Don't Want Crowds This May Day? Do These 5 Things at Home for Real Accomplishment
Every year at May Day, I face a soul-searching question: go out and battle crowds, or stay home and lounge?
Last year I chose the former. Ended up queuing at scenic spots until I questioned my life choices. Came back more exhausted than work.
This year I decided early: not going out, but making it meaningful.
Not the ‘sleep until noon, binge-watch until midnight’ kind of lounging, but doing a few ‘high-ROI’ small things—low time investment, high sense of real accomplishment when finished.
Here are 5 staycation activities I’ve personally tested.
Activity 1: Declutter Your Digital Life
Don’t laugh—it sounds abstract, but feels incredibly satisfying when done.
Specific actions:
- Clean phone photo gallery—delete screenshots, duplicates, blurry shots, freeing up several GB
- Organize computer desktop—that file-cluttered desktop needs categorizing
- Unsubscribe from useless emails—check your inbox, unsubscribe from marketing emails you never read
- Delete unused apps—including those ‘fitness’ or ‘learning’ ones you installed but never opened
Last time I did this, I deleted 3000+ photos just from my gallery. Phone instantly faster, mood instantly better.
Activity 2: Deep Clean One Corner
Not asking you to deep-clean everything—that’s exhausting, turning holiday into labor day.
Pick one small corner for deep cleaning.
For example:
- The cabinet under kitchen sink
- Bathroom shower head
- Freezer compartment
- One drawer in your wardrobe
The key is using ‘methods you don’t normally use.’ Like the freezer—take everything out, thoroughly defrost, clean, reorganize. Opening the fridge afterward feels amazing.
Proven effective: this ‘small-scope deep cleaning’ brings more accomplishment than full-house cleaning because you see obvious change.
Activity 3: Try One New Recipe
Not asking you to become a chef, just one dish.
Pick something you’ve ‘always wanted to try but seemed troublesome.’ Like:
- Make dumplings from scratch
- Cook red-braised pork
- Try baking (cookies, cake, whatever)
The point isn’t making it delicious, but the ‘hands-on’ process. While cooking, your brain enters a very relaxed state, and the finished product brings strong satisfaction.
A friend tries one ‘serious dish’ every May Day. He says it’s way more interesting than eating out, because it’s his own creation.
Activity 4: Finish That Book You Bought Ages Ago
Note: ‘finish,’ not ‘start reading.’
We all have books bought six months ago, read a few pages, then abandoned. May Day is perfect for conquering it.
Doesn’t need continuous time—2 hours daily, 5 days equals 10 hours. Most books can be finished in 10 hours.
My method: read 1 hour after waking, another hour before sleep. Do whatever in between.
The moment you close that finished book brings a ‘completed another thing’ satisfaction.
Activity 5: Plan Your Next Three Months
Sounds like work, but totally worth it.
Doesn’t need to be complex. Just answer three questions:
- In the next three months, what’s the one thing I most want to accomplish?
- For this thing, how much time do I need to invest weekly?
- What ‘time black holes’ can I reduce (like mindless phone scrolling)?
Write it down. Not just think—write with pen on paper, or type in notes app.
This action itself has power. It shifts you from ‘being pushed by life’ to ‘actively designing life.’
You can do all five, or pick two or three.
The key: don’t let yourself feel ‘I didn’t really do anything’ when the holiday ends.
May Day holiday is YOUR time. How you spend it determines your state for what’s coming.
This May Day, I’m choosing an accomplished staycation. How about you?