The Ultimate Twenty-Something Bucket List - OMFG

My newsfeed is always full of articles with titles such as 30 Places to See Before You Die, 20 Roadtrips to Take in Your Twenties, and, well, you get the gist. Even I'm guilty of posting a bucket-list type article every so often! But, that's where it ends, at merely posting it. Dreaming of living and living the dream are two very different things and for most of us, dreaming is the furthest we go. Being proactive is scarce when your comfort zone is -- well pretty damn comfortable.

I'd like to think I've led a relatively interesting life. A good amount of travel, some crazy experiences, and a few utter last minute decisions where I've packed up and just gotten the hell out of this city for more than a vacation because I could. But, even with all I've done, I still feel as though I've only written one chapter, if that, in the Great Canadian Novel that is to be my life. (Note: the only chapter fully written would be that on desserts. I am an expert.)

With that I present to you my twenty-something bucket list! Not simply a list of things I haven't done, like the bucket lists I wrote when I was little were comprised of; (Swim with dolphins: check!), but a proper twenty-something bucket list of experiences. Really effing awesome experiences.

Be an artist.

We all know right-brained people are taking over the world. It's all about the creative class nowadays and to create is an essential part of the twenty-something (and beyond!) experience. With so many outlets at our artistic disposal, and with even more social mediums to share the creative process than ever, being an artsy-fartsy has never been more accessible. Sounds intimidating, but I'm not looking to mastermind the next Jay-Z interactive performance art installation here (yet, anyway) -- brush to canvas, camera to travel, anything so long as they get the creative juices going! Start small then go big...but always be creating. 

Be an explorer.

I'm in about the same physical shape as a couch. (See: dessert expert chapter) Skinny, yes, but more of a plump skinny-fat, if you will. While not exactly motivated by physical activity, I very well know that some of the most raw and spectacular places on Earth are only accessible to those who pick their asses up off the ground and move. Machu Picchu has always been a trek I've wanted to hike, as well as some of the crazy river paths in Southeast Asia. River Monsters is, I kid you not, one of my favorite shows. Getting into shape in order to see big-ass scary monster fish halfway across the world? Um, I literally cannot think of a better reason. 

An ultimate foodie experience.

While dessert is the love of my life, I'm a fan of food in general. There's pretty much nothing I won't try and there's quite a lot of unappealing delicacies I rather enjoy. (Weird animal innards, weird animals and what have you -- bring it on.) I've been lucky enough to dine at some of the best restaurants in the world but I've still yet to have an ultimate foodie experience. I came pretty close in Tokyo, seeing the Tsukiji Fish Market in action then eating hands-down the best sushi of my life -- but there's still much to see, and most importantly taste, for me in the culinary realm. Truffle hunting, cooking lessons in Tuscany, the full farm-to-plate experience...I could go on. My stomach is rumbling already.

Learn a new language.

The two languages I speak are English, and a made up language my best friend taught me that she learned from camp when we were in junior high. Yup. So there's definitely room for me to grow in that department! Rather than go the Rosetta Stone route, to get a check-off on this list I require learning it first-hand by immersing myself in another culture. Think Under The Tuscan Sun except everyone is twenty years younger. Soaking in another culture is the most cliched of all bucket list experiences but it's for a reason -- quintessential to knowing what you want is educating yourself on all your options, the world over. Soak it all in, kids.

Fall in love....unconditionally.

This may be the hardest one on this bucket list of all. Falling in love in your twenties is no easy feat -- stupid crap we carry around from past trysts, pressure to make the most of the decade life-experience-wise while simultaneously having to somehow figure out our futures makes it damn near impossible. However if you do find that little needle of love in the dating haystack, do it properly and give it a fair chance. No inhibitions, no defense mechanisms and entirely whole-heartedly. Goodness knows I've messed up more than a few relationships with my insecurities and over-thinking. It's easier said than done and there's no guarantee it will be painless, but you never know until you truly try. Stupid crap, begone!

We all know that the times you dive head-first outside your comfort zone are simply the best. Like, the freaking best. They're thrilling, they're scary and they're unpredictable --  all in exciting and momentum-fueled ways. We all get to know ourselves much better when we're in the unknown rather than idly coasting along. This list is merely one I've set for myself; revise it, personalize it, but most importantly make one that gets you outside your comfort zone. The world awaits.

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Think & Feel...OMFG.

If I had to describe myself in two words they would be a romantic realist. The combination of being utterly, dreamily, romantic yet fully aware of the limitations of the real world makes for a somewhat conflicting existence for me: mainly one where I know better but have to feel things out on my own anyways. As I'm sure any of you can tell just by reading a few of my posts, I'm observant, logical and practical except when it comes to anything involving my heart...well, then I'm just hopeless.
The romantic part of me is very much right-brained: a creative artist who sees the world through rose-colored lenses, while the realist in me is left-brained: entirely logical and practical. Whereas the professional world was once dominated by those who are more so left-brained (Think white-collar class with multiple post-graduate degrees) there's been a shift towards valuing right-brained people in recent years. (Think artists who don't have to live off canned goods while inhabiting dirty lofts in pre-gentrified neighborhoods).
And thank goodness for this apparent shift because heavens knows I would be miserable if I had to rely on my left-brain to carry out my career chained to the helm of a desk in some monotonous office building crunching numbers or something just as static! Obviously there's still a need for left-brained individuals (I don't want some artsy-fartsy performing brain surgery on me, or anyone else I know), but the appreciation for artistic skills once seen as hobbies more or less, is carving out a spot for creative persons everywhere.
Painting, styling, decorating, and more are proving to be profitable careers for many and I couldn't be happier. Nowadays, it's sheer individual ambition that drives individuals and twenty-somethings are holding off their transitions into adulthood enticed by the seemingly endless possibilities out there. I've especially noticed this change in the fashion world as more and more people I meet are relying on being stylists, photographers, and overall media moguls as their sole way of making a living.
Of course it is not just artistic skill that is of value, but the emotional aspects that go hand-in-hand with them as well. Characteristics such as empathy and compassion are making their way into the market and not everything is as black and white as numbers and charts...and I think it's about time.
As some one who advocates emotions (that's putting is mildly) it's so refreshing to see how such feelings can be an asset to my professional life instead of a weakness. This, paired with my logicalness, will hopefully be the key to success for finding a job that I wake up everyday excited to go to! I think where this plays the most important role is in the connection between whatever market you're attempting to sell to and yourself as an individual. Being able to know that a person is not just a faceless entity and probably some one who has gone through a lot of what you have will only enhance one's ability to connect with them on whatever level necessary. What a beautiful way to do business, in my opinion at least! It's a time where by exposing your art, your craft, your skill and passion, means your client will come to you through resonating with whatever vibe you're putting out there.
I've always been confident in my skill as an artist and as a feeler (for lack of a better word. An emotion junkie? A sappy romanticist? A heart over header? Let's just stick to feeler.). I know I can write, I know I can paint, I know I have style and a way of connecting to others through empathy...and it's nice to know that the world may have confidence in me now as well. For all you out there who are lost in their twenties, struggling to decide just how you're going to find a place for yourself in this crowded world, take comfort in knowing that now, more than ever, you can be successful not just through one path, but through endless means of infinite possibilities.
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