beat the winter blues...

merchantofvenice

if its not freezing cold...its raining for hours...or pitch black by 4pm

The urge to spend money when the weather is like this is almost overwhelming! The shops have such twinkly lights and are so warm!! lol!

Being bored does not help when money saving.

Can anyone recommend some fun FREE things to do this time o' year?

my DH LOVES being outdoors, whatever the weather I wouldn't mind being outside (wrapped up warm,of course) as long as i was "doing" something.
thanks in advance

mary43

De-cluttering can be fun or sorting out any photographs that need putting into an album or re-arranging in some way.
I do agree this time of the year can realy bring on the boredom/blues. When we first changed the clocks last year and dark nights were earlier OH (who suffers more from the 'winter syndrome' than me, sorted through all his records, the old vynyls he'd got. Found some he hadn't played for ages so we spent a couple of afternoons listening to them.
If you like books then the library is a good source for that........curl up on the sofa and loose yourself between the pages for a bit.
If you've got a garden, make some plans for what you might do this year -gives you something to look forward to even if you never get around to actually doing it.

Sorry, can't think of anything else.

Queenie

Go for an outdoor picnic? (Hot flask of soup?) A brisk winter walk can be quite invigorating! Day or night (night time can be lovely and romantic )

Have friends over for a game of scrabble? Domino's? Cards? Twister?

Have a snuggle night - duvet on the sofa, dvd's, bowls of something hot and warm.

Have a photo night ... go through all those photo wallets and get them organised.

Have an Ann Summers party and use your commission to treat yourself?

Plan your summer vacation?

noonesperfect

Go to bed and hibernate not very constructive I know but ultra-tempting.

FrenchMaid_2

start writing a blog - free (sites like wordpress offer lovely templates) and fun

use stumble upon to come across websites of things that interest you (like frugal living... he, he)

I agree with the de-clutter or how about going to the local library - again free.

Or take the digital camera to a local park and take some lovely pictures....

go to a gallery - usually free, warm inside

start a project - I've started a crochet blanket and love it - a nice cuppa, a bit of telly in the background and my crochet and I am a happy bunny - plus I will very soon have my mother in laws birthday present completed!!!

Austin_Allegro

Get out as much as you can in the daylight for walks. Even in winter you still do get some nice sunny days.

If you don't have time in the daytime, take a walk at night somewhere where there's plenty of illuminations to look at - eg, a high place overlooking the town. Obviously don't wander up any dark lanes on your own though!

Another thing I find helps is to go somewhere 'big' and bright indoors if that makes sense. I do things like go to the swimming pool (I go to one which has a cafe by the pool, so you can sit and pretend you're on holiday) or go ice skating, or to a museum, art gallery etc. It just helps alleviate that claustrophobic, cabin fever you can get in winter. Not shopping malls though - the temptation to spend could be too much!

You could always go for some winter sun! Next week I'm off to Mallorca for a week on Easyjet (about 50 quid return), staying at a cheap B&B,(£30 a night for a double room) you can get very cheap deals to the Med this time of year. It's not sweltering hot but it's mild and sunny. Beware though, it can be like a drug - the 'come down' when you get back can be quite depressing!

belfastgirl23

I think wintertime is the time for 'streaming' dvd box sets of tv series you haven't got around to watching. last winter we did all 7 seasons of The West Wing (ace show btw) and this kept us agog for a good couple of months If you ask around a lot of people are only too happy to lend stuff ... I know I feel better about the £ outlay if a few different people get to watch it and it's lovely to share something you've really enjoyed with your friends.

I also quite like hanging out in coffee shops, for the price of a cuppa you can sit and watch the world go by for an hour or so...

Gingernutmeg

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

I think wintertime is the time for 'streaming' dvd box sets of tv series you haven't got around to watching. last winter we did all 7 seasons of The West Wing (ace show btw) and this kept us agog for a good couple of months If you ask around a lot of people are only too happy to lend stuff ... I know I feel better about the £ outlay if a few different people get to watch it and it's lovely to share something you've really enjoyed with your friends.

My local library hires out DVD box sets for £4 a week, and ordinary DVDs for £2 a week - they have a good selection and an ordering service, so you can get hold of *most* things. It's still an expense but it's cheaper than Blockbuster and a great way to watch series that you can't afford to buy. Also, the library is nice and warm for browsing lol

sue-y

There's also archive TV shows for free over the net. Try

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer for bbc shows for the last 7 days

www.itv.com which contains archive series and shows from the last 30 days

www.channel4.com which has there 4OD website for shows for 30 days

all for free!! There is a thread discussing all this somewhere.

HTH