Welcome to Open Book Blog Hop. You can find us every Monday talking about the writing life. I hope you'll check out all the posts: you'll find the links at the bottom of this post.
What is your favorite way to waste time? (be non-productive) Bird watching? Long walks? Does it help your writing?
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I'm…not very good at being nonproductive. Or as other have put it, I don't know how to relax.
I've got a restless energy most of the time and a drive that can be unhealthy at times. This feeling that there isn't enough time to get all I want out of this life.
But I have learned to value a few activities that aren't directly productive for the recharge, reset, and brain-wandering time that lets my subconscious figure things out.
Plants are a big one for me. I'm a plant appreciator, even though I'm not an especially skilled gardener. I love to go on long walks in the woods or in parks, or even just in my neighborhood and "see what's growing." I have a plant app that tells me interesting things like the variety of names that plant is known by and whether this is a healthy specimen or not. I take a lot of photos so I can share my joy in all these small beauties with friends and on social media.
Baking and cooking is another one, though not in the summer--I melt! I love picking something I've never made before and trying it out. Bonus if it means I get to try out a new-to-me ingredient or piece of kitchen equipment. Bonus bonus: you get to eat your work!
I also enjoy board games, watching old movies (with popcorn), and playing with my dogs.
When I need to just zone out, my ADD brain requires multi-tasking. I put on an audiobook or a television show/movie that doesn't require my full visual attention, and listen/watch while I play a pattern matching game on my handheld video-gaming device. Currently, I'm back on Dr. Mario on my Switch, but the game changes every few months.
None of these feel like wasted time to me though. I can feel the ways that they feed me, fueling me for other endeavors. So maybe the truth is that I still don't know how to waste time.
I also make liberal use of a plant identification app. It's amazing how many small flowers are in plain sight when you look for them.
ReplyDeleteAnd each one a tiny delight. Those stack up!
DeleteThose biscuits look amazing. Even when I'm "relaxing" my mind is still active, I need to distract it to truly switch off.
ReplyDeleteVery little works to shut my brain off. I'm a champion overthinker.
DeleteI love long walks too, and now that we have an allotment we can spend time tending our vegetables. All good for brain clearing, lol.
ReplyDeleteI've been worm composting here lately and that's a lot of fun (and not as hard on my hands as gardening)
DeleteWe are pretty similar on our activities. I have to stay busy for sanity’s sake.
ReplyDeleteRight? If I'm too idle, my brain would crawl out and eat me.
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