help needed: things one can do for free?

[Drumm]

All right, folks, I was hoping you might be able to help me with a little article I'm writing for the local paper. (I'm an occasional freelance writer on top of my usual job.) The editor asked me this time to write up something for the Lifestyle section: things you can do for free. Imagine that you have a beautiful, sunny day, and you don't have to work and you have no obligations and you're feeling perfectly healthy and you want to get out and do things, but you don't have a penny. What are some things you might do?

Hopefully you can give me an answer, because I'm more or less stumped here. Feel free to get as wild and creative as possible -- in fact, it doesn't have to be in the slightest bit practical. It's possible that your crazy idea will inspire more crazy ideas from other responders, so have at it!

Thanks so much, everyone.

[tinapbeana]

ok, beautiful sunny day, right?

go to the park and: fly a kite, do cartwheels, take a nap, play a pick-up game of soccer/softball/volleyball/tiddley winks

visit a local state or national park and hike

do a driving tour of local historic sites

find a flea market or farmer's market and people watch

take the camera and go take pictures at all of the above.

[JanH]

I would book browse at the local library. Take a picnic (and a book) to the park and feed the ducks. Swing on the swings at the park. Brings back childhood fun.

[LuxLiving]

Donate blood.

Volunteer at a soup kitchen or nursing home.

Walk the poochies.

Visit a shut-in neighbor.

Spring - visit the local garden center.

Summer - inner-tube down the nearest river (don't forget your lifevests!)

Fall - Rake leaves & drink hot cider with your entire family.

Winter - Build a snowman & drink hot cocoa with the kiddies on the block.

Skip rocks at the nearest pond.

Capture a few fireflys as you sip ice tea on your deck at nightfall.

Frisbee-fest.

Make love with your honey.

Walk the neighborhood and pray for each household as you walk by.

Walk the neighborhood and collect trash as you scope it out.

Bicycle the nearest park.

[orchid]

Go to the beach, walk around with my ipod listen to soft music & then sit on some rocks to watch the sun go down. Go to the library, visit some friends or family. Maybe go on a road trip & take more pictures.

[Drumm]

Good stuff so far. Keep 'em coming if you got anything else. (I'm not under deadline here, so I'll wait a while.) Thanks!

[poundwise]

Originally Posted by LuxLiving

Frisbee-fest.

Make love with your honey.

Put these two together!

[tabbycat31]

go to the beach with a loaf of bread (i use the cheapest available) and feed the seagulls.

I wouldnt trade that in for anything.

[Scanner]

Go to the beach and bodysurf the waves.

You assess the wind - a good east breeze with some chop the day before and then the wind turns west the next day to clean up the chop. That is ideal surfing conditions.

You get waves that hang up there and drive you into shore for a nice long smooth ride.

You need to find a free beach though, I'll admit - the ones near me are the Wildwoods and Atlantic City. I am partial to Wildwood Crest. I personally think all beaches should be free but that's another subject.

Okay, usually just a towel and some sunblock is necessary but I'll admit a $1.00 piece of boardwalk pizza and soda around 5:00 or 5:30 is perfect top to the day so I am cheating here.

Of course, there are dozens of other beach related activities: 2-man volleyball, soccer, flying a kite, wiffle ball, sandcastle building, taking a nap under an umbrella.

Don't feed the seagulls or play Paddle Ball though - you'll look like a tourist, ha, ha.

[jIM_Ohio]

freearcade.com

[tabbycat31]

Scanner, my parents have a house at Bradley Beach NJ (not sure if you're familar with it, I'm actually trying to rent it from them but that's a story for another thread) and it's free in the offseason. For my family's Christmas presents, I bought everyone season passes ($60 regular, $30 if bought before Thanksgiving).

Most of the bodysufring, etc can't be done in March in NJ. If I could go swimming now, I would, but the water is just too cold.

I had my 7 yo cousin at the beach with me on Sunday to babysit while my dad and uncle worked on the house. There's a playground on this particular beach, and I took her there and then we fed the seagulls....... the key to the seagull feeding is to do it away from other people. We walked out onto a jetti, and we fed them from there to not disrupt everyone else.

I've done sandcastle building with her in the summer, as well as collecting shells. However my uncle gave me specific instructions to not have her come back wet or sandy, so that eliminated sandcastle building. In the summer when she has her bathing suit, we definitely build sandcastles (it's easy to get the sand off just by going in the water).

In the summer, she'll spend all day there. She saw that the neighbor's house was for sale, and she already asked my uncle to buy it. I told her that instead of buying it to just come and visit. The kid is definitely a beach bum.

I wish the Bradley Beach boardwalk had the cheap food that some of the other Jersey ones do. Sometimes I brown bag food, others it's a $5 boardwalk cheesesteak.

[Aleta]

For the 4th of July, you can make a day of it by a picnic at a park where there is free entertainment and fireworks after sunset.

[teddrill]

Walk around...see the world...
"Sea spray shrouds the beach. Looking back, there's only mist. Ahead, the same blurred haze. I rub my glasses on my shirt. It doesn't help. We're figures in a Clarice Beckett print-- clean- and clear-edged only to ourselves. Beyond the frame, all else is indistinct. Seagulls wheel above our heads drawn like moths to dusk's slow-fading light. I tread a jeep's fresh tyre-marks underfoot. The crenellations, crisp against the arches of my feet, remould to hug the curves of heel-ball-toe. The sand is cool and moist. We listen to the ocean's ..."

[nanamom]

We went to the playground and had a picnic (just take what ever you were going to eat anyway) Then we came home and roller skated. WE practiced pedeling (and he got really good at it) Tomorrow we plan on taking the dog for a walk. We can lie back and imagine the clouds are... Or we can see a fre emuseum, free zoo, or find a local park and play checkers with someone. Get a book (library or home) and read outside. Window shop at an outside mall. Make chalk drawings on your sidewalk, build a sand castle, collect seashells or driftwood.

[th_tan]

Oh nice list, but I don't think donating blood would be considered "free". I personally would love to go to the beach in the morning and just walk my dog a good mile or so.

Originally Posted by LuxLiving

Donate blood.

Volunteer at a soup kitchen or nursing home.

Walk the poochies.

Visit a shut-in neighbor.

Spring - visit the local garden center.

Summer - inner-tube down the nearest river (don't forget your lifevests!)

Fall - Rake leaves & drink hot cider with your entire family.

Winter - Build a snowman & drink hot cocoa with the kiddies on the block.

Skip rocks at the nearest pond.

Capture a few fireflys as you sip ice tea on your deck at nightfall.

Frisbee-fest.

Make love with your honey.

Walk the neighborhood and pray for each household as you walk by.

Walk the neighborhood and collect trash as you scope it out.

Bicycle the nearest park.

[Ima saver]

I use to catch minnows or tadpoles to put in our little pond. I like to sit out by the creek and listen to the water. Watching lightening bugs on the back deck at night is fun! I like to sit in front of the fire pit on a cool evening.
We go to the park and walk the hiking trails.
My favorite is to turn on the music real loud (like "Wipe Out") and get up and dance by myself!! We sometimes get up and dance after dinner at home. Learn how to play bridge; it's lots of fun!

[mangioli]

A couple lists over at Happy FREE 4.11 Day!

Wonderful things that are already free (ex: blood pressure screening).

Things that should be free (ex: credit card fees).

See the whole of both lists at the link above.