Jul 12th, 2009
Having Fun at Low Cost
One of the big expenses for most of us is entertainment. Television. Movies (talk about sticker shock!). Concerts. Dining out. Travel. All of these things cost us money–sometimes lots of it.
Are there other things that you can do instead to occupy your free time and spend nothing (or close to it)? Sure. We’ve discussed some of them before, but I thought I might do a refresher here to point out some very low cost alternatives:
Watch Shows Online: If you like television or movies, try sites like Hulu.com or veoh.com to check out both some very mainstream items as well as older or cult hits. If you’re paying for your broadband anyway, go ahead and make use of it and see if it can reduce your cable bill. Or check out truly alternative, original programming on sites like Revision3 or dl.tv.
Take a Hike–or Find a Geocache: Hiking is great exercise, lets you get close to nature, provides photo opportunities, and is lots of fun. As an adjunct, consider geocaching–something I’ve gotten into recently. A kind of high tech scavenger hunt, it can be frustrating but loads of fun when you actually find one.
Use Public Parks: I swim a couple of nights a week at a public pool. There is also exercise equipment (like weights) and a gym for basketball, volleyball, and other sports available at the same site. All at no cost–well, besides the taxpayer dollars that are already paying for it. There are also spots for picnics, for soccer, for baseball, for cookouts–you’re already paying for them! Use them.
Take Classes: Consider adult education classes–I took ukulele a few years back and want to take one in photography. There are also classes often offered by churches or community centers and sometimes community colleges which may be low cost and educational.
Watch For Free Events: One of the local wine stores offers free wine tasting every week; I’ve yet to go, but I’m thinking about it. There’s always free cooking classes at a local restaurant or health food store, and often there’s free lessons in anything from scuba to skydiving. Just be careful of being hooked!
It’s very possible to have frugal fun at low to no cost–see if any of these make sense for you and your family.
