A few weeks ago I decided with my family's support to get out of the house for an hour or so a week just to wind down and let everybody get a break from me too. Yet I don't have the money for any gym memberships, regular trysts at coffee shops, sport or dancing clubs, not that I'd want to do all of those things anyway, so I started to wonder what to do with those spare hours outside the house.

You see, my husband and I have been living our passions and the side-effect of that seems to be a slim bank account for the time being. Back when he was in High School, he was interested in pursuing a career in woodworking but decided to go for Accounting instead as the "sensible" option. Andrew was the accountant at a local hospital when I met him and stayed in that job until 2003 when he decided he was totally depressed after 14 years working in a place he had no real interest in or passion for. So he quit and now he's doing some work in his real area of interest, woodwork. He works with a photographer friend from church, framing pictures part of the time and another man making customised wine boxes for the rest of the time. He loves the work so much more and has never looked back. I also am pursuing my two dreams of writing fiction and homeschooling my children. The first has been a lifelong dream and I'm delighted to have set up Apple Leaf Books with my dear husband's support. Without going into the challenges we've met along the way, I'd have to say I'm delighted we're doing it, but as I said, we're financially stretched at times. So I can't afford any extra cash outlays for pleasure.

So when I want to get away for a few hours, I've come up with something that suits me completely. I drive or walk to our local library, which is just around the corner, then read the magazines and browse through the books. I love self-help books and fiction alike. I've learned there's a proper name for this sort of pastime. Forget retail therapy, I have bibliotherapy.

Other cheap leisurely ideas I like are nature hikes, strolls along the beach and meditation. I did hook up with a good Christian meditation group for awhile but it's something I really like to do on my own. I'm wondering what other people do for cheap (or free) leisure times because I'd love to have some more suggestions.

Anyway, Andrew is back to take the kids into the shed and race slot cars, so I might shoot off the library.