A Moment In JFK

Hey, folks. Today’s Daily Prompt is all about stories. Specifically, the story behind the first picture of yourself that you can find. Not surprisingly, I had to do some serious digging through my library. There aren’t many photos of me. I always dislike how I turn out; there’s something off with the lighting, my smile seems goofy, and it just doesn’t look good. I’d rather take pictures of something, anything more interesting and beautiful. In the photograph for this entry, it’s the setting that stood out.

I’m standing in front of a large sign that says “Welcome to New York”. I noticed it on my last layover through JFK International Airport in 2011. It’s hanging on the wall just after the security checkpoint. I’m smiling for the camera, but it’s a little strained from having to gather my belongings and put my shoes and belt back on. I regard airport security with ambivalence; I’ve traveled enough times to make it routine, but I get patted down at least once per trip. I guess I look suspicious…It doesn’t help that – at least for this particular trip – I’m decked out with a backpack, three clothing layers, and several pockets. Cargo pants are a staple of all my vacations, by virtue of practicality. However, I’m also draped in my black overcoat. It’s not something I’ll likely need in the coming week, though. I’m heading out to Madrid and then Málaga (along with Seville, Tangier, and Gibraltar eventually) but I don’t know what the weather is going to be like.

There’s a certain sense of urgency in the air. JFK is a bustling, frantically-paced airport. It’s almost suffocating. Even as I stand faking a grin, there’s a whole crowd of people off to my left. Weary travelers dragging their rolling suitcases and checking their phones, refusing to take even a moment to enjoy the setting. It’s fine, I can’t stand there all day. My hair is already untied and matted a little on one side, which means I’ve long stopped caring about feeling fresh and am focused on reaching the next gate in time. I’ll make it with minutes to spare, and I’ll gladly leave JFK in favor of Madrid’s far more relaxing atmosphere.

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This Bucket List Kicks Back

Hey, folks. Today’s Daily Prompt is all about bucket lists. You know, the list of stuff you want to do before you die? I don’t know about you, but mine seems to get longer every time I think about it. Here’s a (work in progress) list:

• Earn my master’s degree, and least a few more bachelor’s degrees.
• Learn many languages, most likely Mandarin, Arabic, Russian, and French for starters.
• Learn how to drive. (I really don’t want to, but I’m going to have to.)
• Learn a martial art. (My college freshman jiu-jitsu course was a long time ago.)
• Learn coding, either in terms of sites or apps.
• Learn how to create digital art.
• Learn how to read music.
• Learn how to horseback ride.
• Relearn Calculus and continue beyond it. (MIT has courses for independent study)
• Read at least one novel a week. (I usually have a couple on hand.)
• Write and publish a novel. (Hopefully winning a Nobel Prize for Literature?)
• Review 1,000 games. (I’m at 702 now.)
• Visit all seven continents. (I’ve only got South America, Australia, and Antarctica left!)
• See at least one new country a year. (I’ve managed this three years in a row, Italy is coming up in a few months.)
• Visit an active volcano. (Visited Kilauea in December 2014)
• See snow fall.
• Celebrate Holi.
• Participate in La Tomatina.
• Participate in the Taiwan Lantern Festival.
• Visit the Pyramids at Giza.
• Visit Hagia Sophia.
• Visit Easter Island.
• Visit Stonehenge, preferably during an equinox.
• Visit the Burj Khalifa.
• Visit the Taj Mahal.
• Visit Petra.
• Visit Angkor Wat.
• Visit Santorini.
• Visit Vatican City. (This might be happening soon.)
• Meet the Dalai Lama.
• Ride the Trans-Siberian Railway.
• Stay in Finland’s Kakslauttanen igloo hotel and see the aurora borealis.
• Stay in the Rangali underwater hotel in the Maldives.
• Return to Paris and explore the Catacombs.
• See Japan’s Nabana No Sato, Shibuya, Mt. Fuji, and all of its castles.
• See Machu Picchu. (This one almost happened this year!)
• See Iguazu Falls. (See above.)
• See Victoria Falls.
• See the Hunan province.
• See Holland’s flower fields.
• See the Amazon and Sahara.
• See Uluru.
• See the DMZ.
• See the polar ice caps.
• Participate in a research expedition. Classifying new species in the Mariana Trench, archeological digs in Europe or Asia, etc.
• Visit ALMA.
• Visit CERN.
• Visit Pic du Midi.
• Watch all of Hayao Miyazaki’s films.
• Go skydiving.
• Earn a pilot’s license.
• Ride a hot air balloon.
• Walk the Great Wall of China.
• Climb all the major mountains of the world. If I can only choose one, then:
• Climb Mt. Everest. If I can’t make it to the top, then I want to see the mountain at the very least.
• Learn how to play an instrument, preferably the guitar.
• Get a tattoo.
• Watch a space shuttle launch. (Or to go space myself!)
• Experience zero gravity.
• Finish a marathon. (Bay To Breakers is probably the closest I’ll get.)
• Donate to or create a charity.
• Do volunteer work abroad.
• Attend Comic Con, E3, and compete in EVO.
• Start a gaming/review channel on YouTube.
• Do voice acting for a video game or anime.
• Invent/discover something that would be beneficial for society.
• Have an astronomical object or theory named after me.
• Restore the old family house.
• Further expand my personal library.
• Find a house big enough to store my personal library.
• Retire in Cinque Terre. (Open to other suggestions, though!)

It seems like a lot, I know. Kind of far-fetched, too. But looking through some other people’s bucket lists, I’ve now realized that I’ve already done a ton of weird and awesome stuff. I’ve seen most of the major landmarks and buildings here in the States, been to a dozen countries, visited a Buddhist temple in Thailand, fought a fire, lived in two countries, went to the Eiffel Tower and Versailles, was a pallbearer, camped out in the Sierras the old-fashioned way, gone on a cruise, went to Chichen Itza, ate durian, bought goods in a kasbah, spent a weekend on Alcatraz, grew a garden and trees, lead a wedding procession twice, graduated from college without loans…the list keeps going and going. Judging by everything else I’ve thought up, I’m nowhere near finished.

What’s on your bucket list?

What Are Your Odds Of Becoming An Olympian?

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