Boredom Enthusiasts

Famous French Sculpture by Auguste Rodin

You aren't gonna believe this. I didn't. I got up the other morning, measured 2/3 of Boost Protein/Vitamin drink powder, poured it into my milk and swallowed a Probiotic by Align the Santy Claus brought in my stocking.

Whipping the WSJ in front of me in old man fashion I began to read. When to my wondering eyes should appear, but an article justifying my case for boredom, clear!!

In a recent post I said the sign: "Only boring people get bored", was balderdash. But I didn't have the scientific evidence, the stats of studies done from when Adam was sitting in Eden til I was blogging the other day. No, I only had a gut feeling and the confidence that I hit moments of boredom,I am not boring, and that's when I really shine as a boredom enthusiast.

After going in circles with my parents about the meaning of the boring vs. boredom and the point teachers are trying to make with that statement, Padre quipped: "If a wood chuck could chuck wood, how much wood would a wood chuck chuck?" We all sat silently thinking that one out.


Thinking woman made of Ape Wood.

It leaves the topic open for further debate, which I welcome from all of you.

The article emphasized that there are actually people who Relish the Pleasures of Under stimulation. I came to the conclusion that I am one of them. I am as the author of the article points out, A Boredom Enthusiast.

Now don't get the misconception that we are bored in our boredom or think that what we are doing is boring. On the contrary. Does Thinking Man up there look Bored? Exactly.

Gautam Naik had me laughing the whole way through his article as he described the key note speakers that addressed a group of such enthusiasts about the pleasures of under stimulation.

Before I lose some of you I will quote Journalist and author, Naomi Alderman.

"When we learn to TOLERATE boredom, we find out who we really are." She was able to come up with this great quote by growing up in a Jewish family and enduring the Sabbath Day.

Mom helped me tolerate boredom with needlework. I learned to cross stitch. I have yet to pick up my ancestors art of tatting- now that is some tediously, tough tolerating of time right there, now just entertain myself with words and writing.
(After doing a seriously complex Cross Stitch pattern, making a mistake and having to find it in all the subtle changes of color and counting squares in black and white on the instruction sheet, then unpicking all that I had done to get to the mistake, it really whiped me out. Enthusiasm wise.

My point for this post: "Only boring people get bored," is a farce.

All people, from Adam til today, have faced boredom-those moments of aloneness where you have a choice to let your brain turn to mush or you revel in those silent moments meditating on... whatever. It's like the Professor who took his kids in his office, slapped a fish that had been floating in formaldehyde in front of their startled eyes and said: "Look at the Fish." It was their first assignment.


Fish School

So if you run across people still believing that there is such a thing as a boring person, tell them:

'Boring is in the eye of the beholder!' Then get busy looking "at the fish".