Why I Don’t Have A Bucket List
Machu Picchu was on Reid’s bucket list checked off in 2010
People always ask me why I don’t have a bucket list and I think it’s a fair question. It’s a list that is extremely popular among travelers and they list places they would like to go and things they would like to do before they die. I had never really even given the idea of a bucket list any thought until I met Reid and he had a well mapped out list of 50 things he wanted to do before he dies (run a marathon (check), skydive (probably will have to do that one behind my back) and all the places he wants to visit). He encouraged me to write my own list which just turned out to be a list of goofy stuff because I had no clue what to write!
There are places I am dying to go to (a little ironic right?) but I feel weird writing them down in a bucket list because that seems so final and my mind changes daily where my next place has to be. And there are way too many places I want to see for just one list. It all starts to give me a headache.
And that’s when it hit me, having a bucket list is just something I can’t do with the way I travel. My travel style is completely different than most people’s travel style. I don’t dream on just visiting one destination and once it’s done I’ve had my fill, no for me I constantly dream of destinations all day long. It’s a thirst I have that feels as though it will never be quenched. So my bucket list is simple: travel to as many places as possible as long as I enjoy traveling.
Another problem I have with creating a list for myself is I would feel some pressure to go to these places just to check it off my list. This goes against everything I believe in when making travel plans. I like to feel inspired to visit places and experience things when it comes time to travel, where as if I had a list that I was going off of, I might starve myself from an amazing opportunity in favor of a lackluster one just because it was listed and the other was not. Even thinking about this stresses me out!
With all that being said, I am in favor for others having a list in general. Because if you don’t travel often, the bucket list could push you to do so and we all know how much I’m a travel advocate for everyone who reads this blog!
What about you? Do you have a bucket list? What is on the top of your bucket list that you can’t wait to do?
Tags: bucket list
July 2nd, 2012 at 9:23 am
Awesome- machu picchu is def a bucket list item for me!
July 2nd, 2012 at 9:46 pm
I feel exactly the same! Every time I’ve tried to start a list like this I get frustrated because I can’t come up with very much — there’s really nowhere in the world that I DON’T want to go! Kevin and I have just started choosing destinations as we find good deals on airfares.
July 3rd, 2012 at 7:08 am
Exactly Cassie! And everyday I see pictures and I get inspired- so little time and money because I want to do it all too!
July 3rd, 2012 at 7:29 am
My number one bucket list item is to go to Iceland. I’ve wanted to go since I was a little girl!
July 3rd, 2012 at 8:46 am
What?!?! No Bucket List??? Haha just kidding. I don’t have one either- just enjoy life and what it brings.
July 3rd, 2012 at 1:30 pm
I’m with you Hilarye..don’t have one either and for the same reasons you mentioned. I was starting to feel alone in the midst of the ubiquitous bucket lists!
July 6th, 2012 at 2:05 pm
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July 10th, 2012 at 8:33 pm
Bucket lists are a thing of the past!
July 11th, 2012 at 10:48 pm
Maybe! But maybe they help push people to do things they want to do in life- I’m not saying they should be extinct I just don’t want one- because for me it may hold me back
July 20th, 2012 at 2:40 pm
I have a few things I know I want to do before I die, but they are not travel-related. My travel-mind changes all the time, and the places I travel are decided by a lot of factors (air fares being an important one, but also sudden opportunities), so I’d rather decide on where to go with an open mind. But I have one, so that helps
I think if you have a bucket list and follow it, then that’s because you actually do have a bucket list and want to follow it.
December 7th, 2012 at 10:41 am
I see your point on Bucket List. I have a list, but I call it To-Do-Go List. It contains places I would like to go and things to do (not really before I die). I constantly update the list with new info. So when I am ready to plan a trip the list helps me to create itinerary. I know exactly where I want to go and what I want to see