the bored box

Growing up, there were naturally a slew of words that my parents taught my siblings and I not to say. One of them, however, is rarely banned in households, and that is the word “bored.” Sure, it wasn’t actually banned in our home, either, but we were supposed to stay creative and play, finding something to do, or else Mom would say she’d give us more math to do. Lol

This ban on “bored” didn’t always work, though. Every once in awhile, no matter how hard we tried to come up with something to do, nothing would come to mind, or we just didn’t feel like doing the stuff we did think of. As such, Mom got creative herself and made us all a Bored Box. This Bored Box was filled with 3×5″ cards, each listing something we could do to fill our time, from cleaning and chores to science experiments to artistic things to games to toys we could play with, then put in an easy-to-see location in our school room. This Bored Box, although used less as we grew older, was referenced on many, many occasions by all of us and really helped, especially in the winter months, to keep us from going stir crazy (and our poor mother as well).

That was many years ago now, but with the new arrival of COVID-19, I’ve seen that many people are already becoming stir crazy at the thought of being cooped up at home, potentially for weeks or months, and two of my close friends have asked for recommendations and activities to keep busy. Naturally, if two people have asked for it, many are likely to also be looking for ideas, and thus I’ve decided to follow Mom’s example and make us all a “Bored Box.”

Some of these ideas will be seasonal or depend where you live, but for the most part, almost everyone should be able to do these, should you be interested. (If you live with someone with authority over you, such as your parents, make sure you follow your house rules and/or ask permission first!)

• Ask about people’s favorite books and read them
• Attempt to fix something broken in or around your home
• Bake something (you could try new recipes, or give the result to a neighbor or friend so long as they’re comfortable with it)
• Build a snowman
• Call your family or friends
• Clean your bedroom
• Clean your car
• Clean your garage
• Clean your house
• Clean your yard
• Climb a tree
• Cook something (you could try new recipes, or give the result to a neighbor or friend so long as they’re comfortable with it)
• Dance around your home
• Declutter the car
• Declutter the fridge, outside and/or in
• Declutter the garage
• Declutter the house
• Declutter the shed
• Decorate your home’s pavement outside with chalk (you could make it into a contest with those in your home)
• Do a Bible study with someone over Skype, FaceTime, or some other calling system
• Do anything on your bucket list that you can while at home
• Doodle something
• Draw something
• Exercise
• Get a Polaroid camera and make a scrapbook, cover and pages included
• Get started on your garden
• Have an airsoft war with those in your home
• Have a dart gun war with those in your home
• Have a game day with those in your home
• Have a paintball war with those in your home
• Have a tea party with those in your home
• Have a water fight with those in your home
• Introduce some of your friends by adding them to a new group chat
• Listen to an audio book
• Listen to a podcast
• Listen to music
• Make a book club using an online platform
• Make a fire in the firepit
• Make a bucket list
• Make a time capsule
• Make cards and take them to a nursing home (..maybe wait until after coronavirus for this one)
• Make playlists for your friends and give them the links
• Paint something
• Plan a dream garden
• Plan a dream house
• Plan a dream vacation
• Plant something and document its growth
• Play an instrument
• Program a new app
• Read a new book, or re-read an old one
• Read the whole Bible, start to finish, as fast as you can, highlighting anything interesting to study out afterwards
• Rearrange your furniture
• Recreate a famous painting
• Research what you need to have and do to go into your dream career or college, and make a plan — whether you’re able to complete it right now or not — to get to that point
• Research something random on Wikipedia and read the whole article (such as a war, country, movie, or how something is made)
• Ride your bike around the neighborhood (..maybe wait until after coronavirus for this one)
• Sculpt
• Set up a tent in the yard and have a family campout
• Sketch
• Start a blog
• Start a journal
• Start a YouTube channel
• Take a nap
• Take an online class to learn a skill
• Take a walk (..maybe wait until after coronavirus for this one)
• Teach your pet a new trick
• Try a new language
• Try a new TV show
• Try a new video or computer game with your family or friends
• Try a science experiment
• Try crochet
• Try knitting
• Try making a candle
• Try making jewelry
• Try making soap
• Try sewing
• Watch a documentary
• Watch a movie
• Watch a TEDTalk
• Work on budgeting (revisiting and reorganizing, budgeting for college, a new house, or a trip, etc.)
• Work on your flexibility with stretches
• Write a letter to a family member or friend

If you have a hobby or home activity you think of or enjoy doing yourself, please comment it below and I’d be happy to add it to this list!

This coronavirus may have us cooped up, but with as much time as we have, we may as well put it to use and learn something or have fun with those who live with you. Stay hydrated, and most of all: have fun!