5 Tips About Fun During the Longest Winter Ever
Thanks, Rusty, for switching blogs with me today. It's like that whole switching bodies thing. Like that Freaky Friday or Big movie. Actually, no. It's nothing like that. This will be a lot more fun than switching bodies. Speaking of fun...
Segue to 5 Tips About Fun since Rusty and I are the experts. (Stop laughing, Rusty.) I get the ho-hums in January and look for things that can boost my spirits. I really hate winter. I'm going to focus on the financial investment of having fun.
1. Let's begin with a way to have fun for ZERO dollars. I need to employ this one a little more myself. I've recently maxed out my book budget. That one-click Amazon button and I are very friendly. I imagine you are a reader (or why are you visiting this blog if you're not?!), so get a library card. I use my card to check out audiobooks from the downloadable library. The very cool thing is that I listen to the ones I enjoy. If it's a bad book, I quit listening without any guilt about wasting money. I can listen to borrowed audiobooks while I drive, exercise, clean, or any number of mundane activities.
2. Now we'll move up to CHEAP fun. Invite friends over and ask everyone to bring a finger food. My husband and I are planning a Superbowl party next weekend. The hubs is making hot wings (cheap but hearty typical gameday food) and I'll make something. Food, drink, friends...what could be more fun than that?
3. I thought about putting movie theater trips into the MODERATE category but no. Movie tickets and snacks cost more than a DisneyWorld ticket these days. Instead, how about going for movie downloads or HBO? We actually subscribe to NetFlix now, but getting a season pass of your favorite show is affordable as well. I've purchased season passes on Amazon Instant Video. You can buy a season ofGame of Thrones for under $30.
4. SLIGHTLY MORE expensive but healthier is the day trip to a state park. I live in Arkansas, so we have plenty of those. These types of activities are only more expensive because fuel isn't cheap. So, look around for attractions within a 100-mile radius. There was a castle under construction that I wanted to visit for a second time, and I looked it up online. The Ozark Medieval Fortress closed in 2012. I'm so disappointed. Times have been tough for everyone and tourist attractions have taken a hit as well. Support your locals.
5. What's EXPENSIVE? Everything else. I love to travel. There are several places on my dream list: Scotland, Italy, France, Hawaii, and Australia. I need to start planning and saving now if I'm ever going to make it to one of these places. My tip for doing something expensive like this is to plan ahead and watch for bargains. I'm taking a weekend trip to Nashville, TN in March and booked a hotel room through Groupon. It's going to cost half of the normal rate with an added $30 restaurant voucher for each day.
Thanks for listening as I plan my strategy for making it to summer. Any advice for me on this topic? Ready for winter to end? Having a Superbowl party? Have you seen this crazy, fun video for MORE NFL? http://youtu.be/rRqKYXcL-2U
Visit my blog at http://www.brindaberry.com/
Watcher of Worlds (Whispering Woods #3)
By Brinda Berry
Whispering Woods Book 3
Novel
$5.99
ISBN: 978-1-941133-00-2
Senior year should bring fun, friends and happiness. Not portals, treachery, and murder.
Seventeen-year-old Mia Taylor, gatekeeper to an interdimensional portal, wants nothing more than to heal from her romance gone wrong. Illegally falling for her co-worker Regulus had been a huge mistake. But when Regulus goes rogue to hunt down a murderer, Mia must forget her broken heart and use her unique abilities to save him. Traveling across dimensions, she enters a strange and hostile world where a rebel faction holds the key to their escape. Her gift of synesthesia is in high demand, and a secret organization of the otherworldly kind has her in their sights. But sabotage and murder may be the least of her worries. Her ex-boyfriend wants a relationship. Her dad wants her to act normal. Her friends want her to stop moping. Who knew faking happy would be the easiest part of senior year?
Brinda Berry lives in the southern US with her family and two spunky cairn terriers. She’s terribly fond of chocolate, coffee, and books that take her away from reality. She doesn’t mind being called a geek or “crazy dog lady”. When she’s not working the day job or writing a novel, she’s guilty of surfing the internet for no good reason.
17 comments:
Brinda is awesome!
There are a lot of ways to watch movies cheap. Although we still hit the theater three-four times a month. Just no popcorn. (Too unhealthy anyway.)
And I'd rather visit a part here in winter than summer. Too darn humid!
I've also been much too friendly with the Amazon 1-click button lately.
And I usually skip movie snacks when hit the theater—but the price of tickets alone still makes it an
expensive outing.
Definitely ready for winter to end though.
Okay, I didn't know the Ozark castle closed. Darnit!!! I remember saying I wanted to go visit there since it's not too bad of a drive for me.
I'm a Netflix guy, but I'm thinking about jumping on the Amazon bandwagon when it comes to catching up to the more recent shows.
You know, I think television is a great value/entertainment. I follow up to 30 shows a week and the DVR has constantly got things for me to watch and think about. Honestly, I know cable is expensive but it's worth it if you watch it as much as I do.
Thanks to my wife's bus-sized purse, trips to the movies are pretty cheap. Two matinee tickets, plus all the lunch and drinks we can stuff into her purse makes for a pretty inexpensive and fun afternoon.
The library is a great place for books and movies Rusty. The only thing is I end up requesting new releases. Good tips!
I like special effects, explosions and stuff with spaceships. Now thats fun.
And there are lots of ways to earn free tickets to movies, which is what we do.
Alex- I always say I'm going to resist the popcorn until that moment when I enter the theater.
MJ- I feel that I'm caught in some time travel glitch with this winter. It seems to be set on loop.
Jay- I have videos on YouTube from the time I went to the castle. :(
Michael- Yes, you are the one who tempts me to watch so many shows I'm not watching.
Beer in the Shower- "bus-sized purse"...what other size is there?
Maurice- Thanks for saying hi!
Spacerguy- I agree.
Andrew- One of my friends uses an a certain search engine to earn movie tickets. Bing maybe? Oh, the memory is the first to go.
I usually wait for the movie to come out on Netflix or Amazon.
Love your tips, Brinda! I have to go the cheap category myself. Reading. Free ebooks and the library. We also have a lot of state parks nearby. We went for a walk in the woods just yesterday! :)
Is there anything more disconcerting than typing a whole comment and then hitting "Publish" and the Internet says "The page is unavailable" and you think
NO OH MY GOD NO THAT COMMENT WAS AWESOME DON'T DO THIS TO ME I WILL SUE YOU SO HARD YOUR CORPORATE SUBSIDIARIES WILL FEEL IT VERIZON
?
We'll see. That's what happened to me and so my very cogent comments on how I use the public library, too, are lost forever and I don't feel like repeating them because all I can feel is that throbbing anger in my brain.
Also lost? My less-cogent thoughts about why it is fair that I get pizza rolls for Super Bowl dinner. It has to do with Sweetie, Xmas eve, voting, and democracy. Now the world will never know.
Stupid Verizon.
Is there anything more disconcerting than typing a whole comment and then hitting "Publish" and the Internet says "The page is unavailable" and you think
NO OH MY GOD NO THAT COMMENT WAS AWESOME DON'T DO THIS TO ME I WILL SUE YOU SO HARD YOUR CORPORATE SUBSIDIARIES WILL FEEL IT VERIZON
?
We'll see. That's what happened to me and so my very cogent comments on how I use the public library, too, are lost forever and I don't feel like repeating them because all I can feel is that throbbing anger in my brain.
Also lost? My less-cogent thoughts about why it is fair that I get pizza rolls for Super Bowl dinner. It has to do with Sweetie, Xmas eve, voting, and democracy. Now the world will never know.
Stupid Verizon.
Is there anything more disconcerting than typing a whole comment and then hitting "Publish" and the Internet says "The page is unavailable" and you think
NO OH MY GOD NO THAT COMMENT WAS AWESOME DON'T DO THIS TO ME I WILL SUE YOU SO HARD YOUR CORPORATE SUBSIDIARIES WILL FEEL IT VERIZON
?
We'll see. That's what happened to me and so my very cogent comments on how I use the public library, too, are lost forever and I don't feel like repeating them because all I can feel is that throbbing anger in my brain.
Also lost? My less-cogent thoughts about why it is fair that I get pizza rolls for Super Bowl dinner. It has to do with Sweetie, Xmas eve, voting, and democracy. Now the world will never know.
Stupid Verizon.
I would now like to note that it did that TWICE but the second time I copied my comment to the clipboard before I hit publish, so that was technically the THIRD try.
You know what, Louis CK? YEAH MIRACLE BLAH BLAH BLAH maybe things should work more than 10% of the time before they are allowed to sell them.
@Cindy- Yes, I wait most of the time. The movie has to be made of awesome before I head to the theater.
Christine- State parks are terrific where I live.
Briane- I can tell that your initial (and lost) comment was the most FANTASTIC comment ever published. The follow-up comments weren't bad either. Thanks for your persistence. You made me laugh.
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