6 Awesome Ways To Occupy Yourself On A Snow Day!

Can you believe it’s almost the end of March and the weather is still so unpredictable? Especially in those parts highly affected by winter weather. Currently, parts of Canada and the U.S. are being hit by a winter storm. Are you one of these lucky or unlucky folks stuck at home? Don’t despair and use this as an opportunity to do something nice for yourself or catch up on something you’re been putting off doing. Here are some awesome ways you can occupy yourself on a snow day.

1. Read A Book

Many of us are so busy these days that the luxury of reading a book has escaped us. Being stuck at home on a snow day is a perfect time to pick up that book you’ve been meaning to read.

Great Book Ideas

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Synopsis:

The unforgettable, heartbreaking story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father’s servant, caught in the tragic sweep of history. The Kite Runner transports readers to Afghanistan at a tense and crucial moment of change and destruction. This is a powerful story of friendship. It’s also about the power of reading, the price of betrayal, and the possibility of redemption. And an exploration of the power of fathers over sons and their love, their sacrifices, their lies.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Synopsis:

In this celebrated work and his only novel, Oscar Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young art aficionado in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise. As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigour. At the same time his recently painted portrait grows older day by day into a hideous record of evil. And he must keep this hidden from the world.

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

Synopsis:

This tale is set in Italy during World War II. It tells the story of the incomparable, malingering bombardier, Yossarian, a hero who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy but his own army, which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. If Yossarian makes any attempt to excuse himself from the high-risk missions he’s assigned, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule. A man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes a formal request to be removed from duty, he is proven sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.

Highly Intuitive People: 7 Right-Brain Traits to Change the Lives of Intuitive-Sensitive People by Heidi Sawyer 

Synopsis:

Do you struggle with small talk and prefer deep conversation? Are you extremely sensitive to other people’s moods? Do people describe you as highly perceptive? Are you exhausted after being in busy places? If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to any of the above questions, you may be a Highly Intuitive Person. That is someone who is especially sensitive to the energy of others. Based on Heidi Sawyer’s 17 years of experience, she provides a guide for anyone who is feeling overwhelmed as a result of their natural intuitive abilities. She also lets the reader know how they got them, what they’re for and how best to use them.

Thanks to my fellow blogger Katariina of Kat Loves Kale for recommending this book! I’m really interested in reading it.

The Beach by Alex Garland

Synopsis:

Khao San Road, Bangkok is the first stop for the hordes of rootless young Westerners traveling in Southeast Asia. On Richard’s first night there, in a low-budget guesthouse, a fellow traveler slashes his wrists, leaving Richard a meticulously drawn map to “the Beach.” The Beach, as Richard learns, is the subject of a legend among young travelers in Asia. It’s a lagoon hidden from the sea, with white sand and coral gardens, freshwater falls surrounded by jungle plants untouched for a thousand years. There, it is rumored, a carefully selected international few have settled in a communal Eden.

This is one of my favourite books. The story is really captivating. I read it before I saw the movie with Leonardo DiCaprio which I also recommend. The scenery in the film is breathtaking.

Memoirs of a Geisha: A Novel by Arthur Golden

Synopsis:

A literary sensation and runaway bestseller, this brilliant debut novel tells with seamless authenticity and exquisite lyricism the true confessions of one of Japan’s most celebrated geisha. Speaking to us with the wisdom of age and in a voice at once haunting and startlingly immediate, Nitta Sayuri tells the story of her life as a geisha. It begins in a poor fishing village in 1929, when, as a nine-year-old girl with unusual blue-gray eyes, she is taken from her home and sold into slavery to a renowned geisha house.

This is another one of my favourite books. It’s beautifully written as it takes you into the secret world of geishas. I also read it before I saw the movie version which I thoroughly enjoyed as well.

Loose yourself today in another world by reading a great book!

2. Organize Your Digital Pictures

If you’re like me you may have taken an abundant amount of pictures over the years. Only to then have dumped the pictures onto your computer without so much as organizing them into proper folders. I feel your pain as I have so many pictures all over my computer completely unorganized. Being stuck at home gives you that extra time to properly catalog all your pictures.

You can take a few routes to organize your pictures. You can organize them by date or by subject or both. First organize the pictures by year and then add a subfolder with the subject. Whichever way you pick you’ll be able to easily find all the relevant photos really quickly. This exercise also gives you an opportunity to reminisce while you look at your pictures.

What a fun way to spend the day!

3. Start A Creative Project

Are you a creative type but often find yourself with no time to indulge in your hobbies? Well, now is the time to take up that long forgotten hobby. Perhaps you’re a writer who always wanted to get back to writing or an artist who has stopped making art. No matter what creative project you want to start, it’s never too late to get back into the swing of things. Creativity opens up our minds and makes us more appreciative of other beautiful things in life. Once you open that Pandora’s box you’ll probably won’t want to close it again for a while.

When I was a child I enjoyed many creative projects such as drawing and making figurines (especially animals) from modelling clay. And once upon a time, quite a few years back, I became obsessed with a certain Robert Downey Jr. Details magazine cover that I just had to draw it. I really enjoyed taking on this creative project.

Let your creative juices flow and explore everything your mind has to offer!

4. Catch Up On Your Favorite Shows

There is so many awesome shows you might have a hard time catching up with all of them. Whether it’s old time favourites or recent new hits there is something out there for everyone. Have you been meaning to cash in on that free preview of Netflix or HBO? Go for it! The time is now. You have a perfect excuse during a snow day to curl up on your couch with some tea or coffee and that new show you’ve been meaning to check out.

Great TV Shows

Game of Thrones

Synopsis:

The story takes place in a fictional world, primarily upon a continent called Westeros, with one storyline occurring on another continent to the east known as Essos. The story is too convoluted to be explained in a few sentences but believe me you will get sucked into the storyline and you won’t be able to stop watching it. Game of Thrones is back this summer with Season 7.

Girls

Synopsis:

Girls is a comedy-drama following the lives of four young women living in New York City. The show’s premise and major aspects of the main character were drawn from Lena Dunham’s own life. Girls is currently showing its season 6 which is the final season of the series.

Jane The Virgin

Synopsis:

It’s a show about a virgin perfectionist with a heart of gold with a twist. She’s been impregnated-by-artificial-insemination. Her grandmother is facing deportation, all while the protagonist is trying to juggle both a writing career and motherhood. Jane The Virgin is now playing Season 3.

This is Us

Synopsis:

The series follows three siblings Kate, Kevin and Randall and their intertwined lives. Kate and Kevin were originally part of a triplet pregnancy, conceived in the bathroom of a bar, during Super Bowl XIV. However, their biological brother was stillborn. Their parents, Jack and Rebecca, intent on bringing home three babies, decide to adopt another newborn (Randall), a black child who was born on the same day and brought to the same hospital after his biological father abandoned him at a fire station. This Is Us is now showing Season 2 and its season finale showed yesterday March 14, 2017.

Gilmore Girls

Synopsis:

The Girls are back! Catch up on all 154 episodes of the original series plus the four new installments of A Year in the Life. The show follows single mother Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter Rory, living in the fictional town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut. With a cast of other colourful characters such as Melissa McCarthy’s quirky Sookie St. James.

The Wonder Years

Synopsis:

This is an unabashedly nostalgic show that chronicles the ups and downs of Kevin Arnold’s, Winnie Cooper’s and Paul Pfeiffer’s adolescence against the backdrop of the Vietnam era. It also maturely handles the changing social landscape of the United States during turbulent times. The Wonder Years ran for 6 seasons from 1988 until 1993.

Catch up with old time favourites or venture out into exciting avenues with something new!

5. Play In The Snow

So you’re snowed in, so what? Why not just enjoy the outdoors anyway. Do you remember when you were a kid and how much fun snow days were? You don’t have to be a kid again to enjoy the beauty of your surroundings. Better yet, if you do have kids or a furry friend take them out for a fun play date. Both kids and dogs love playing in the snow. Just make sure you dress them up warm (that means your furry friend too if they get cold easily) and don’t overdo it.

I remember how much my dog Amika loved playing in the show. She was always jumping around, biting the snow and having a grand old time. Occasionally, we had a snowball fight and she loved it too. Sadly she passed away many years ago and I still miss her so much. I rummaged through my old photos to find this cute picture of her playing in the snow. She was the best dog ever and I’m sure she’s having a great time in doggy heaven!

6. Take In The Scenery

There’s nothing like a change in weather to get you motivated to grab your camera and take some amazing pictures. You can really capture what mother nature has to offer. I was so fortunate to capture these wicked shots of falling snowflakes in the night sky. Even though everything seemed pitch black once the flash went off the snowflakes appeared like magic. It felt like I was transformed into a winter wonderland.

For more great shots of catching the snowflakes check out my Instagram!

What are your favourite ways to spend a snow day? Do you have any books you can recommend? What TV show are you dying to catch up on? Share with me in the comments below!

Heart of snow picture – courtesy of Wikimedia Commons