Not to get too morbid, but there are many things that I’d want to do before I die. Some of these are the usual things: See my kids grow up and get married, become a grandfather, grow old with my wife. Some are usual hopes and dreams but probably unlikely. For example, becoming extremely rich. (It would be nice to not have money be a daily concern.) Some of the things I’d want to do are more geeky, though. These are the items on my Geek Bucket List.
Convention Bound
Every year, there are conventions where people crowd into buildings dressed in all manners of wonderful costumes from video games, TV shows, comic books, movies, and more. I’ve seen photos and have heard stories about these conventions and – I must admit – I’m a bit jealous.
Though I know dealing with the crowds would be a pain and I’ve heard stories of the "con crud" sickness that can often result from so many people crammed into so tight a space, I still want to go. I want to walk among the robots, starship captains, superheroes, and Daleks knowing that *this* is my tribe. I want to constantly be amazed (and, yes, slightly jealous) at the incredible costumes that people made from scratch, want to take WAY too many photos (and have photos of me taken with too many people), and geek out a tad too much. (Where "a tad" really means that I’ll be in a state of extreme geek out for a week after the convention ends.)
Of course, I’d love for my kids to experience this also, but I’m torn. Part of me would love to see them geek out alongside me, but another part wonders if they would tire too easily forcing me to either drag them along protesting or to miss much of the convention. So consider this two bucket list entries: 1) Go to a major Comic Con without my kids and 2) Go to a major Comic Con with my kids.
Star Wars Weekend At Disney World
It’s no secret that I’m a big Disney geek. If I could earn a living by staying in Disney hotel rooms, eating in Disney restaurants, and going on Disney rides, I would. The only thing I don’t like about Disney World is the part where you have to come home and face reality again.
In addition, I’m a big Star Wars geek. I loved the original trilogy. While I didn’t love the prequels as much, I’m thoroughly enjoying the Clone Wars TV show (which I somehow missed the first time around). I’ve introduced my boys to Star Wars and now they are big Star Wars geeks also.
So combining Disney World and Star Wars? Sign me up. I want to see everyone dressed as aliens, Jedi, Sith, and other characters from the Star Wars Universe. I want to take photos of them, watch Storm troopers dance, and maybe even have a duel with Darth Vader. Yes, the crowds will be incredible, but – just like Comic Con – the payoff would be more than worth it.
Write A Science Fiction Story And Get It Published
At one point, I wanted to write science fiction stories. I didn’t just want to, though, I actually wrote some short stories. Then, I took it a step further and submitted one to a magazine to be published. Unfortunately, it was rejected. It was at this point that I did something I regret: I gave up. Instead of redoubling my efforts, I took the rejection personally and didn’t submit any more stories for publication.
Over the years, I’ve had quite a few ideas for stories. I’ve even started writing some of them. However, at some point, I always get distracted (whether it be by day-to-day life, projects, or something else) and wind up dropping writing. But the stories and characters still echo in my head. One day, I would love to commit them to paper and publish them.
Thankfully, we’re living in a golden age for publishing. In the past, to be published, you needed to convince a big publisher that your book was worthwhile. Then, they would grant you the permission to publish under their label and your books could wind up in the book stores. If you wanted to self-publish, chances were your works would look amateurish. Professional-looking publishing was out of reach of normal people.
Today, though, publishing is as close as going to Amazon.com or any of the other self-publishing outfits. You don’t even need to commit to physically printed books. You can sell eBook versions of your stories and, if they sell well, move on to the pricier printed books. This, of course, assumes that I could get my act together and keep at my writing overcoming distractions.
That’s my geeky list so far. At least the ones that are likely to happen. There are other, less likely items, list playing a tabletop game with Wil Wheaton, meeting Stan Lee with my kids (they are big Marvel superhero fans), and coding a hit app (which would require me to learn to code apps first – not impossible given that I code for a living, but less likely given my lack of spare time).
Then there’s the impossible item which was the first item ever on my Geek Bucket List (predating my even calling it that): Meet Isaac Asimov. He was (and still is) my favorite science fiction author. Sadly, he died many years ago, so meeting him is an impossibility (unless someone invents time travel).
What geeky items are on your bucket list?
NOTE: The "To Do List" image is by sheikh_tuhin and is available from OpenClipArt.org.
NHL and JSL had already seen part of one episode and, after seeing it, wanted to get Qwirkle – the game they played. Over the weekend, though, NHL saw the Munchkin episode. He was fascinated with this game where you got to kick in doors, fight monsters, and get treasure. The next day, while shopping, NHL decided to use some money that he had to buy the game.
During our first game, NHL won handily and his love of the game was cemented. We played a second game and though he lost, he still had fun. Since then, he has not only made additional Munchkin purchases (some spinners to keep track of levels and a Munchkin: Dragons expansion pack) but has played the game every available moment. He has not only played with his brother (who – being only 7 – might not fully understand the rules of the game), but has played a variant he made up to play by himself.
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