I have often lamented my boredom while I am at home, but I'm not really bored in the sense of not having anything to do. Quite the contrary. I have many things I could--or even should--do at home, but I am, by nature, an indecisive person. By the time I decide what I want to do next, it is usually too late to actually do it, and I've just spent X number of hours listening to my iPod (or playing Solitaire, or doing Samurai Sudoku, etc.) while trying to decide what to do!
I've tried scheduling my various possible activities, but didn't ever keep to the agenda. I was talking about this with Carl earlier, and he came up with a solution that is so simple, I'm surprised I hadn't come up with it myself.
"You're a gamer," he said. "Randomize it. Make a list of activities and roll a die. If you don't really feel like doing whatever comes up, just re-roll." (Or something to that effect--I'm paraphrasing.)
The idea was so ingenious that, as soon as I got home and had a chance, I started typing up a list. I even made up some "rules" for it, so I wouldn't cheat and just re-roll everything. Then, I thought maybe other people might be as indecisive as I am--or just have trouble finding things to do--so I changed anything that was specifically for me, so that it could be used by a more generic group of people, and this is what I came up with:
Got so many things you could do that you can't decide which one to do at any given moment?
Use this handy list of 33 (and counting) activities which can be chosen at random, and take place either at—or within walking distance of—your home!
Each possible activity is numbered.
To decide what to do, and for how long, roll a d30 for each free hour you have, minus one (so you'll have leeway to go over-time if necessary), or just re-roll the same d100 (or percentile dice) and write down what numbers you get. Match the number on each roll to the corresponding activity.
For each instance of that activity's number, do that activity for one hour, unless a different time-frame is specified in the activity's description. Any numbers above the highest number on this list with a valid activity (or any activities where any bolded qualifications are not met) should be re-rolled.
Number 24 can either be eliminated (for those who are either not musically inclined, or don't have any musical instruments of their own around the house), or modified to fit the situation. The four instruments listed are the instruments owned by the writer of this list. Obviously, the size of the die rolled to determine which instrument(s) to play should be adjusted according to the number of available instruments. If you desire, you can roll only one die, and play that instrument for a full hour, instead of two instruments for half-an-hour each.
Write a story/poem/play/song/whatever, or part of one—note-taking and written planning/plotting/character sketching/brainstorming counts too, as long as you actually write some of the story/poem/play/song/whatever itself the next time you do this activity. Editing/revising/rewriting a past story also counts. Once you've got a story as polished as you believe you can make it, if it's an original work (in other words, not fan fiction) you might try getting it published, or submitting it to a contest.
Write a journal or blog entry—probably ½ hour, but could take an hour for longer entries.
Read a book, fan fiction, a PDF, or some other text-based thing(s).
Listen to an audio book.
Play a card game.
Play a video game.
Play a computer game.
Write/type an essay about something you learned either by doing the encyclopedia thing (#27), or about something in a book you've read. If you wish, post it online (on your blog or on a related message board or something similar) and invite others to discuss the topic with you. This could be a way to not only learn different perspectives on the topic, but also a way to find people of a like mind. Plus, debate is fun, as long as constructive criticism doesn't turn into personal attack. If you've done this activity before, and posted some essays online, take a few minutes to look at and reply to any comments made to past essays before you start on a new one.
Tidy up/reorganize your bedroom.
Clean the bathroom, including tidying up and scrubbing/disinfecting surfaces.
Do laundry—doesn't necessarily have to be your own. If there's laundry in the dryer, fold it and put it away (or put it where its owner requests). If there's some in the washer, move it to the dryer and start another load washing.
Do dishes/clean the kitchen.
Vacuum all staircases, hallways, and the floors in all common areas of the house.
Plan a menu for the next week (breakfast, lunch and dinner), and write a shopping list to go with it based off of what is and is not currently in the kitchen/pantry.
Watch T.V. (DVR counts, and is a good way to be able to watch more shows, since you can skip over time-consuming commercial breaks! T.V. series on DVD do not count.)
Take a nap. It's probably best that, if this activity is chosen, you get it done first—that way, the napping hopefully will not interfere with your sleeping at night, and you won't be groggy during whatever you have to do in the morning.
Watch the first movie you think you would like to watch and can actually get your hands on within five minutes—no long choosing sessions! If you didn't get enough dice landing on movie watching to make up that movie's running time and you really want to watch that movie, subtract an activity for each hour of your chosen flick's playing time past the first. If you only got a single hour's roll for movie watching, and don't feel like watching a movie anyway, just re-do that particular d100 roll.
Call someone, just to talk and/or catch up.
Write a letter by hand to someone, put it in an envelope, address it, stamp it, and put it in the mail box to be delivered. Don't forget to be careful, and write legibly!
Play with the child(ren) and/or talk to the adults you live with, or make friends with some neighbors and talk to them.
Watch one episode of a T.V. series you have on DVD—two episodes if it's a ½-hour show.
- Do a puzzle.
If you are musically inclined, practice singing, either a capella with some sheet music in front of you, or with someone to accompany you on an instrument of some sort. You might even try a karaoke machine, a tape/CD with only accompaniment, or the Sing Star Play Station games.
If you are musically inclined, learn to play one new song on each of two different instruments. It cannot be the same song for both! Roll 2d4 to decide which instruments to play—½ hour for each instrument.
Trumpet
Guitar
Piano
Recorder(s)
If the weather's nice, or you can reasonably compensate for mildly-bad weather (with an umbrella or a jacket or something), take a walk—½ hour.
If it's not too cold outside, clean out/wash your car. If you don't have a car, offer to wash a friend/neighbor/family member's car--for free.
If there is a complete set of encyclopedia in the house, close your eyes, point to the shelf on which the encyclopedia sit, open your eyes, and pull out the volume to which you've pointed. Then, open that volume somewhere in the middle, and read about the first topic you see. Once you have finished reading through the encyclopedia's blurb on that topic, go on the internet to research and learn more about it. Take notes.
If you're into tabletop RPG's, do some preparation for a campaign you'd like to run, or make up a character in any system, just so you'll have one if you find a game to play in that system.
If there is a playground nearby, walk there and play a game of some sort. If there's no one to play the game with you (like basketball, tennis, soccer, etc.) then just practice—shoot some hoops, hit a tennis ball against a handy wall, kick a soccer ball around, whatever. You'll need whatever equipment is necessary for the outdoor game you've chosen as well, of course.
If there is a playground nearby, walk there and swing on the swing set—½ to 1 hour, depending on how long it takes to walk to the playground (and back to the house), and how long you feel like swinging.
Cook a meal. Don't forget to ask anyone else in the house if they want some! Only include this if you are going to be hungry enough to eat the meal you cook.
Play a board game. Only include this if other people are available to play with you.
- If too many of these don't work for you, make your own, customized list of possible activities!
