Sherwood - 2,001 things to do before you die

Imagine. Youve just learned that planet Earth will explode in six months. Or, a virulent parasite is wiping out the chimp population and its beginning to strike humansits sure to be the worst plague in the history of humankind. What ever will you do during your last days on Earth? Surely youve considered this scenario before. Who hasnt? Just what things should, could, or would you do if you knew your days on this planet were numbered Then again, maybe you have years to go. Theres so much to see, to learn, to give, to do.

Where to begin? Well, heres where. 2,001 Things to Do Before You Die is your fresh start. These ideas range from simple tasks to silly pranks, from charitable deeds to risky feats, from sweeping lifestyle changes to dramatic philosophical transformations, from the mundane to the sublime to the ridiculous. Some of these ideas are easily achieved, othersor so the cynics will sayare nearly impossible to attain. But it is hoped that this list will inspire you to at, andyesto dream. Let it provoke you and prod you.

Maybe it will even scare you into action. But for Gods sake, use it to get off of your sorry butt and do something!

Feel free to check off the entries as you complete them. Of course, exercise your best judgment when picking and choosing which ideas to follow. There are some occasions in life when being careful is a very good idea. There are some blank spaces at the end of this list for you to add your own ideas. If you come up with anything particularly brilliant, why dont you send it on to The Stonesong Press, LLC, 27 West 24th Street, Suite 510, NY, NY 10010? Who knows, maybe the only thing you do will be to get your contribution in the next printing.

So, come on. Plunge in. Do something wonderful, ridiculous, crazy, or inspiring. What are you waiting for?

Be an extra in a movie Learn the first five Amendments See a green iceberg See the aurora borealis from Denali Travel at warp speed Have dim sum for breakfast Milk a cow Donate some body parts Become an eccentric billionaire and run for president Rent an apartment on the Seine for two months Catch a foul ball at a professional baseball game Spelunk Win the Palme dOr at Cannes Have multiple orgasms Drink a mint julep at the Kentucky Derby Pay for the next car at the tollbooth Memorize Hamlets What a piece of work is man speech Skywrite a message to someone Reconstruct a dinosaur Pay off your school loans Organize a food drive for the needy Have your immigrant ancestors names engraved on a plaque at Ellis Island Get married at Cinderellas Castle at Disney World I invent nothing, I rediscover. August Rodin Make a religious pilgrimageto Mecca, Santiago de Compostela, Jerusalem, or Graceland Master the pregnant pause and a deadpan delivery Be a riot grrrl Change your name to have all the letters in lowercase Flirt Pay your parents back for college Read Joyces Ulysses without a trot Hang-glide in Chamonix Have pizza the way it was made in Bronx bars in the 1940s Watch the sun set on Santorni Shake hands with someone famous Light a candle in the Holocaust Memorial museums Hall of Remembrance Swim in each of the Seven Seas Learn to drive a stick shift Master the art of letterwriting Record a duet with Tony Bennett Throw your panties at Tom Jones Crush a beer can with one hand Blow smoke rings Be able to explain Einsteins theory of relativity Get a professional makeover Awake to the sounds of macaws or spider monkeys in a tropical rain forest Suddenly decide on and leave for a trip Crash a ritzy party Stay in bed all day Do something scandalous Testify before Congress Give someone a reason to believe in God Lobby Participate in a moonlight drum circle Start a Barbie collection Create a zine Build a tree house Attend a Star Trek convention Write a letter to the editor Swim in Icelandic hot springs at sundown Discover a new talent Dcoupage a table Communicate without words Eat alligator Spend one month completely alone Spend one month without a car Spend one month without a television We are what we pretend to be. Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Spend one month without a radio Spend a day at a nursing home Play hide and seek with your partner Do an open-mike night Approach a stranger and ask him/her out Clean out you closet and give your throwaway clothes and shoes to the poor Donate books Interview your friends on video camera Interview yourself on video camera Take a natural mud bath Read to children Listen to Mozarts Requiem without interruption Read Atlas Shrugged Give a taxi driver some advice Write your high school teacher a thank-you note Leave some cookies in your mailbox for the mailman Become familiar with duende Find the perfect Peking duck Wake up next to Brad Pitt or Jennifer Aniston Take an acting class Be a docent in a museum Ski Tuckermans Ravine Fossil hunt Find a long, straight road and see how fast you can go Learn French, German, or Swahili Pogo stick with children Unicycle Ride an ostrich Spend a day with a toddler Volunteer at the monkey house at the zoo Ride the Coney Island Cyclone three times in a row Protect the innocent Paint polka dots on your sneakers Experience 1,000 types of love Dry some flowers Have a tremendous, rollicking, soaking-wet water pistol fight Prepare a seven-course meal for ten of your closest friends Compete in the eco-challenge Scuba dive in the waters of Micronesia Go on a silent retreat Bust (perform for money) in a European country Ride in a dune buggy Attend a Democratic or Republican convention Protest a Democratic or Republican convention Start a new political party Dying seems less sad than having lived too little. Gloria Steinem Crochet or knit a sweater Travel alone Parasail Bungee-jump off a bridge Do I contradict myself? Very well then, I contradict myself. I am large, I contain multitudes. Walt Whitman Finish a marathon (without throwing up) Horseback-ride on a Costa Rican beach at dawn, clothing optional Be the captain of a ship, a spaceship, or a submarine Go on a scientific expedition Teach someone to read Learn to sew Make your own bread Shoot a crossbow Read, understand, and memorize three poems Learn a new computer program Swallow a goldfish Own a velvet Elvis Create an unforgettable ad campaign Attend the Olympics Go paintballing Leave someone a $100 tip Hot-air balloon over a desert Do Outward Bound Haggleand win Invent or patent something Press some flowers Cut a demo tape at a recording studio Skinny-dip Go down the Snake River in a dory Fill time capsule with magazines, CDs, photographs, letters, and T-shirts, then bury it Thank you, God, for this good life and forgive us if we do not live it enough. Garrison Keillor Ride a boxcar for a couple of days Bake a rhubarb pie from scratch Learn to play an instrument Venture cross-country on a Harley Ride a bicycle built for two Catch fireflies Visit a monastery Learn to sail Visit a synagogue Attend a Catholic mass Meditate with monks Fast for three days (just bread and water) Attend a Unitarian Universalist service Win a Kewpie doll See the Great Wall of China Actually listen to Jehovahs Witness Swim with dolphins Get your photo taken in Katmandu Do a backflip on a trampoline Sea-kayak Run with the bulls in Pamplona Volunteer at a national park Paint your bedroom red, black, or hot pink Watch the Cartoon Network for twenty-four hours Spend some time with the Amish or the Mennonites Read Invisible Man Build a table Read Alice in Wonderland aloud Ride Space Mountain See a laser light show at a planetarium Prepare a lobster dinner Read Dantes Inferno Make your own ice cream Think excitement, talk excitement, act out excitement and you are bound to become an excited person. Life will take on a new zest, deeper interest, and greater meaning.