Madison Bucket List IV: Journey Through the Lists

If you didn't catch that, the title was in reference to Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists.

I think I'm going to continue this list until I am unable to find hilarious movie/TV title puns that kind of rhyme with "list." Once those titles run out, the dream is over. Actually, I would probably run out of things to do in Madison before I run out of Land Before Time sequels.

Madison Bucket List

Day 18: Go to the challah street block party

scrumptious challah

So I've been volunteering on-and-off for a group called "Challah for Hunger" for a couple of years. The group sells challah bread and all the proceeds go towards hunger and disaster relief. It's run through Hillel, the hub for Jewish campus life.

Q: Are you Jewish?
A: Well no, I suppose I am not.

Q: Did you know that Challah is a bread traditionally enjoyed by those of the Jewish persuasion?
A: No.

Q: Before volunteering, did you have any idea that Hillel or challah bread had anything to do with the Jewish faith?
A: That would be another no.

Q: When a girl made a remark about how you're Jewish did you get immediately get flustered, but instead of pointing out that you aren't Jewish did you go along with it and let them think, for an entire year, that you're Jewish?
A: I think we both know the answer to that question is obviously yes.

Yeah. I walked in one day, and I was like "my name is Hannah!" And they were all "haha there's already two Hannahs here, and I'm Rachel. Isn't that just SOOOO typical? We're such a stereotype. Hahahahah."

Except I'm a nervous laugher so before I could figure out what was going on I was already laughing with them. I couldn't go back. We'd shared laughs. So I just crossed my fingers and hoped that they wouldn't ask me what day Hanukkah starts.

Shmanyway. Challah for Hunger hosted a "Challah Street Block Party" and they had about 15 kinds of challah breads and challah grilled cheese and challah french toast.

Obviously I gorged uncontrollably. No regrets. Everyone should go. Free samples.

Day 19: Take a kickboxing class at 9Round

Yeah. I kick box now. Do you want to fight abut it? No. Obviously you don't. Because I'm such an awesome kick boxer I'd kick your butt. Check out the boxing wrap that I just learned how to use. 

The gym involves moving from station to station and punching, kicking, jabbing, etc. It makes me feel awesome, even though I'm the least experienced person in the gym. By far.

We're asked to have an intense nickname to write down if we ever do a certain set in record time or with record reps (HA HA HA... not happening). But I did get to read some nickname doozies like "Ross the Boss," "Miller Time" and "Dr. Zaius." 


These muscular, intimidating people always seem to catch up to me while I'm doing something way too difficult for my skill level, like round kicking a 100 pound bag. It hurts a lot. I don't think I'm doing it right. Here's a conversation from yesterday.


Rippling muscle man : "Hey."
Me: (pant, struggle, sweat, minimal tears, wince) "Hnnnggggghhey."
RMM: You don't own your own gloves? They're only about $35!
Me: (Mr. Moneybags over here thinks I have $35 to throw around. Bro, if I had $35 to throw around I would not be standing before you in my ripped-up high school band t-shirt) "Ha ha... yeah (sweat dripping)....I just don't really (pant pant)... have them..."
RMM: "Ohhh ho ho! Well keep working and one day you'll beat my score ha ha ha ha"
Me: (shut up, moneybags. Just.. shut up.) Ha ha! One day! (But first I should figure out what a "jab" is). 


So yeah. I'm pretty much an awesome kick boxer.


Day 20: Bike through arboretum

I tried this once before on a 40-year-old tandem bike. The brakes didn't actually "work" and the handlebars didn't really "steer." The results were... not great. But this time I went back on a normal bike, and the ride was gorgeous. Turns out, there are enormous houses hidden back there and oh mah gah I want to live there. One day when I become an NBA basketball star I'll be able to afford it.

However, I was not prepared for some of the hills back there. When it was flat land and I was biking like a champ, there was no one around for miles. But every time I panted up a hill like a wounded boar the entire freaking UW-Madison bicycling team rode by. And they would sneer back at me as if to say, "Ah yes. That poor girl and her Diamondback bike. Her handlebars don't even point down. They point up. And where are her yellow lycra shorts? Fool."

On the very last hill, when I was at my most pathetic, this old man who was on his way down the hill rang his little bike bell in encouragement. And I swear my first thought was, "I DON'T NEED YOUR PITY, OLD MAN." But then I realized I'm a terrible person and I continued with my bike ride.

What I'm trying to say here is, this is my new attitude towards trying to be athletic:

Madison Bucket List: Episode 3, Revenge of the List

What do you think of that incredibly creative post title, 1980's Carrie Fisher?

Oh, Carrie. You flatter me.

Anyway, as the semester comes to a close I've been pretty busy, and it's going to get worse this next week. So I've been a little lax on my Madison Bucket List. But I have some new ones to share! They are... quite average activities.

Madison Bucket List


Day 13) Cupcake from Madison Sweets Cupcakes and More 


So I don't think that this cupcake store is actually a Madison staple, but I have never been there and it tempts me every time I walk to work.

Flavors from the left: "The favorite," Oreo and red velvet

They look delicious, right? RIGHT?! wrong. These cupcakes were not excellent. But that didn't stop my roommates and I from eating all three. That would have been a truly depressing scene to walk in on. Three girls stuffing their faces with frosting while quietly whimpering over the fact that the cupcakes are actually terrible. And then they pick up another cupcake.

Day 14) Get a flower from the Farmer's Market


The Madison Farmer's Market is awesome. But pretty much the only thing I ever buy there is cheesy bread and various scones.

One day I want to buy a nice gourd, perhaps some home-made noodles, or maybe those fancy mushrooms. That's when I'll know I'm at a financially stable point in my life. When I have enough money to spend it on decorative gourds. But that day is not today.

So I decided that I'll have to settle on some pretty flowers. The problem is that most of the flowers sold at the Farmer's Market have to be planted in the ground. And my only lawn space is claimed by the raccoons and the rabbits. They have their territory, we have ours. So I bought one singular tulip.

And I realized that this photo is super sad and pathetic so I Instagramed the crap out of it.

Ahhh yes. Much better. Much hipster-ier. After I did this I felt a lot like Britta from Community.

Day 15) Shuffleboard


Shuffleboard was a whole new concept to me. I think I'd vaguely heard of it before coming to Madison, but I'd definitely never played. It's like Cornhole/baggo/bags but it's on a table. And it's also kind of like air hockey. And curling, I suppose. I approve. So if anyone is too good at shuffleboard and you're looking for a terrible player to balance out the team... hit me up.

Day 16) Ultimate humiliation at the Bookstore


I have wanted to buy a particular Wisconsin quarter zip from the bookstore for about 4 years. And every time I go to get it, I'm thwarted. This time, I swore to myself that I would leave the bookstore with that quarter zip. Nope.

I stood there and went through about 40 quarter zips looking for my size, but it was not meant to be. The people who work there seemed very concerned for my mental stability because I spent a lot of time standing in a pile of strewn quarter-zips, getting visibly upset and muttering to myself.

Then I saw a guy that looks exactly like what my friend will look in 10 years. I spent about 5 minutes stalking him with my camera. When I followed him into the arts and crafts section he got a little suspicious because I was clearly not interested in buying giant paint easels. So I was forced to run away.

Day 17) Great Dane Chocolates

Beer-infused chocolates? Oh okay, if you insist. My personal favorite was the porter with a bunch of coffee flavoring in it. I'm not certain they're worth $10, but still good. And pretty.






Well thats it. I've pretty much run out of the easy items on my list. I'm going to have to start going out and doing things rather than just buying things and sometimes eating them. I'm nervous.

Madison Bucket List

I HAVE SO MUCH TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL.


First of all, Blogger just got all fancy and now I can look at all the general stats of the people reading my blog. Lets guess which Google word search brings people to my blog the most.


Wait for it...


Waaaaaaiiiit for it.....






MERYL. STREEP.


I'm so happy I could cry. Also, if you're worried that now I can see exactly who is reading/how many times they are reading, I can't. I can only see general things like what countries are reading (Egypt and Ukraine, how you doin?) and which operating systems are being used to view my blog the most (Windows, thanks so much for the unending support.)


So I'm gonna go ahead and spend the next 4 hours learning exactly how everything on the new Blogger works. But first!


I've been keeping something from this blog. A terrible secret. 


Just kidding I have zero secrets. I'm no where near mysterious enough for secrets. But I have been keeping one thing off the blog. I'm calling it my Madison Bucket List. I didn't put it up because I was thinking I'd do it just for myself and then post it once I was done. Then I ended up telling everyone (once again, no secrets) because it turns out that bucket lists are better with friends. 

Did I use WordArt? Obviously. 

What is a Madison Bucket List? Thank you for asking. It's a list of entirely achievable adventures or tasks that I somehow never got around to doing in these last four years at Madison. I'm trying to do one per day. 


And everyone that I've talked to about it have been incredibly interested. Also very willing to help a lady out. I received many requests to post my adventures here, so I'll just start by posting what I've done so far. 


**editor's note: No just kidding I won't post everything I've done so far because that makes for a REALLY long blog post so this is going to be divided up. Enjoy days 1-5**


Madison Bucket List (Days 1-5)


Day 1) Try a new flavor of Babcock ice cream

For those wondering how liberal of a campus Madison is, please direct your questions to my roommate's bumper stickers

For those of you unfamiliar with Babcock Ice Cream, it's pretty great. It's primarily student run, and it's only available in Madison so I figure it's the perfect thing to start off my list. The flavor was Union Utopia: peanut butter caramel and chocolate. I think. Apparently I'm the only person in Madison that hadn't tried the flavor, based on the reactions I got when I told people that it was the flavor I chose.

Day 2: Read The Onion cover to cover

Did you know that The Onion was founded by two UW-Madison juniors? That's right. We're awesome. Anyway, because of that UW-Madison has hard copies of The Onion at every campus building and at every street corner. And yet I've still never read it cover to cover! I've definitely read it before, but only enough to read the stories with the funniest headlines. This time, I sat down and read every little thing in that paper.


My favorite headline: "Rod Stewart Mistaken for Elderly Aunt"

Day 3: Go back to Pop's as a senior

That beautiful building is where I got my food every day as a freshman. It's where I ate a croissant at every meal and wondered why I was gaining weight. It's where I voted for the first time (because for some reason we voted in our dining hall). If you go in and turn left, you get to Pop's, which has hot food that you put on a tray and pay for the regular way. To the right is Ed's, which is like a mini mall. Also it had pizza. And maybe wraps? I don't really remember.

This stunning building is being knocked down soon, so I thought I'd stop by and give it my last respects. Unfortunately I thought of this at about 11:40 pm and I was freaking out about getting my Bucket List item done by midnight, so my roommate Maggie and I sped there on our bikes, only to find that Pop's was closed for the night.

Not to be discouraged, we went to Ed's instead. But I had to do something that I'd never done before for the list, so we bought a pint of Babcock ice cream (which I've never done before!) ( I know that's basically what I did the first day) (Shut it).

Day 4: Go to Johnny O's

Or in my case, stand in line at Johnny O's for two seconds because the line was too long. But don't worry, I went back later.

So, there are about a million bars in Madison, and I've been to about 5 of them. For many reasons, the biggest being that I turned 21 very late. But I really want to get to all the college bars before I leave because I know I won't want to go back to them once I've graduated.


I mean, it's already a struggle to get me to go to them now. And I draw the line at Whiskey Jack's. I just... can't. Not when their website home page plays dirty country music and has pictures of girls wearing cowboy hats unironically. 

Day 5: Go to Shoo


Okay now see... some of these are going to be more interesting than others. This one is not interesting. It's a shoe store. More like a boutique, really. But it is Madison-based!


I bought a new pair of Tom's. Then the next night I wore them in a rainstorm like a FOOL and now they're covered in mud and I can't be bothered to do anything about it. They sit in my closet, mocking me. 


------------------------


Wow, that was a really boring one to end on, but what can you do? The list goes on! I'm on day 13 right now. 


Here's the list of things I have not yet accomplished. Hopefully it gets warmer, otherwise canoeing and kickball might get a little difficult. 


Madison Bucket List (not yet completed)
- Watch sunrise over one of the lakes
- Buy flowers from the farmer's market
- Sit in Abe's lap (this one's waiting for graduation)
- Get dessert from Big 10
- Work out at the Nat
- Picnic at Picnic Point
- Eat at Buraka
- Buy that quarter zip from the bookstore you've wanted for 4 years
- Try the Great Dane beer flavored chocolates
- Get canoe from Hoofers
- Find someone who can sail and con them into taking you sailing
- Kickball at Vilas
- Get cupcake from Madison Sweets cupcake place




Have any ideas for what I should add? Let me know! I'm struggling to come up with cool-weather ideas.