A Golden Year: November

Happy 1st Everyone! Welcome to Golden November!

At some point while I was 28, I learned about this concept of a "Golden Birthday." Essentially your Golden Birthday is the year when your age and the day you were born are the same. So if you were born on the 4th of any month, then your Golden Birthday is the year when you turned 4. 

I took it to be extra awesome that I found this out before my Golden Birthday (29), so that I could prepare for it. What seems especially perplexing and extra magical to me about this concept, is that it doesn't seem to have a real origin. About half of my friends and family have vaguely heard of it, a few have definitely heard of it, but no one knows where it comes from (including the internet!). During this Golden Year before I turn 30 I want to push myself to learn/do/see/experience new things. I want to capture all the magic this year holds and channel it into fun. To keep myself in check, I've set out some basic rules for myself (channeling The Happiness Project).

My rules are:

1. Keep it simple. I have a husband, family, friends and a full-time job. I'm not making anything out of toothpicks.

2. It has to be FUN. Don't do anything that just because. Do things that you are excited about!

3. If it gets too stressful, it's ok to walk away. At least I tried. 

4. Document it! I'm going to write about this Golden Year right here on Not Merely Living.

It's never too late to make like a little more golden. This is my chance.

I had a few months before my Golden Birthday to start to plan and dream about how I would take advantage of this extra Goldenness, and I decided I would take this year to really focus on all the basic things I love-- all the things I'd like to have more of in my life. For the Golden Year I am going to Color, Be, Listen, Read, Eat, Craft, Travel, Aurora, and Capture. Each month I'll set new focus in each of these areas.

Check out my first Golden Month: November.

I'm going to be writing about these areas throughout the month and highlighting all of my Golden Adventures. So stay tuned! Here's the specifics:

Color: Orange
Theme: Gratefulness
Music: Classical
Book: 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
Cooking: Thanksgiving basics!
DIY: our wedding album
Travel: Austin, Texas
Life list: Line dancing
Photography: #diyphotoaday 

This Golden Year has really given me the carpe diem kick I needed to focus on some new fun things in my life.

Thanks for following along. :)