Finding Joy in Insanity: 11 Fun Things to Try While the World Burns

Unconventional Hobbies to Find Joy in a Chaotic World

The world has reached a point of insanity that becomes more unbelievable every day. We go on about our lives pretending we’re okay, but deep down, we’re feeling hopelessness welling up. It seeps into our days, making the usual look pointless and sucking the joy out of everything.

This is where I come in. I want to give you some ideas on how to reconnect with joy again, even in spite of the state of the world. And I’m not talking about breathing exercises or gratitude prayers. I’m talking about creating fun through absurdity. This is a strategy I came across many years ago when my work life was one insane situation after another. While my coworkers ripped their hair out and ranted, I embraced the insanity. I cackled, “This is hilarious!” and gave them crazy eyes.

Now, imagine tapping into that same energy and trying one of these hobbies.

11 Things to Try When Nothing Is Fun Anymore:

1. Lock Picking — Learn the art of opening locks without the key. This is a good hobby for people needing to feel a bit Jason Bourne while learning a real skill in an unpredictable world.
2. Befriend a Crow — Imagine being outside, and suddenly, a flock of crows flies over to join you. As protective birds that like to bring gifts, you’ll feel like that DnD character that no one realized was so helpful to have around until all of a sudden…
3. LARPing — Do like the Joker and turn your anger for the world into a costumed character who no longer gives a shit.
4. Extreme Ironing — Oh, the thrill of an ordinary hike in the woods with your friends, where you abruptly pull out a tiny ironing board to — surprise! — pretend to iron your clothes. What a way to communicate you’ve lost your mind, but you’re still safe to be around.
5. Taxidermy — Direct all that generational trauma from colonialism into honoring a poor woodland creature. Make it a martyr to a world that doesn’t care. You care. You care enough to preserve it.
6. “Yarn Bombing” — Knit to make public spaces nicer. This is perfect when you want to make sure you’re expressing yourself in a positive way, in spite of the madness you feel inside. Put on those crazy eyes and go decorate the town with bright, happy colors and whimsical designs!
7. News Raiding — Reached your limit with ridiculous news reporting? Can’t stomach one more headline about how “this time” Trump will face justice? Good news. There’s a harmless way to respond: photobomb the news. You can find out where your local stations will be, and you just… pick your nose, impersonate a celebrity, smile like an idiot, or show them your crazy eyes.
8. Raise Spiders — Jumping spiders have personalities, and building their habitats can be fun. Also, similar to crow friends, having a tiny army of jumping spiders can make you feel better prepared for the unlikely.
9. Mushroom Hunting — Here we are again with useful skills, plus learning how to identify mushrooms will make you valuable to the group if you find yourself on the run from Handmaid’s Tale-type
10. Crocheting — Hear me out. Crocheting isn’t just for grandmas anymore. It’s a hobby gaining popularity and the stuff you can make is crazy. Isn’t that what we want? Follow the link and tell me it doesn’t give you ideas. What a constructive way to express yourself and have something to show for it.
11. TikTok Challenges — Please tell me you’ve at least done the tortilla slap. If not, if you haven’t tried any TikTok challenges, you’re missing out on some of the best fun out there.

Give Yourself Permission to Feel Better

Just as we saw with entertaining the troops during world wars, it’s necessary to find humor in hard times. Comedians have always kept us going, but we also need to dig within ourselves and find it.

Start by doing something ridiculous and enjoy the absurdity.

“A good laugh overcomes more difficulties and dissipates more dark clouds than any other one thing.” ~Laura Ingalls Wilder

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• **If you have more ideas of how we can all channel our collected feeling of insanity and hopelessness, please leave a comment. I’ll add it to the list and link it to your profile.***

© 2023 Becky Troup. All rights reserved.