So you're at home all of summer? This idea no-work and no-school started off sounding like a blessing, but it's spiraling down to be more like a chore. As a college student, summer is an endless cycle of Facebook slogging and couch hogging. For three and a half months of summer, I usually spend first two weeks in complete blissful euphoria and the last 11 weeks counting down the days of boredom. Summer is the time when my life usually pauses for a few months and my laziness escalates.
I read a quote online (probably a meme on iwastesomuchtime.com. Ironic, I know), making me want to use my time wisely, which was: “When was the last time you did something for the first time? ”
That really wanted me to change the way I see my 3 months of summer. So in honor of trying new things, I have compiled a list of (cheap, even FREE!) ways to be productive, and even change your lifestyle, in an otherwise stagnant summer.
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Foster a kitten for 10 weeks.
Shelters are loaded with kitties. I would totally foster a cat if I didn't have a pet African grey parrot at home. The East Bay Animal Shelter (https://www.eastbayspca.org/) offers a foster program for people to look after animal for 8-10 weeks. 10 weeks is the entirety of summer, right?
After months of looking into fostering a cat, I realized my feathery friend wouldn't get along with a kitten, so I had to let go of that dream. Someone, please foster a little one and send me SnapChats!
Make your bucket list simple but do-able.
My summer bucket list started off with 20 bullet points, with points like "travel" and "go to a concert". After coming back from India 2 weeks ago, I can check off about half of my bucket list without taking a second glance. It was time to change up my list.
Now my bucket list has one sentence: Do something different every single day. That's probably the hardest yet simplest thing I've ever put on my bucket list. It forces me to try, or even notice, new things. I don't even have to take out my wallet for that. At the end of the day, try writing down what was different about today from yesterday. It's quite a challenge.
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Work on a puzzle .
I find myself in deepest thought when putting pieces together. Caution: Puzzle-ing with a friend exponentially increases passage to meaningful conversations. And in the end, I can frame it and hang it up—it’s mess-free-no-talent-required art!
Read these books:
“Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” by David Allen
I was Superwoman for about 2 days after reading this book, but then I ran out of things to be productive for. It’s a summer dilemma, I tell you.
“Stumbling on Happiness” by Daniel Gilbert
This book did wonders for me. I really recommend reading this book if you’re ever nervous about change.
Gain a new skill.
Its surprising how many tutorials are on YouTube. I spent a lot of time one summer on tutorial YouTube videos and ended up learning how to thread my eyebrows and cut my hair without scissors. That week alone was honestly more productive than my entire summer of Facebook.
Learn a language.
Or even a few words. Or even a few fun facts. I took a linguistics class at my university and now know random phrases of countries I’ll probably never visit. You never know when they can come in handy.
Let something go and adapt to something new. That's the only way you can go forward.
