Shaken, not Stirred

The other day as I was watching Quantum of Solace, I once again realized I have never had a martini, shaken or stirred made with vodka or gin. For the record, Wikipedia informs me the James Bond ordered 19 vodka martinis and 16 gin martinis throughout Fleming's novels and short stories. Several times I have though about ordering a martini; I just never got around to actually drinking one.

A few months back, I first became acquainted with the idea of a bucket list, a list of 1,000 things you want to do before you die. As I am headed toward retirement, I found the idea quite appealing. I am not exactly sure what goes into a bucket list and what would qualify as a goal (I don’t think of personal goals as the sort of thing one would find in a bucket list). Drinking a high quality classic gin martini is now on my bucket list.

Like almost everyone my age, I have regrets. One of them is never learning to ride a motorcycle. My parents had a pathological fear of motorcycles, so I put off the bike until after I graduated from college. Then I wanted to get married and life happened. I always needed money for something besides a motorcycle. The other day I drove past a Harley Dealer offering motorcycle lessons. I mentioned this idea to my wife as a possible for my bucket list. She was less than encouraging, but didn’t come down too hard on my dreams. Hmm… We shall see.

My wife has an idea for my bucket list. She would like us to learn to speak Italian. Middle school, high school and college all taught me I don’t have much talent in foreign languages but I have always thought it would be very cool to master a second language. I already know how to shout and wave my arms when I am upset. Maybe Italian would be a good choice.

I did something from my miniscule but growing bucket list, trap shooting. One of the leaders of our church decided taking the men out trap shooting would be a good thing. I enjoyed myself and actually managed to hit something. I think I would like to do that again, maybe this time with a little more instruction. I inherited my father in law’s beautiful old shotgun. What better way to put it to use?

I like the idea of a bucket list. It is good to dream dreams, even if they will not be fulfilled for many years. Of course, some items, like my martini, can be experienced whenever we actually get around to it. Financial management is hard work. There should be a time for rewards. I hope you don’t wait until retirement to begin thinking about your bucket list.