The Intrepid Introvert

Jul 22

Jul 22 Week 51: Strutting with a Thousand Mutts [Score +19]

My four-legged copilot has an intrepid scoring category all of her own, and yet it had been more than six months since I took Mylee along on an adventure. This spring, the perfect opportunity came along: the Mutt Strut.

Jul 1

Jul 1 Week 50: The [Salsa] Rhythm is Gonna Get You [Score +14]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

Dance—in a pretty non-traditional sense—has been a pretty big part of my life from the time I was 10 years old. Clogging, ballroom, salsa, and Lindy Hop have all been in my repertoire at some point, but not in the last several years. I missed it, though. When I discovered a local group teaching Rueda de Casino—a casual, street-style salsa danced in Cuba—I was intrigued. In this style, the dancers switch to a new partner every 10 seconds or so when the caller calls out your next move seven or eight beats ahead of time.

Jun 16

Jun 16 Week 48: Pottery Class Minus Patrick Swayze [Score +8]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

I've wanted to try throwing pottery at a wheel for as long as I can remember (well before I ever saw Ghost). This experience specifically was one I had in mind at the very beginning of this year-long challenge: I’ve wanted to try it, so why have I put this off?

May 28

May 28 Week 47: The Art and Science of Blending My Own Tea [Score +13]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

I recently discovered a local café that I was shocked had been hiding from me for nearly a year: HoiTea ToiTea. A tea-focused café that offers classes. Heaven! I signed up for the first class available: The Art & Science of Blending Your Own Tea, a two-hour education and hands-on experience.

Mar 11
Mar 11 Week 43: I Willingly Had 45 Needles Stuck Into My Body [Score +4]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

The first time I fainted was a couple days before my eighth birthday. It wasn’t until I passed out in the front of a classroom in middle school that I went to the doctor and got a diagnosis: vasovagal syncope. With this history in mind, you now understand why this intrepid activity is particularly significant: I tried acupuncture, a process which includes having 45 needles stuck into my skin and left for 24 minutes.

Nov 26

Nov 26 Week 34: A Hike Near Home, Courtesy of Meetup [Score +14]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

What activity do you so love that you unconsciously quiet your mind and find yourself completely present and in the moment? For me, hiking fits that bill. So, why do I usually save this bliss for vacations? The answer to that question is simple: for no good reason at all. But I finally made a step in the right direction with a hike through Eagle Creek Park.

Nov 14

Nov 14 Week 33: Calling in Tech Reinforcement [Score +63]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

I’ve been dragging my feet on both writing this post and doing the actual activity: I created a profile on the dating app du jour, Bumble.

Nov 5

Nov 5 Week 32: Turtles All the Way Down [Score +2]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

I consider a favorite author to be one whose books consistently draw me in and lead me to seek out more and more of their work. And if I find that author interesting or inspiring as a public figure, they move even closer toward the top of the list. John Green is one who fits this bill.

Oct 27

Oct 27 Week 31: Author Inspiration at the Central Library [Score +12]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

Libraries are some of my favorite places to be: stacks and stacks and room upon room of books, all sitting quietly, waiting for me to choose one or six to take home with me for three weeks. My usual haunt is my local library, but the Indiana Writers Center’s “Meet an Author, Be an Author” event gave me the perfect excuse to make a long-overdue visit to the Indianapolis Central Library.

Oct 21

Oct 21 Week 30: Downward Dogs, Feline-Style [Score +9]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

Growing up in an area I affectionately call “the country,” surrounded by acres of cornfields, with zero neighbors our age to play with, my brother, Chase, and I instead got to have a multitude of interesting pets to keep us entertained at different times over the years. But what did the roster never include? Cats.

Oct 15

Oct 15 Week 29: I Made That Star-Spangled Banner Wave [Score +10]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

When I stepped on the field with 349 of my coworkers at the start of this year’s Indianapolis Colts’ home-opener, it took me back to the first time I stepped onto a major football field nearly 20 years earlier.

Oct 9

Oct 9 Week 29: Grown-Up Field Day [Score +14]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

In grade school, Field Day was an event I enjoyed because it felt like an outdoor celebration of the end of the school year. I was competitive enough to try hard and want to win, but I never excelled at any particular athletic skill. So, why would I want to volunteer for a grown-up field day? Redemption.

Sep 28

Sep 28 Week 28: An Occasion For a New Scoring Category [Score +12]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

I should do it... But it’s on a Sunday night... It’s a free ticket... With an opening act, they won’t even start playing until at least 9:00 p.m.... For heaven’s sake, it’s U2! ... Yeah, but I don’t really like big concerts... AMANDA. Be intrepid!

This, my friend, is an accurate representation of my inner dialogue. You see why I need this project?

Sep 26

Sep 26 Week 27: The Love Language of Quality Time [Score +3]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

Do you know your “love language?” Of the five options, mine is Quality Time. We could be on a thrilling vacation or just enjoying a PB&J lunch in a park; it’s the act of spending time together, getting to have a good conversation, with the people I love that makes me happiest. Does it then make me selfish if I enjoy giving gifts of things we can experience together?

Aug 26
Aug 26 Week 23: Ladies Who Brunch [Score +14]

Introvert Amanda

Activities

When did brunch become such an event? I’ve always found late morning to be an awkward time for a meal, especially when I’m being too type-A and overthinking it. Yes, one can overthink brunch. But even when I'm overthinking it, I can still enjoy it, especially when Copilot Mylee comes along on a gor-geous Saturday in Indianapolis.

Hi.