With just 122 days left, it’s safe to say my Day Zero Project (first attempt) is going to flop.

For those who don’t know, the Day Zero project is where you come up with 101 goals to complete in 1001 days. When I first started on Oct. 10, 2010, I thought I’d easily be able to do the 101 I planned. I kept them secret (making them public with blog posts as I completed them) realizing if I didn’t finish, I would just keep them secret — in case I wanted to try it again.

The reality of the last two years has stifled this list. Some of my goals cost money. Some require a lot more time than I’m willing to give right now as I still search for employment.

Spending a day at the beach is one goal I’m glad I completed.

I just went through the list and realized I had completed a few more, jumping me to 35 percent of my list done.

There are way too many others that have no chance of being completed. I have many that are “in progress” because I’ve done parts, but others I haven’t started or won’t be able to start.

So, in 122 days, my Day Zero Project will end without victory.

I’m not scared of it, though. I’ve failed in challenges before (see the 366 Challenge in 2012). But I also find good things out of this one — such as the things I did complete. It’s been a while since I did any blog posts on the challenges I have finished, so I should catch up with those soon. I do want to keep track of the ones I actually did.

And what’s great about those?

I did stuff I likely wouldn’t have done without this challenge. I made sure to eat at 10 new restaurants. Speaking of food, how about this? No fast food for a month. That was awesome. I also went out of my way to find new blogs and such as I commented on 50 random blogs.

Some of my goals were simple, such as writing my name in the sand.

Others were a tad harder, such as going snowshoeing.

In the end, it was a decent effort. I may try and finish a few others on the list before the end comes near. But with the reality of many of these costing money, I understand it’s not going to happen. And I’m OK with that.

One thing I’ll look forward to is the e-mail.

If you don’t know, there’s a website called FutureMe. What you can do there is write an e-mail to yourself (or someone else) and have it sent to you (or them) on a date in the future. So, I sent one to myself to be delivered on the final day of this challenge. I think I remember some of the things I wrote, but not all. So I’ll be excited to see what I said to myself.

I just hope I’m in a better place when it arrives!

This was a fun little project. I’m going to give it a another go when my life shapes up a little more and this one officially ends. Some of the “failures” from this project will make the next list, as well as some of the things I am in the progress of doing. There are some things I’ll definitely take off, just because of “reality” and understanding now that some things you can’t make as goals because too many variables can block it. Therefore, have it in your own mind but not a “set” goal.

I know there were several other bloggers who started these about the same time I did. I’ll have to find them all again and see how they are doing.

Anybody else doing one of these or finished them?

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Niagara Falls is quite impressive up close.

A Day Zero Project goal of P.J.’s has been completed!

Goal completed: Visit Niagara Falls

Date completed: August 25, 2012.

Number: 14 (remember, these goals will not all be done in order. It’s a random list where the numbers actually are).

Description: One thing I’ve wanted to do since I’ve gotten a tad older is to see more of the state in which I live. New York offers a lot — from the city to the Catskills to the Adirondacks to Niagara Falls and so much more. Niagara Falls is something I stopped by many years ago, but have no idea about it. So I wanted to go see it again.

Why I wanted to do it: As noted above, I want to see more of my state. I am also a massive waterfall nut, so getting to Niagara Falls was a must.

How I did it: This became a geocaching road trip, with the bonus of having Niagara Falls on the list. A couple of us came through here filling in grids and such for the DeLorme and county challenges. We also spent about an hour and a half in Niagara Falls, exploring a little. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to the Canadian side, which appears to be where the best views come from.

I’ll be back for that side for sure.

Still, we walked around and checked out some of the really nice spots. We might have thought about exploring a little more, but it was so hot that day, we did all we could handle and headed out for the rest of the road trip.

It really is an amazing place and I look forward to going back sometime. Hopefully soon. I’d love to do some long-exposure night shots from the Canadian side once the falls are lit up at night.

For those who haven’t been there, it’s worth a trip. From the looks of the websites I’ve looked at, there’s always quite a bit to do besides the falls, which could make it more of a reason why the Niagara Falls area — on both sides of the border — is a vacation destination.

About P.J.’s Day Zero Project: Day Zero is a project where people come up with 101 things to do over 1001 days. I started the project on Oct. 10, 2010 with an anticipated finish date of July 8, 2013. Goals will not be revealed until they are completed. A private list is at the Day Zero website and the list will be made public upon completion of the project. It’s my thoughts that if things are kept private, should I not do them, change or find a way around it, I’d only be cheating myself.

As part of my Day Zero Project, I will be answering the 50 Questions That Free Your Mind. For each of these, I will blog an answer and then it will be linked here as well. Some of these will have longer responses, some will be extremely short. But by the end of the Day Zero Project, I will have answered all of these.

No. 27: Is is possible to know the truth without challenging it first?

OK, these questions are becoming sillier by the number.

To counter this question, I ask this — does the truth always have to be challenged?

This question makes me think that you should always challenge something that is thought to be the truth. I don’t buy it. Not one bit. So this is saying that I will not always be told the truth and that I shouldn’t believe someone at face value.

Or, is that reading too much into it?

My answer, obviously, is yes. Of course it’s possible to know the truth without challenging it first. Why?

Trust.

In this world mixed with many different humans, we have to trust — at least some. I’m not saying always, but there has to be some sort of trust.

As a journalist, we were taught the opposite. We should always question the truth (or anything else). One line I remember from college is the old “If you mother says she loves you, get a second source.”

The idea of that is to say that you can’t trust but one person.

It’s a notion I always disagreed with. I understood the idea of it in regard to a newspaper or media or something like that, but not everybody in this world has an agenda and is trying to screw somebody over.

Sometimes the truth is there and put out there without needing a challenge.

In this world, there’s too much questioning of people and what they do and if they have any bad intentions. Personally, I think it’s time we start trusting a bit more. Maybe I’m off by saying that, but that’s part of humanity now.

Maybe that’s why this question needs to be asked, too.

I’ll stick to how I think things. Sometimes, the truth does need to be questioned. Other times, I’ll trust and believe. And I like it that way.

So, yes, it is possible to know the truth without challenging it first.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook! 

A Day Zero Project goal of P.J.’s has been completed!

Goal completed: Review 10 courses on Disc Golf Course Review.

Date completed: August 11, 2011.

Number: 68 (remember, these goals will not all be done in order. It’s a random list where the numbers actually are).

Description: Post reviews for 10 disc golf courses that I’ve played on Disc Golf Course Review, a website where players review and discuss courses and other disc golf items.

Why I wanted to do it: I am a firm believer in helping out others when it comes to reviews. The best way to find out honest reviews, I think, is to see what others have to say. And, sites like this, help out. How do I know about a course without seeing something about it? That helps me prepare for what I might be getting into. I figured, because I am a lower-level player, I thought I could give that sort of feedback.

How I did it: I played disc golf courses, of course. Though I have some favorites, I always like to peek around a bit and see new courses. When I did, I kept notes — either written down or mental — to be able to write about the courses. I always tried to give positives, any negatives and my personal thoughts. I think I’ve done a good enough job with my reviews as of the 13 I’ve written, I’ve received 36 “thumbs up” votes and one “thumbs down” vote. (I question that thumbs down vote, however, as every review on that course has a thumbs down vote, even the best and most fair reviews. If I had to bet on it, it’s someone who deals with the course and doesn’t like anything that isn’t a 5-star review, which this course doesn’t deserve in any way shape or form. For the record, I gave it a 2.5, which is what the course is rated right now based on 20 reviews).

The courses I’ve reviews (the 10 for this goal):

• Green Lakes State Park (Fayetteville, NY)
• Conklin DGC (Conklin, NY)
• Central Park (Schenectady, NY)
• Hyzer Creek (Providence, NY)
• Greenwood Meadows (Warren, NJ)
• Chimney Rock (Bridgewater, NJ)
• TC3 Panther Highlands (Dryden, NY)
• Gilbert Lakes State Park (Laurens, NY)
• D.F. Buchmiller Park (Lancaster, PA)
• Mini DGC at Mushroom Manor (Lancaster, PA)

In the end, I learned a lot about courses, reviewing and things to look for. It gave me a better view on playing the game and finding courses, which is a great thing.

About P.J.’s Day Zero Project: Day Zero is a project where people come up with 101 things to do over 1001 days. I started the project on Oct. 10, 2010 with an anticipated finish date of July 8, 2013. Goals will not be revealed until they are completed. A private list is at the Day Zero website and the list will be made public upon completion of the project. It’s my thoughts that if things are kept private, should I not do them, change or find a way around it, I’d only be cheating myself.

As part of my Day Zero Project, I will be answering the 50 Questions That Free Your Mind. For each of these, I will blog an answer and then it will be linked here as well. Some of these will have longer responses, some will be extremely short. But by the end of the Day Zero Project, I will have answered all of these.

No. 26: Would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?

I can’t believe it’s been a couple of months since I last did one of these.

But, I have to be honest, I’m firmly convinced I won’t be finishing my Day Zero Project — for several reasons. But the biggest is the money factor. Some of the things I put on that list require money and with not having any, I won’t finish. That being said, I am going to still try my hardest and see how close I can get.

So back to the 50 Questions posts…

This question, like many of the others, is simply stupid. I understand what these questions are supposed to do. But it seems like they are worded way too crazy like.

In this position, I’m not sure what I would choose.

Old memories are good and bad. I love memories of family and things like that. But I would gladly erase memories of high school. I hated it back then. It was probably the worst overall time of my life. College was different. I loved it. So losing those memories would truly suck.

Still, are old memories that big?

Would you want to go through the rest of your life without being able to create new memories?

That’s debatable. I still consider myself in a time in life when making memories is something special. Especially as somebody who truly believes in photography. Photographs are major memory items, so what happens to all the photos I’ve taken before and to those I take in the future?

Tough one, eh?

In the end, I probably would keep the old memories. I think the family things — of those who have gone before us and other things — would be too tough to give up. Though I would hate the thought of not being able to make new memories, in the end I truly wouldn’t know, would I? I’d still have memories, they would just be older.

Thankfully, I don’t have to make this choice though.

I really should have looked closer at these questions before I committed to doing them. Some of the future ones are even more crazy or personal. With the personal ones, I’ll be tip-toeing around them a little. I’ll do my best to continue these in an honest way, but wow are some of them a bit nuts!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!