The Bucket Meme

Jeff Pulver has tagged me to write a “Bucket List,” as per the popular movie of the same name. Essentially, what are some things you’d want to do if you had X months to live before you kick the bucket. It’s a fun exercise to do, especially if you attempt to live your life based on what you come up with. I’m not promising a thing on what I think I can actually accomplish from this list, but if I had a few months to live, here’s what I’d do:

Travel

I suppose everyone’s bucket list would have travel. It’s just something we say when we realize how stationary our lives typically are. So, where shall I go? I’m about to die, or some such. Hmm. I say Ireland, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Tokyo (Japan), and perhaps Goa in India.

Sharks

Great Barrier Reef in Australia, or even closer by, the Red Triangle off San Francisco, are places where one could see a Great White shark, with some patience, or a skilled guide. I’d want to touch one. I’ve had a lifelong fear of sharks that is also part fascination. I think it would be fun to touch one before I went.

Reaching Out

There are people I’ve yet to meet that I’d like to at least communicate with in some form or fashion:

• William Gibson
• Serg Tankian
• Wes Anderson
• Kevin Smith
• Chuck Palahniuk
• Scott Ian

Create

I’d roll live video for the rest of my days, I think, creating some kind of record of thoughts and ideas and the things I’d summed up as part of my life until that point. Some of it would be silly, like movie reenactments. I’d want to create as much as I could before I shuffled off this mortal coil. Hell, I’d even get out my paints and things. Why stick with digital only?

So, the Purpose

The reason we’re supposed to do a bucket list is to remind us that time is finite, that we never know when it’s all going to be over, and that we should do these things. We’re supposed to look at what holds us back. We’re supposed to think beyond what limits us and consider doing some of these things.

What holds us back? I’d say that one part is money. Another part is fear. Another part is not knowing how to take first steps to accomplish these things. Katrina says another reason we don’t do all these things is that they’re very selfish. (Well, mine are). You can’t just be that selfish (unless of course you’re really going to kick the bucket).

And of course, one part is to dream.

So, I’m not doing many memes right now (deep in the heart of my Social Media 100), except that memes themselves are social media, and social networking, and wiring together of our human computers, and hey, if Jeff asks me for pretty much anything, I’d probably do it. : )

If you’re inclined to consider your own bucket list, I encourage you to think it over, post it, and send a comment to this post and/or to Jeff’s original post. It’s an interesting exercise, for sure.

Photo Credit, Moriza

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