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Anna S. E. Lundberg

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100 Things to Do Before You Die: How to write your own bucket list

3 July, 2015 By Anna S E Lundberg 1 Comment

It’s exactly two years since I wrote my bucket list while travelling in South America; I had been watching the film with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman and felt inspired to create my own list of things I want to do before I die. Since then, I’ve been working on ticking things off, while the list itself has also evolved over time. I almost feel like I don’t need it anymore, since doing random fun things is becoming more of a habit, but I still enjoy doing things on this list!

So here’s what I’ve done since I wrote the list two years ago:

Northern lights
Magic in the Arctic Circle: seeing the aurora borealis in Swedish Lapland

5. Visit Iguazú Falls *DONE July 2013*
6. Fly over the Grand Canyon *DONE June 2015*
11. Witness the Northern Lights *DONE March 2015*
16. Go to Hobbiton and visit Weta in New Zealand *DONE November 2014*
17. Do a Thelma-and-Louise style US road trip. Without the suicidal ending. *DONE November 2014 – sort of! In New Zealand… and DONE again June 2015 in California/Nevada/Arizona*
38. Visit the glowworm caves in Waitomo *DONE November 2014*
41. Sing Evita songs in Buenos Aires *DONE July 2013*
53. Go paragliding *DONE August 2013*

Hot air balloon ride
Early morning balloon ride over Napa Valley, California

54. Fly in a hot air balloon *DONE June 2015*
55. Gallop across a field (on a horse. Not with coconuts à la Monty Python) *DONE July 2013*
83. Reach 1,000 Twitter followers *DONE May 2015*
95. Have a lead role in a musical *DONE directed and starred in Starlight Express in Geneva October 2013*
97. Find a snow globe of St Paul’s Cathedral like the one Mary Poppins has *DONE October 2014*

Only 87 more to go!

It’s actually surprisingly difficult to write your own list. Try it! I bet you’ll get stuck around 30 or 40 – at that point it requires a bit of creativity to keep going beyond the more obvious, often travel-inspired, goals.

I think a good list should have a mix of things that you can do quite easily, such as reading that book you’ve always wanted to read, and things that take more effort or time, like running a marathon or visiting every country in the world. So what have you always wanted to do? What would you wish you had done if you were to die tomorrow? Here are some ideas and categories to get you started…

Travel

An obvious one but an area that a lot of us want to do more of. Try being specific, rather than just listing countries you want to visit: What do you want to do there? When do you want to go? Who do you want to go with? Something particular you want to eat? What about the wonders of the world (Wikipedia has all sorts of different lists, including the original ancient wonders as well as the natural wonders, industrial wonders, etc.). Want to join Oktoberfest in Germany, National Cherry Festival in Japan, the Rio Carnival in Berlin? You might be able to fill the whole list just with travel!

Sports and fitness

Always wanted to learn to play a particular sport, like tennis, football, basketball? Are there sporting events you want to compete in, like a marathon or an ultra-marathon, a triathlon or Ironman…? Think beyond the obvious sports as well: what about rowing, cross-country skiing, archery? Want to get your sailing or diving licence? Or maybe do 50 push-ups, hold a plank for five minutes, or reach your goal weight?

Adventure

What about “extreme” sports and activities like skydiving, bungee jumping, kite surfing? Dog sledging in the Arctic Circle? Want to go rafting down the Colorado River? Swimming with dolphins? Hiking to Mount Everest?

Food

Ever tried snails or oysters? How about taking a cooking class in Tuscany? Going wine tasting in Napa? Catching your own fish and eating it? Eating at a three-starred Michelin restaurant? Having afternoon tea at a posh London hotel?

Transportation

Want to drive that Formula 1 car, or why not a Harley Davidson? What about riding on the Orient Express or the Trans-Siberian Railway? Or flying in a hot-air balloon or in a private jet? Have you ridden in a Tuk-tuk in Asia or in a gondola in Venice?

Books and films

Do you want to read every one of Jane Austen’s books or William Shakespeare’s plays? What about religious texts like the Bible and the Quran? Maybe you want to watch every one of the James Bond films or watch a series back-to-back? Or visit the location of your favourite film?

Music

Did you always want to learn to play the piano, or the alto sax? Again, be specific, for example is there a particular song you want to be able to play (I want to learn to play Somewhere over the Rainbow on the ukulele)? Do you want to perform in front of a certain number of people? Try karaoke for the first time?

Entertainment

Want to watch a Wimbledon game or attend the Superbowl live? See a West End or Broadway musical or see an iconic band live before they retire? How about being a member of a TV studio audience or even a game show contestant? Going to a drive-in movie?

General knowledge and education

Ever had the ambition to learn all the world’s countries and their capitals or perhaps the US states and their capitals? What about the world’s flags? The 88 official constellations? How about memorising the periodic table? Want to be able to count to ten, or say hello, in 100 languages? What about learning to code?

Family and relationships

It’s easy to forget this one but if you have goals in this area then why not include them! Want a big wedding? Five children? Think of smaller goals to: want to call your mum once a week? Get back in touch with an old school friend? Want a dog?

Giving and volunteering

Want to do a charity walk? Build a house with Habitat for Humanity? Volunteer in a soup kitchen? Be a mentor for someone? Donate £1,000 to a special cause?

Creativity

Want to knit a scarf, sew a dress? How about doing a sketching or a watercolour course? Taking a life drawing class? Fancy writing a novel? Starting a blog?

Career

Want to start your own business? Become CEO of a big corporation? Get a PhD? Be invited to speak at Ted? Have an article published?

Random

Ever wanted to get a tattoo? Ride a unicycle? Meet a childhood hero? Solve a Rubik’s Cube? Learn to juggle? Get married in Vegas? For some more imaginative ideas like delivering a baby, playing rugby naked and kissing a celebrity, have a look at Seb’s 100 things.

I hope that’s enough to get you started! Please share your own crazy ideas in the comments below…

Filed Under: Bucket List, Life Tagged With: 100 things to do before you die, bucket list

Happy Midsummer! So what lights you up?

19 June, 2015 By Anna S E Lundberg 2 Comments

“What lights you up?”

I was asked this question a few weeks ago and I just think it’s the most beautiful question that you can ask someone. So much more personal, and insightful, than the standard “What do you do?” or even “Where are you from?” And what better time to ask this question than over Midsummer, the summer solstice, the day of the year that has the most daylight?

It’s a beautiful question, but also a tough one. It’s not something anyone’s ever asked me, nor something I’ve considered myself. “Erm, err, meeting new people… travelling… umm…”

Hmm.

Okay, let’s try this again…

What lights me up?

My niece and nephew. The purity of the emotions of a child, any child. Playing. Learning. Understanding how things work. Books, films. The smell of coffee, the foam on a cappuccino. Cinnamon buns. Indulging in a really good dessert. A glass of wine. Good music. Singing, dancing. Being on stage. Looking through old photos, remembering good times. Thinking about my grandpa. An evening with friends. Booking a trip. Feeling inspired, inspiring others. A pretty dress or handbag. Laughter. Not taking yourself too seriously. Sending (and receiving) flirty texts. Eye contact. Connecting with new people. Unexpected kindness from strangers. Getting a compliment. Finishing a run or a gym workout. Achieving something. Winning. Knowing that I’ve made the right decision. Being able to go straight to bed on the days I’m not wearing make-up. The feel of my duvet when I get into bed. Christmas. Fairy lights. Wearing flowers in my hair. Driving in our rented yellow Beetle convertible. Yellow in general. Freedom. Blue skies. Rainbows. Double rainbows! Springtime. Birds twittering in the trees. Cherry trees. Tulips and daisies. Hummingbirds. An ocean breeze. Natural beauty and wonder. Waterfalls. Campfires. Looking up at the stars and thinking about how small and insignificant all our little problems are. Hugs. Life.

So… what lights you up?

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: life, midsummer, summer solstice, what lights you up?

Hippy with a Handbag

9 June, 2015 By Anna S E Lundberg Leave a Comment

My name is Anna and I’m a conflicted individual.

I like nothing more than sitting by a campfire and looking up at the stars with someone gently strumming their guitar, feeling the sand between my toes as I walk barefoot on the beach, sitting in a hostel bar and pondering the meaning of life over a beer with a complete stranger… and I also like handbags. And make-up. And jewellery and other pretty things.

I think a large part of this is the environment in which I happen to find myself. Clearly living the expat life in Geneva or working on luxury brands in London will have an effect, and it’s easy get into the habit of spending more money – buying a new handbag here, going to a nice bar there… On the other hand, travelling in South America or going camping in the English countryside will expose you to people with different priorities and a different lifestyle.

I’m somewhat reassured that I’m not alone in this – I was recently followed on Twitter by a glamorous travel writer who self-identifies as a “hippy in heels”, and I’m sure there are others out there who like a bit of boho and a bit of bling!

Piña colada in Livingston, Guatemala

I find that this kind of contradiction manifests itself in other areas of my life as well. I want to be in the big city where things are happening and I want the peace of living close to nature. I find a more nomadic lifestyle appealing and I want a place that I can call home. I want to meet someone to share my life with and I want to retain my independence to live that life as I want to. I’m energised by contact with other people and I need my own space and ‘me time’. I strive to be fit and healthy and I like cake and piña coladas!

Did you notice that I’m saying “and” not “but”? Because I don’t think these desires are impossible contradictions, I think they can live together. It’s okay! You’re not evil for wanting a pretty handbag, you’re not vain for wearing a bit of make-up. You can be with someone and still have your own space. You can travel and still have a home. (Right?!)

So today I’m going on a private wine tour, and tomorrow I’m going kayaking. Vive la différence! Or something…

Filed Under: Life, Travel Tagged With: travel

Far From the Madding Students: Back to school for some Thomas Hardy romance…

5 May, 2015 By Anna S E Lundberg Leave a Comment

*SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t read the book recently and/or haven’t seen the film, don’t read on or I may ruin all the wonderful surprises…*

Far From the Madding Crowd is a 428-page pastoral novel that we were forced to read for our GCSEs at secondary school (exams that we take at English schools when we’re 15-16). It didn’t feel particularly relevant at the time, as I dutifully took notes in the margins of the book, and it certainly wasn’t sexy. The trailer for the new film, though, was good enough to seduce me into going to see it, to wallow in nostalgia if nothing else. The only aspect of the book I remembered going into the cinema was Hardy’s choice of the name Gabriel Oak to stand for patience and goodness, durability and strength. As the film progressed, a few more recollections came to me: I recalled with dread what was going to happen to the sheep and I remembered the ominous foreboding of the storm as well as the incident with the Valentine’s Day card. It’s been a long time since I did any literary analysis; I’m not going to attempt it now and I can only apologise to all my English teachers for the random thoughts that follow…

Bathsheba is a strong female character recognised as being incredibly modern for a novel written in 1874, and she’s very appealing to me now as an adult. She’s vivacious and independent and sees no reason to get married for the conventional reasons of economic security, and she won’t settle for someone simply because they offer her a piano. “I shouldn’t mind being a bride at a wedding,” she says, “if I could be one without having a husband.” – unsurprising, given the assessment that “All romances end at marriage.”

Far From the Madding Crowd
Some of my more insightful comments in the margin of page 116: “some men write poems or carve names on trees, but G. spends his day stamping her name onto lambs’ butts”. Now that’s true love!

The film, unlike the book as I remember it, sets up Gabriel Oak as the right man for the job from the start. Matthias Schoenaerts smoulders from the very beginning (who knew that Belgians could be sexy! though, having since looked up photos of the actor online, I can confirm that he, much like Aragorn, looks much better rough and ready in the field than he does in modern-day form). Bathsheba’s rejection of him is more to do with the suddenness of it all – in the book, the proposal happens already in Chapter 4 – and the fact that she is too much for him to handle: “I want somebody to tame me; I am too independent; and you would never be able to, I know.” (She later gives a more snobbish reason: “He wasn’t quite good enough for me.”)

When Mr Boldwood appears on the scene, he also seems like a pretty good candidate, being both rich and handsome, and kind. This time, Bathsheba rejects him because she simply doesn’t love him; adding, as another excuse, “You are too dignified for me to suit you, sir.” (A classic case of “It’s not you, it’s me!”) It’s easy to sympathise with Mr Boldwood at the beginning, as someone who’s been alone for a long time and feels both uneasy and excited at the unexpected possibility of love. Although I remembered the Valentine, I had somehow forgotten his complete lack of humour, not to mention how obsessive and psychotic he becomes as a result. His love is not for a real person, rather for an image that he’s created in his mind. “The great aids to idealization in love were present here: occasional observation of her from a distance, and the absence of social intercourse with her – visual familiarity, oral strangeness.” It’s easy to build someone up in your mind when you don’t know them well enough to see both the good and the bad…

In contrast, at no point am I in any way attracted to Tom Sturridge’s Sergeant Troy, who easily seduces Bathsheba where all other suitors have failed. All it takes is telling her she’s beautiful – no man ever has – and swishing his sword around a bit. I’m pretty sure that even my teenage self would have seen through all that charm and identified him as the pantomime villain that he is. It’s disappointing to see this independent woman fall for such an unattractive good-for-nothing, and Bathsheba herself soon realises her mistake (though not soon enough):

“In those earlier days she had always nourished a secret contempt for girls who were the slaves of the first good-looking young fellow who should choose to salute them. […] she had felt herself sufficient to herself, and had in the independence of her girlish heart fancied there was a certain degradation in renouncing the simplicity of a maiden existence to become the humbler half of an indifferent matrimonial whole […] – facts now bitterly remembered.” 

Interestingly, and with deeper thought than is represented in the film, Hardy suggests that it’s precisely her strength that makes her fall so hard: “Bathsheba loved Troy in the way that only self-reliant women love when they abandon their self-reliance. When a strong woman recklessly throws away her strength she is worse than a weak woman who has never any strength to throw away.” A warning to us all?!

Far From the Madding Crowd
It’s hard to know which of these three handsome bad boys to go for…

In the end, Bathsheba ends up with the man she should have gone for in the first place – hurrah! The rugged farmer who had loved her since the start, who knew her better than anyone, whose love was real and true, of the lamb-butt-stamping kind. Who would have thought that Mr Dreamboat would be the man who knows your flaws and loves you anyway? (Although the cynic in me doubts that such a man as Gabriel Oak exists in real life – I’m sure he would have married someone else by the time she had realised her mistake rather than putting up with her vanity and watching her flirt with other men for all those years.) Perhaps it’s unsurprising that I didn’t grasp the themes and the choices of Bathsheba in Far From the Madding Crowd at the age of 15 but I appreciate them all the more as I revisit them today. Beyond the long paragraphs on the rural landscape of Wessex and the detailed descriptions of each of the characters there are some quite astute observations and insights. Maybe it’s time to go back and re-read some of the other classics that made up my reluctant education…?

“Theirs was that substantial affection which arises (if any arises at all) when the two who are thrown together begin first by knowing the rougher sides of each other’s character, and not the best till further on, the romance growing up in the interstices of a mass of hard prosaic reality. This good-fellowship – camaraderie – usually occurring through similarity of pursuits, is unfortunately seldom superadded to love between the sexes, because men and women associate, not in their labours, but in their pleasures merely. Where, however, happy circumstance permits its development, the compounded feeling proves itself to be the only love which is strong as death – that love which many waters cannot quench, nor the floods drown, beside which the passion usually called by the name is evanescent as steam.”

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: bathsheba everdene, far from the madding crowd, gabriel oak, matthias schoenaerts, mr boldwood, sergeant troy, thomas hardy

So you like to travel?

1 May, 2015 By Anna S E Lundberg 1 Comment

When asked to list our interests – whether at the bottom of a CV or in a dating profile – we might mention reading, going for walks, playing a sport… and most of us will probably add, “I like to travel.” But what exactly does that mean? In the last few years I’ve come across countless bloggers who live for travel, solo travellers or couples who build their whole lives around moving from place to place, celebrating the joys of the nomadic life and pumping out articles about how you, too, can afford to live this kind of rootless existence. Now I’m no travel blogger, but travel has been a conspicuous part of the experiences that I’ve been sharing on this blog, and whenever I have time off between projects my natural impulse is to book a trip…

So why is that we travel? What is it about travelling that we find so appealing? If we dig a little deeper, we’ll probably find that there are all sorts of underlying forces creating that urge to pack our suitcase and head out of the door…

Travel as a holiday

In its most common, and simple, form, travel is something you do when you have time off work. You might go to your house in the south of France, lie on a beach in Barbados, or visit your family who live abroad. You may even choose to go to the same place each year, so you know exactly what you’re getting and you can focus on relaxing and enjoying yourself. This is time with your loved ones, time away from the office… a holiday, basically. A holiday is a wonderful thing and brings lots of benefits; but if “I like to travel” means “I like a holiday” then, yes, duh, we all do darling.

Travel as an escape

Taking the idea of a holiday or a break from work to the extreme gives you travel as an escape from the drudgery of your everyday life. Every week from Monday morning you’re counting down the days until the weekend, and all year long you’re counting down the weeks until your next holiday. If that’s you, then as the saying goes you need to find a life that you don’t want to escape from! A few days or weeks of holiday a year can never make up for the rest of the year that you live in soul-destroying wretchedness in a job you hate or in a relationship that makes you miserable. Enjoy your time away, by all means – just make sure you hand in that resignation letter or dump your cheating boyfriend when you get back.

Travel as a ‘tick the box’

Ah that most terrible of all sins, to travel simply to say that you’ve been there. These are the Americans who “do Europe” in a fortnight, tourists who barely leave the airport or the hotel, who want to see the Mona Lisa – tick! – and be done with it. They’ll do a bus tour so as to cover as much as they can in a day, they’ll see the main sights, they’ll take lots of photos. It’s crossing off destinations for the sake of it, without any attempt at getting to know the real heart of a place. These tourists – ouch, what an insult! – leave with a few selfies and souvenirs… oh and plenty of bragging rights, supported by all the photos filling up our Facebook newsfeeds. But, then, part of the joy of having an experience is being able to share it with your friends, isn’t it!?

“Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.”
– Elizabeth Drew

Travel as a cultural experience

There are also the more highbrow among the travellers, those who enjoy discovering different cultures, going to museums, learning languages. These are the travel snobs, the ones who would never dream of lying on a beach all day, feeling virtuous as they get up early to go to that great little exhibition. Cultural experiences, though, are much broader than that and it’s impossible not to live a richer life as a result of being exposed to different ways of living and seeing how small you are in the grand scheme of things.

“Travel broadens our perspectives. Suddenly, the palette with which we paint the story of our lives has more colours.”
– Rick Steves

Travel as an exploration of the unknown

Travel can also be an adventure. It’s arriving in places you know little about, being open to whatever experience comes long, getting to know the locals you happen to meet. True adventurers – travellers, not tourists – don’t like to plan and tend to be looking for a more authentic experience, meaning staying with the locals, going to bars and restaurants away from the main touristy areas, spending more time there to really get to know a place. Another type of travel snob, looking down on those of us foolish enough to visit the standard tourist attractions, the restaurant rip-offs, paying full price at the market…

“Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.”
– Dalai Lama

Travel for travel’s sake

And, finally, why not travel simply for travel’s sake? The idea of Wanderlust has become prevalent in the English language, along with another loanword from German, Fernweh – literally , ‘far-sicknesss’, as opposed to Heimweh or homesickness – and a great one from my own language, resfeber, which is Swedish for ‘travel fever’. The internet is full of travel bloggers who have packed up their bags and spend all year, every year, moving around from place to place with no permanent home.

“Not all those who wander are lost.”
– J. R. R. Tolkien

Personally, I think I travel for a mixture of all these reasons: for a break from sitting at a desk all day, for quality time with friends and family, to have new experiences and meet new people and, yes, to tick off amazing ‘bucket list’ sights like witnessing the Northern Lights (last month) and seeing the Grand Canyon (next month!). The world is vast and beautiful and I want to see as much as I can in the time that I’ve been given.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
– Mark Twain

So what type of traveller are you? Let me know in the comments below!

Filed Under: Life, Travel Tagged With: bucket list, fernweh, resfeber, travel, wanderlust, why travel

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Anna Lundberg is a success coach and business strategist who helps experienced corporate professionals reimagine success outside of the 9 to 5.

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