We all appreciate the freedom that is A) Reading Week, B) Spring Break or C) March Break, depending on your school. It’s a week without classes, tests and essays.
While at first you’re super-excited to sleep in and spend your days in your pajamas watching Netflix and keeping tabs on social media, after a while boredom tends to creep in and you feel like you’re going crazy. Because, let’s face it, there are only so many reruns of Pretty Little Liars you can watch and, after a while, even Facebook starts to get redundant.
Lucky for you, we’ve got a list of things to do other than sleep and eat.
1. Cook or bake something new
Whether cooking is something you do on a daily basis, or the oven and stove are foreign objects to you, now is a great time to dust off those recipe books and put those Pinterest recipes to good use. Try creating a dish and surprising your family with dinner, or bake a cake from scratch.
Cooking is a valuable skill to have, especially when you live on your own in university and beyond. As a bonus, you can go back to school without having eaten mac and cheese or ramen noodles every night.
Here’s a list of recipes that are easy to follow but are guaranteed to impress any dinner guests.
2. Host a movie marathon
When you’re not going to class every day, you’re also not seeing your friends on a daily basis, which can be a total drag. A movie marathon at your house is the perfect opportunity to get together and catch up with everyone. You can choose to watch a trilogy from beginning to end, or select a theme for the night like rom-coms with “love” in the title or ‘90s horror movies.
Picking out yummy snacks is probably the most important job of the host. While popcorn may be the obvious choice, here’s your chance to get creative; possibilities are endless.
3. Take part in a community class
Taking part in a drop-in class is a great way to challenge yourself to try something new, while finding a hidden passion. Your hands could be perfect for sculpting clay vases, or your legs powerful enough to conquer kickboxing; you’ll never know unless you try.
You can find a list of classes on your city’s website or even Kijiji.
4. Travel to somewhere you’ve never been
Of course, as a student your wallet is probably starving, so it’s not expected of you to buy a plane ticket and fly off to Ibiza (though, if you have the funds or generous parents, it’s highly recommended). But trips can be made to places just 30 minutes away. Playing tourist gives you a change of scenery—the perfect antidote to a very bored mind.
If you’ve got the money to travel, here are Cheapflight.com’s top 10 student destinations.
5. Complete a DIY project
Do-it-yourself projects seem to be everywhere, from YouTube to Tumblr to Pinterest, to even here on Faze.ca! Interior decorators can create a snazzy bookshelf; tech geeks can make their own phone and tablet cases; fashionistas can turn old clothes into new.
DIY projects save you money, but may cost you time; however with the completion of one comes satisfaction, a new skill gained and bragging rights. “Whoa, so that’s not from IKEA?” is going to be the common question you’ll be hearing from friends.
Looking to invest more time for something unique? Bored Panda has great ideas like a bag made of pop tabs or a spoon lampshade.
6. Reconnect with an old friend
Having a week off from your normal circles gives you time to reinvest in those long-lost friends. You know, your best friend from the eighth grade or your homeroom buddy from high school.
All it takes is a simple “hey, how are you doing?” message to rekindle what was once a great friendship. This week is also the perfect week to reach out to people, since most will be home from school with lots of free time.
7. Clean and organize
Your mom will rejoice at your initiative to clean your room and closet, but what about your gadgets? Electronics get clogged up with cyber-junk and sometimes need a good cleaning. On your phone and/or tablet, delete all of the apps you haven’t used in the past few months (because really, who plays Temple Run anymore?). Delete any unwanted pictures—otherwise, one of these days your memory is going to be full, and you’ll be scrambling to get rid of pictures in order to capture the moment.
Your computer is a much bigger task; everything from your desktop to documents to downloads should have a good sifting-through. Organize everything by creating folders, so it’s much easier to find stuff later on.
Here are some tips to get you started, from wallpaper choices to handy shortcuts.
8. Read a book
Sound like the last thing you want to do during your school break? Believe it or not, before television and the internet, books used to be a form of entertainment. Oh wait, they still are!
An interesting book can take you into another world, leave you on the edge of your seat, get you attached to characters and leave you wanting more when you’ve turned the last page. If you’re not sure where to start, check out the soon-to-be movie adaptations like Divergent or The Fault in Our Stars.
Here is a great list of novels that have or will soon be hitting the big screen.
why read a book on break stupid what the hell are you thinking oh I know out of ideas
read a book not on the list — go to the children’s section of the library, sit on the floor, and read, look at pictures, talk to a kid . . read to a kid . . .go to the reference section — and read a magazine you’ve never heard of before . . . go to an antique store/thrift shop/ used book store — try to find a book a hundred years old . . .What’s different about it besides the yellow pages . . . Find a McDuffy reader — how many questions can you answer? Quiz your friends/parents . . .