Saturday, February 23, 2013

Old Dogs and New Tricks


Image from www.chappellroberts.com
On January 2 of this year, my sister, Teri, posted a challenge on her blog:
It's a New Year and I'll be 54 soon . . . and 54 is not too old to learn something new!  Right?  So, I challenge you to learn something new in 2013!  Pick five things, big or small, that you have always wanted to be able to do. Maybe it is something that you need to learn to help you with your job or with your life, but also, just think of some things you want to learn for simple fun! 
She quickly came up with the first four things she wanted to learn and added her 5th one recently.  Teri wants to:
  1. learn basic gun safety/shooting
  2. learn basic algebra (her daughter is a math teacher)
  3. be CPR certified (done!)
  4. learn to knit
  5. learn to line dance

I've had a bit more trouble deciding what I want to learn.  It would be easy to pick five new crafts to learn, but I'm trying to use this challenge to branch out and try something totally out of my usual realm.  Easier said than done!  So I'm starting here - I want to learn to:

     1.  Crochet.  I can make a chain, but that's it.

     2.  Tat lace.  A lady who lived near us when we were growing up showed me the basics, but I haven't tried it for over forty years.

     3.  Load/shoot a gun(s).  This is not really a "want to", it's a "need to".  I've been around guns all my life - grew up in Kansas, we hunt.  I do know basic gun safety and I have shot, but my knowledge is minimal.  We live in a secluded area and it's a weird world out there - I need to be comfortable with the guns that are in our house. 

      4.  Camp.  I have always been an "indoor" girl.  I used to have a magnet on my fridge that said "My idea of roughing it is when room service is late."  But, since moving to Green Acres, I've learned to love the beauty and peace of the outdoors.  So this summer I want to give camping a shot.

     5.  a topic yet to be determined

I'll be reporting back on how my lessons are going.  Care to join me?  You're never too old - or too busy, or too educated - to learn something new.  Stop by Teri's blog, Henningsen Happenings,  and leave her a comment - then go back to link up posts about what you learn.

5 comments:

  1. You have some exciting things to do this year!! The camping will be fun you have some beautiful camping/hiking spots up there in your area. Wouldn't you love to have the 25 foot Holiday Rambler?? Good luck and thanks for joining me in this challenge - we are just getting better and better with age!

    ReplyDelete
  2. looking forward to reading your progress of what you've accomplished as new this year. I think I would like to know how to crochet and I know someone who could teach me,so who knows, that might be what this old dog learns this year :)

    betty

    ReplyDelete
  3. I used to crochet all of the time but can't even remember how to start any more. I think if I were to make a list, I'd start mine the same way you did.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good luck with your goals! I'll be sure to check out Teri's blog.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hmmm...It turns out that I already follow Teri's blog, but for some reason it wasn't coming up in my Google Reader. That's fixed now.

      Delete