Saturday, October 8, 2011

Boredom is not an option

I'm rarely bored. I think it is because I find the simplest things vastly amusing, and I'm quite good at thinking up the simplest things.

It is a good quality to have. Right?

For instance, I used to walk every day at lunch, three times around the same .7 mile loop, listening to the same Caribbean beat CD. Was I bored? No. I'd think up interesting ways to amuse myself, such as plotting out stories or betting that I'd reach the third tree before a car went by, or deciding I'd reach the crosswalk before the particular song on the CD ended.

I've caught myself doing that recently when I return home at night. I keep track of how far I go before I have to dim my headlights. The Pacific Northwest is not as heavily populated as some parts of the country, so sometimes I can leave my brights on for two or three miles without encountering another car. One Saturday night, around 11pm, I drove nearly six miles with my brights on; with no cars in front, behind or oncoming.

As amusing as I found this, I'm worried it is time for me to get a life.

6 comments:

  1. I wonder what a psychologist would say about that? I get bored rather easily, but I do find myself amused easily as well. I've done the wonder how far I can go w/o dimming my lights, etc thing. I get bored with my stories if I outline them, but I never get tired of rereading them and editing them (although tense change may be the exception!)

    What I'm saying is boredom is all in the perspective. Keep doing your rewrites. I can hear a few of my friends say, "You know how bored I was? I was counting the trees?" or something along those lines whereas you're showing it as amusing.

    I say it's relaxation, even if you're amused and your brain is working behind the scenes to work out the problem in the chapter that's making you crazy!

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  2. Whoa, why did you have to bring up psychologists, Leona. And yet, if you have done it too, and you seem like a normal, reasonable writer, perhaps I'm okay. Proof positive, I'd say. :)

    You are the second person who has said you'd get bored with the story if you plotted it out too much. Interesting.

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  3. A creature of habit or psychotic - not sure which! Just kidding :)

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  4. At least you know what to do with your brights when an oncoming car approaches. There are rather a lot of people around here who don't.

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  5. Wendy,

    I don't know which either. Must be why Leona mentioned psychologists.

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  6. CGHill,

    Well, there is that. I suppose those people can drive all the way home without dimming their lights. LOL

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