Skip to Content
Opinion

Let’s Talk About Stuff to Do Inside in This Friday’s Open Thread

Every Friday, we turn the site over to our readers. And hey, it's Friday!

9:24 AM CST on January 12, 2024

This is you this weekend.

|Sdf Rahbar via Unsplash

It's finally getting cold out there. (I knew it would—my birthday weekend traditionally comes during the worst cold snaps of the winter.) And there may soon even be enough snow for you active types to carry on with whatever seasonal sports you've been waiting for.

For the rest of us, though, winter often means hunkering down at home. That's not necessarily a bad thing—sometimes it's nice to have an excuse to cocoon and catch up on sedentary pleasures. I personally have some hefty books to work through. (On my shelf right now: Will Hermes's perceptive Lou Reed bio, The King of New York; Leon Forrest's recently reissued Divine Days, an epically comic novel about Black life in '60s Chicago; and Malcolm Harris's Palo Alto, essentially a Marxist reading of California history that's both breezily narrated and carefully argued.)

How about you, Racket readers? What are your favorite indoor activities, and how excited are you to have the opportunity to indulge in them?

Of course, as I always say, you can ignore this prompt and just talk about whatever you like. This is your open thread, after all.

More Stories

Dejected MN Job-Seekers and Other 20-Somethings Unload to the Times

Plus deporting refugees to random countries, Demuth drags Swifties, and get ready to vote in today's Flyover news roundup.

Give Me One Good Reason Why You Shouldn’t Listen to These Lovingly Curated New Music Playlists

10 great new local songs, 10 great new songs from everywhere else, and one loud honk of mediocrity.

October 30, 2026

I’m Done Doin’ Doin’ Beers

So long, and thanks for all the suds.

October 30, 2026

RacketCast, Ep. 64: Ballot Banter Feat. Election Guru Naomi Kritzer

The invaluable sci-fi/election guide author returns to the pod.

October 30, 2026

Freeloader Friday: 96 Free Things To Do This Weekend

Halloween parties, trick-or-treating, and last call for many farmers markets in town.

October 30, 2026

Let’s Freak Out About Kids and Technology in This Week’s Open Thread

As we do every Friday, we're turning Racket over to you, the readers.

October 30, 2026