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Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Should Heroes/Heroines Have Bucket Lists?



Before I post my blog, don't forget about our VALENTINE'S DAY CONTEST on our "Romance Books R Us" website: http://www.romancebooksrus.com 
 Prizes: $75 Gift Card to Amazon or Barnes & Noble and some RBRU stuff! Go to the website for details!



 Our romance heroes and heroines all have goals, but those are different than what you might put on a bucket list. Goals: be successful, solve a problem/crisis, find love, etc. Bucket List: travel to Hawaii, skydive, go to a Superbowl game, etc. Definitely different.

In "Street of Dreams", Eileen has a goal to prove her worth in her department. But, a bucket list item would be to actually use "Street of Dreams" time travel capability and visit a time period (the 1960s) that she's an expert in and has longed to see for herself.

In her case, she gets to combine both...her goal and scratch off one item on her bucket list. Traveling through time to 1965 satisfies both, and gives her that chance to help solve a case.

Should our heroes/heroines talk about bucket lists? Mine usually don't since they concentrate on the here and now...and ways to reach their goals. Maybe as they would "age", they'd take more time to consider creating a bucket list!

Me? It's time to think about my Bucket List and forget about New Year's Resolutions (since they're the same things year after year):
Lose weight and get in good shape
Make more money - be more successful
Healthy life for family and friends
World Peace

I've done the weight loss and gotten into shape, only to have those extra pounds find me again. My name is Marianne and I'm a chocoholic. And, I love to cook which translates into a love for eating. I haven't seen size 10 since high school and don't think it's in my future again.

How do you rate success? Make more money? Sell more books? Find the magical formula for stock market trading? Win the lottery? Tried all, none work. I do what I can to sell books, but I'll never replace Nora as "Queen of Romance Authors". I had luck with one stock...until the company was sold. Spent more money on lottery tickets than any "wins" I've had.


I can't control the health of others. I can help, make suggestions, but there's nothing else I can do. People get sick, have surgeries (don't I know), ignore doctor's orders. While I can have some control over children's healthy choices, I can't control nature...just pray.

World Peace - yeah, right. Like I have ANY control over that. I can continue to love my neighbors, but can't control the fanatics of the world. Again, I can pray.

So...I decided to list three things here from my Bucket List instead of New Year's Resolutions:

1. Visit all the baseball stadiums. Yes, I'm a baseball fan. Have been since I can remember. Grew up in a baseball-loving home and that enthusiasm still exists. I've been to six stadiums. Not enough, considering how many teams there are here in the United States. So, I've got lots of traveling to do during baseball season. I won't get to all of them in one year, but my plan is to GET to them all eventually.

2. Visit Mount Rushmore. Yes. I know that's not the most exotic place people think of visiting. But I've been to/traveled through most states already, and never got to South Dakota. The image of those faces carved in stone and the story behind how it was done fascinates me. It's here in the US. And, I want to see it...but not during the winter.


 
3. Get all my grandkids together at one time for one GOOD photo. I don't know about you, but getting everyone together is a problem. Some families don't talk to each other. I'm lucky to get 3/4 of them here at any given time, therefore miss having them all together. Of course, even taking photos of the ones I have visiting always contain eyes closed, fingers up noses, heads turned, crying, etc. Sigh. Even taking a few photos doesn't guarantee a GOOD photo outcome. This, I realize, will be harder to accomplish than my first two Bucket List items. (No...this is not a photo of my grandkids...but you get the idea)

When my kids were little, I used to take 12 photos of them together for Christmas cards...and that didn't always guarantee one GOOD photo. I guess my grandkids have learned photo phobia from their parents!

So, what are three things on your bucket list?
 http://www.mariannestephens.net
Marianne Stephens book buy links
Photos: Flickr: VerismoVita, Nia (so let's go!), wallyg, and cakeyhamburger's photostreams.

13 comments:

Janice Seagraves said...

When we can, I'd love to take a trip with just my husband to Moro bay where we had our honeymoon.

Go to Santa Ana pier and Lancaster for some research for my book and see the poppies bloom.

Tina Donahue said...

I'd love to visit Spain, France, England - win a million bucks - live like a King or someone in Congress. :)

Janet Lane Walters said...

I do have a good picture of all my grandchildren and children taken this past Christmas. Lucked out there.

Would love to see the pyramids in Egypt. I've been fascinated with Egypt forever.

Adele Dubois said...

Good post, Marianne. I want to continue to write books and live near the beach with my husband. That would be the perfect life.

Best--Adele

Kenzie Michaels said...

I missed going to Mt. Rushmore because I begged to go to Wall, ND, never dreaming my dad wanted to surprise us! So we ended up waving at the exit....and two years later, Mom and Dad went without us!

So yeah....a trip to Mt. Rushmore, the Grand Canyon, and the Statue of Liberty for here in the US. Greece, Italy, and France for overseas:)

Cara Marsi said...

Hi, Marianne. This is a good, and thoughtful, post. About 20 years ago I wrote a bucket list, and I managed to do everything on that list: see Grand Canyon, visit England, go back to Italy, publish a book, and other things. Now I have a new bucket list. The main thing I want to do is retire to Arizona. Still trying to convince my husband. I think it's important for everyone to have goals regardless of what those goals are. We all need something to strive for. I like the idea of h/h having a bucket list.

I've always wanted to see Mt. Rushmore. I'll get there someday. I've also always wanted to see the Alamo and will do that when I go to EPICon this March.

Good luck with your bucket list. I love the idea of visiting baseball stadiums. I've heard of others doing that. Your grandkids are adorable.

M. S. Spencer said...

My bucket list: Italy, selling a LOT of books,falling in love again, Strasbourg, owning a house that looks on water (not the flood--been there, done that). Had a thought about heros & bucket lists--it might make a lovely story--a retrospective of filling the bucket? Hmmm. Oh, JL--GO TO EGYPT--lived there a year, incredible! Meredith

jean hart stewart said...

Good column. I must say I never thought of a bucket list. Just want good health and moderate sucess for my children and grandchildren. I've done and enjoyed so much myself, I'm content to write.

Cynthia Arsuaga said...

Great post Marianne. I've never had a formal "bucket list" but I have wanted to do things, like travel, sing in a band, design clothes, go to culinary school. I've traveled, sang in choir, had my own business sewing and some designing, but never gone to cooking school because family said my cooking is great, so why? I guess I need to figure out what else to do besides write which I never thought I'd do or wished to do! Go figure! :)

Sandy said...

Oh my gosh, I've done so much traveling, and I've seen a lot of the places many of you want to see.

Mt. Rushmore is one of the places I would want to see. So here goes:
1. Mount Rushmore, 2. See the Galapagos Islands--Yes. 3. This is one is open because it's up to me--Get the book I'm working on finished and publish it.

Sandy said...

I meant to say 'thanks' for this post, Marianne. I really enjoyed reading all the comments.

Anonymous said...

There is bench in Key West in front of a Library that is haunted.

It's suppose to be a woman Librarian and her small dog. I learned about it on tour when there on a cruise.

I really want to go back and check it out.

Tracey H. Kitts said...

I really enjoyed this post:) There are lots of things I want to do, but the top three are, pay off all my debts (simple but worthy), visit Jamaica again and take my son with us, visit Ireland.

There are lots more, but I'll hold back. LOL Maybe I'll blog about bucket lists too.

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