Rainy season looms close ahead for those at OSU, and if you’re anything like student Jonah Crouse, you rue the day that the rainy season begins, knowing it will bring gray skies and days spent inside.

“The days also get shorter, so I often stay inside for longer,” Crouse said.

Although gloomy days can be long, dark, and discouraging, luckily for the students at OSU, there are many indoor activities around Corvallis that can offer both an escape from the rain and a boost in morale.

Visit the Valley Library

If the rain starts pouring before you can even make it home, one place to wait out the storm is the Valley Library. The building offers plenty of group seating as well as private study areas where you can turn a weather delay into a homework catch-up. 

Though, there’s more to do at the library than just study. If you’re heading to the library on a Thursday, you can catch the weekly ‘crafternoon’ events at 4 p.m., with each week featuring a new craft activity. 

The library also hosts a plethora of other, rotational activities throughout the month.

“We have lots of cool events that are happening all the time,” said Valley Library employee Caiden Kealy.

Head down to the SEC Craft Center

If library crafternoons leave you with a crafting bug, the perfect place awaits you in the basement of the Student Experience Center. 

Neighboring the Valley Library, a quick walk will take you to the Craft Center, where students have access to tools, materials and even tutorials to complete any artistic project they may have. 

From woodworking and ceramics, to paper arts and coloring kits, the SEC Craft Center is the perfect place to tune out the rain and tune into your creativity.

Try out an indoor sport

If the day’s pouring rain has swept your dreams of playing your favorite outdoor sport down the drain, it may be a sign to try your hand at a sport in one of OSU’s multiple indoor sports facilities. 

Dixon Recreation Center, OSU’s largest recreational sports facility, offers a climbing wall, as well as various courts, an indoor track, pool, dance studios and enclosed racquetball courts. 

On a slightly smaller scale is McAlexander Fieldhouse. 

The building houses indoor courts with nets and drop-down basketball hoops, as well as both an indoor turf field and a climbing wall larger than what is available at Dixon Recreation Center. 

“It’s just a nice place to come if you don’t want to deal with the hassle of Dixon, or, if it’s raining outside, you can play your field games here. It’s a wonderful spot,” said Joe Murche, an employee at the fieldhouse.  

If tennis is your game, then the Indoor Tennis Pavillion on SW Washington Way may strike your interest. With four fully covered courts, weather is no factor for anyone wanting to pick up a racket.

Practice a new language

Languages are one’s key to the broader world, and what better time to practice a new one than a rainy day stuck at home. 

With apps like Duolingo and Babbel turning redundant memorization into fun, game-like practices, anyone can enjoy the process of learning a new language. 

Likewise, not only does learning a new language offer a rewarding challenge for your brain, but it may even open career doors for you in the future. 

A study by the New American Economy Group, a research and advocacy group focused on immigration, reported that from 2012 to 2017, the “demand for bilingual workers in the United States more than doubled.” 

Years down the line, you may be thanking yourself for starting your language learning journey one rainy afternoon.