It's been a week since my last exam for the academic year and I've got three months of free time on my hands. Unfortunately, I don't have anything to spend this time on. I was bored out of my mind last summer and was going crazy from being in the house all the time. That's why this time I'm going to do something productive with my time (or at least try).

Initially, I planned to start up some new hobby (e.g. learn how to play an instrument) and get a job to save up some funds for the next year (and get some actual work experience) but honestly, I'm not sure what I want to do or how to go about doing it. I've been looking for temporary jobs that last throughout the summer, and I can't seem to find much that requires little or no prior experience. As you may have guessed, I have essentially no experience working, which is another reason I'd like to get a job now.

For a hobby, I can't really do anything that requires money unless I get a job (being a student, I'm dirt poor). So unless I first get a job, my options here are pretty limited. I guess I could start some programming project or something as I have been meaning to create some web applications to get used to web development for a while now, but I'm bored of programming at the moment. I want to do something new, but I can't really think of anything.

To end what was probably an unnecessarily long and whiny post, I'm asking for suggestions on where to look and what to look for when it comes to a job as well as what I could spend my free time doing so I don't feel like a rotting corpse sitting inside all day. I'm aware it's quite an open-ended question, but I'm not really sure what else to ask. gamedev.net just seems to be quite good at giving advice like this based on my lurking. Humble Internet people browsing an off-topic section in a game development forum, please offer your wise advice!

EDIT: I forgot to say I live in the UK if that somehow changes anything.

Travel (hitchhiking), ride bicycle, hike, swim (um, not sure about this in UK), learn a language (?), (get a girlfriend but that's a BS advice), build a trebuchet from scrap, walk around UK, read, live in the nature in a tent, fish, do woodwork, etc.

Fly to hawaii and live on a beach while you learn to surf?

Since you're at a game programming forum, I might think that:

a) you know how to program
b) you know computer graphics

Well, there is a lot of bugs at Blender (http://www.blender3d.org)

While too late to apply for Goggle Summer of Code, there's nothing stopping you from being one of the part time Blender developer.

Look for jobs relating to your field, possibly an internship. Not only would this give you something to do, but it would make you more valuable while earning money, and you'll probably learn a lot. Besides that, enjoy the summer. I'm almost at the point where I have to work 9-5 job, since I will be graduating soon, so time flies by quick. Have funnnnn. Enjoy life. You don't wanna look back and think you could have been happier if you did this or that. Meet new people and make new friends( don't drop the old ones though ). And especially, make sure you do something out of your comfort zone. And last advice again is to GO DO SOMETHING, instead of asking people on the internet.

regards, D.Chhetri

How about writing? Not necessarily creative, but just on any topic? Blogging, perhaps? Or even a google site (which you can monetize, and get money from off of the basis of ad revenue, but this only makes a small sum of money, unless you get A LOT of clicks), but it's still fun, especially if the blog gets popular.....

Other than that, most of the other stuff I can think of requires money......in some way or form, so I don't really have any other suggestions.

And as for jobs, I myself was considering working at a bookstore, cause they don't really require prior experience. Good luck

Pick a whole load of nearby tourist attractions you've never been to and spend some time visiting them.
I find it funny the number of people who live in London and have never been on the london eye or to the tower of London, or the number of people who live here in Nottingham and have never even been to Nottingham Castle :-)

This should pass a few days.

Tying into that i find photography is a relaxing passtime when i am not sat in front of a computer screen, it helps me relax and is a good excuse to get on the motorbike and go to places i wouldnt go otherwise with the intention of taking photos...

If you're strapped for cash, there are lots of free tourist attractions, and you can always scrub the camera idea, or just borrow one from a friend...

Of course these are some of my hobbies and different people enjoy different things...