For my own amusement

You know how they say that babies suck their thumbs or pacifiers for stimulation or amusement? That they use whatever's happening around them to entertain or inform? Well, I was thinking that as an adult, I have come up with some strategies for self amusement of my own....

When I am depressed, lonely, or just plain bored, here are some quirky things that I do:
1. Sing--in the shower, in the car, or to my kids....sometimes even a few dance moves thrown in. Sometimes I just lip-sync to my kids cause they think it's hilarious.

2. Crossword puzzles--have been totally addicted since highschool. I think I was the only teenager to bring a crossword magazine on a bus trip instead of a walkman. (I even bought the crossword game to play on my daughter's DS)

3. Making up nicknames. I simply adore nicknames. My kids have at least 25 a piece. I'm guessing the affinity began like this: Ever watched "The Wedding Date"? Everyone has a different nickname for the central character Kat....I totally identified! With a name like Jasmine (pre-Disney's Aladdin), I was called a different name by everyone: Jaz-ma-taz, Jazmanian Devil, Jazzy boo, Jazzy baby, and even Flower Child (and of course Princess Jasmine after '93)...and I love it!

4. Using big words. My mother loved big words and was always trying to expand our vocabulary. Her favorite bumper sticker was "Eliminate Obfuscation" (stop making yourself so hard to understand) which is, of course, ironic. I used to just speak this way unintentionally, until non-family members pointed out certain words that were not used in every day conversations. Now I only talk this way with my sisters, or if I'm trying to amuse myself by being opaque. Unfortunately, my 11 yr old's vocabulary is bigger than her comprehension because of this: she read that my birth month's flower was lily, and that it stood for humility---so she asked me if I was humiliated a lot.

5. Projects. I have way too many hobbies and I love them. Blend that with my OCD tendency to HAVE to finish something, plus my impatience that compels me to be fast, and you end up with someone who completes all her own projects, so she begs other people to work on theirs. I informed my husband last night that I'm changing my title from "Stay-at-home-Mom" to "Project Manager".

6. Organizing: it makes me happy to put things in order. It's kind of like a great big puzzle that I can put together without looking at the picture on the box, cause I get to make up the picture myself. (feel free to call me a dork in your head).

How do you amuse yourself?