Our friends at the Halifax have noted that the Credit Crunch is making more people stay at home as opposed to going to the pub, cinema or eating out at a restaurant - and quite right too. As the Tightest Man in Britain I recommend shunning the pub and trying these FREE or cheap pastimes this Saturday night:
1. Drive up and down your local High Street playing "Spot the Mutton", "Youngest Underage Drinker", "High Street Honey" or other such hilarious laugh-at-the-drinker games.
2. Get all your books on Amazon. To me Amazon is the perfect online marketplace as it is free to list and actually makes sales! Spend an evening decluttering your life. Once the initial flurry of book sales occurs (usually about 1 month) then stick to a strict one in/ one out book policy.
3. Get the tent out. When I was small I would have loved it if my dad set up a tent in the back garden and we "camped out". We could have had an adventure just 10 yards from the house (I wasn't that lucky I'm afraid!)
4. Gardening. I like when it snows as it is the only time when my garden looks the same as everyone else's! It doesn't have to be that way though. Imagine the fulfilling feeling of crashing down on the sofa after a hard days gardening, perhaps to a meal containing veg you've grown on your own patch.
5. Head to the hills. This is my personal favourite. If you are lucky enough to live near to a range of hills then don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Appreciate what you have on your doorstep.
6. Have a computer retro night. Most people in their late twenties will have some sort of old computer console lying about somewhere. Dig it out, brush it down and take a stroll down computer memory lane. Just be prepared to remember just how addictive Tetris is.
7. Go to the beach and have a sandcastle competition. Everyone made a sandcastle as a child but have you made one as an adult? Challenge your partner to a competition and see if you can recreate Edinburgh Castle in silica.
8. Read the books you've never read. We've all bought books and then left them lying on the shelf - its human nature. Take the chance to read it.
9. Now after reading it (any book can be read in a weekend), review it. Just write your thought down and contribute them to the net.
10. Chase the sunset. Sunsets are very beautiful things wherever you are. You don't have to be in the Highlands of Scotland to be in awe of them. They bless Central London as much as they do the Sands of Morar.
11. Blog. Web 2.0 needs bloggers so get your thoughts online today. At blogger it is free and easy (and fun!)
12. Pot luck. Stick "your town name" + "free" + "things to do" into your preferred search engine.
13. Start an old style hobby. Your granny probably liked to knit or cook biscuits, and she probably learned these skills from her granny. The old timers knew that these cheap and simple pastimes were both pleasurable AND cheap!
14. Get down to the park. Grab your football and get down the park. Jackets for goal posts and all that!
15. Pooh sticks, pillow fights, paper airplane races, conkers, Easter egg rolling. All these games are fun and cheap. Add in hide and seek and you could take up a full day of fun little games.
16. Pool, darts and dominoes. If you are too grown up for the above then how about a family Pool, darts and dominoes tournament?
17. Cinema night. No I'm not going crazy - I don't mean shelling out good money to go to your local Cineworld. The Tightest Man in Britain suggests bringing the sofa right up to the telly, turning the lights off and pulling a blanket right over you and your loved ones. The flicks at a tenth of the price.
18. Cards and Chess. Today the latest fad comes and goes in a heartbeat. Who will remember Tamagotchi Cyberpets in fifty years time? Chess and Playing cards have however stood the test of time. The reason for this is that they are fun! Learn to love these games again. Time flies when you are engrossed in a game of chess.
19. Crimewatch. Save up all your murder mystery programs for a couple of weeks and then have a crime night. All the family pop in 50p a programme and guess who they think the murderer is - winner takes all.
20. Do nothing:
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
Ross Taylor is the author of "Money, Mortgages and Magic" and "The No B.S. Credit Crunch Ready Guide to Buy to Let in 2008". Ross is a successful Financial Adviser specialising in First Time Buyers and Buy to Let. He owns over £2million worth of property in the UK and regularly gives lectures on Financial Planning. To read more by Ross please visit
[http://www.uncommonadvice.co.uk]
