When the writers out in Hollywood began their strike a month ago, it really didn’t affect me.

Sure, I support their cause – everyone should be compensated fairly for the work that they do – but I didn’t really care if they were striking because my Thursday night line-up was still intact.

Now, one month later, I am beginning to feel the pinch.

Whereas I used to stress out about the sheer number of shows backed up on my DVR (“Ahh! There is never enough time to watch them all!”), the lack of new episodes of my favorite shows this past week has left my poor DVR out of a job. And left me with nothing to do after a long day at my job.

I have been forced to get a little more creative with my free time and have discovered some wonderful new activities to enjoy beyond my couch and remote. If you too are experiencing a little non-reality-TV-withdrawal, fill your newfound free time with some of these:

Reading For Pleasure: I didn’t realize just how little I have read in the past year until I sat down and began reading some new books this week. My God, there are so many good books out there right now! My new favorites (that everyone absolutely must read) are: A Thousand Splendid Suns and Eat, Pray, Love. I finished both in under a week!

Discovering New Music: Everyone knows iTunes is the bomb for finding just about anything, but my favorite feature is when they recommend new artists based on the music you like. I started playing around with it and three hours later I had found some awesome new stuff (like Dave Barnes). Read More »