853 - 860 Fun Things to Do!

853 - Encourage your family and friends every chance you get, especially when things might be a little tough for them.  Think about when people encouraged you when you were having a difficult time.  It's also good to give cheerful messages for no particular reason at all!

854 - Rent a cabin in the woods by yourself!  Read, fish, paint, write - whatever suits your fancy!  You will be on nobody's timeline but your own.  If a cabin is not feasible, go someplace where you can have a space of your own, like a private room at the library,  or an empty pavilion or bench at a park.  The important thing is to block out a large chunk of time to do whatever you want to do.

855 - Get some friends together and try paintball.  It's just running, hiding, and jumping out, using a paintball gun.  Check to see if you have paintball in your area.

856 - Do a research project on the history of your town.  You can check the library, your local historical society, and even do some interviews with people who have firsthand knowledge of your area's history.  

857 - Make up a holiday to celebrate by yourself or with friends.  It could be the anniversary of something important in your life.  You might celebrate "Corn on the Cob Day" with a meal/s featuring lots of corn on the cob.  Once a friend and I had a corn eating contest - we tied at 8 ears each!  That's my kind of happy day!  Or you could celebrate the number of years you've been in your house, or your car's age, or your child's academic or athletic achievement.  Balloons!  Streamers!  Sparklers!  Signs!  Fun food!  Thank you to Sarah for this great idea!

858 - If you have a friend who likes photography as much as you do, go on an adventure together and look for interesting things to photograph.

859 - Instead of trying to organize your millions of photographs, try putting them in albums out of order!  There will be a wonderful conglomeration of photos for you to enjoy.  There are no photo police, so you can do whatever you want!

860 - Put flowers all over your house - in vases and/or pots.  One time I had some friends over for lunch and I had flowers everywhere.  I even put flowers in the bathroom.  That even impressed me!

847 - 852 Fun Things to Do!

847 - Hang up some of your favorite inspirational sayings around your home.  Change them around once in a while to keep the quotations lively and noticeable.

848 - Join a club or group that reflects your interests -- chess, stamps, fishing, cooking, travel, etc.  There are clubs for just about anything you can think about.   If you cannot find a group, start one!!  Most libraries have free rooms to reserve.  All you need to do is get the word out and you're on your way!  I love writing so I recently joined a writing club that has renewed my enthusiasm enormously!

849 - If you are feeling a little low, designate a time period to really give into the your gloomy feelings.  For example, you might think to yourself - "I am going to feel bad until tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m. 

Between now and then, I am going to watch a lot of TV, take lots of naps, create a dark painting, play solitaire, and read as much as I like".  Go wherever your bad mood takes you!  Then at 1 p.m. the next day, burst forth into your life again!  Take a walk, call a friend, do some errands, water your plants, make some lists - whatever moves you!  (This may not be effective if you are dealing with long term depression, but I have found it very useful to lift my spirits during a case of the blues.)

850 - Visit a tea room!  Most tea rooms have lace everywhere, gorgeous furniture, beautiful china, delightful menus (tea sandwiches are one of my favorite delicacies), an interesting selection of teas, and cordial and gracious servers.  A tea room experience can calm you and reinvigorate you at the same time!  We have a delightful Miss Molly's Tea Room in Medina, Ohio.  My friends and I love to find tea rooms in surrounding areas and happily visit them.

851 - Research something you have always been curious about.  It can be a person, place, event or whatever strikes your fancy.  These days, researching is much easier with computers.  Even if you don't have a computer, a friendly librarian will help you get started. You can also find books, magazines, and even audible books.  Depending on your topic, you can do some original research on your own.  I recently researched Ernest Hemingway.  I started out with a book about his early years as a writer during his years in Paris.  I read lots of books about Hemingway as a writer, husband, and father.  He was married four times -- to Hadley Richardson, Pauline Pfeiffer, Martha Gellhorn, and Mary Welsh.  I got off the topic of Hemingway when I fell in love with his third wife, Martha Gellhorn.  She and Hemingway fell in love when they were both war correspondents.  Independent and scrappy, she was very appealing to Hemingway from the start.  Unfortunately, their marriage did not work out because when they settled into their home in Cuba, Martha was independent and scrappy!  After they divorced, she went on to have a very adventurous life.  See how fun it is to delve into a topic of your own choosing?  Hooray!

852 -  I became a collector of "Wellness Tools" when I got involved with WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) www.wellnessrecoveryactionplan.com  One of their segments encourages you to develop many Wellness Tools to use when you need to coordinate your life for the better.  The majority of my Wellness Tools are fun.  Once you make a list, you are empowered to use it as a powerful resource for daily living.  My challenge of "1000 Fun Things to Do" was conceived after I became a collector of Wellness Tools and began to appreciate the power of fun!  A fun thing to do - have a fun things to do day!  Make a list of lots of things you like to do and see how many you can coordinate in one day.  It is very empowering, fun, and energizing!