You’re finally free from the shackles of schoolwork! How are you going to use all that free time?!
Wait — you’re interning, working or taking summer classes? Oh. Well, good for you!
No matter your summer situation, it’s important to make the most of these sun-soaked months of at least semi-freedom. Lounging by the pool is relaxing, but when fall starts up, you better believe the first question on everybody’s lips will be, “So what did you do this summer?” Don’t be left standing slack-jawed and mumbling. Here are some fun ideas for a lively, refreshing break:
1. Host a Food-Related Contest.
No, seriously. Do it. Choose your favorite dish — one you really can’t get enough of — determine whether this is an Eat Off (AKA see who can down the most grub in a limited amount of time) or a Cook Off (where friends compete to make the very best dish possible), and launch a Facebook event out of it. It doesn’t have to be super official. Just create a list of criteria for your contest, and come up with a few prizes and award categories. Sure, you can go vanilla and choose first through third place, but the real fun comes with wacky winners, like “Best Faces Made While Gorging” or “Best Pie That Almost Bears a Dead Celebrity’s Resemblance.” (Come on, we’ve all seen Elvis toast — what about Tupac Cherry Cobbler?!)
For inspiration, check out Pie Contest in a Box, or pick up some ideas from the folks at Pietopia.
2. Instagram a Reason to Smile Every Day This Summer.
When people ask you what you did over the break, it’s easy to respond with blank stares and silence. The past 10 weeks can blur together, causing you to forget all kinds of important memories. Every day this summer, I challenge you to find one moment in the day that makes you smile, no matter how simple or seemingly trivial. Snap a photo and share it. Organize ’em with the hashtag #reason2smile, and get your friends in on the fun.
3. Cook Something That Intimidates You.
I don’t care if that means broccoli cheddar soup that doesn’t come from Panera’s tureens or a finger-crossing, look-at-it-wrong-and-it-deflates savory souffle, select a dish to call your own, and commit to making it as many times as necessary until you can prepare it without breaking a sweat. By that time, it’ll be your dish, and there’s nothing better than that sweet feeling of owning a recipe.
4. Host a Scavenger Hunt.
You’ve probably heard of our irrational love of scavenger hunts. Stop acting cool for just a second, and imagine gathering teams of people at a local coffee shop (or hangout of your choice), having everyone suggest ideas of ridiculous things to capture on camera, then drawing names out of hats to determine teams. Team leaders are those with cars, and everyone pitches in for gas money. You can gather evidence — like asking a tattoo artist to draw a “tattoo” on you with an ink pen or snagging a mushroom from a pizza parlor — or take photos of your team as they tackle your various challenges (human pyramid in the middle of Wal-Mart, anyone?). Set a time to return to your starting point, where everyone will share their photos, evidence, and tales of absolute absurdity. Whoever completes the most tasks wins. For an extra competitive incentive, everyone can throw in $5 and the winning team takes it all.
Just don’t encourage doing anything illegal. Nobody wants that.
5. Plan a Road Trip to a Terribly Kitschy Destination.
No matter where you live, there’s a company’s headquarters that offers semi-interesting and totally ridiculous tours. Or a world record-breaker. Seriously. It doesn’t matter whether you’re splitting the cost of gas to drive to the nearest White Castle (which may be states away, as my friends did one year), or heading to the World’s Largest Ball of Yarn, embrace the weird adventures the summer brings. The lamer the destination, the more it reinforces a critical truth in life: the destination doesn’t matter. It’s all about the journey you take.
Looking for off-the-wall road trip ideas? Look no further than the Weird U.S. book series.