Sixty at Sixty - A Final Accounting

A year ago, to celebrate turning sixty, I set myself a challenge to complete sixty different activities before my sixty-first birthday. Ambitious right?  Too ambitious as it turned out as here I am a year later and I haven't made it to sixty - but I did manage forty-eight, many of them, things I would not have done if it weren't for the challenge. It certainly made me aware of the vast range of activities and opportunities that are out there if you only look. It's too easy to stick to what you know or to find excuses as to why you can't do something, which means it is so easy to miss out on a lot of what life offers. And you don't always have to spend a lot of money to partake, it's amazing how many free events there are if you know where to look!

So what did I get up to?


I enjoyed the following entertainment:

1. Shakespeare in the park - Midsummer's Night Dream at Bryant Park.
2. NY Philharmonic Free Concert in Central Park.
3. Cabo Verdeen Jazz at Lincoln Center.
4. An evening of wine and music beside the Hudson at Palaia Vineyard, NY.
5. Jazz at Lyndhurst - The Brighton Beat. A historic house, a view of the Hudson, gorgeous weather and wonderful music make for a fabulous evening out.
6. Step Afrika - Central Park .
7. Black Panther movie - I usually avoid the big blockbuster superhero movies but this one got so much buzz that I thought I should go and see for myself what it was all about - well worth it!
8. Coney Island Mermaid Parade.


Took in the following exhibitions:

9. The Elements of Style exhibition - sketches from the illustrated version of Strunk & White's The Element of Style. 
10. 1978: The NYC Parks/New York Times Photo Project - photos of residents enjoying NY parks in the summer of 1978.
11. Pepsico Sculpture Gardens.
12. Storm King Sculpture Center.
13. Downton Abbey exhibition.
14. Holiday Train Show - Botanical Gardens, Bronx, NY


Visited the following historical places:

15. Ely Cathedral, UK

Spectacular

16. Cambridge University, UK - for a graduation ceremony that hasn't changed for several hundred years - which probably explains why it is mostly in Latin.
17. Tintagel Castle, Cornwall.
18. Bamburgh and Warwick Castles, Northumberland, England.

Bamburgh Castle 

19.Hadrian's Wall & Heddon on the Wall, UK - the latter being the village where my mother grew up. Fond memories of visiting my grandmother there.
20. Govenors Island, NY.
21. Lost Village of Carmensville (NY City) - now part of Hamilton Heights.
22. Floyd Bennett Airfield - New York's first municipal airport now home to an amazing collection of restored planes.

23. Morgan Library, Manhattan - Pierpont Morgan's private library - stunning!

Just one corner of the magnificent library

24. Valkill, Hyde Park, NY - home of Eleanor Roosevelt.
25. Greenwood Cemetry - a National Historic Landmark in Brooklyn dating back to 1838.


Took several classes:

26. Wilderness survival - Navigating without GPS - this and the following two classes were fascinating - I have a feeling some of my characters are going to find themselves out in the wild in a future novel.
27.  Wilderness survival - Building outdoor shelters.
28. Wilderness survival - Building a fire outdoors.
29. Shakespeare - Julius Caesar - discussion and reading aloud class - finally shook off my fear of reading aloud in public.


Enjoyed several fitness related activities:

30. Tai Chi - I'd never done this before. Very enjoyable and so relaxing!
31. Running - Used to run regularly but haven't done it for a long time - I'd forgotten how calm it makes me feel.
32. Bike riding - with a bike path near our home, I'm not sure why I haven't got out on the bike before now. And as they say, once learned, never forgotten - though I don't remember being that wobbly.😊
33. Paddle Boarding - despite my misgivings, I managed not only to stand up but to stay up!
34. Yoga - free classes at the local library gave me a chance to revisit an activity I used to enjoy.

Went on several walks:

35. Cornish Coastal Path (6 days worth!)
36. New Forest, Hampshire, UK - beautiful scenery and lots of ponies!

New Forest Ponies

37. Brooklyn Waterfront Sunset Walk for the Tribute of Light.
38. Schunnemunk Mountain State Park, NY - a tough climb but a great view.

View from Schunnemunk Mountain

39. Blue Mountain, NY.
40. Five Bridges Walk, NY.
41. Turkey Mountain, NY.
42. Manhattan Monuments Walk - Lower Manhattan is home to some wonderful memorials and monuments.

'The Immigrants' - dedicated to the people of all nations who entered through Castle Clinton

43. Piccirilli Pieces - the Piccirilli Brothers carved statues for many famous sculptors nationwide, but as they were based in New York there are many examples of their work on display. This walk took us past several in mid-town Manhattan.

Just one of their many statues outside the NY Public Library

Of course, there were some book-related events:

44. Rick Steves Talk - Travel as a Political Act 
45. Ruth Ware - Barnes and Noble author book chat
46. Organised an indie author book festival at a local library


and some that just don't fit into any other category:

47. Protest Rally - Yes, I have to admit, this was the first time I'd ever been to a protest rally - this one in Aug 2017 against the repeal of the Dream Act.

48. Spanish - I'd hoped to finish the DuoLingo Spanish Course and was making great progress until Duo Lingo decided to change the format of the course and add masses more modules, pushing the finish line way into the future!


So, slightly disappointed that I didn't achieve my goal within the year, but as I'm about to set off on a cross-country road trip to LA with my daughter I'm sure that by the end of August I will have exceeded that target!


Mel writes contemporary fiction with a twist of mystery and suspense. For more information about her books visit her website, or sign up for her newsletter at http://bit.ly/melparishnews