Fun things to do until my friends come back [see details]?

How about some short-term volunteer work? There is probably a children’s or retirement home nearby where you could go and play your guitar for them. It not only be a bright spot in their day, but you may inspire some child to take up music.

How do you feel about pets? I used to pet-sit for people while they were on vacation. Walking dogs got me out of the house, and it was nice feeling responsible. The pay wasn’t so bad either.

And this might be a huge stretch, but how about asking your parents if they have any household projects that you could take on? :)

If you lived near me, I’d pay you to weed, prune, lop and turn the compost bed. Have some fun and also do some good.

It’s a good rehearsal for later on.

Do you have any close cousins that you could invite over to hang out with??

@Pied_Pfeffer Well, there used to be a retirement home close to my neighborhood, but I don’t think it’s there anymore :/ And kids? I can’t stand them.
I love animals, though. But things like pet-sitting aren’t popular where I live. And if I bring another animal, my mother will be soooo pissed off.
I do most of the housework anyway, and I’ll also visit my grandmother soon (to help her clean her apartment).

@gailcalled I don’t even know my neighbors…

@creative1 No, not really. I haven’t seen them since I was, um… five?

Anything else? Please?

Take a course on-line.

Want to learn a little conversational French or Spanish?

Put up flyers on the telephone pole in your neighborhood saying that you are available for odd jobs for the next few weeks.

@gailcalled Yay! French! And I did take on-line courses, last summer (I wanted to learn Finnish :p)

All the pets that I took care of stayed in their own homes. I visited them twice a day.

@gailcalled has some good ideas. There are often yard sales going on in our neighborhood. I bet they would like some help.

What about taking up biking, running, skating or just walking? Exercise might help you sleep more soundly at night…

Now that my knees have gone south, I would love to have a healthy and springy teen-ager come over and clean my refrigerator.

Where do you live?

@Pied_Pfeffer Probably just walking, since I don’t know how to ride a bike, and I’d only run if I really had to :p

Walk in the woods.
Take a bike ride.
See if you can find some organized sports going on near you: baseball or softball.
Go swimming.
Go shopping.

^^^She hates sports and places that are really crowded.

@gailcalled I live in Greece.

@marinelife See what @gailcalled said :)

Ah. Not exactly around the corner, more’s the pity. However, there must be people like me who live near you.

Harvest herbs and lavender; pick olives and dates; read The Odyssey in Greek.

How can anyone be bored in Greece, anyway?

@gailcalled You say that because you haven’t seen the people who live near me, haha.
Where? The only thing close to nature around here is a flower pot. And the murder forest, of course :p
Good idea :) but I’ve already read Odyssey. In modern Greek, though.

You mean to say that you live in the one spot in Greece that isn’t spectacularly beautiful?

Read Cavafy, Plato, Sappho, Aeschylus, Aristophanes.

@gailcalled Exactly! I live in a city that looks like this (the picture shows the place where the tourists go, which is like half an hour from my neighborhood, if I take the bus).
I love Cavafy and Aristophanes. Haven’t read Plato, Aeschylus, or Sappho yet, but I’m reading a lot this summer, so… :)

Do you have a camera or does a relative have one they would trust you with? Take up photography. It’s amazing how quickly the time flies while you take photos and you can share pictures of your beautiful country with us via Flickr.

What about starting a blog? You could even write it about your fledgling experiences as a photographer!

Look for some creative writing competitions, write stories and submit them.

I like the volunteering ideas or the idea of you finding a local person who could do with some help. The bonus of those types of ideas is you make more friends as a byproduct.

@this_velvet_glove: Where is that? You’re right. It’s pretty dreary.

Never mind. It’s Thessaloniki, right?

How about Geocaching in your area?

@gailcalled Yes, it’s Thessaloniki. Air pollution, sea pollution… Such a charming place! haha

@Bellatrix I could take pictures of weird buildings. (I’m not going to take pictures of the forest, no no, not going there again)

@Pied_Pfeffer Um… no. But thanks :)

@this_velvet_glove, be creative! Weird buildings, street scenes that capture the life that happens in your city. Doesn’t have to be the tourist stuff. It could be the market on Sunday, or the old guy who sells newspapers on the corner, things that are the icons for you of where you live. You don’t even need a fancy camera if your phone has a camera use that. Do a search for photography tutorials on YouTube and Google. I would love to see what you come up with and I know there are experienced photographers here who might be persuaded to give you some feedback! You can but ask!

@Bellatrix Great idea, thanks! :)