#11

#11, go skydiving, is another one on THE LIST that I have already done (I had to give myself some sort of head start!) It was also another thing on THE LIST that scared the heck out of me.  A) I hate heights. B) I hate flying.  So why would I think it was a good idea to jump out of an airplane?  Well, I wasn't totally convinced that it was a good idea, not at all.  I registered to go skydiving as a surprise for Ollie, he had always always wanted to go, and it was an experience I wanted to share with him.  I've also heard that once you get over the fear of the experience, that it is truly amazing.

(Ollie and I right after we landed)

We went up to sky dive new england in Maine, signed in, and were authorized to jump!  We watched a brief video, not on skydiving safety, but about how we were essentially signing our life away and couldn't sue them if we died.  After which we had to sign a 10 page document saying that in the event of our deaths we, or any of our offspring, are unable to sue the company.  It was all very reassuring.

After that we sat around.  For about 2 hours.  Waiting, and thinking about what we were about to do.  I started to panic.  Right before we went up in the plane we met the people we would be jumping with (we were jumping tandem so there was someone on our backs). Ollie go this crazy italian hunk with a strong accent.  I got a long haired hippie who never wore shoes.  My panic increased.

Then we got in the plane.  I thought I was going to have a heart attack.  I told my tandem partner that no matter what, he was to physically push me out of the plane (once you get in the plane there are no refunds!) He happily agreed.  

About 10 minutes after takeoff my partner told me to look out the window, saying we were at 7,000 feet.  I thought I was going to vomit.  Then he laughed and said "we're only halfway up".  He had a sick sense of humor. In the midst of my panic attack I realized that Ollie was going to be the first one to jump out of the plane.  I immediately began to think that if he died, his mother would absolutely murder me.  And then before I knew it he was gone.  I considered not jumping out of the plane, having it land, and I could just pretend I had jumped.  But the moment had come.

Standing on the edge of the plane I have never been so terrified in my entire life.  I was convinced I would hit the propellers, or my chute wouldn't open.  And before I could say "DEAR GOD STOP! GET BACK IN THE PLANE!" we jumped.  

I was fully prepared to hate the experience.  I was convinced that for the 60 second free fall I would have to close my eyes, and slowly count until it was over and my chute was deployed.  The free fall turned out to be the best part.  It was the closest you can get to flying.  YOu are completely weightless soaring through the air at 14,000.  It was a totally indescribable feeling. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Needless to say,Ollie and I both survived the jump, and were completely elated.  It is an indescribable high, adrenaline coursing through your veins.  I hit the ground laughing and launched myself into Ollie's arms.  We had survived.  And better yet, we had fun.  A lot of fun.  It was one of the best experiences of my life.  And I'm happy I surprised it to boot.


We didn't tell a soul about what we were doing.  We didn't want our mother's (particularly Ollie's) to freak out and assume the worst.  After jumping we went to our mother's house to show them the videos (people with video recorders on their helmet jumped with us taping the whole experience).  As expected they were completely shocked, and also, very happy that we survived :)

#4

I don't know what you all did today, but I saved lives.  Yup, I, along with my side-kick Alehson, saved 3 lives today.  It was a total super hero moment, minus the awesome spandex outfits and the secret identities. Regardless, not only was I able to save three lives, but I was also able to cross #4 off the list...donate blood!


#4 on my list is one of the items that actually scared me.  I hate needles.  Always have since I was a kid.  I'm not too big on blood either.  But I am rational enough to know that the benefits of giving blood outweigh the terror/brief pain associated with the process.  So, you may be asking yourself "why put it on your list if you hate needles?"  Well, a very smart woman, Eleanor Roosevelt,once said that "you should do one thing that scares you every day."  Well today I did, and it actually felt pretty good.


However, itt was terrifying.  Absolutely terrifying.  But...and I can already see my mom rolling her eyes at this since on the drive over to the blood drive she told me "man up, you've always been one of those kids who cries before getting shots and then says 'oh, it wasn't so bad' after"...it wasn't so bad.  The worst part was the finger prick, well, the worst part was the psyching myself out almost to the point of blacking out, but pin wise, the finger prick to test for iron was the worst.


I showed up promptly at 2:30 for my appointment and Aley wasn't there yet, the panic began to set in.  After signing in and reading all the required materials Aley showed up and was able to console me briefly before I was taken behind the styrofoam patrician and asked a million and one questions about my medical history.  After going over all my information I was left behind the patrician to finish the survey, after which I was told to flip the sign hanging over the wall to "ready".  I did as I was told.  Flipped the sign and then sat back down.  As I sat down I somehow managed to knock my patrician over, which knocked over the patrician behind it, which knocked over the patrician behind it, which revealed a very startled individual completing their survey.  I was humiliated.  The nurses actually clapped for me, and for the remainder of the blood donation I was constantly asked "OMG! Were you the girl who knocked down all the walls?" Yup.  That was me.  Moving on now.

This is the photo Aley took of me shortly before the needle prick.  This is my terrified/hyperventilating/they just made me chug a can of cranberry juice so I kind of have to pee face.  This was also right before I broke into manic laughter that produced tears streaming down my face.

I must say, the needle prick wasn't that awful.  It was more scary than painful.  I probably hurt Aley's hand more than my arm was hurt by the donation process. It was also a good excuse to catch up with Alehson who I don't see enough, I didn't stop my nervous chatter until the needle was safely put away.  I did feel a little woozy afterwards, but overall, the donation process went very smoothly, and (almost) painlessly. 

So, the moral of the story is, give blood, save lives, and do things that scare you.  And, as a bonus I got an awesome sticker (see below)

#14

#14 on THE LIST is enter an eating contest...this is one of the ones on the list that I have already done.  This summer I thought it would be a really good idea to enter an eating contest Man v. Food style (for those of you who don't know Man v. Food is a tv show where this guy travels around the country doing different food challenges). I wanted to do JP's eatery challenge in Durham NH, where you need to eat 15 sliders, a large fry and a milkshake in an hour...I'm pretty convinced I could have successfully finished this challenge...although my little brother Charlie has tried and failed the slapshot challenge before...I had a strategy and everything.


Anyway, Ollie convinced me that if I tried to eat all that I would vomit everywhere.  So I settled on a a local food challenge that wouldn't include me having to eat about 10 lbs worth of food.  Around the corner from our apt. is a wing joint called wing-itz and they have the "el diablo challenge".  NOTE: DO NOT ATTEMPT THE EL DIABLO CHALLENGE, YOU WILL DIE.  The challenge is that you have to eat 10 of the restaurant's el diablo wings in 10 minutes, no drinks, no blue cheese, and no wiping your hands.  I wasn't worried about the time restraint, I can house wings, it was the spice I was afraid of.


I should have known from the second I signed up for the challenge and the waitress said, "wait, really? are you crazy?" that I was pretty much doomed.  I figured I wouldn't be successful, so I set my sights a little lower, and decided that I wanted to finish at least 5 wings in the 10 minutes.  Pipe dream.


One bight into the first wing and my eyes were watering, about 10 seconds later and tears were streaming down my face.  My second bite in and my lips were burning and swelling.  I finished the first wing with puffy Angelina Jolie lips crying my eyes out.  I didn't proceed to wing number 2.  I did however run to the bathroom and puke.  I think I would have been better off with the sliders.  Much better.


Ollie thought this was all absolutely hilarious, however he was nice enough to pay for the meal while I was in the bathroom puking up fire.  I however was determined to prove that I wasn't a total wimp and that the wings were actually coated in liquid fire, so I brought them into work for the boys to cry.  I felt better that at least 3 of the guys started once they made contact with the wing, apparently this is a knee-jerk reaction to ghost peppers (the hottest pepper in the world BY THE WAY).  And one or two were even sporting Jolie lips after their wing too.

So, this challenge was a complete and utter failure, however it is certainly something I will never forget, and one hell of a story.