I’ve discovered in my retirement that I really enjoy trying new things – whether a new restaurant, a new theater production, or a new type of cooking in a cooking class. In 2018, I had a goal of 52 New Things – one per week – and blew it away with over 75 things that year. So in 2019 I set a goal of 101 New and/or Fun Things. I added fun because I worried that since many new things have become recurring things (because they are fun), would I find 101 totally new things. Well, my 2019 tracking list has 129 things on it as of December 21st , and many are totally new!
Instead of listing all 129 things… I decided to highlight a bunch of them, using an A to Z of New Things approach that captures many of the themes of my new and fun things this past year:
MY A TO Z NEW THINGS – 2019
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A |
Art classes (hand lettering, screen printing) plus other art fun with a Ladies Paint Night and an ArtWalk in St Pete |
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B |
Biking in Florida (other new & fun B’s = joined 2 Book Clubs, tried a Ballroom dance class, went to an awesome Burning Man exhibit) |
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C |
Craft shows – Corey, Dunedin, WinterFair, Vinoklet winery (new) |
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D |
Day Trips 1) to Sarasota – Ringling Museum, Mote Aquarium, & Columbia Restaurant 2) to Canada to visit a blogging buddy |
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E |
Experiences – shopping at Earth Fare, trying line dancing class, visiting Sunken Gardens, getting an electric bike, poetry writing at a Women’s Writing Circle, attending Raptor Fest and Kite Fest, listening to Podcasts, buying a black leather moto jacket, multiple cooking classes |
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F |
Food Tours – St Pete Murals, Ybor City, OTR Ethnic in Cincinnati |
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G |
Grant Writing Class |
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H |
Huge Crossword puzzle (Thanksgiving Day paper) with 1500+ clues |
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I |
Impact 100 (philanthropic giving) small group gatherings |
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J |
Jumped on a Trampoline |
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K |
Keep on doing Book Promotions (a weak K… but I am trying multiple different activities to promote my book) |
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L |
Leading Ladies Philanthropic Advisory Board |
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M |
Museums – Dali, Ringling, James, St Pete Fine Arts, Taft, and repeat to Cincinnati Art |
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N |
New Foods – from cooking lamb stew, minestrone soup, & tomatillo salsa to trying bubble tea, poke, opera creams, and mofongo (not all at the same time) |
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O |
Orange Theory Fitness |
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P |
Purchased new water front house in Florida |
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Q |
Row Q at the Great American Ball park to see the Reds actually win a game |
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R |
Restaurants – 40 new places this year! |
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S |
Shuffle Board Club in St Pete |
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T |
Theater productions – Free Fall, Playhouse, Ensemble, Carnegie, Incline – over 16 shows throughout the year |
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U |
Uber – mostly because wine was involved (yes, new to me.) |
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V |
Virtual Reality at Dali Museum |
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W |
Wine Knot with friends (new local wine place) |
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X |
Axe Throwing – it has an X! |
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Y |
Yoga hike, Yoga Retreat, Yoga on the beach (repeat but fun!), Yoga charity event |
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Z |
Zoo Blooms and Zoo Festival of Lights (fun repeats) |
I enjoy tracking my new things and being able to look back over the year and remind myself of fun times. I will continue in 2020 and wonder if I can again hit 101!
Do you enjoy trying new things? What’s the most fun thing you tried this past year?
Picture Credit: Canva
retirementtransition 
Sounds like you’ve had quite the year! Good for you. Hope 2020 is just as full!
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Janet, I’m setting the same goal for this year — 101 new things. Will see if I can again have a full and fun year!
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129…jeez Pat! You make me feel like I’ve been standing still! And I thought I was into new adventures in retirement!
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Nancy, You might be surprised how many new things you do if you start tracking… not all are huge things. New places to eat, new classes to explore. Next year, I’m going to track books read as well. I found it was a lot of fun to look back and see what happened in the year.
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I took a craft class to make a Christmas tree wall hanging. I’m like a kindergarten kid showing off the fruits of my labor. I made pyrogies by myself. That was my mom’s domain so it was a big deal going solo. My neighbor kind of rained on my parade when he commented that they would never be as good as my mom’s. I gifted myself on my birthday with a Buffy Saint Marie concert and a bra fitting (TMI?). Those were the new thngs; there were lots of fun things.
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Mona, Hey, yeah kindergarten kid here too – I showed off by posting my gingerbread house on FaceBook. And got 39 likes – a high number for me. 🙂 And I’ve been contemplating going for a bra-fitting for a year now! (just need to find a place I feel comfortable going to) so, no, not TMI for me at all! Personally, I think you should have dumped some of the pyrogies on your neighbors head. But I’m also sure they tasted wonderful, because they were made with love.
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That’s a great list!! I’m impressed. It’s good you keep track. I have no idea how many new things I might have tried this year but probably not 129!! Good luck in 2020.
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Since I love lists, this was a fun thing to track. And it was also lovely to look back over the year and remember the many good times. Better than a diary. Logistically, it’s the last page in my morning journal, so easy to access and jot down every morning. And I added a new thing today even! Yesterday, I decorated my first ever gingerbread house! About time I tried that, huh?
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You know, I have never decorated a gingerbread house. Maybe I need to try it!!
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OMG, Pat! I don’t think I do that many new things in a year’s time. That’s amazing! I love seeing familiar place names like St. Pete and Dunedin. We lived in Clearwater and still have family there and in Dunedin and Palm Harbor that we visit when we can. I would have to say the most fun thing I tried this past year was riding my bike across Iowa during the RAGBRAI week. I hope you have the merriest of Christmases this year!
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Gale, As I mentioned to Bernie below, I don’t have a passion area that takes up a lot of my time – like biking. The time you need to put into training so you can ride across a state… and then actually ride across the state! Impressive. The other night, I was chatting with someone who biked across the US a few years ago… she casually commented that they often did 120 miles a day. All I could think was, I’m a “12 miles is a huge distance on a bike” person! Everyone figures out what they enjoy…I’ve simply discovered I enjoy trying new things!
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That’s fantastic, Pat! Quite the list of new and fun things. My favourite new thing I did this year was deciding to retire! 5 more days of work to go – woohoo!
Deb
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OMG… that is certainly a huge countdown moment. May your new year be filled with wonderful experiences!
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I think I’d really have to really push to find that many new experiences/activities/things in one year. It’s great to write new stories and that’s something you seem to be really embracing so good for you!
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Bernie, I’ve come to realize that i LOVE trying new things. It’s my thing. I’m not pursuing a new career or trying to master a new skill. I’m having fun. My hubby is even into it a bit – constantly pointing out new restaurants. Friends now send me info on classes to take. I might not hit another 101 New Things on 2020, but I’ll have fun trying.
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