So you think you’re bored; there’s nothing to do during the pandemic? Maybe you’re right. But you realize the device you’re reading this on has access to the majority of human knowledge, right? I’ll take a flier and guess you still have plenty you can learn.
And don’t forget about the plethora of entertainment options we have today. For only $8.99 you have Netflix and its abundance of content. Then, of course, $5.99 a month for Hulu, another $6.99 For Disney Plus, $12.99 for Amazon Prime . . . you get the idea.
Television is in its heyday, so boredom should not be a problem. There’s always content to consume. Whether an eighth straight hour of skipping the credits to get straight into the season finale of the series du jour is the best way to spend limited time here on Earth . . . that’s up for serious debate. But boredom? That word should not be in your vocabulary.
Imagine a single Mom out there—3 kids, 2 jobs—wishing she had just 10 minutes of free time before bed to get even halfway though Chapter 1 of the novel that’s been collecting dust on her bedside table. Instead, she barely has time to turn off the light before her body shuts down from the exhaustion of another day. Monotony? Sure. But she is never bored. Or a young man, just a year into his fourth decade of life, given 2 months to live with an inoperable brain tumor. Decades of plans and goals aborted, he is compelled to condense a lifetime of experiences into every precious second ticking away. He will never know boredom. Boredom is what some may label selfishness.
Not convinced yet? Fine. I don’t blame you. With all the time in front of your screen (where you’re still at right now, mind you!) you’ve undoubtedly developed something in the way of obstrensification. Yeah, okay. Sure. You’ll spend half the day watching the first season of The Office (again), but you won’t even invest 60 seconds to Google the meaning of obstrensification. You know what? Don’t bother. I made it up.
The whole world is at your fingertips. Quite literally (okay, fine . . . figuratively). Learn something today: maybe how to properly use the word literally. Are you a student? If you answered yes, don’t stop learning just because school isn’t in session. If the answer is no, guess what? You’re wrong. We should all be lifelong students. Learning never stops; knowledge is a lifelong pursuit.
Here’s an idea: Wikipedia rabbit hole. This doesn’t have to be the time suck that prevents us from finishing our English term paper, or getting to that ever-growing pile of dirty dishes. It can be a scheduled learning opportunity to explore the far reaches of an endless, branching web of knowledge. Granted, Wikipedia may not constitute the be-all and end-all of indisputable information, but it’s a pretty good place to start.
You didn’t get any questions right from that Ancient Egypt category on last week’s Jeopardy? Start your Wikipedia search there. Go down the rabbit hole on Egyptian rulers of the ancient past and explore how and why they built pyramids as their future tombs. Do you think if they had the entertainment options we’re blessed with today, they’d have dreamt up an idea so gaudy, so eccentric, so altogether unsustainable? These people had reason to claim boredom: concubines, dancing jesters, concubines, gladiator fights to the death, yet more concubines, constructing Great Pyramids—these seem the extent of the limited entertainment options centuries before the Internet. I may be conflating multiple dynasties, but whatever, a few hours rabbit holing and you’ll learn all you need to impress Alex Trebek on any Ancient Egypt or Ancient Roman category.
Once you’ve had enough rabbit holing for the day, reward yourself by learning the truth about those two old white dudes and their ideas for the future of our nation. There is a rather important election coming up soon, after all. You can watch Fox News or CNN. Either one . . . both channels are completely unbiased!
We only have two real choices for President, but occasionally choices are so vast that making no decision at all seems the only logical conclusion. A grocery store experiment—The Jam Study—showed that customers given samples of 6 varieties of jam were 10 times more likely to leave the supermarket having made a purchase of a jar than those that were given samples of 24 varieties. This same plethora of options can send a customer down the cereal aisle of infinite choices, once again forsaking all but their go-to yellow box of 100% Whole Grain Oats—each circular grain representing the quantity of its purchaser’s creativity and ambition. Engaging a few simple changes in the day-to-day of life may be just the spark of excitement needed to snap you out of the rut of boredom.
But boredom can have its benefits, too, when used judiciously. Relax without your device streaming, without music or podcasts playing, with nothing added. Let your mind wander, unburdened by yesterday’s regrets or tomorrow’s obligations. Let ideas flood from your creative mind. Perhaps your sense of boredom is the manifestation of your brain telling you it has some deep-seeded thought yearning to be set free—a refusal to make a single choice among the countless options presented to it until you give into the boredom it requires. Sit outside and enjoy the weather, sipping a chai latte in lieu of your standard chamomile tea. Think of nothing in particular, pen and paper at the ready to capture your inner genius as it comes.
So, you still think you’re bored, nothing to do? Perhaps you’re paralyzed by choice; awash in an ocean of endless options. Or maybe you just need a little bit of time to zone-out, time to clear your head. I get it. A little boredom now and again can be a great thing. I’ll admit, the majority of my ridiculous writing ideas come from moments of goalless mindwandering. So, I guess, yeah, come to think of it . . . You’re Probably Right.
[006] August 19, 2020