It is said that books of lists, which seem to be almost inevitable bestsellers, are mainly bought by men who read them on the lavatory. Certainly it is difficult to imagine that many women will have bought 100 Things to Do Before You Die by Dave Freeman and Neil Teplica, for many of its recommended "things" are grouped under such headings as "dangerous", "down and dirty", and "potential to see blood". It is clearly aimed directly at the adventure-seeking male.
With poignant irony, Freeman died this month at the age of 47, having managed to experience hardly more than half of the thrills recommended in his frenetic travel guide, which include running with the bulls of Pamplona, visiting the South Pole, following a voodoo ritual in Haiti and "land-diving" on the Pacific island of Vanuatu.
The list seems to promote the likelihood of fatal injury and thus potentially restrict the time available for its accomplishment, and it seems morbidly appropriate that Freeman should have died after falling and hitting his head, even though this happened at his home in Venice, California, rather than on Vanuatu.
Freeman was an advertising man, and 100 Things to Do ... sounds a bit like a glib advertising man's idea. For many people the book could more appropriately have been called 100 Things to Avoid Before You Die, for it includes such obviously missable experiences as "having your poo rolled away by dung beetles" and "searching for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence". Personally, I would prefer an evening at La Scala in Milan to the "North Carolina hollering contest", or a trip to Bavaria's Oktoberfest. It is inherently absurd to produce a purportedly definitive list of essential activities when everyone's tastes, ambitions, and abilities are so different, and its only useful function is to provide easy entertainment for dreaming couch potatoes.
Freeman was clearly a risk-taker, though his own desire for adventure seems to have dimmed after 9/11 when he saw a plane crash into the World Trade Centre only a few blocks from where he was living in New York. He moved back to California the following year to be near his parents.
Nevertheless, he must be commended for reminding us that we are all mortal, could die at any moment, and shouldn't waste the time allotted to us by sitting around in front of the television. According to Telpica, his co-author, the book's purpose was to tell people that "you should live every day like it would be your last", and that is wise advice, even if there are better things to do than those that Freeman chose to recommend.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2008
