[01.11] - Apropos of Nothing

I’m bad at doing nothing.

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not bigging up some imaginary, mad productivity skills. I’m talking about simple relaxation and rest, and how I can’t seem to get it.

I, like many of you, excel in squandering time. I can whittle away a half-hour on Facebook in a flash. TV? With the advent of online episodes, an hour killed is like nothing. I won’t even get into MSN and YouTube.
When it comes to simple downtime where I’m not baking, texting, and e-stalking acquaintances on Google, it’s just not my forte.

Don’t lie; you’re guilty of it too. I’ve seen the midnight postings on forums; I’ve gotten the emails at 2am. I’m not the only one who doesn’t know how to switch off, and that’s too bad. Try meditating for two minutes. I guarantee before 20 seconds are up, you’ll be thinking about someone you have to call back, or what you should make for dinner.

Secret: I try, at times, to cheat my way into an unwind. I lock myself in the bathroom and fill the tub, far from the computer (my distraction of choice), with the phone out of reach and no books at hand...
Guess what usually happens?

Yep. The itis sets in.
Obviously, I need to be getting more sleep—the ultimate fulfilment of the do-nothing doctrine. More than that, though, I believe it’s a sign that I simply don’t know how to be inert.

Maybe part of my inability—and yours—to sit still and give body and mind a break is due to cultural constraints. I’ve heard plenty about how the devil finds work for idle hands. I’ve been warned about the dangers of meditation; it leaves, apparently, the mind open to Evil Forces.
I’m starting to suspect that part of my inability to shut up, shut off, and shut down is due to a need to take in more. I don’t like to watch one show on the computer. I like to watch two or three in my downtime. I’m greedy.

There are, too, I suspect, more malevolent reasons.
The human mind can be a scary thing to face, especially when it’s your own. When I go out, I keep my mp3 player handy to drown out the sound of other people who are talking too loud on their cell phones or, simply, talking crap I just don’t want to hear. When I stay in, it’s appealing to slip into a task that will keep me busy so I don’t have to spend time with my own worries, doubts, and fears.

That’s a shame, since quiet time is as calming for grown folks as it is for overexcited children. Silence makes room for ideas to pop up long enough to be noticed and recorded, and conscious inertia is a wonderful way to refresh and recharge.

So I vote we ditch the demands, the sundry pastimes and time-fillers. Pause the videos, stop the songs. Say ‘screw work, I’m taking five’ (maybe say it sweeter when you tell your boss).
Then try it—even for a few moments. Trust me, whatever distractions and amusements you’re excusing yourself from will be waiting patiently when you return.

— ja**ly