I don’t get bored easily. There’s too many things to do in life, and so little time to do them all, plus nobody wants to hear anyone else complain about how boring their life is.
You have to sit down with yourself and figure out what you like to do, what new things you can try out, and then try to figure out what kinds of things you can do in your small town that are inexpensive or free. I bet there’s a lot more than you think, but you have to really be invested in figuring it out.
Sitting around, hopefully waiting for something magical to happen is never going to pull you out of your bored state, you have to actively participate in pulling yourself out.
Here are some of the things I like to do:
Read books. I’m guessing that you have a library near enough to you that you can walk, take a bus, or ride a bike to get there. If you don’t, there’s probably one near enough that someone can drive you, even if on a limited basis, so that you can check out books and then bring them back later, when you’ve got a ride (you’ll have to work this out with one or more people that have cars, if you need to be driven). I also buy second hand books really cheap at thrift stores, swap meets and garage sales. I also trade books I’ve read with my friends and neighbors. Unless you are a book “collector” don’t hang onto your old books, trade them in for different books. If you need some ideas on good books or authors, ask another Q about that on Fluther (and look up some of the other questions relating to this subject) so you can get some good ideas from everybody.
Cook, read recipes, develop my own recipes and experiment in the kitchen. You can cook for yourself and your family, but if you’re extra nice, you can also cook for your neighbors and friends and relatives that live nearby. Elderly neighbors especially love it when young folks go out of their way to do something nice for them, making a batch of cookies or muffins for someone else, is always a nice treat.
Do chores and errands for other people. This is part of “paying it forward.” When I have some down time (and it sounds like you must have a lot right now, or you wouldn’t be bored) offer to help out a neighbor or a friend who doesn’t have enough time to clean their garage, mow their lawn, pick up dog poop and scoop out their pet litter boxes, bring in their mail, take out their garbage, or go to the grocery store for them. Sometimes people are too timid to ask for help, so don’t wait for them to ask. Say this, “Hey Mrs. Smith, I’m going to the Pack and Save this afternoon, can I pick up some stuff for you so you don’t have to go later?” Or try this, “Hi Mr. and Mrs. Jones, I have a spare weekend coming up, do you have anything you need done around your house? I can clean your garage or help you clean up after your pets. I’ll work for cookies and lemonade.” Just to let you know, I just got back from helping a friend take her 2 dogs to the vet. She has 2 little kids and it was just easier for her to wrangle everyone and keep track of everyone with an extra hand. Last summer, I helped another friend clean out her garage and attic in anticipation of a garage sale.
Clean, clean, clean, clean. I’m sure your folks or housemates (not sure how old you are) would be most appreciative of you cleaning and organizing closets, the refrigerator, garage, attic, basement, and just plain old vacuuming and regular cleaning. Just because you are bored, doesn’t mean you can’t be useful.
Start a home improvement project. If you live at home, ask your folks if you can repaint and re-decorate your room, or one of the bathrooms. Of course, you may have to ask them to buy the paint and rollers and brushes, but a gallon of paint is pretty cheap. I buy paint brushes and rollers at Big Lots, usually for about a dollar each. Find some neat decorations at the Thrift Store
I love to draw. I can draw on any old scrap of paper with pencils, markers, ink pens, crayons or whatever is at hand. I keep a supply of drawing supplies on hand. I shop at the dollar stores, so I got paper, pens, paint brushes, paints and other art supplies (including glitter glue) for really cheap. I always keep a sketch pad and pencils in my car (and you can keep them in your bag) so if I see something interesting to sketch, I’m ready.
I take pictures. Lots of pictures. I have a camera on my phone, but I also have a very inexpensive point and shoot camera. You can get one for less than $100. It is a very good investment. If you can’t afford one, ask someone to help you pay for it, whether by way of a birthday gift, or ask them to loan you the money, then pay them off in installments. I take mostly landscape pictures, but I also take tons of pictures of my friends and relatives, and everyone’s dog and cat. I also make “art” photos, by manipulating my images on the computer.
I am not what you’d call athletic either. I despise any kind of organized, or team sports, but I need and want to stay healthy, so I walk. No matter where you live, there are probably wonderful places to walk, whether it’s just around the block, in the park, by the lake, near the meadow, down the road by the farms, up the street and into town. Walk, walk, walk. And better yet, take your camera when you walk and take pictures of all of the interesting things you see like architectural details on houses and buildings, funny objects that look like they have faces in them (yes, the tampon machine in the bathroom at the movie theater looks like it has a face) unusual windows, beautiful bark on trees, lovely vistas of the lake through the trees, whimsical cloud formations, in that case, the sky’s the limit. If you don’t have a camera, draw it in your sketch book.
Write stories, write poems, write book reviews, write restaurant reviews, write letters (real ones with pen and paper) to friends and loved ones (hint: the older folks love getting real letters) start a journal, start a neighborhood newsletter.
Join a club. There are clubs for just about every interest. You’ll probably have to go online to find out who’s hosting them, or you can ask around. Ask your friends, ask your teachers, ask your neighbors. Some of the most common clubs are book clubs and hiking clubs and walking clubs. You can also start a club of your own (if you are interested in doing this, ask another Q on Fluther about it and you can get some more detailed answers from everybody on how to do it).
Volunteer somewhere. There’s probably plenty of places in your small town that need some help. Find out what’s needed, then figure out your schedule, then get to helping. Some of the best places to do volunteer work are at animal shelters, homeless shelters, hospitals, schools and libraries. Can you read pretty well? Schools and libraries and shelters often need people to read books aloud. Do you sing? Retirement centers often like to have people come in and do entertainments like singing or playing the piano. Do you like animals? There’s often volunteers needed to clean cages and socialize with the animals.
Take a class. I’m sure there are some free or inexpensive classes, somewhere, in or near your town. You might have to do a little online research or ask by word of mouth, what classes are available. I’m thinking about an art class, a writing workshop, a theater workshop, a cooking class, a craft making class, a cake decorating class, a singing group (like chorale or choir), learn to play an instrument, a beginning ballet class, an aerobics class, a flower arranging class, or learning a foreign language.
Start a scrap book. Cut out pictures from magazines (you can get these for free from your friends and relatives when they’re ready to throw out or recycle them) and you can usually get them for really cheap at thrift stores. I often get brand new magazines, or magazines within a year or two old for 10 to 25 cents each. I like to cut out the recipes and pictures of room designs that I like. I also like to make art Collages. Look at This.
Start a list. Start writing down things that you would like to try, or things that you have enjoyed in the past and would like to do again. Become your own best friend. It’s great to do fun things with friends, but if those people aren’t necessarily available when you want to go do something, just go out and do it by yourself and relish the idea that you aren’t going to be bogged down by anyone else’s time schedule or whims. Just writing the list will keep you busy for a long time LOL.
Now go have some fun!
