Heather's Adventures in Lesotho

I get questions – especially around my birthday and the end of the year – about how my 17 Before 2017 list is coming along. The short answer is okay so far. Here’s a quick summary:

Progress This Year (2014)

• Read more than 10,500 pages so far this year towards my goal of reading 90,000 pages. The last time I counted 55% of the time had passed and I had read 56% of my reading goal, so I’m on track.
• Visited my sisters in their new locations – Copenhagen in July and Hong Kong in November – towards my goal of biennial sister trips.
• Asked a man out on a date. Check. To see how this went see item #1 in the “Not Yet Accomplished” list below.
• Set up a recurring payment to a favourite charity for the amount I spent monthly on pet food.

In Progress

• Donate blood annually. I haven’t donated this year, yet.

Not Yet Accomplished

• Fall in love (maybe a few times).
• Try anti-aging cream for 6 months
• Travel to Prince Edward Island

Previously Completed

• Learn to scuba dive
• Hike Kilimanjaro
• Be Deputy Director of an organization managing public health programs
• Work on a project that is not HIV/AIDS related
• Run a 10k

Items I Want to Change

So there are three items on my list that just aren’t resonating with me right now. I’m not sure what to do about them, because I also don’t have ideas for what to replace them with. Here’s what I’m thinking about:

• Attend a yoga retreat – it seemed like a good idea at the time. In hindsight I enjoy yoga, but not enough to practice regularly that would naturally lend towards attending a retreat. (I want to replace this with something appropriately “athletic” – maybe run a 5k every year and force myself to catch up from previous years?)
• Knit a sweater I’ll actually wear. Really on the fence about this. I haven’t knit anything since I added it to my list. Of course I previously removed being on a scrapbooking creative team from my list and now I’ve been on one for the last 18 months. So maybe that should just count as my “crafty” item?
• Have an impromptu conversation in Spanish. I love this idea in theory, have not been motivated enough to pull off in practice. I’m keeping it on the list for now and re-downloaded Duolingo on my phone. I am headed to Mexico in March for a wedding, so hopefully that will provide extra motivation.

Read Full Post »

Many of you may already be familiar with my 17 Before 17 List – the list of things I want to accomplish by the time I turn 40. Most of the goals are one-off things like climb Kilimanjaro and learn to scuba. The one big goal that I have to work at continually is reading 250 books – or the equivalent of 42 books per year. I set the target with no baseline information, just a hunch that I read about 1-2 books per months and wanted to read more. Turns out that I was actually reading on average less than a book per month, so my target was an increase of 150%. In hindsight it was a bit much to take on.

Over the three years that I’ve worked towards this goal I’ve only hit the total number of books once – in 2011. Last year I was off by 9 or 10 books and as of right now I am off by 6 books. Over the last few months, however, I decided to look into changing my target to a total number of pages read. This is because one downside to a target number of books is that I have found myself giving up on especially long books, or avoiding them altogether. My prime example is “Team of Rivals” by Doris Kearns Goodwin. I started it earlier this year but when reading for 15 minutes would only move me 2-3% along the way to completion I soon gave up. The fact that “Team of Rivals” would count equally towards my goal as “Love Dishonor Marry Die Cherish Perish a Novel by” David Rakoff that was only 128 pages was a big push for me to change my goal.

Which is all to say that I’ve decided to change my goal to a total number of pages read instead of total number of books. I’ve decided on 90,000 pages read between January 2011 and December 2017. Here’s how I came up with that total:

• I made a list in Excel of all the books I’ve read since the beginning of this challenge in January 2011 and the total number of pages in each book. This was relatively easy thanks to Goodreads and the shelf I have called “17 Before 2017” where I record every book I’ve read towards my target.
• I took the average number of pages I’ve read from the list above = 350
• Since I know that I don’t read every single page in a book I upped my average number of pages to 360 per book and then multiplied that by my original goal of 250 books. 360 pages x 250 books = 90,000 pages.

So where am I right now? 37,012 pages or 82% of the 45,000 pages I need to read by the end of this year to be on target. Looks like I need to get cracking at “Team of Rivals”!

Read Full Post »

If you’re a regular reader or know me well you’ll be familiar with my list of 17 things I want to do before I turn 40 in 2017 (you can see the whole list here with links.) Although I’ve edited the list, “Learn to scuba” has always been at the top. It’s the last “adrenaline” activity that I’ve wanted to conquer after abseiling in Cape Town and Semonkong, gorge swinging at Vic Falls and skydiving in Namibia. Okay, I’ll add climbing Kilimanjaro here too, although I’m not convinced it belongs on the same list.

You see, I think that drowning is among the worst ways you could die. It’s definitely in the Top 5, possibly Top 3. This is what makes scuba diving so scary and also something that I want to do. The same way my fear of falling from heights makes me want to throw my self off mountains, cliffs and planes. This drive to do things that scare me is difficult to describe. The best way I can explain it is that I am naturally motivated by logic and therefore want to challenge my irrational fears.

When I planned my trip to Mombasa the backpacker where I booked a room had a link for learning to scuba. I decided this was my opportunity. I emailed with the diving outfitter before coming and made plans. I told everybody I could that I was going to learn during my trip so that i wouldn’t have an excuse to chicken out. When I landed in Mombasa and saw dark clouds, however, I thought, “Phew, now I can tell everyone that the weather was too bad to go.” By the time I reached the backpacker, however, the clouds had cleared and the guilt of psychologically trying to get out of it forced me to book myself for the next day so that I could not chicken out again.

So, Sunday morning Buccaneer Divers came and picked me up from the backpackers and took me to the dive shop. I filled out forms and then watched a video that I hoped would assure me everything was going to be okay. Instead it scared the bejesus out of me with their attempts to enlighten me on potential dangers. I wasn’t going to be deterred so continued on with the pool session. I struggled with the very first step – putting the regulator in my mouth and breathing – thanks to a sensitive gag reflex. I knew that it was just an issue of “mind over matter” and thanks to a patient instructor eventually made it through that step and then all of the pool skills. The skill I thought would be most difficult – taking out your regulator and then putting it back in – was much easier than I expected. By the end of my lesson I felt ready to go.

The dive itself was good. I spent a lot of time thinking “Oh my god do I have water in my glasses?” and worrying that I would breathe in water through my nose. I’m also pretty sure my poor instructor had no feeling in his hand because I was clenching it so tightly. After 20 minutes I asked to go to the top and take a break. At first I wasn’t sure if I would go back down, but once I had a minute at the top to regroup I was ready to go again and we dived for another 10 minutes. I felt a lot better the second time down, partly because I knew how quickly we could get to the top and partly because I knew more about how it would go. The marine life was amazing. Fish in all kinds of brilliant color just going about their business. The highlight was a small octopus hiding in the reef. That was pretty outstanding.

All that being said the big question, of course, is: Will I dive again? Answer: Most likely. I would like the opportunity to get more comfortable with diving although I don’t see myself ever becoming fully certified or anything like that. Mostly I just want the opportunity to see amazing marine life in places where it’s supposed to be out of this world like Thailand, the Great Barrier Reef and (potentially) even in Belize over Christmas. For now, though, it’s one more thing to check off my list and I’m pretty proud of it.

Read Full Post »

Dan, Jon and I before the run. The boys both ran the 22k trail run. Not pictured is Camilla who ran the half marathon on Saturday and was likely still asleep when this picture was taken.

Last Friday I completed my first ever 10k race – the Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon Trail Run in Cape Town. It is the first race I’ve entered since a very un-illustrious “career” of high school cross country consisting of going to a few races my sophomore year and quitting early in the season. Ever since then I have always said that I don’t like to run but over the last year I have learned to enjoy it (even if I don’t love it.)

As I mentioned before, my running adventures started in January last year with Anita and the Run 5k application on my iPhone. We started out jogging 45 seconds and walking 90 seconds for 20 minutes. It took me all of last year (with a huge gap in winter) to build up to running for 30 minutes straight. After going on an accidental 10k run in early December, I signed up for the trail run as motivation to keep pushing myself. Unfortunately I had about 3 weeks of injuries in February/March so I didn’t get to the level of training that I hoped I would, but really my goal all along was just to complete the race.

Me at the starting line in my Merrell Barefoot Pace Glove shoes with my race chip attached.

Honestly, a big step towards finally feeling like I was starting to enjoy running was when I started wearing minimalist shoes. I read “Born to Run” last year after a non-runner friend raved about it on Goodreads as interesting even for non-runners. The book piqued my interest in minimalist shoes and I planned to look into them when I was home over Christmas. Then the universe intervened when I (VERY) randomly came across the Merrell Barefoot Run Pace Glove at store in Lesotho where you least suspect to find them. I did some research on the particular model and after reading great reviews decided to give them a try. Now I can’t imagine going back because they feel so great. I get a lot of questions of how I like my shoes and I always rave about them (usually saying something along the lines of “I la la love them!”)

My medal for completing the trail run.

This is going to sound so cheesy but as I was running on Friday I couldn’t stop thinking about how cool it was that I could actually do it and how much fun I was having. I was so proud of myself for being able to run the majority of the distance and I’m pretty sure there were at least 3 people behind me when I crossed the finish line so I came in better than my 397th/400 prediction. 😉

I don’t know that I will ever consider myself a “runner” because, honestly, I don’t LOVE it like I think real runners do. That I said, I do *like* it and – most importantly – consider it something that I want to be better at. I think that’s what it’s really all about, right? Having the race as something to work towards was extremely motivating so I will definitely be signing up for another one soon. I really like the pattern I developed of doing a longer run (8k+) one day a week with a couple of 5k mixed in. It suits my lifestyle perfectly.

Read Full Post »

I have had quite a few discussions about my 17 Before 2017 list over the last couple of months. I guess that’s related to the whole New Years resolution thing. Sadly, most of the time I can’t remember all 17 things on my list. I need to do something about that because even though very few need daily follow-up I think I need more frequent reminders. I’ve also decided that there are a few things on the list that I don’t want to do anymore. I told this to my friend V and she said that I should feel free to make changes because it should be a living document. She’s totally right. So here are the changes I’m making:

REMOVE:

1. Take swimming lessons because everyone tells me I don’t really need to know how to swim to learn to scuba AND I technically can swim, I’m just not very good at it.
2. Be on a digital scrapbooking creative team because I decided that’s not my goal with scrapbooking.
3. See Cirque du Soleil because it was a lame goal. Plus I went to see them last year and I had already booked my tickets when I added it to the list.

ADD:

1. Run a 10k. Last year I specifically mentioned not including running on my list because I hate running. Shortly afterwards I started a Couch to 5K training program. It may have taken me the whole year (with a big gap in the winter when I did no running), but I finally finished it.  And then I went on a live running Hash that was 8-9 kms and I didn’t die and I wasn’t even sore the next day. Now I’m signed up for the Two Oceans 10k Trail Run on April 5th. My goal is to finish it – even if I’m 397th out of 400 runners I will not care. (And I very well might be because I “run” only slightly faster than I can walk.) Depending on how this goes this may morph into “Run a 10k every year”. I can guarantee you that it will never morph into running a half marathon or longer.
2. Have an impromptu conversation fluently in Spanish. I have gone back and forth in my head about learning another language at all. I took Spanish in high school and a little of college but have really terrible speaking skills (and have forgotten most of my vocabulary). I also took a semester of French in grad school because I thought it would be a good language for furthering my opportunities in Africa, but really did not take off with it. After accepting that I will never become fluent enough to get a job because of my language skills in either French or Spanish I still felt compelled to work on a foreign language. Therefore I invested in the Rosetta Stone for Spanish since that is the language I have the most background in.
3. Donate at least as much as I’m spending on animal food per month to charities supporting maternal and newborn health. In Half the Sky I read that there are estimates that it would cost as much as $9 billion a year to provide all effective interventions for maternal and newborn health to 95% of the world’s population while $40 billion is spent annually on pet food globally. This had a real impact at the time and I even started looking for charities to support but then it kind of faded away. I definitely struggle with finding organizations after being in the field and seeing what actually happens. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of good being done but sometimes I find the advertising a little misleading. Please comment here if you have any suggestions!

Other ideas I’ve considered (and may end up on future revised lists):

1. Take more pictures of the people in my life. I love documenting my everyday life, but I find that I take too many pictures of things and not enough of people. I really like this idea, but I don’t know how to quantify it.
2. Go skinny dipping
3. Attend the Summer Olympics since I’ve been to the Winter Olympics and I think it’d be nice to go to both. Plus the next Summer Olympics are in Rio.
4. Paint a wall in my house a bold color like red.

Read Full Post »

On Friday I checked off the second item on my 17 Before 2017 list that has a recurring deadline – annual blood donations. (The only other recurring goal is to read 42 books per year.) I had to give myself some leeway after re-discovering blood donating on my list at the end of the year when work commitments got in the way of getting to the blood bank before I left for the year. Since I can’t donate in the U.S., I gave myself until the end of January to count for 2011.

I added annual blood donations to my list because it is way outside my comfort zone. Shamefully, until Friday I had never voluntarily given more blood than is necessary for physicals. In fact, the first time I ever had blood drawn for medical purposes was for my pre-Peace Corps physical. The doctor used a butterfly needle because I’m such a wimp. I even passed out one time giving blood for a mid-Peace Corps physical (although I’m pretty sure that was due to poor technique by the MO). At the same time I think that being a blood donor makes you a good grown up. My Mom is a great example. I remember her donating regularly when I was growing up through blood drives at church or school, etc. My brother-in-law is also a regular blood donor. I’ve just been a wimp this whole time.

Friday’s experience at the blood bank was fine. The worst part about it was when the nurse grimaced when she saw the tiny veins in my arm. I am not joking. I recruited several friends to come along and the staff at the centre were thrilled to have us. There is a desperate need for blood products in Lesotho and in most developing countries. Maternal mortality here is high and sometimes those deaths are as a result of not having blood to give when a woman has postpartum hemorrhage. The staff at the blood bank told us that if we had called ahead they would have come to us. For just 4 units! That really struck me.

I’m keeping annual blood donations on my 17 Before 2017 list, but now my intention is to go every 3 months and to try to bring someone new each time.

Read Full Post »

As some of you may remember, at the beginning of the year I published my “17 Before 2017” list outlining the things I want to accomplish/do before I turn 40 at the end of 2017. The biggest item on my list that requires continual progress is reading 250 books – or 42 books per year. This has become quite the topic of conversation. Besides getting asked about how I’m doing, the other most frequently asked question is “Why 42 books?” Good question. I wanted to challenge myself to read more than I was previously, which I thought was about 2 books per month. Turns out, on further analysis, I was reading more like 1.5 books per month. 42 books also adds up nicely to just more than 250 books. It has been tough keeping up and sometimes I just want to read long articles on Instapaper but I feel the pressure to keep reading. Right now I only have 2 more books to finish before the end of the year. (Likely “Blue Nights” by Joan Didion and “Seriously … I’m Kidding” by Ellen Degeneres.) Here is the list of the books I read this year, in order of the ratings I gave it on Goodreads with random comments/reviews.

5 Stars:

• The Wisdom of Whores: Bureaucrats, Brothels and the Business of AIDS by Elizabeth Pisani (I don’t read much about AIDS because I generally read to be distracted from work, not think about it more. This was worth reading.)
• The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. (Sob.)
• Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D. Kristoff and Cheryl WuDunn (Eye opening and motivating.)
• Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand (You can tell that a TON of research went into this, but it’s all woven together into a coherent and engaging story. I tell people about this book all the time.)
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (Another book I tell people about all the time.)
• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. (Fun, blast to the past.)
• Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen by Christopher McDougall (Really interesting read, even for non-runners. Bought a pair of “barefoot technology” shoes after reading this and LOVE them.)
• The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer (Sob. Epic.)
• Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt (Brilliant YA book that’s not just for kids. Sob.)

4 Stars

• The Giver by Lois Lowry (How did I not read this as a kid?)
• Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann
• Faithful Place by Tana French (Have read all of her books. I love a good mystery/detective story.)
• Mrs. Kimble, The Condition and Baker Towers by Jennifer Haigh (Becoming a big fan of hers.)
• The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
• One Day by David Nicholls (The ending helped win the whole book over for me.)
• Bossypants by Tina Fey
• In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin by Erik Larson (Also a big fan of his. Fascinating.)
• The Informationist by Taylor Stevens
• Austenland by Shannon Hale
• Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty by Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo
• Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson
• The Most Dangerous Thing by Laura Lippmann (Will be reading more of her work next year.)

3 Stars

• Saturday is for Funerals by Unity Dow (Book about AIDS in Botswana.)
• The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet (Meh.)
• Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
• The Nearest Exit by Olen Steinhauer
• Alone by Lisa Gardner
• Lonely Planet Morocco (Yes, this counts. I read basically the entire book as part of trip preparation.)
• Case Histories by Kate Atkinson (This was only okay. I’m trying another of her books as I’ve heard good things about her in general.)
• The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan (Did NOT turn me into a vegetarian.)
• The Bang-Bang Club: Snapshots from a Hidden War by Greg Marinovich (Better than the movie as it dealt more with the boundaries between when a photographer should get involved or not.)
• Why He Didn’t Call You Back: 1,000 Guys Reveal What They Really Thought About You After the First Date by Rachel Greenwald (Yes, I read a book about dating.)
• Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
• Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach (Fun. Great for listening to on a long car ride with mixed interests.)
• The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
• Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling

Read Full Post »