20 Before 20: A Disappointing Wrap-Up

As many of you know it was a goal of mine to attempt 20 new things before my 20th birthday.  Sadly my birthday has come and gone, and half the list goes undone.  I hold out hope for next year though as I am putting the finishing touches on the 21 Before 21 list, and putting in place plans to actually go do the things on the list.  Yeah.  Anywho, here goes; the list of 20 things that were done or not done by my 20th birthday.


1.  Have a fancy tea party.  Not done, but I threw one for my old roommate's birthday which was immediately after mine.  Counts?
2.  Try out a crown braid.  DONE.  Has become a near-staple.
3.  Knit a hat. Not done, learning this winter from Elspeth.
4.  Bake a pie.  DONE.
5.  Read the whole bible.  Not done, on the list for next year and already working on it.
6.  Sew a pair of pants.  DONE.  Sort of, shorts count.
7.  Grow a herb garden.  Not done.
8.  Go on a hike.  DONE
9.  Go to a real concert.  DONE
10.Learn to navigate by bike  DONE
11.Send a care package.  Not done.
12.Organize a clothing swap.  Not done.
13.Learn to apply make-up.  Not done.
14.Be in a performance.  DONE  Sort of.
15.Go to a Critical Mass ride.  Not done.
16.Teach myself to play a song on the piano.  Not done
17.Post poetry online.  DONE
18.Skip class and go out to breakfast.  Not done.
19.Try yoga.  DONE
20.Go camping.  Not done.


Total things done: 9
Total things not done: 11
Things from this year on next years list: 7


Next week look for my new list of 21 Before 21.

20 Before 20: Go to a Real Concert

Let me first say that I am slightly embarrassed that I am almost 20 years old and have only recently been to my first real concert.  My dad may contest with this, but somehow going to a concert with your parents don't feel "real" even if it is a Van Morrison concert (it was great, just didn't seem quite right).  I feel like this should have happened ions ago.  I should have been sneaking out at night to go to concerts that my parents didn't want me to see and paying far too much money for crappy seats where I couldn't see anything.  I guess I just didn't have that kind of a childhood.

I did however, go to what I feel was a real concert this past April.  A friend of mine who used to go to a school right outside of Chicago called me saying I should come and visit her for the concert her school was having.  I agreed somewhat reluctantly as I had just spent all day on a shoot for my final project.  All I wanted to do was fall down and collapse into bed, but I decided to say yes anyway.  Funny that what I feel was my first real concert almost didn't even happen.  Hmmm.

Anyway, I got on the train and texted her saying I was on my way.  Her imediate reply was "Yeah!  Plain White T's!!!"  Wuht?  I was so excited that I didn't even remember how tired I had been only moments before.  I was going to see a real band at a real concert!  It got even better.  After a shady walk to her school's campus as I half stalked a guy to be sure I was going the right way, I found out the concert was free!!!  How much better could it get?

The concert was awesome!  We squished in to get as close as we could to the stage.  We cheered.  We sang as loud as we could and still couldn't hear ourselves.  We drooled over concert t-shirts and sweatshirts we couldn't afford, and then stopped each other from buying them.

Near the end of the show Tom Higgenson left the stage.  Everyone was so confused.  We knew it wasn't over yet, he had promised us Hey There Delilah.  We stood there, breathing down the backs of each other's necks, wondering what he would come back with and why he left while the band kept playing.  All of the sudden there's a spotlight behind us and he is standing on a chair by the audio board saying, "Come on over here and we'll sing Delilah."  It was incredible.  Instead of him singing Hey There Delilah he played guitar while the crowd sang.  So awesome.

At the end of the night I left with a few photos (not the best quality, sorry about that) and an awesome memory.  Even though I was exhausted I had trouble falling asleep because I was so hyped up.  All in all definitely worth it (I would have paid money for it too, but free was even better).  I can't wait for my next concert.  Hopefully then I'll be a little more prepared.