So you’re trapped on a deserted island. While this sounds like a harrowing, frightful experience, why not make the best of it? Just think of all those times when you just wanted to be by yourself. Now you have that time in spades. After securing life’s necessities (food, water, shelter, building a fire) try to remember all those quizzes that asked, “What 10 [fill in the blank] would you want with you if you were stranded on a desert island?”. Then realize you weren’t prepared to be stranded and didn’t bring any of these things. So, in light of this unpreparedness, I’m happy to provide some suggestions on how to pass the time. The common theme here is plenty of time.

1/ Get that “all over tan” you always wanted. Better take it easy at first because sun block and aloe vera are probably hard to come by (unless you can secure some aloe vera plants).
2/ Hone your coconut dish making skills. Odds are, you’re trapped on a tropical island and will get to know the myriad ways to prepare a coconut. Who knew there were so many different ways to prepare coconut?
3/ Carve your own chess set. Much like Tim Robbins’ character in The Shawshank Redemption, you now have all the time in the world to build your own chess set. If the rock you find isn’t very malleable with your self-manufactured tools, use wood.
4/ Build the finest sand castle the world has ever seen.
5/ Capture an animal and train it. Wouldn’t it be great to have some sort of pet during your stay on the deserted island? Some animals are probably easier to be trained than others. Find out which ones those are.
6/Learn how to make alcohol from the indigenous fruits. It would be good to have some booze. Fruit ferments naturally so there’s no need for modern equipment! Figure out which fruits ferment into the best tasting alcohol.
7/ Finally lose the weight you’ve been meaning to lose for so long. You probably won’t have much of a choice; you’re going to lose weight. Throw in some exercise routines – jogging, sit-ups, pushups, and you might end up in the best shape of your life.
8/ Make a detailed map of where you are. Finding a writing utensil might be tough but you could manage Robinson Crusoe style. Perhaps the dried skin of an animal could serve as a writing surface. Name the landmarks; after all, it’s your island.
9/ Practice your singing skills. It’s important to use your voice when there’s no one to talk to. Why not practice singing? Maybe you can come up with a catchy ditty that could be a big hit after you get back to civilization.
10/ Write the great novel. Supposedly everyone has a novel within them. Find it and write it. Ideas for writing surfaces and utensils are above. If you do make it off the island it’s a sure bet people are going to want to read your story.

So there you have it. Now the next time you think you might become stranded on an island, be sure to print out this suggestion list and bring it with you…and keep some paper handy so you don’t have to dry any animal skins.

Posted in Things to do

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