADD, or my Myers-Briggs personality-ENTP, or my enneagram number-7, or even my horoscope sign-Sagittarius, or the always default, my parents). I am a bit of an excitement seeker and get very easily bored with routine and monotony, actually I get easily distracted and often because I have so many “good ideas.”

So this blog is attempt to seek out the best life has to offer before I am branded 30 (and maybe to reign in the impulsiveness that occurs when I have no direction).

I don’t think there is anything wrong with turning 30 but as a single woman, I feel I need these little excuses to make sure I don’t miss out on the pleasures of life and give me some purpose while I have very little responsibility. I want to share my experiences with the anonymous virtual audience that might stumble upon this blog. I will also accept suggestions, in case I missed something that I shouldn’t miss out on before 30. Oh and because I can’t plan it all there will probably be addendums because good ideas don’t just happen in one day. I know there are some things on my own list that I might not be able to feasibly accomplish due to time and money. I have categorized my list accordingly. So keep that in mind when making a suggestion (unless of course you want to finance the suggested adventure, i.e. trip around the world).

To sum up any expectations I plan to share pretty much my journey as a 29 year old, especially those experiences that mark off my “things to do before I am 30” list. I really want to experiment with video blogging to capture some of these moments. Here is my list so far:

Things to Do before 30 + Level of Effort

• Run a half marathon = Time and Money


• Take a comedy improv class (and perform) = Easy to Plan


• Read poetry at an Open Mic Night = Easy to Plan


• Go rock climbing and/or sky diving = Time and Money


• Road trip from the East Coast to the West Coast = Time and Money


• Take a hip hop dance class = Easy to Plan


• Volunteer for a charity = Easy to Plan


• Travel to each continent (with the exception of Antarctica) = Improbable (but not impossible!)


• Design and sew a dress/top = Time and Money


• Taking a cooking class = Easy to Plan


• Sample every variety of wine (start a notebook) = Time and Money


• Give a tour of DC (full of facts and history) = Improbable (but not impossible!)


• Do an all day spa day = Easy to Plan/Time and Money


• Buy a pair of overpriced designer shoes = Time and Money


• Get a tasteful black and white “natural” photo = Easy to Plan


• Sing in a band at a bar = Easy to Plan


• Visit Chicago on a weekend trip (maybe my 1st solo trip) = Time and Money


• Learn another language = Time and Money


• Meet Brad Pitt = Improbable (but not impossible!)