Five Fun Things to Do as the Weather Gets Colder

The summer of ‘23 certainly threw up a mixed bag, but as we are now well into May the nights are drawing in, morning and evenings are becoming very chilly and the leaves are being blown off the trees – we also seem to be having a LOT of rain all over the country.

With cooler weather, we tend to stay at home more and hunker down. In case this is a time of year that you feel frustrated and bored, here are five fun activities to do - either in the evenings or at the weekend, if it’s not conducive for doing something outside.

1. Start a 365 Day Project This can be whatever you like, but something that you can, and will do every day. It may be writing in a journal, taking a photo on your phone of something interesting that you have observed, or creating some kind of art work. Whatever it is, you will be making some great memories to share with others!
2. Learn How to Cook Something New If you find cooking a meal difficult, this might be the time to buy into a meal service such as Hello Fresh or My Food Bag. These provide simple step by step recipes and all the ingredients you need for a week’s worth of meals. You really can’t go wrong if you follow the instructions, and at the end you have a delicious dinner! If you already cook, you could have a go at delving into new territory. Perhaps you have never made bread or croissants, so you could those a go. It is also fun learning how to cook food from other cultures and experimenting with different herbs and spices. There are many youtube videos to help you with whatever you are attempting. Perhaps you like to bake, but don’t want to be eating a lot of cakes and biscuits. Good Bitches Baking, is a volunteer organisation that aims to make Aotearoa the kindest place on earth by providing home baking to charities working with those having a tough time. You complete a roster and do as many bakes as suit you over the month. GBB is a great network of people who want to help others. It’s also important to have a wee taste of what you bake – for test control purposes!
3. Do a free online course There are courses online for pretty much anything you can think of, and lots of them are free. You can study with the likes of Harvard or edX, the Open University or our own Open Polytechnic. Free te Reo courses are also available, so lots of choice about where and what to do!
4. Make a family album Although none of us could do without our mobile phones these days, and the ease of taking photos on them means we take heaps; the downside is – who gets to see them? A really great autumn/winter project is to go through those photos, select the very best ones (and delete the duds), then compile an album. This could be digital and then shared online, or if you have friends and relatives who would prefer ‘real’ photos, these can be very cheaply printed by the likes of Warehouse Stationery and put into a physical album or made into a montage inside a picture fame. Think how many family conversations your album will generate!
5. Clean out your closet This may not sound like ‘fun’ but it is certainly a very satisfying activity to do as the seasons change. Pull out all your summer clothes – what haven’t you worn at all over the last few months? Do you have clothes that you have had for so long, you are sick of them, or no longer fit, so you no longer wear them? What has rips or holes that can’t be mended? Try the same thing with your winter clothes. What do you know you won’t wear – maybe you no longer need to be dressing for a corporate job or perhaps you have several of the same kind of item. Wash the clothes that are good quality and in good condition and choose some charities to donate them to. One great organisation that uses good quality clothing to support women who need it for the likes of job interviews, court appearances, house viewings etc, is Dress for Success. They are all over the country and provide a variety of services for women trying to get back into the workforce. The clothes that are not suitable to give away can possibly be re-purposed. It’s always a good idea to have some ‘painting’ clothes, or if you are very crafty you may be able to make something else out of them.

Hopefully you will find one of these activities interesting and worth having a go at. In case none of these rock your boat, here is an article by Ginnie from Hello Little Home with a whopping 130 fun things to do at home. Good luck!

Heather Knewstubb

Time Genie Support Services for Creative and Educational Businesss

Kapiti Coast

New Zealand

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