Can’t you almost smell that color?

When I first saw a Mountain Rose Apple, my breath caught. It reminded me of a professor who said that one of the Impressionist painters — I think it was Matisse — brought an apple as a gift when he visited friends. And that’s exactly what these apples are, tokens of affection. The best way to bring something simple and sweet to someone you love.

Taste 1,000 fruits is part of my ongoing Life List project. If you’d like to make a Life List of your own, start with these 10 tips or this exercise.

Violins in the subway have always been a private pleasure. There’s something about the contrast of being so close to people you can smell the animal on them, and then the absolute civility of a string instrument. Those juxtapositions are the best thing about living in a city. They give you incentive to be grateful.

For years, I’ve wanted to give an extravagant tip to a violin-playing busker. I added it to my Life List and started plotting. I imagined standing out of view and handing small bills to other commuters, asking them to tip the busker on their way out of the station. I thought it would be fun to use two-dollar bills, so the busker would feel appreciated, but also know something was up. Of course, I wanted to film it for the site, so all of you could see it unfold, maybe take some photos of the violinist too.

I told Bryan about my plan a couple years ago, and he surprised me with a stack of crisp two-dollar bills from the bank. I started thinking more seriously about logistics. I’d need some friends — someone to film, someone to pass out bills while I took photos. We’d need to head out at rush hour so there were sufficient passersby to help us tip, and to provide cover. It might take a few days, because we’d have to ride the subway around in search of a violinist, and violinists are a little elusive in San Francisco. Maybe it would take a week.

You can see where I’m going. In my head I was taking a simple pleasure, a moment distinguished by its serendipity, and turning it into a three-person, week-long slog. The plan was pretty in theory, but it was built to surprise and delight everyone but me.

This past year I’ve had to put my Life List on hold, but a few weeks ago I happened to be on the subway by myself for the first time in a long while. I stepped onto the escalator, and listened with my heart in my mouth.

There he was.

So I wrote him a check.

And I dropped it in his violin case before I headed upstairs.

The Mighty Summit and Camp Mighty are coming up, both events we’ve built around the concept of Life Lists. It finally feels like the right time to get back in the game. So here goes.

Give $100 to a violin playing busker? Check.

We did it!

About a year ago, I added “Listen to 1,000 New Songs to my Life List, and started in. You guys sent me music, I listened to a lot of Pandora, and ten months later here we are. This project has enriched my life, so I’d like to do something on the site with music from now on, I’m just thinking about the best way to do it — please let me know if you have ideas in comments. For now, here’s a list of all my favorites over the past year.

These are my top ten:

1. All Summer from Best Coast, Kid Cudi and Vampire Weekend’s Rostam
2. Home from Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
3. Hand Me Down from Visqueen
4. Invincible from OK Go
5. Dominos from The Big Pink
6. Like a G6 from Far East Movement
7. When the Night Comes from Dan Auerbach
8. Dirty Laundry from Bitter:Sweet
9. Make You Feel My Love cover from Adele
10. Those to Come from The Shins

And here are the rest of the songs I linked to over the course of the 1,000 Songs Project. I’ve bolded more favorites:

I and Love and You from The Avett Brothers
I Thought of You Last Night from Jeri Southern
Him from Lily Allen
Vanilla Twilight from Owl City
Listomania from Phoenix
La Alergía from Very Be Careful
The High Road from Danger Mouse and James Mercer on the Broken Bells Album
Young Forever from Jay-Z and Mr. Hudson
Hologram from Katie Herzig
Safety in Numbers from Stars of Track and Field
Horchata from Vampire Weekend
Book of Love cover from Nataly Dawn
Oh Yeah! from Housse De Racket
Boy (extended mix) from Book of Love
Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare) from Kid Cudi, MGMT, and Ratatat
Two Weeks from Grizzly Bear
Undercover Martyn from Two Door Cinema Club
Brand New Shoes from She and Him
Let Me Down Easy from Bettye Lavette
San Francisco from Brett Dennen
5 More Minutes Please from Meghan Smith
Balloons from The Postmarks
French Navy from Camera Obscura
Away with Murder from Camera Obscura
How You Like Me Now from The Heavy
I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked from Ida Maria
Meet Me In The City from The Black Keys
Runaway from the National
God Help the Girl from God Help the Girl
Do You Love Me from Amanda Jenssen
Destroy Everything You Touch from Ladytron
Idlewild from Julia Kent
You’re Not All That (Feat. Jessica Darling) from The Herbaliser
Ik wil alleen maar zwemmen from Spinvis
Not California from Hem
Ce Jeu from Yelle
Comme des Enfants from Couer de Pirate
Robots from Dan Mangan
Cavalier Eternal from Against Me!
Welcome Home from Radical Face
Summer Sun from Koop
Swim from Surfer Blood
Summertime from Josh Rouse
Catch the Sun from Doves
Sweet Disposition by Temper Trap
Know How by Kings of Convenience
The Great Escape from The Rifles
Call and Response from Or, the Whale
My Good Gal from Old Crow Medicine Show
Laundry Room from The Avett Brothers
White Winter Hymnal from Fleet Foxes
Steady Rollin’ from Two Gallants
No Ceiling from Eddie Vedder
So Bad from Arum Rae
Air Plane from Local Natives
You and I from Ingrid Michaelson
In My Cup from Richie Loops
Samson from Regina Spector
Le Moulin from Yann Tiersen
Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk from Rufus Wainwright
Rhythm of Love by Plain White T’s
I don’t know from Lisa Hannigan
There is a Light (but it’s not for everyone) from Rae Spoon
You Turned my Head Around from Dean & Britta
I Sing I Swim from Seabear
Quiet from Non Tiq
Don’t Save Me from Marit Larsen
Cry Me a River from Julie London
Bag of Hammers from Thao with the Get Down Stay Down
I know how you are going to die tonight. from Chris Bathgate
So Sleepy from Fiona Apple
God Loves You Micheal Chang from Dent May and His Magnificent Ukulele
Modern Man from Arcade Fire
Good Enough from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Come Alive from Janelle Monae
Shine On from Seth Bernard and Daisy May
There’s An Arc from Hey Rosetta!
Conversation 16 from The National
Summer Special from Land of Talk
Ambling Alp from Yeasayer
Trashcan from Delta Spirit
Don’t Bother Me from the Blakes
Dirty City from Kids and Animals
Roll Away Your Stone from Mumford and Sons
Nothing Else Matters covered by Lissie
The Start of Something from Voxtrot
Just Impolite from Plushgun
Help, I’m Alive from Metric
Lauren Marie from Girls
Fix Up, Look Sharp from Dizzee Rascal
Oh My God from Ida Maria
Lost Cause from Beck
Don’t Stop from Brazilian Girls
Wish Someone Would Care from Irma Thomas
The Garden from Mirah
The Weather from Built to Spill
Acts of Man from Midlake
Little Bit of Feel Good from Jamie Lidell
Such Great Heights cover from Iron and Wine
You’re Gonna Miss Me from Lulu and the Lampshades
Rolling in the Deep from Adele
Be My Thrill from The Weepies
Lover Gone from Peggy Sue and the Pirates
The Rhythm You Started from Sophie Madeleine
Clementine from Sarah Jaffe
One Day from Sharon Van Etten
Smoke a Little Smoke from Eric Church
Before I’m Old from Fictionist
Bullfighter Jacket from Miniature Tigers
Big Jet Plane from Angus and Julia Stone
Holding Us Back from Katie Herzig
Via Con Me from Paolo Conte
I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know from Donny Hathaway
Two of Those Two from Maria Taylor
Doo Wah Doo from Kate Nash
That Day from The Villagers
Firework from Katy Perry
It All from Lou Rhodes
Capturing Moods from Rilo Kiley
Black and Yellow from Wiz Khalifa
Sugar from Dan Wilson

Thanks again for your emails, comments, and mixtapes over the course of the project. The CDs you’ve made me have been particularly touching. I like you.

And again, let me know if you have an idea of what you’d like to see in as a music feature on Mighty Girl from here on out.

This series was hard for me to write. The process was emotional, and made me feel pretty vulnerable, as you could probably tell from all the jokes.

As always, you’ve made this worth it. So many of you are reaching out to say you’ve had health issues too, that you’re trying acupuncture, or exercising for the first time, or just taking better care of yourself because of something you read here. And if I thought writing the posts was emotional, reading your comments, emails, and messages on Twitter has been a bit of a roller coaster. I want all of us well, and I’m thankful to play any role in that.

Checking this off seems profound and flip at the same time. It feels like saying I’ve achieved perfect health, but it’s more an expression of gratitude. I finally have systems in place to help me cope when things go awry. I don’t ignore what my body needs anymore, and I do things every day to take care of myself. That is such a dramatic shift from where I was a few years ago, it’s a little breathtaking to look back.

If you need to improve your health, here’s the whole health series at a go:

Part I: The Obstacles
Part II: Acupuncture
Part III: Teeth and Dental Issues
Part IV: Exercise
Part V: Diet and supplements

One thing we didn’t touch on much is stress. I’ve learned that stress is a huge trigger for my immune system to revolt, and the love and support of friends and community is as healing as anything else I’ve tried.

So thank you for loving up on me all these years, and please take good care of yourselves. I like having you around.

I choose apples the same way I’d choose a puppy, by looking for the one with the prettiest spots. The Black Arkansas apple on the left is so gorgeous. So red, it truly is almost black, except for the mottling on the side. It’s tart and firm, seems like it would make a decent pie apple. The Davisson is flavorful, but a little sweeter.

With the addition of these two, we’re up to 96 fruits. Only 904 to go!

Blackberries were a big part of my childhood, some of you may remember that Berry was my maiden name. We had blackberries in the backyard, and when we went camping, I would spend hours on my own picking berries so we could have blackberries and heavy cream for breakfast. My hands were purple all summer.

My gathering instinct is still strong — the idea of free food is exciting. You do the work, and then you have your bowl of berries right in front of you. So direct, and different from the kind of work I usually do.

It’s been years since I’ve gone picking, and this summer we nearly went the whole season without staining our fingers. The Life List reminded me that it was time to get out and do it. The berries are right there, we just had to choose an afternoon for picking.

It’s been a busy couple of months, so I have some catching up to do on my five things in three months goal — November 15 is approaching like a freight train. How are your goals coming along, lovies?

These first two artists and songs are recs from Melanie Levi:

Roll Away Your Stone from Mumford and Sons

Nothing Else Matters covered by Lissie

The Start of Something from Voxtrot

Just Impolite from Plushgun

Via Pop On and On

Like a G6 from Far East Movement

Let’s dance this one out.

Still looking for more music? Here you go: Mixtape 1, Mixtape 2, Mixtape 3, Mixtape 4, Mixtape 5, Mixtape 6, Mixtape 7, Mixtape 8, Mixtape 9, Mixtape 10, Mixtape 11, Mixtape 12, Mixtape 13, Mixtape 14, Mixtape 15 , Mixtape 16 , Mixtape 17 , Mixtape 18, Mixtape 19

These first three songs and/or artists are suggestions from Amber Scott. Thanks, Amber!

“Bag of Hammers” by Thao with the Get Down Stay Down

“I know how you are going to die tonight.” by Chris Bathgate
Sample Lyric: “Lately it seems as though your attitude is an insult
Well I don’t take kindly to that
cuz you’re the dullest tongue yet to slice my back”

“So Sleepy” by Fiona Apple
This song was written by the kids at 826LA, and is part of a benefit album called Chickens in Love.
All songs were written by 826LA students and covered by bands including Fiona Apple, She & Him, The Submarines, Cold War Kids, and more. Buy it.

“God Loves You Micheal Chang” by Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele
(via Josh! A.! Cagan!)
He looks like Elton John, but sounds like Morrisey on Zoloft.

“Modern Man” by Arcade Fire
(via Jacqui Thoman)
A couple weeks ago, I accidentally attended the Arcade Fire after party for their show in Madison Square Garden. I was staying at the Ace Hotel, and I wanted food, and they were having the party in the hotel’s restaurant. So when the doorman turned away for a second, I just went in. Sorry about that, Arcade Fire. Good party.

Still looking for more music? Here you go: Mixtape 1, Mixtape 2, Mixtape 3, Mixtape 4, Mixtape 5, Mixtape 6, Mixtape 7, Mixtape 8, Mixtape 9, Mixtape 10, Mixtape 11, Mixtape 12, Mixtape 13, Mixtape 14, Mixtape 15 , Mixtape 16 , Mixtape 17

The Masons from maile wilson on Vimeo.

These are the amazing photos Maile Wilson took of our little family. I couldn’t love them more, Maile is crazy talented, and she was working in the face of some serious challenges. My hyperventilation, for example.

Months ago, Maile spotted “have a family portrait taken” on my Mighty Life List, and made an offer. Maile had her own life list (which she just posted), and she wanted to photograph a family in Chinatown. After a few emails back and forth, we set a date a couple months out.

Then I got overwhelmed and completely forgot about it. This is a thing I do. All the time. I honestly avoid making appointments because I have to set 15 different alarms on my various electronic devices, and then the photo padding in my bag muffles them all, and then I unzip my bag (invariably in a church or library) and it sounds like a four alarm fire response team, but actually I was just supposed to meet a neighbor for yoga.

The Sunday afternoon the shoot was scheduled, Hank had just gone down for a nap. I changed into sweatpants, pulled my dirty hair into a ponytail, and climbed into bed.

The plan was to read a little PostSecret, maybe some Kottke, but my email happened to be open. At the top was a note from Maile, whom I’d never met, sent three mintues earlier. She didn’t have my number, but she was in Chinatown. I was in a stained tank top.

While my heart made a few desperate attempts to leap out my mouth and flop around on the bedspread, I thought about what to do. Throw my laptop out the window? Throw myself out the window? We’re only on the second floor. Perhaps I could trump up the injuries to an excuse-worthy level.

Instead, I sent Maile my number and sat very still.

When Bryan and I got engaged, I had to purchase a $20 white dress on eBay because I’d had weeks of dreams about waking on our wedding day with nothing white to wear. These were sequels to my “nothing to wear” dreams for prom, graduation, job interviews, friends’ weddings, trips to the DMV. In these dreams, I’m never naked, just dressed totally inappropriately for the occasion — wearing a straw boater and knee socks to a funeral or whatnot. Having to prepare my entire family for a portrait in 20 minutes or so is literally my recurring nightmare.

Fortunately Maile was very calm in the face of my hysterical apologies. She called to say Chinatown wouldn’t work for a shoot, and asked about a new location. I asked her to take a cab across town, and told her we would meet her. I said all this through the paper bag into which I had been breathing.

Next, I called Bryan who was across town at a bar reading — he was pleased. He told me how much he loves me, and how endearing it is when I interrupt his five minutes of downtime with appointments I’ve made for the whole family without telling him. I nodded and pawed through my closet for a dress I could wear with tights to hide my unshaven legs, plugged in the rollers, and ironed Hank’s shirt while shoving a banana in his mouth. Bryan came home and put on a clean shirt before pausing to make out with me. In the photos, he is wearing two different shoes. I did my makeup in the car.

Here’s Maile’s take on the shoot. Note how she didn’t even mention that I forgot about her? That’s because she is a professional.

Natalie’s Life List included a visit to a hotdog stand in New York, so we stopped at the one outside Muji. It’s possible we should have been more particular, because the hotdogs were $7 each, and fairly terrible. Still, we felt accomplished.