How Do You Have Fun?

I am finally at a point in my life where I have some time to enjoy myself but I've come to the sad realization that I don't know how to have fun.

I've always worked really hard. I didn't have a childhood... before I turned 6 years-old, I spent five hours every Saturday mowing and trimming my parent's one-acre lawn, Sundays were spent mopping and waxing floors and cleaning bathrooms. Starting at 7 years old, I also made the family dinners every weekday evening and did the clean-up before bed. I got my first paying job at 12 and worked to put myself through university twice, for two degrees.

It has never stopped. In my spare time, I find work to do.

You know the kind of fun I mean... where you are excited about it, really looking forward to it. Argh. I don't think I know how to do that. Was I supposed to learn that when I was a kid?

I'm very interested to know how do you have fun. All ideas are welcomed!

It may be a bit of a chore to find something that interests you but it can be done. First of all you have to figure out what catches your imagination. Do you like to participate in group activities or prefer being on your own? Are you interested in travel, music, dance, etc etc....
Yesterday I attended a travelogue at the local library, it included pictures, videos, and a really interesting talk from a couple who recently returned from a Scandinavian Tour. I really enjoyed it and got a list of all the other such presentations they will be offering this winter and will likely attend a few.
Check out you local paper to see if there are any clubs that would interest you. Both Cooking and Sewing classes are fun, dance classes are great exercise.
Thing is fun doesn't normally come to you you have to look for it, but once you get started you would be surprised by some of things that will amuse you.

This thread caught my eye because DH's dr. asked him something similar to that at his last appointment. She said, "when is the last time you had fun?" My first thought was "does she know how old we are?"
I thought asking an adult that question was odd; to me a better question would have been, "when did you last have a good time?" That one he was able to answer.
It all depends on your definition of fun, I guess. For me, gardening is fun (I actually look forward to setting out new plants), reading is fun, playing volleyball used to be a passion (too much arthritis now), genealogy is fun, family get-togethers are fun. For DH watching movies, putting plastic models or huge Lego buildings together, or traveling is fun.
Once you find something you enjoy, embrace it, whether it's something you do alone or with others. Put your heart into it. It doesn't have to be "fun" exactly, just something that makes you happy.

I have fun in all kinds of different ways. To me I can be sitting on the computer and reading a post that gets me laughing, or playing with my kitties, or doing a craft. To me "fun" is something you enjoy doing, no matter what that activity is.

I'm not much of an outdoors person, but one thing I do love to do when outside is go to a park and swing. I did that a few times this past summer while taking my daily walk. I have to walk by a park and depending on how I was feeling on the way back, I would walk over to the swings. It's not as easy as it looks, it's quite a work out actually!

And since I've been back to my job, I find that I laugh more too. I had forgotten how much I enjoy the social interaction of going to work. I'm actually having "fun" at my job again.

Sometimes you can find one fun thing leads to another as well. For example, I enjoy photography - I'm still learning and have lots more to learn as well.

To take photos we go walking in interesting places, then it's fun (to me) to find out more about the places that we walk in. We love walking too. Three loads of fun all in one.

It sounds as if you have an inquiring mind, and doing something like that can satisfy your thirst for knowledge but you're doing it for fun rather than work.

Originally Posted by SwampWitch

I'm very interested to know how do you have fun. All ideas are welcomed!

Click to expand...

Traveling is fun, even if it isn't far, exploring is a lot of fun, there is so much to see, I explore buildings and also towns and in nature you can find caves and animals in their native habitat.
Tennis is fun, swimming is fun. The beach is fun. Listening to live music is fun. Learning to speak another language is fun. The gym elliptical can be fun. Foosball is fun. Taking care of the garden is fun. Drawing and painting are fun. Taking pictures is fun, bonus points if they are pictures in nature or of animals. Researching something I love can be a lot of fun.
Hand making a gift, like scrap booking except on the computer, using pictures for someone very much is fun. Helping others is fun, putting a smile on their face or giving them something, be it words or something more concrete, to encourage them and let them know someone cares, like making special little pillows for people in the hospital.
Yoga class is fun. Making some meals is fun for me, like shrimp tempura sushi and miso soup. Hiking and camping are fun for me and my significant other, or long walks in the woods, nature is the best . Playing with my animals in the park or taking them on long walks and showing them in shows and the dogs in dog sports is fun.
Reading a great book is fun, the library can be fun if you have a big one that is well stocked. Writing is fun, fiction or your real feelings.

music....both playing piano and listening to recorded stuff
sewing
crafting
surfing the net
working with dollhouses and miniatures
daydreaming, lol!

I teach and art class at a private school in Albuquerque once a week. I make home made cards, scrapbook, get together with my mom, aunt and daughter once a month and do ceramics. I took my kids to see Monster Jam this past weekend (Monster trucks). I go to car shows. I am also learning how to knit.

My gardens are fun-not every day but buying new plants and planting them!! Or going to garden centers/nurseries.

Just going to antique shops or little new shops (don't have to buy anything or much) is fun for me.

Just sitting out on the patio in the late afternoon with a good book and a beer or wine is fun for me.

Knitting is kinda fun except I'm trying to knit and purl a scarf and getting my pattern mixed up (not fun).

I have lots of different things that are fun to me.Making bread...playing with my kitties...piecing together a quilt and watching it come together...cooking a new recipe for the first time...working with my husband getting his bee equipment ready for next year....going fleamarketing with my sister.I could go on and on...I think a person can have fun at almost anything if it's something you enjoy doing...even if it's something entirely new.

One of my favorite things to do is karaoke. I go out regularly on Thursday's and Saturday's. This is the best way for me to relieve tension. I actually do get up and sing. Some other things I enjoy are spending time with the cats, reading, bowling on the Nintendo WII, reading and posting on TCS and learning new songs to sing for going out. I just recently became unemployed and the hubby and I have cut back on a lot of things. He makes sure I get my karaoke nights though so I don't get to stressed out or feel like I am going nuts being stuck at home.

What I find "fun" now is very different to what I considered fun 10 years ago. I used to think going out and getting horrendously drunk with my girlfriends was "fun".

Now I get much more enjoyment from "date night" with DH. We'll go out to dinner, go see a movie, go for a drive, sit on the couch with a good movie, or just do something like that, which is somehing I enjoy.

Thank you all for the great ideas. You have each given me something to think about!