[RICHARD] So, What Do You Do To Keep The Family Occupied Until The Weather Breaks?

Another dreary Sunday afternoon in Utopia.

How many Sundays over the last 4 or 5 months have you had the following conversation in your house: "What do you wanna do?"  I dunno, what do you want to do?"  Gets old after a while, no?

When it comes right down to it, your options are really limited around here in terms of stuff to do.  Lets see, you can visit the area malls and count the empty storefronts and speculate about which will be the next to close.  Your other options include eating, drinking and gambling, but, if you have kids the casinos are most likely not a good choice.  And keep in mind too, not everyone has a bottomless wallet.

So, you pile into the car.  Anywhere near the water is pretty chilly this time of year so that rules out the east.  Patriot Place to the north has been reduced to eating and drinking and you've had enough of the Wrentham Outlets.  Chances are you've visited The Patriot's Hall Of Fame, worthwhile but, once is enough.

To the west is Rhode Island and Connecticut and again your options are fairly limited to eating, drinking or gaming.  Walking around Boston or Providence is fun...the first hundred times.  Besides, 40 degrees with drizzle is not really ideal walking around weather.  There are great museums in Boston that a worth a look.

So, how bout the movies?  Yeah, not much there and what looks good has been sold out for days.  The zoo is nice if you have kids but most kids are on a first name basis with the animals and probably would rather skip that.  The Whaling Museum?  Been there, done that.  Yesterday the local mall was crowded with people wandering aimlessly.

Not to sound like a Gloomy Gus and all but there really is not much to do around these parts between say, late October and May.  The Summer months offer many more outdoor options such as the feasts and festivals and while they seem tired too after many years, at least it's something to do outdoors.  You also have the option of many more outdoor activities such as biking, boating, beaching and hiking that will not cost you a fortune.

So, what do you do to keep your family busy during the off season without breaking the bank?