Clam Chowder and Other Small Dreams

In praise of the miniature bucket list

I have a dream of making clam chowder. In this dream, some friends and I drive out to a foggy clam bed on the Maine coast, pull on rubber boots, dig through the mud, and head home with enough clams to make chowder from scratch. I’ve kept this idea in a document titled 🌻The Good Life, which I started in 2022. The document is simple: a checklist with three buckets: create, play, and share. They reflect what I see as the main ingredients to a good life.

I’ve checked off many of the items already. A few favorites:

• Guerrilla-plant giant sunflower seeds in public places around town

• Make something out of mycelium

• Plan an adult summer camp

• Watch a concert from a canoe

• Try magnet fishing

• Volunteer with a trash pickup crew

• Write a heartfelt review or testimonial

This document matters a lot to me. I’ve found a way to connect what I care about with what I do. It probably says more about me than any essay I could write.

The beauty of the list is its smallness. Because it’s not filled with grand or abstract dreams, it feels doable — even energizing. When I’m in a rut, I pick an activity that gets me moving in a better direction. I keep the list on my phone and add to it as new ideas pop up. The best ideas usually show up when I apply curiosity to seemingly mundane situations.

The last time I shared this list publicly, it reached 40,000 people and was bookmarked more than a hundred times. At the time, I was probably too dopamine-drunk to notice what it meant. But in hindsight, and through recent conversations, I can see it more clearly: small dreams resonate. They hint at something real in a way big dreams often don’t.

I could tell you that I hope to leave the world a better place and build bridges between humans and nature through my work. Or I could tell you I’m planning to spend a day planting sunflowers in neglected urban spaces. Which one is more compelling? Which one invites you to take part?

Over the past few weeks, as I’ve been sharing (oversharing?), people have started telling me their own ideas. One friend shared his idea to try Ikea Hacking, which kicked off a great conversation about creativity and resourcefulness. Another told me she wants to host an offline digital detox retreat for friends. There’s something rich and endearing about learning these quirky details about your friends’ lives.

I thought this post was just about sharing something that’s worked for me. But really, it’s about what happens when we share the small things we quietly want to do — and invite others into them. It’s a wish to see the lists from people I care about, and maybe even help bring some of them to life.

If you don’t already have a list, consider starting one. If you have an idea you’re open to sharing, add it in the comments or reply via email. What does your good life look like?

As fate would have it, I signed up this week for a coffee matchmaking program through a Maine Startup community. I got randomly paired with a woman who—get this—is wearing rubber waders, standing ankle-deep in a clam flat in her profile photo. We’re getting coffee next week to talk about startups and clams.

Apparently, the universe saw my list too.

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