Days Out With Friends

This is sort of half 'appeal', half 'generic thread', so I'll get the appeal bit out the way first.

Basically, I'm sort of stumped for ideas as to what to do with my group of friends. I've got about 4 friends who are closest to me, and I want to do more with them as were all splitting to go to university in two months. During this 'interim' time, I'd love to do some fun activities and meet-ups with them, but for the life of me I can't think of anything. So far, we've been to the beach, and had a meal. But now I can't think of anything. I've never really been a social person at the best of times, and thinking of stuff to do is tricky, very tricky.

Basically, what sort of things could I suggest that is neither drastically expensive or divisive? What could we do?

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And so what do you guys do during these hot summer months? What do you do with your friends? Any good stories about your time with friends?

just hang out. planning stuff to do seems forced. especially when money is a factor.

what do i do during the hot summer months? hang out on the internet in air conditioning. spend as many weekends as possible with Sam, either at my place (where we typically just hang out and be a fairly boring couple, go out to eat, watch movies/TV, etc) or at hers (where we hang out with her family and swim and stuff).

i have a pretty boring life from an outsider's view, but i'm pretty happy with it.

Do drugs and party.

Be like the teenagers on Skins.

The best times I've had with friends have always been doing inane things that don't require any planning whatsoever. Driving around Auckland with Mia, Monty Python shennanigans with Nicky, napping on Binda's bed after work at the timber yard, spontaneous street-karaoke with Dan/Danielle/Elly/Rory and sitting at the ruins on Arthur's Seat with Tara, not to mention gaming with pretty much anyone who has ever come over (special mention to Gauntlet: Dark Legacy). These times may be incredibly simple and in some cases not even full of laughter but simply just relaxing... but even so, these times are the ones that I remember far more than any heavily organised events. Just enjoy time with each other.

If you can't find the conversation, have a drink or two or do something stupid to break the ice, but once that ice is broken it should be just like chatting in #eoff or posting on the forums - come up with a conversation, let it roll, enjoy. And in some cases, with the right people and in the right moments, no conversation is needed at all. Although those times are admittedly rare.

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Originally Posted by Loony BoB

(special mention to Gauntlet: Dark Legacy).

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RIP, sweet prince.

Go for a walk, go out for ice cream, watch a movie, make dinner together, play a game, go for a bike ride, hang out on the computer, play board games or cards, etc.

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Originally Posted by Tifa's Boobs

Be like the teenagers on Skins.

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NOOOOO

Just saw the "any good stories" bit, so I'll elaborate a bit on some of the above (and other things)...

- Sus (cousin) and I would spend some nights in Masterton at the end of her driveway, sitting on the side of the road, talking about absolutely everything. She's one of the few people in this world that I can be 100% myself around at all times. With her, I'm an open book - in fact, she was the first person I could be that kind of open with, I'd say. We would talk our thoughts without having to bother thinking about whether or not it's right to say it. I can't wait to do it again someday when I get back to NZ!

- Every Saturday when I was 16 after working at the timber yard I would head over to Binda's place and we would just do whatever. She was closest and somewhat on the way home. On many occasions I would be absolutely knackered so would just talk with Binda about life, music, whatever until I fell asleep. Sometimes we just wouldn't bother talking at all.

- In the last year of high school, Mia and would study a fair bit together and often we would go to her horse and see how he was doing and whatever. Generally it always involved her driving us to wherever, listening to music, discussing life, whatever.

- Nicky and I really bonded closer to the end of high school and perhaps after high school, when she became someone I could really call one of my best friends. The best and most enjoyable times were always when we met up at West City (I think that's what it's called? Wow, my memory is balls), eating random food, feeding seagulls, hissing at children and talking in incredibly terrible accents. It's been so long since then, but I can't help but feel it will be instinctive to be just as silly when we next meet. I can see Nicky rolling her eyes already...

- Singing 5ive, Lion King, Righteous Brothers and R. Kelly songs with Dan. There is nobody I would rather do karaoke with more than that wonderful bastard. To be fair I could probably make a seperate list of everything that Dan and I managed to do but for me the lasting memory of me and Dan hanging out will always involve singing, be it to the meerkats at the zoo or...

- Dan, Danielle, Elly, Rory and myself - drunk, walking down Marionville Road towards our flat after a night out seeing Rhys Darby (this pre-dates Flight of the Conchords, we're that cool) and spontaneously starting to sing Bohemian Rhapsody. It was amazing. We were those roudy drunk wankers who kept people awake as they walked home at around 1-2am on a weeknight. We were out of tune, we got some lines buggered up, we were definitely loud enough to annoy people despite their windows being closed. I would have hated us had I not known us. It was beautiful.

- Walking with Jess in the rain when she wanted a cigarette and I wanted to get away from the group atmosphere during the August 2008 thing. It wasn't the best of times, admittedly, but there was something really nice about walking in the rain with a friend without really giving two trouts about the weather.

- Hugging Levian on Princes Street. So much love <3

- Just six days ago at around this time (well, maybe a few hours earlier) Tara and I planned to climb Arthur's Seat, but early on the trek we got to the ruins and just sat down to catch a bit of breath and take in the view. In the end, we sat/lay there in gorgeous sun with the perfect breeze coming on to us for a good hour or so, talking about stuff, things and whatever else. In retrospect, despite that stupid glaring light that came off some random window or whatever, we probably should have just stayed there instead of attempting to get to the top (and subsequently going all the way around instead).

Dammit, now I miss all my amazing friends. THANKS A LOT FORMY.

I get drunk with my friends at least twice a week. Most say there is probably something wrong with me but I'm having to much of a good time to care. Have a taxi ordered as we speak to go into town. You should try it out! :monster:

Start a gang, heckle a local rival gang. Then as the sun sets, take to the streets and rumble.

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Originally Posted by Calliope

Start a gang, heckle a local rival gang. Then as the sun sets, take to the streets and rumble.

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I honestly don't know if it'd be more appropriate to make a West Side Story or a Warriors reference right now.

I don't have friends, so therefore, I don't have nights out with them.

No seriously. I don't have friends. Or well. I have My Friend Sean, but I only see him like 1x a year 'cuz he's a jerk like that.

When I -did- have friends, though, we'd usually go to the bar after work, all crapped up looking in our work clothes and whatnot and blow all of our money there.
But I hate going to bars - always have, always will. I'd rather have people over and cook dinner and everyone get drunk at my place.

I'd love to have a night out with my Sanity though. That'd be pretty awesome.

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Originally Posted by Calliope

Start a gang, heckle a local rival gang. Then as the sun sets, take to the streets and rumble.

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just play it cool, nicky. reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeal cool.

A good several mentions of what to do in this thread already. Have a picnic! Picnics are always great.

My bessst friend and I do not spend days out. When I visit her, we spend our time indoors watching horror films, bad slasher films or Metalocalypse, shredding eachothers' Wreck This Journal, playing Silent Hill, watching giant squid and deep sea creature documentaries, making food, smoking hookah, hailing Satan and talking trout about everyone we went to high school with whose lives are worse than ours. We exit the comfort of indoors only to walk our dogs and to get cupcakes.

All the people suggesting that you just... hang out. I mean, I get it. There's really no better way to know how good of a friend you have until you can just hang out with them in your PJs and shoot the trout and it's totally natural and awesome.

But c'mon, try for the extraordinary!

Suggestions:

• Rent ATVs and go ride through sand dunes.
• Do a crawl of any kind. Del Murder and I are planning on doing an ice cream crawl! 8 ice cream shops, riding to each one on bikes, stopping at parks along the way.
• Have your own olympics day where you plan out events like knocking each other off platforms with giant foam sticks.
• Go camping
• Have a pizza making night, or a taco making night. Any kind of communal cooking.
• Set up a movie station outside, bring out pillows and blankets and watch movies under the stars.
• Do an epic hike.
• Learn how to make fire together. Or do a survival training class together.
• Sign up for one of those new themed runs, ie: zombie run, color run, electric lights run, etc.
• Get lazer tag guns and play a game out in the streets of your city.
• Be a tourist for a day in your own town.
• Do a photo walk.
• Bury treasure and create a map telling your friends how to find it.
• Take a road trip.
• Go to the beach at sunset and make smores over a firepit.
• Go white water rafting.
• Water balloon fight/tournament
• Volunteer together for something like habitat for humanity.

I mean, I could literally go on and on. Be adventurous, try new things.

I'm going to try to think of free stuff:

• Craft night - get a bunch of people together and paint, collage, knit, draw, sculpt; do something creative. Giggles & I did this yesterday.
• Improv group/Start a flash mob/Pretend you're in an episode of Scrubs!
• Go to your library! You can get free books, magazines, audiobooks and ebooks, but you can also get DVDs, and sometimes videos, records, videogames, toys or craft/building equipment, based on the scope of your library system.
• Key Party.
• A lot of cities have a free monthly Art Walk, where a bunch of local businesses open up their doors and display various exhibitions for the night. I'm thinking of getting a bunch of people together and putting on a show, after we've all sat around making the art together.
• Any sort of trivia/videogame/gambling for pennies night, because nothing seals a friendship like the glory of victorious gloating.
• You know, I think there's still something to be said for good old fashioned pranking.
• Set up a "free advice" booth on your sidewalk and see what kind of people come and ask you questions. I'd do this with a phone-number if I had a landline.
• Many art galleries and museums have free days, as well as free lecture series or events like outdoor movies - it's worth checking out, along with any other landmarks or notable things your city may have to offer.
• Book club, movie night, cards against humanity, political debate, posting up street art or writing sweet notes to slip into books for strangers to find, walk around trying to make strangers laugh or smile and award yourself a point for each person you get - the world can be an amazing place.

Key... party?

Hanging out seems cool, and most of what Miriel listed also seem like fun things to do, now only if I had local friends to do them with.

Thanks guys for all the amazing responses: I find it heart-warming that so many helped me out with this social dilemma.

It was just the only thing was I really couldn't do spontaneity. I love planning things and just randomly phoning up a friend and saying "hey let's do [x]" seems unnatural and scary. I like to plan things like a week in advance (or at least a few days).

I know, I'm very strange like that.

I don't think that's strange. People like to schedule their time and they often have other commitments. I would much rather plan something in advance than try to convince people to drop everything at the last minute. Good luck!

Why don't you plan a movie night, or a cooking night? You guys could make dinner together and then watch a movie or something. Cooking with friends is always fun. Me and my friend Sam used to do it almost every night.

I only go with spontaneity with people I know really well. Otherwise, schedule in advance, please.

Play hotseat Civ IV!!

Hux, myself and Jiro did that when were together for a few days and it was freaking fantastic.

orgies

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Originally Posted by Pike

Play hotseat Civ IV!!

Hux, myself and Jiro did that when were together for a few days and it was freaking fantastic.

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Oh man, so much this. Just doing something while chatting is enough to get double the fun. Good company is its own reward, and adding in some Civ IV or some Earth Defence Force or hell ultimate frisbee down at the beach - whatever you want, man!

I WISH I WAS THERE SO I CAN BE BROS AS MANSA MUSA WITH YOU GUYS *sobs*

Phone people out of the blue, have a gathering.

Honestly some of the best times I remember from late school/uni were just getting random phone calls to go to a friends house or have them come over and we'd just get some crappy Tesco value pizzas, cola and a bottle of vodka or two and just stay up till late playing games together - usually Mario Party or Mario Kart... or even drunken monopoly... just bantering about random stuff the entire time.

Or we'd just go out walking. Like, literally, wondering aimlessly - just enjoying each others company and the weather.

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Originally Posted by Jiro

Earth Defence Force

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oh my god yes

Dak bro I have some amazing memories of all of us drinking and taking turns playing fightan games on 360

Great times

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Originally Posted by Laddy

I WISH I WAS THERE SO I CAN BE BROS AS MANSA MUSA WITH YOU GUYS *sobs*

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YES OMG WE NEED TO DO THIS

I'm 27 years old and still have the friends I had in highschool. I suppose since I was the only one who went to college that made it easy. Anyways, we just party together :p 3 of my good friends I play a lot of video games with and the other I go to festivals, fishing and hunting with.

We hang a sheet up in the backyard and project a movie, which we watch from our heated pool. It's pretty fab.