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Challenge accepted about 252 days ago.  Challenge finally completed.

I was right about not being able to do it consecutively.  I think I fell off the wagon at around Day 20 or something, so not bad, but not great.  I just really can't remember to photo document everything, even on good days.  Even though I regret having such a dearth of physical memories, my instinct is still never to pull out my camera (and now phone, which should theoretically make it easier).  I remember I used to video tape random sleepover shenanigans and funny Alfred moments and such in middle school, but those discs are hiding from me and now I'll never get to show people how cute my baby brother used to be or prove how strange I actually was as a child.

Well, I'd say a good amount has changed in the months since Nancy told us about this challenge in the back room of our favorite Caribou.  But I guess that's not unexpected.  Three or so months in a young 20-something year old's life is not predictable or mundane.  I'm just glad it's been a largely positive 2k14.

Also 'reflecting' is a nicer way of saying 'procrastinating,' both of which I am doing right now.

Day 1: Was super gung-ho about this challenge, so when I went home that night with nothing to Insta, I decided to prematurely document my soon-to-be failed almond yogurt experiment.  And who doesn't love toe socks for the winter (little did I know it was going to be a bad winter).
Day 2: We were lucky enough to witness a rare Marsha sighting for lunch at Raaga over winter break (and then we took her and Baby Nance to Shooters).  One of the few times we managed a more-than-half-complete high school reunion.  I'm not sure if this or Sugarland prior to this was when we realized we're all heading down different paths, doing pretty different things.  Kind of funny and perfect how that worked out.  In this way, catching up is never boring.
Day 3: Partook in Fullsteam Trivia for the first time.  When I realized I kind of love Fullsteam (I miss it).  Failed at the actual trivia, but I learned how to play cribbage and how to properly throw a dart.  So many puppies abound, including the one hiding under the table.
Day 4: Keoni and Emma's porn and pineapple themed party wins Most Unique Mashup.  Got unexpectedly drunk off the punch, but not quite on Kyle's level.
Day 5: I am still pleasantly surprised when friends do cute-friend things for me.  I'm not sure what exactly that says about me... but oh well.  Amy, Shaoxin, Nupur, and I tried Local 22, where I really specifically remember Amy telling us about a Buzzfeed article about strange things doctors have found in women.  Anyways... thank you, Amy for dinner; I really didn't think one of the reasons was for my birthday.
Day 6: Finally made it out to Raleigh for a night of dueling pianos and pianists with wild tongues and cheap well drinks and belting out loud even though I never know the lyrics to anything.  No piano bar experience will ever be the same (I know, I've tried twice).
Day 7: We put Alicia's new alcohol allergy through another test (more trials = more conclusive conclusions) at Torero's where I got a kick out of the mirrors above each booth.  It felt good to start getting over my fall semester slump.  Excuse my Lifetime moment, but some things aren't as easily ruined as I usually think.
Day 8: The hardest (and probably most unnecessary) part of my grad application process was reading papers about very specific topics I didn't quite understand.  I should've listened to my dad when he said that was almost a waste of time.  But at least I found in them something that made me laugh.
Day 9: The best fortune a cookie has spit out for me.  Simultaneously a preemptive and overdue warning.  But so far so good.
Day 10: Thank you Nikki for being there for me for yet another rough semester.  I'd like to think I one-eigth repaid you by introducing you to my love for Fullsteam, where we began playing trivia our own way.  I also thing the NC flight board is mad cute.  And I want one.
Day 11: I was also pretty excited to find out about Carl's excitement for cooking.  Our theme for the next couple of months was yeast dough.  We started with pizza - he supplied the dough, ham, and cheese, while I got the homemade sauce and pineapple.  The dough needed improvement, but I ate many slices anyways.
Day 12: Restaurant Week!  We got a private room with wavy blue walls at Blue Mango because the first table couldn't handle us.  One of my smaller goals in life is to force feed variety into people with mundane diets - hence Kevin's first time trying Indian food.  Success.  Kenny only got one crab cake.  Not a success.
Day 13: I'm not sure that any dinner plan has failed (yet succeeded) quite like the time Bernard and I set out to get food and ended up coming back with froyo from Tutti Frutti (for me) and a glass jug of chocolate milk (for Nardy).  His utter happiness made me happy.
Day 14: The Triangle Area finally sees some substantial (ish) snow and my front yard becomes a fairy land.  I love the way our neighborhood looks in white, and the kids love the giant hill I live on.  I couldn't tell if Sandi was excited or confused (he's definitely seen snow before though), but my black puppy looked so pretty against the white background.
Day 15: The first of my grad school interviews turned out to be a bust (and they definitely get your hopes up), but before I received that rejection letter, I was pretty damn excited for a free weekend in Seattle (which did not come easy, what with the delays and shit).  Pike Place is still my favorite.
Day 16: I just remember being amazed at seeing the tip of a mountain as we glided over those dense clouds.  I also remember feeling pretty good even though my interviews were a little bit awkward.  Note to self - never be too over eager to return somewhere...because it might not happen.  I'm only slightly bitter about UW-Seattle because the other UW in my life more than makes up for it.
Day 17: Returned just in time for the Super Bowl, which I was uncharacteristically excited about because I had just returned from Seahawk city where they have green and blue 12's everywhere.  Not going to lie, I was quite happy with my chocolate rice krispy footballs.  The frosting was the hardest part.
Day 18: Val has way more energy than me, but on the off chance I felt like going out, I know who to text.  Here's to the girl who doesn't except I don't take shots and loves country night more than I think is acceptable.  I'm not sure why I decided to Insta her Naked palette because we took a super adorable picture together, but I can't always explain why I do the things I do.
Day 19: First hockey game!  At the Hurricanes v Panthers game was where I discovered that I could totally see myself getting into hockey.  It was also nice just to be able to see what was going on.  And fights.  Also racing on the highway while creating Lulu profiles for Bernard and Eric, TOPO, and what quickly turned out to be the most hilariously dramatic night (with 2983 different versions) everrrrrr.  Not so funny at the time, but it's a good thing we're adults who move on... right?
Day 20: That time we wandered around the new HT, and I found this painfully romantic declaration on a heart shaped container just in time for Vday.  "Facebook Me!"?  What has society come to?
Day 21: Ann got super cool colored lights that she can control from her phone.  When set to the appropriate music, her bedroom can host anything from raves to the more intimate events.
Day 22: Yet another snow storm hit.  Schools were cancelled, people were stranded, and there was even a car or so on fire.  The rest of the nation was laughing at the South and it's poor handle on frozen water.  I went for a walk in my backyard because things felt calm.
Day 23: Who says Vday is for happy couples?  There are times when I'm convinced it's my favorite holiday; those are usually the times I'm okay to live vicariously through the disgustingly cute couples I only know through Internet articles.  Victor and I made honey mustard baked salmon, roasted potatoes, and asparagus for the singles club after looking up foods that are supposed to be aphrodisiacs.  Too bad we were never ambitious enough to go for the red velvet cupcakes.  Also, I learned that "so fucking single" can mean different things to different people.
Day 24: It's always nice to catch up with Amy.  We had a very romantic dinner at Gregoria's (post still to eventually come... maybe) where the dulce de leche cake was everything I wanted and more.
Day 25: My inability to resist doodling on black boards resulted in this masterpiece of a shopping list for the girls of ET 337.  And then I really outdid myself and misspelled "proud."  This was the first sign that my brain was deteriorating.
Day 26: Carl and I + dough.  I ate even more slices of the chocolate speculoos (spontaneous find at Trader Joe's when I was supposed to be buying something else) swirled bread.
Day 27: The night I got an invitation to interview at Cornell was also the night Duke played UNC (and... lost?  I think).  But not before Ann and I had to find Ian at some networking thing where we came away with a large tray of Mixed catering leftovers.  We (but mostly Ann) practiced some food hoarding behaviors and hovered around the food until they started throwing it away (gasp, stop!).  I was just pretty excited to see the newly renovated Gross Chem, complete with walkway that won't lead to injury or death.  Too bad they couldn't finish that before I was done with chem.
Day 28: A dreary day doesn't stop us from seeking out a supposedly fantastic burger (with rosemary fries).  I was quite happy and satisfied.  
Day 29: As the weather started getting better, I started walking to Cedar Falls to play on the swing set like the overgrown child I am.  I'm not sure what prompted it but I listened to Eminem on repeat until I felt like mothers were giving me weird looks at their kids were climbing on the slides.  But let's be serious, I can't possibly be more sketchy than the three high school aged dudes hovering over a picnic table, can I?  I just love swings.
Day 30: Finally went to a wine and design, paint while drinking class.  The only problem was that the wine was not provided on this one.  What the serious fuck?  That's why I'm here.  Quotable of the night: I can't believe people do this to relax!  Basically sums up my mental state by the end of the night when I was just dabbing on pinks for my tree blossoms.  Let me brag about my moon though.  I worked pretty hard on that until ADD kicked in and I lost my patience.
Day 31: Just an adorably cute greeting card I found while aimlessly wandering Durham.  If I only had a boyfriend... or just a fuck buddy.
Day 32: Last minute rush to see Alton Brown.  I was the most giddy.
Day 33: I'm not sure I remember where this night led to, except that it was the night I was too excited about the beer and amaretto combination (that's the only reason why I bought it).  Somewhere along the way, we decided to amuse ourselves by lighting some alcohol on fire.  It all failed and resulted in an even more disappointing realization about Crat, as if we needed more reasons not to drink it.  If for ever reason you need to light a liquid on fire... nail polish remover is the way to go.
Day 34: Carl and I + dough.  Most wonderful monkey bread.  I couldn't not stop munching on it while we played Bananagrams (appropriate, huh?).  He also came away with an impressive collection of alcohol from his grandma.  As we all do at some point..
Day 35: Kenny and I + his unhealthy obsession with Nutella + his e-cig hobby.  We had rich and creamy Nutella creme brulees for Oscar night, of which I could only take two bites of before I started to believe in sugar poisoning.  But how can you not like the food porn-ish image of bruleed sugar?
Day 36: Ithaca is not the prettiest place in March, but the interview weekend allowed me to come to terms with that should I need to.  Catering from Wegmans, pretty facilities, wine/distillery tours, and the fanciest dinner of calamari, fried cauliflower, and salmon all included.  I couldn't handle a real dessert (where the slice of chocolate cake is as big as your head), so I ordered a Mediterranean coffee without knowing what it was.  It came with the little flask of liqueur, rock candy, cinnamon sticks, whipped cream, and chocolate chips.  I've never been so excited to drink coffee.
Day 37: Last Spring Break may bring to mind beach resorts and excessive drinking, but we went a different route.  Amelia's first music festival... kind of... because we didn't actually have passes.  But being amid all the SXSW activity was pretty exciting.  We ate some delicious food and explored cute places.  I couldn't get enough of Handlebar and its rooftop playground.
Day 38: I wasn't planning on shopping until Lyd and I walked into a boutique that serves peachy cocktails while you shop a buy two get two deal.  Lyd said "graduation dress," and all of me perked up, ready to spend some money.  Grad dress, after party dress, Charleston dress, and some pretty cool pants in one go.  Happy. 
Day 39: I love hot sauce.  I love hot sauces that make me tear up.
Day 40: While winding down at some concert event on our last day in Austin, we watched an aerial art display.  A plane began to write the digits of pi into the sky.  It was funny watching everyone look up, pointing, chattering, guessing what must be happening.  No one really figured it out until around the nine (we thought it might be the date at first but they were off by one), and even then, I'm sure some people hadn't a clue until they wrote on #piinthesky.
Day 41: Ann was a bit concerned that we might not enjoy spring break in Austin.  I can't speak for Lyd, but I was very eager to take this opportunity to jet off to Los Alamos (possibly) one last time.  Along the way, I went on a self guided tour of Breaking Bad locations.  Walter White's house is such a classic, and it was surreal seeing it in real life.  Not gonna lie, I felt creepy as fuck taking pictures of this random person's house, but she/he must be used to it by now.  No changing in front of an open window here.
Day 42: Hanging out with childhood friends.  I can't believe I've known these kids since, what, like age 4?  It was awesome and different having lunch as semi-adults.  I'm almost certain my last memory of Richard is playing Xbox or watching Cujo or something in his living room.
Day 43: Cake project.  The green velvet looks pretty scary actually, but Vday had long gone and St. Patty's just happened, so it had to be done.
Day 44: Alicia made a very wise purchase the night before I left for Tagalong-with-Dad-in-China 2014.  Mmm caramel.
Day 45: Our first week of the China trip was actually spent in Vietnam.  One of my dad's students treated us to basically everything.  And my dad's student brought one of her students to basically carry around our luggage.  Much time was spent in stuffy airplanes and vans, but when we finally got our individual hotel rooms, I had to take a bath with strawberry tea and a foodie book.
Day 46: Some beautiful caves in Ha Long Bay.  Nature never ceases to impress me.
Day 47: The most Asian I ever felt was paddling through a little river by the Mekong.  I wore a rice hat and everything.
Day 48: Jetstar makes a seriously unwanted appearance in my life.  I hate Jetstar.  But I managed to find some happiness creeping on the hilarious babies.  That sounded bad, I know...  Seriously, though, this chubby guy in the yellow hat gave no fucks, playing with the bags and suitcases and walking around in figure eights behind his parents.  Lucky thing, doesn't know what horrors adults encounter at airports.
Day 49: Weight loss, calorie counting, and a general awareness of what you are eating is not a thing when we go back to China.  Especially when every dinner is a banquet, and the dishes are dancing around in front of me like that scene from Beauty and the Beast.  I absolutely had to and did try everything.
Day 50: My dad is really into history and museums and temples.  At long of the time he's just talking at me in Chinglish, and I have gotten really good at timing my head nods and "mhmm"s.  Thanks for unwittingly spending around 300 yuan on my incense wish sticks, Dad.  I can tell you now that I wished for a future (still waiting for the other major one to come true).  And because I like silly coincidences, I was very happy that my wishes fell on day 50.
Day 51: "Climbed" Huashan.  Riding up in the cable car sent my imagination into a frenzy.  I don't know why I like to challenge my fear of heights sometimes.  Not that it wasn't worth it, of course.  The view was breathtaking, and I've never felt so physically small.  It helped that the mountain is blanketed in a thick fog around March, so I couldn't actually see just how far I'd fall if I slipped off the edge.
Day 52: Found some buddies along the Divine Road.  Beijing was uncharacteristically clear and warm just for us.
Day 53: My aunt is obsessed with all things cats (like no children, nicknamed "Meow-mee," cares for the strays around the city).  So naturally, we stopped at a coffee shop where cats roam about the bar and sleep on the couches.   It was too precious.
Day 54: Watched a show on West Lake in Hangzhou.  I got that it was about a love story, but beyond that, I just watched the pretty lights go on and off on the lake.
Day 55: Okay, how often do you see a peacock just chillin outside a tea house in a botanical garden?  Rarely ever.  I followed it around, hoping I'd scare it enough to make it reveal its tail feathers - didn't work.
Day 56: It was nice to finally be back in Shanghai, where most of my China memories come from.
Day 57: Jetlag and exhaustion didn't stop me from taking a weekend off from my semester off to head down to Charleston.  Well earned drinks after a long day's drive.
Day 58: Charleston is just the cutest town ever.  Too many boutiques and restaurants on King Street, too little time.  I couldn't get over these two labs hanging out in the sleekest red-seated convertible.  It was straight out of Disney, what with the red and blue collars.
Day 59: Savannah is a close second for cutest town ever.  Though it was a rough and windy day, thunderstorms can be lovely, too (usually when I'm not wandering around outside in shorts).
Day 60: We had to drive by the Gingerbread house before heading back to NC.  And then we had to spend some time looking in the windows and circling the yard.  And of course, we couldn't forget taking many pictures.
Day 61: I never celebrate Easter, but I always say yes to brunch.  Perfect weather, cute dresses, yummy food.
Day 62: Took some time to appreciate my luscious backyard (minus the bugs) on Earth Day.
Day 63: LLDOC was a pleasant reminder of how just the right amount of drunk is happiness (because I'm awfully great at not noticing anything beyond happy).
Day 64: Couldn't miss the Miss Congeniality reference.  A perfect date, indeed.
Day 65: One LDOC celebration was just not enough for me and Ann.  I had the most fun pretending to be a Bulldog for a weekend.  It's a good thing I was long graduated or I would have felt the envy all through undergrad.
Day 66: This one is obvious: BREAD = HAPPY
Day 67: If finals were not a thing, Danielle would have the best birthday because it's the day summer superhero movies come out.  We celebrated 22 at Dave & Buster's where watermelon Coronitas, Mario Kart, and tumblers effortlessly come together.
Day 68: I've never actually witnessed a proposal.  Let alone one in the sky at the beach.  Be more disgustingly cute please.
Day 69: Sometimes I just pretend my baby cousin is actually mine.  My heart melted seeing these two napping together.
Day 70: Raise your hand if you teared up unexpectedly on commencement, too.
Day 71: It only took a week to start missing people.  This picture is just a representation of a reminder of the sweaty-blurriness that was Graduation Sunday.  Just short of 24 hours of running around, too much and not enough, catching faces, family and friends, tequila shots.  I guess I'm glad I went.
Day 72: Football onesie.  If you don't understand tiny shoes and mini dresses, then you wouldn't understand this either, so let's move on.
Day 73: I had always heard Boston is a great, but it still surprised me how much I liked the place.
Day 74: Finally got to see a body exhibit, which was as awesome as I thought it would be.  Who knew cadavers could actually make me feel bad about myself.  Especially the ones that used to be dancers.  
Day 75: At first I was pretty annoyed that Dad wanted to go to NYC because it's not my favorite place on Earth.  Thank goodness for Joelle.  I was too excited to finally see her again (and eat desserts while doing catching up).
Day 76: Our first pint night at Tyler's. Awful awful double IPA, but I just had to have the insulated glass.  Fries and nachos, worrying together about making friends in the real world, laughable Tinder activity.  
Day 77: Nancy and I continued to fill our summer days with alcohol.  Carrboro is such a charming little place that I rarely ventured to, but what better an excuse than Steel String's anniversary bash complete with ear-shattering music, a waffle food truck, and kids sitting at the bar with their parents.  I'm mentally storing away parenting tips.
Day 78: Val, remember when we took this selfie with your boyfriend way back when he had to suffer through going out with all of your gal pals and then we added him on FB?  And now you guys are just too adorbs.
Day 79: LA was the very definition of 'reunited and IT FEELS SO GOOD.'  I got to have dinner with Pati from elementary/middle school.  Abused some parking privileges with Syd from abroad.  Crashed a birthday party with Ann from high school and Dan from college.  
Day 80: We were just obsessed with SoCal life.
Day 81: I was just obsessed with this uplifting menu.
Day 82: Our last day in LA was such a mess, starting with the attempt to rent a car.  It's just too bad the Challenger has all sorts of blind spots because I was eventually very ready to be driving this thing around the city.
Day 83: Nancy and I got matching tumblers because we're cute.
Day 84: The first couple I know who got engaged!  Happy happy happy.
Day 85: July 4th strawberry cobbler made and happily eaten.
Day 86: Nothing makes me happier than when the cousins come to visit.  It's a trade off between not getting enough sleep and playing juvenile games with my little mini-mees.  Activities include but are not limited to, pulling Kevin on a blanket like sled dogs, Monopoly, watching children's educational Youtube vids, group naps, and this time, swimming!  We finally got Kevin to wade into the shallow end.. with the condition that no one touch him.
Day 87: Finally found a weekend to drive up to DC where I could break Alicia's toilet and hairdryer.  We recreated my favorite very symmetrical LDOC capture in front of the Washington Monument.
Day 88: Also finally made my way over for a weekend in Asheville where I could get away from my very stressful semester of lying around by lying around (in an inner tube on the river) some more.  I love a place with lots of outdoor activities and bodies of water and beer.
Day 89: There was a time when I wanted to hop on the bandwagon of artsy bird tattoos.  I don't anymore, but that doesn't mean I'm not still obsessed with silhouettes of birds.
Day 90: Last night in the Thrill with Nikki when we cleaned out our bookshelves for Sam's gig as a teacher, talked loudly about sex and violence in GOT at Cup A Joe, fulfilled my craving for spaghetti and meatballs, and had a round at TOPO (because tradition).  I knew I would miss you lots, and I was right.
Day 91: Never stop looking for new places and adventures, right?  I know it sounds awful when I say I drove all the way from NC to WI, but I had a fantastic time turning it into a roadtrip.  In addition to much time by myself to sing the same songs over and over, I got to see the birthday boy in (his most favorite place everrrr) Pittsburgh.
Day 92: The only touristy thing we did the next day was to climb the Incline where even Bernard had to admit the city looked nice.  And perfect weather.
Day 93: It always takes me a while to make my space feel homey because I just can't get myself to spend the necessary money all at once when settling into a new place.  It looks nicer when I spread it all out over the course of a month.  My room still isn't much to look at, but at least I got my colorful corner of postcards from Melbourne that I randomly decided to bring with me.  Such good Aussie memories included.
Day 94: I decided pretty quickly that I like Madison, probably partly because I expected so little.  Feeling pretty good about the next two years.  Especially when I did some blogging and lunching on the Union Terrace.  The colorful chairs and round tables reminded me of the BC Plaza, but better because Lake Mendota is beautiful.  
Day 95: The best part about living downtown is the farmer's market on Saturday.  I've been freaking out about what I'll do come winter when I can't walk two minutes down the street for some fresh apples and cabbage and cheese and such.
Day 96: My day to day activities now largely revolves around free university events.  We signed up for pottery hour thinking we could take home some cute clay pots to decorate our bare living room shelves.  Unfortunately, they mashed my master piece back into a pile of wet clay.  Unhappy.  But still much happiness about all the free food (I've technically already paid for).
Day 97: Is it weird to have a favorite baby picture of yourself?  Do you ever look at your baby pictures and smile and think "I would like to meet myself as a baby"?  No? Just me?  Awkward.
Day 98: One of the aforementioned events... tote decorating at the library.  I'm the coolest, I know.
Day 99: America's Dairyland, indeed.  My cravings for mac and cheese have never been greater.  Took it up a notch by dredging it and throwing it in a waffle iron.
Day 100: Last night and last day dedicated to two of my favorite travel buddies.  I can't believe we are all in different parts of the states.  I'm sorry I give bad advice.

There's still so many happy days missing in between.  Like the time we put together three tables and played Bananagrams at Satis.  Or the times I learned how to play poker with the guys (did we really lose to Bernard on drugs?  Oh...).  The times I got warm and tipsy off free wine tasting sessions.  The time we spontaneously went parasailing at Myrtle and saw dolphins and the dudes on the boat were cute.  The time Richard visited NC and I took his college bound ass to his first sex shop and bar.  The time we went to a taping of the The Voice and I couldn't believe Adam and Blake were sitting there in front of me.  The time I grabbed a drink with Aspen and was reminded of how small the world really is.  The time I had a delicious BBQ picnic with new friends.  The time I went grocery shopping at the most amazing grocery store with my new roommates.

So if you stuck with me until now.  I'm impressed, and I officially owe you a batch of cookies in the mail because that theoretically makes everyone happy.