Campanology and singing cats: how to conquer procrastination

Apparently if you were bored in the 1700s, an acceptable way of entertaining yourself was to poke prisoners with sticks. Students, especially those in their first and second years, can end up with a fair amount of time to kill – especially around Christmas when work starts to wind down (or you completely lose any form of motivation). As poking inanimate objects at convicted criminals isn’t reeeally an option these days, I’ve constructed a short list of more feasible and productive activities to get stuck into on a lazy Sunday afternoon – that is, if your hangover permits you to get out of bed:

• Get your Mr. Kipling on and bake. If nothing else, your flat mates will love you for it. Plus, freshly-baked cookies make an excellent apology gift for the neighbours if your house party got a little wild the night before. If you progress from fairy cakes to fancy meals and get stuck for inspiration, http://www.whatthefuckshouldimakefordinner.com/ is always a winner

• Get yourself out and about in Leeds. This may come as a shock, but there are things to do other than drinking. Visit the free city museum, dig out your camera and get snapping – there are tons of interesting buildings and sculptures scattered about. Plus, the next time someone asks you what Leeds is like, you’ll have more to say than, “Well, it has great nightlife…”

• Join a club or society. There’s heaps for you to choose from so you’re bound to find something, plus you aren’t obliged to go every week – perfect if an Otley Run crops up or you’ve forgotten an important deadline

• If a friend’s birthday is coming up, why not get creative and make their card/present instead of buying it? From photo albums portraying them before and after nights out to homemade birthday muffins, anything hand-crafted will go down a treat.

For those looking for something more unique, why not try:

• Reading tea leaves. Throw on a pair of gold earrings, a couple of bangles and one of the living room curtains (or failing this, your bed sheet) and you’re good to go. Just don’t do a Professor Trelawney and tell all your friends they’re going to die

• Bell-ringing. Those bells don’t ring themselves

• Yodeling. Although this may counteract some of the neighbourly goodwill you established earlier with the baking

Things that will threaten productivity and should be avoided at all costs:

• Twitter and Facebook. ‘Nuff said.
• Youtube – with over 48 hours of new videos being uploaded every minute, this truly is a procrastiner’s heaven
• StumbleUpon – the Internet’s take on Pringles; you just can’t stop stumbling
• Nyan Cat – especially the ten hour version
• 9gag.com – highly addictive and pure comic genius

So, be it painting or palm-reading, what are you waiting for – hop to it! After a quick look at Twitter, of course…