Read. Do it right though. Sit down in a comfortable chair. Turn off your computer so you're not constantly getting up and checking your email. Maybe turn on some music. Allocate a sufficient block of time, so you can become truly engrossed in your book. Good fiction has a way of taking your mind elsewhere that no other medium can match. It's the most satisfying and fulfilling way to relax that I know of. edit: minor…
Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
31–40 of 90 posts
One of the downsides, for me, is that I can end up 'out of it' until I actually finish the story, yet other times, I'll stop reading at a lull in the story, and never pick the book back up again, because I didn't stop at a point that was engrossing enough to pull me back into the storyline (e.g. Diamond Age).
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#32I read in my hammock. http://Eaglesnestoutfittersinc.com has the worlds best hammock. Bought one in 2002 and might say it's the best thing I've ever purchased. I can toss it up almost anywhere in a matter of seconds, kick back and read, take a nap, and then get back to work.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#33Well...Apart from reading fiction/non fiction, ( I usually alternate between them ), I've taken up painting, and it's soothing to say the least. Put on some light music and let the brush follow it's will :)
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#34Yoga.
Cook (then eat).
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#35My girlfriend and I like to roleplay as Atlas Shrugged characters.
She dresses up as Dagny Taggart.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#36Hot shower (as hot as you can tolerate) for 30 minutes.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#37Usually I read a book or play StarCraft II/Civilization V/Halo Reach. Depends on whether I’ve come to hate technology that day or not. Cleaning stuff also helps me relax, but sometimes it just ends up becoming busy work. Closing Colloquy and Skype helps too.
I was going to say StarCraft II, but then I remembered that it actually causes me stress.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#38I read Hacker News.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#39I work with my hands. As a computer worker, my brain is tired at the end of the day and my eyes sore while other parts of my body and mind are restless from the day-long sitting station.
So I go on craigslist buy old things which I fix in my garage. Sometimes it's a PC but usually it is something more organic or mechanical like a piece of furniture, or an old mechanical tool. Very restful satisfying and useful. I think working out i still needed though.
Re: Ask HN: What do you do to relax?
#40Surf.