Nobody likes Mondays. They feel a little like revenge. The better your weekend, the worse you will suffer for it Monday morning back at the office. It's unavoidable, which is what makes Monday night so important.

The thinking, and it's a new and not thoroughly researched line of thought, is to make Monday night into an event of a sort, any sort, to quickly erase the bad mood that Monday morning inevitably brings and set up the rest of the week as one to be enjoyed.

Exactly what you do is not actually important. Be creative. Just do something with your Monday night that doesn't involve a couch, TV or laptop.

For your consideration, and inspiration, the following list might make a good start:

Monday night braai

A braai is always a good option for a Monday night. Food cooking on fire is only ever a relaxing experience — the smells, the sounds, the tastes all give off a distinct holiday feeling.

But don't be shy to experiment with your Monday night braai. Rather than the classic boerewors, chops and braaibroodjies, try buying some fish (or crayfish if it's the beginning of the month) from a reputed fishmonger (or that guy in the bakkie that drives up and down your street).

Monday night sport

The Varsity Cup was a great addition to the sporting calendar last year, and it's continued to attract good support and produce excellent rugby so far in 2009.

It's also a great addition to your Monday night options. Getting down to a game is a great way to unwind on a Monday, with a cold one sold at varsity prices. The excitable student atmosphere and great rugby will distract you from the pain caused by Monday morning in the boardroom.

Monday night quiz

The traditional pub quiz has evolved into quite a thing (and a popular thing at that); the last quiz night I attended had 25 teams of four (and sometimes more) squeezed in.

These quizzes are usually excellently run, and quite a lot of work goes into the organisation of questions, venue and prizes. And even if you don't know what process is responsible for the formation of the Norwegian fjords, or how many human intestines you would need to cover the length of the Golden Gate Bridge, you'll definitely have some fun, and you might even learn a thing or two.

Battling these good, bad and sometimes ugly questions you'll find teams creatively named Firecrotch, 20:20 Hindsight and Fat kids are hard to kidnap which, even if your general knowledge is more Julius Malema than Julius Caesar, provides for an entertaining night out forgetting about Monday.

Monday night exercise

Monday night exercise is probably not very different from any other day exercise. So instead of just doing your usual five kilometre suburban loop, or your hour of cycle, circuit, smoothie at the gym, why not try a class?

Virgin, Planet Fitness and Sports Science all offer them on Monday evenings, including such varieties as aqua, yoga and Pilates, and step and track classes for the actual athletes among us.

If Monday got you down, the best counter attack is to get back up and go get your sweat on. It's a far better tired to be on a Monday night, and you'll find it will revitalise you for the rest of the week.

Monday night specials

If you had a really good weekend, and therefore the especially bad Monday that followed, you're probably short on energy and money, which is exactly why you need the good stuff on the cheap.

Jamaica Me Crazy will sell you half price cocktails during happy hour, take in a movie and pizza combo at Societi Bistro and the Labia, or if you're in an indulgent mood, the sushi and cocktail specials at Beluga on a Monday night will make you forget all about everything that irritated you during the day. So gather up a few like-minded friends, relax somewhere different, and make Monday night a special one.

Taking back Monday

Life is about give and take. Monday morning we give to work, and Monday night we take it all back. At the time of writing, there are 43 Mondays left in 2009. That's 43 chances to take back your Monday however and wherever you like. It doesn't matter what you do, just do it.

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