If you've never seen a a zombie movie before, you're going to need to be a fast learner.
Also, you'll probably need to grab a shopping cart (duh...)
and maybe even a disguise (assuming you want to come back here and shop someday).
Pretty straight forward way to narrow down the "when" is: business hours.
Short of being a key-holding store employee, you will probably need to stick to the standard open-to-close times provided on their website.
But once you have that window figured out, you can further determine the best time. Weekend afternoons are AWAYS going to be busy, but they are also always going to have the 'Senior Buffet' aka the billion sample brunch. There will be no less than a dozen employees, setup & handing out food samples. While you're filling your cart with survival essentials, make sure to fuel-up with all the samples you can eat. Plus, this may possibly save you from having to pay for a real meal later. Always thinking...
Better make sure there are at least a couple options in your area and you're not having to drive hours to find a warehouse club store
What would your lives be like living in this display room? Does IKEA rent these rooms out after-hours to people? Maybe a new revenue stream for them...? Like an AirBnB, but IKEAirBnB. They can even provide a continent breakfast (only 1 continent). I don't know, but it's something you two can discuss..
Play it safe, go check their website and figure out when they close. Yes, I too like to live dangerously, but some things you just don't leave to chance...
To further drill down, what are you looking for? Relaxed conversation? A platform for people watching? If it's busy (like on the weekends or around "back to school" time), you will have a slew of interesting people to observe and create backstories for. Otherwise, if you want a little less chaos, you might want to stick to non-peak hours/days.)
Hopefully there's an IKEA location around you (you can use the "Find A.." feature to check). Assuming so, then this should be pretty straightforward.
If there is NOT an IKEA location close by to you... pick a different activity.
Seriously. My parents used to do this all the time. Granted, they were in like the top 1% for RCI or VI or something, so there was no reason to ever buy into more points... but the presenters never knew that (until the end). That's one way it made it very easy to say "no thanks" to the high pressure sales tactics.
Another way to avoid that is by just being super cheap or poor--you either don't want to afford it or simply can't! Brilliant!
Find a Timeshare presentation that offers a free gift or at least a meal you are interested in, find a date who's game for it, and enjoy! You can even dress up and pretend to be a long time married couple, even if it's your first date.
You're pretty much at the mercy of whatever company is putting on the presentation. It's not like a standard restaurant where you can just call and make reservations for a time you want. You have to be on the lookout for these events and if you see them, make sure to make note of the date & time.
Sometimes you'll get these things in the mail, sometimes you'll find them online, sometimes you'll get recruited by your friends and neighbors. Either way, be on the lookout for these opportunities to get a free meal, gift card, or some other thing of value to you. If you dig around a little, you'll find a whole bunch of these types of events in your area.
We've all put on a movie with no intention of actually paying attention to it. At least this time you can be real upfront about what's going to happen.
The movie is just background noise and a small distraction while you and your date get snuggled up and comfy. So grab some blankets and extra pillows, select a random movie (tip: try not to choose something with a bunch of crazy shootouts or action scenes) and start sawing logs.
I'd like to say that anytime is fine for a nap, but there probably are some times when you should be alert and wakeful. However, once you've narrowed down when you can schedule to be lazy, you should jump on that opportunity. And by jump, I mean fall asleep.
Unless you're a horse or a person with the unique ability to sleep in an upright, standing position... then pretty much any relatively flat, moderately comfortable area that's large enough for 2 will do. Personally, my preference would be to make a "super bed" which is basically just a spot on the floor that you've comfyfied with pillows, blankets, sleeping bags, etc. Granted, the bed or the couch are obviously suitable options as well that require less upfront work.
Start out in an easy section like weird diseases or the area dedicated to Psychological and Sociological Disorders and branch your way out to rows the require more imagination.
Probably safest to just stick to regular business hours. Pick a time when they're open and not super busy, then get in and do your thing!
The bigger and more bustling, the better. The larger an area to wander around, the more time you can spend and the more ideas you can get to talk about.
Coffee can always be subbed for something else, but it's not the greatest idea to try and get tipsy and then go walk a bunch (granted, this is good practice for getting pulled over I guess?)
You should probably pick this one strategically, unless you work like graveyard shift or are some kind of insomniac.
Regardless, you can probably figure out a good When based on your caffeine tolerance.
Pick whichever place you think is good, but the idea is that it should be near a good place to take a walk.
The aim is to not have to hop in the car and drive to a place to then go walk.
No joke, it doesn't get any cheaper than negative costs! This idea is genius for like 6 different reasons!
Load up your Fleet App (or Instacart or Grubhub or whatever delivery driver app you use), get in your car with your date, and wait for orders.
Again, you'll need to do this during a peak time for best results... otherwise you'll just be sitting in your car with someone you might not really know very well yet.
Another good tip is to be somewhat close to a number of popular restaurants. Some prior scouting can do a world of good for this (as in: do a test run alone to see which restaurants are most popular and during what times so you know where to hedge your bets toward).
All in all, if you play your cards right, you can have a fun time earning some extra cash and possibly even end up with a really cool date story.
This should be a no-brainer. While your standard "romantic encounter" usually happen within a certain section of the clock, this date lends itself to an "outside of the box" experience.
While many dates tend to be an evening thing, you could have some real fun hanging with your newest hot-homie and delivering lunch to people too lazy to go pick it up themselves!
For that reason, an afternoon delivery date during a mid-week lunch rush is a great construct for a memorable time.
So, this wouldn't be 100% accurate if it didn't include the option of a tandem-delivery-bicycle. Yes, that is a possibility. Plausible? Not exactly.
But more than likely, you'll be in a car (either yours or your date's). The car can be great because you essentially have a captive audience (and not captive in the way a crazy person would mean it) who you can get to know without the standard distractions of a bar, restaurant, or whatever dive your date destination would have been.
Find a decent thrift store, a good day to go, and someone to join the journey.
You can create your own list of things to find, or you can use some of the items in here.
If so, you can pretty much go whenever you want then.
(best to have a decent escape plan or a getaway ride waiting if you are choosing to B&E)
Goodwill, Salvation Army, or any other Thrift Store you can find around your area.
There's no way you haven't heard of The Secret by now (or some variation of The Law of Attraction). One of the things they talk about is creating a Vision Board. Think of this like a grade-school collage project where you just cut out pictures of all the stuff you want and words/letters that have special meaning to you. This can be anything from serious to goofy, which is great--it doesn't pigeon hole yourself into some dry, boring blah thing.
So, grab as many magazines and old junk mail as you can, find some old newspapers or cool advertisement flyers and then start cutting up the pieces that make up your future fabulous life.
Depending where you end up going may further narrow down WHEN you do it.
If you choose to spread your art projects out over the tables of a local cafe, great. Figure out their business hours and least busy times, schedule it up & go!
Otherwise, if you plan to make things a little more private, one of your places is probably the ideal situation. As long as there's somewhere to cut, glue, and chat, you're golden.
Once you have your magazines and glue-sticks and such, you can pretty much just post up at someone house--or, if you're a real gangster, a 24-hour diner or Starbucks. Covering your table with magazine scraps and blobs of non-toxic glue are probably not in the restaurant's job description (though that might be nicer to pick up than half-finished pancakes or a picked-apart chicken sandwich.
But regardless of where you choose, as long as you keep it playful, it'll be a fun time.
The idea is pretty simple. You are trying to get the best deal for an item of your choosing. Whether it's a graphic tee or an old action figure, whoever can haggle for the biggest discount is the winner.
Take it a step further and whoever can find the best value, meaning what do you think the owner paid vs. what price did you pay at the garage sale for it?
Final game variation, whoever can get the MOST items for their money is the winner.
Usually, garage sales are linked to "nice weather". No one wants to be walking around in the rain from house to house in your ritsy neighborhood, trying to find bargains.
Most often, you can find listings for garage sales in the newspaper, Craigslist, or on Facebook. I remember when I was a child, we would have a neighborhood garage sale. All the houses around the neighborhood would collectively put up signs around the area and, on the agreed upon weekend, would open their garage doors to any roving weirdos who wanted to see their old stuff.
tl;dr check the newspaper, craigslist, or facebook.
Often times, homeowners will group together and host a neightborhood garage sale. You can pretty much bank on parking your car somewhere in the neighborhood and then walking from garage to garage as you play your games.
Some of the Conversation Games you can play include things like:
You can usually find programs through your local humane society or non-profit animal rescues where they'll allow you to sign up and walk the dogs or play with the animals. These are usually free and run on a schedule (can't just show up for some doggo-time on a whim).
The Humane Society is the best place to start. Another simple option is to ask a few local vets if they know of any dog walking programs. If anyone is clued into the pup-scene, you'd assume it'd be the local vet/animal hospital. Just walk right in, politely introduce yourself to the receptionist, and ask if there are any local dog walking programs for the humane society or rescues. Anyone who works with animals obviously loves animals and will be happy to help.
Tongue Twisters are always a fun little challenge that bring back childhood memories. For that reason, they're a good choice as an ice-breaker/conversation piece.
Everyone knows at least one or two tongue twisters, but here are a few the two of you can play with:
Since this is just a little conversation game, you can play whenever you want. It doesn't matter the time (as long as it's not "quiet hours" or something weird). Lull in the conversation? Ask about Tongue Twisters!
There 'where' isn't very particular. As long as you two can hear each other speak, I'd say you're fine. This is good as a "filler" or "thing to do while..". Try these on a walk or drive to your next destination. Times where you want to fill the gaps are the places you can toss in the tongue twisters.
Did you know fishing is a sport? That's right. Even with the motor of the boat and all those fancy gadgets doing most of the heavy lifting... fishing is played on ESPN and there are tournaments for 6-figure prizes!
Fishing is also a good place to just chill and chat. You can do it from a boat or the shore, with minimal preparation and very inexpensive equipment. Find a body of water, find a date, find some fish!
Whether you want to consult Google or the Farmers' Almanac... or just take a stab in the dark, you should probably find out some simple specifics like "when do fish like to feed?what's the best bait to use and where to get it?" and "is there a time when we're NOT allowed to fish?"
That's a good place to start on when to go.
If you've been in your city for more than a few months, you should be aware of at least 1 place where there's water. Assuming you've been driving around with your eyes closed and ears shut... you can consult Google to figure out what a good spot to try is. There will be at least a few blogs related to fishing in your area and they'll have some suggestions. You may have to do a little bit of digging to find some good info, but it'll be worth it. A little bit of work now will lead to a fishing spot you can use all the time.
This shouldn't be that tough... right?
If you see a bluetooth headset, you can pretty much make that call. However, it's not always that easy and they may just be a crazy person WEARING a bluetooth headset. For that reason, you and your date should try to determine A.) Who they're talking to -- it could be a business call or a direct line to Jesus. B.) Why they're talking to them -- closing that Ferchetti deal or channeling a long dead relative? That's up to the two of you.
People watching games are good for virtually any time, any place. They're a great option to kill time or help break the ice.
Waiting for a table at a restaurant? Play some people watching games! Stuck in line for a show? Play some people watching games! There is really no "bad time" to play some people watching games. The stakes are low and you can quit/start/pick back up any time.
Since crazy can strike at anywhere and at any moment, this is one of those people watching games that you can play... anywhere! Granted, it's better to play this game out in public (where you'll actually see people) than alone in your house or apartment. But, that's your choice. You make the game as "easy" or as "hard" as you want. For me, I generally have a few of the people watching games in my head for different types of places. When all else fails, just go for a walk downtown (on a sunny day) and you'll see a whole heck of a lot of people that you can creepily stare at and assign some made up motives and character traits to!
You're creating the backstory. Make it an entertaining one. Did one of them just get back from living overseas, helping children in an under-priveledged country? Is one of the people a professional gold-digger and is waiting for the other to write them into the will??
There are no wrong answers--just have fun!
They say you find love when you stop looking for it... but I think it's better to take your chances and just keep looking.
So like looking for love, you can (and should?) probably play this game all the time. Failing that, it's good to play any/some of the time. That's one of the great things about people watching games; you can pretty much start, stop, and pick them back up whenever you feel like.
People watching games require people... to watch. There's generally not a whole lot of strangers available to creep on in the privacy of your home, so it's best to get out if you plan to play this one. A park, a bar, a festival, or even just a walk downtown. Any place where there's going to be a lot of interesting people to obvserve is a good choice.
I'm always fascinated by the trinkets people make and subsequently sell to some local shop. The idea that so many people had to say "yes" to get this thing from idea to shelf blows my mind sometoimes (especially when the souveniors are absolute trash).
What type of effort do you think went into making said item?
What was the 'chain of command' when it came to getting this product designed and made? Is it a one-person operation, or a sprawling capitalistic venture providing incomes to numerous families?
All of that is up to you!
If there's a shop to buy kitchy shit (and it's open), then your "when" is now. Aside from taking into account business hours and maximum occupancy, you can pretty much just figure out a place you want to walk around and
Beach towns are notorious for having a string of stores that sell nothing but low quality trash. Granted, you don't need to be near the ocean to find a store that totally sucks. There are awful stores everywhere--you just have to keep your eyes open.
Instead of trying to get a spot at a swanky rooftop bar and wind up spending a fortune just to get a little tipsy, steak out a high rise parking structure with a decent view of your city. Pack a couple drinks and a delicious snack, park your car at the top, and enjoy!
Short of the parking structure closing and you being unable to enter/leave, twighlight or sunset tends to be the best time for this in my opinion. Granted, if the parking garage you frequent doesn't have a western-facing side (and you are a loyalist to saaid structure), then you'll just have to maybe settle for a view of the lights.
Every downtown tends to have a public parking structure. Some are free, some cost a few dollars an hour, but either way the cost is incredibly low and should be affordable by any cheap-dater.
I suggest getting on Google Street View and scoping out the surroundings of the structure. This way, you can figure out if a Sunset beverage & bite to eat is possible, or if you'll have a downtown-view drink and scope some city lights.
In order to show your date just how intuitive and perceptive you are, you'll be choosing items for them that you know they would have chosen... as well as the reason why (this is the fun part).
Since this date is better suited for larger "one stop shopping" type stores (Wal-Mart, Target, Fred Meyer, Costco, etc.), you should settle on a location and then check their store hours. Pretty straight forward and I sound like a broken record by now to remind folks that "check the store hours" is actually necessary sometimes.
But, since this is considered an "indoor date", it can really be done any time that the store is open and doesn't need to be relegated to an evening sort of thing or only-on-the-weekend kind of outing. This date is stupidly simple, but can be a whole lot of fun.
Participating in a task together is actually a good way to bond and create rapport. The more comfortable you are together, the easier it'll be to get to know each other.
Washing your/their car together is ridiculously easy, accomplishes a task that you might otherwise not enjoy doing on your own, and allows for you to get playful or even use some pseudo-social-science about why it's best to wash a car from top-down or back-to-front. You can actually just make up the answer as long as you sound confident about it!
So grab a bucket, sponges, some soap and a hose, and have a wet and wild time with your date.
There are definitely a few prime-times when it comes to washing your car. For instance, the Summer is far better than the Winter and afternoon is much easier than evening. Basically, this is a great mid-day activity during the warmer months of the year. It's even great to pair with some sort of hike or driving excursion where you may need to wash the car afterwards.
Obviously if either of you have a drive-way with hose access, this is ideal. However, back when I lived in an apartment, this wouldn't have been an option. If that's the situation you're in, there are often "do it yourself" or self-serve car wash places where you can pull into a stahl and clean your vehicle for a small fee. Consult Google and you'll probably find one that's reasonably close.
Otherwise, if there IS a driveway available to do your car-washing in, then this is probably the best place as you're not on any time constraint and have more follow-up free/cheap options at one of your homes than if you were at a self-serve car wash.
You can browse the internet or drive through neighnorhoods to find good locations. This can be done on the fly with your date or you can try to pre-plan out a route or area of interest ahead of time. You can even turn it into a scavenger hunt by coming up with a list of items you want to try to find at each property/location.
Since this date is less reliant on a business with hours of operation, you can pretty much swing it whenever. This is great as an add-on to another date, an afternoon adventure, or even an early-bird excursion.
A nice thinbg about this option is it can be done nearly anywhere. If you want to get outisde, it's easy to browse properties on foot or from your car. Otherwise, if the weather isn't suitable or transportation isn't readily available to joyride in, then you can stick to aggregating properties using RMLS, LoopNet, or another real estate listings website.
You can either grab things from around your house, walk around a store and drop items in a cart, or create an Amazon WishList with all the necessary items.
Depending how you want to go about this (virtually, remotely, or physically), the timing can range. If you need to browse a brick and mortar business for your items, then your time is obviously limited to their hours. If you want to rummage around your house or search online for your stuff, then you can be a little more flexible with your when.
Variety is the spice of life. I love being able to modify a date on the fly, and the location (indoor/outdoor) can sometimes be tricky with weather, traffic patterns, or lack of sunlight. So, to be able to do this date remotely, virutally, or physically, it makes being flexible or adaptable lots easier.