boredom

[samjonathan]

so what do you guys do when you're bored?
i ask because quite predictably i am kind of bored at the moment and i just realised i have no idea what i normally do when i'm bored, actually boredom is usually self-perpetuating so the real question should be "what do you do, when you have nothing to do, in order to stop yourself from becoming bored?"

i'm not intensely bored, i'm trying not to think bout it beause thinking about it usually makes it worse, which is probably stupid because i am now writing about it so i'll probably spend the rest of the night staring at the roof thinking about pulling my eyeballs out for something to do, but nonetheless i'm curious to know how people here treat their boredom and stop it turning into an apathy fuelled existential crisis

immerse me in your boredom

 

[Cognisant]

What do I do when I'm bored.

Well at the moment I writing this.

 

[Howitzer]

For me boredom = dissatisfaction with anything I try to do. Sleep is good.

 

[psion]

I generally just started reading something. Then if I'm still bored I can blame it on the horrible trash I'm looking at, and have fun deconstructing exactly why it is horrible.

 

[Peripheral Visionary]

A teacher told me when I was young that only boring people get bored. That thought has stayed with me.

Around the house, I have a stack of movies and books awaiting my attention. Never a dull moment there. If I start a boring one, I chuck it and move to the next.

If I'm by myself--as in waiting at the dentist's office or taking a long drive--I can usually just lose myself in my own thoughts. I'll do self-hypnosis affirmations, or think about chess problems, or just whatever.

I have always admired people who can do arithmetic quickly in their heads, but it never occurred to me until recently that I didn't possess this skill because I never practiced. So now try to do multiplication problems. It is fantastic for putting yourself to sleep, sort of like counting sheep on a complex scale.

Also, I always carry two mp3 players, one with music, the other for audio books. I check the audiobooks out of the library and convert them on the computer so I don't feel a time pressure to return them.

I used to only get bored during dull conversations, in which case the cure is to think of an excuse to leave. But as long as I don't feel a time constraint, I will make the interaction more interesting by playing Sherlock Holmes. As the other person is prattling on about whatever, I will take in details and try to make inductions (Conan-Doyle mis-termed them deductions) about the prattler's personality type, habits and character.

 

[samjonathan]

from what you guys are saying boredom doesn't really seem to be as oft and annoying an occurrence as it is to me or as problematic or something, maybe it's just me being a whiney teenager

 

[EyeSeeCold]

so what do you guys do when you're bored?



take a walk and go do something

I guess my normal state is bored, so I am talking extreme boredom here.

 

[Architect]

I stack my life with enough hobbies and activities that it's never a problem, I just spin between them when I get bored with another activity. The main categories fall into the following typical INTP interests

• Computers My day job is being an engineer and I have a side business writing software, with three projects running currently. Additionally I have a research project, and (try) to take online courses to keep up.
• Photography I have a professional DSLR with lenses and a few smaller cameras. This is fascinating and finally developing my visual sense (which I never got around to).
• MusicI used to be professional musician, I do this for fun and relaxation (classical piano)

It works quite well, but you have to have a setup and equipment to make it work (don't ask how much I spent to get this office set up)

 

[psion]

from what you guys are saying boredom doesn't really seem to be as oft and annoying an occurrence as it is to me or as problematic or something, maybe it's just me being a whiney teenager

Maybe? I don't know, I've never really had an issue entertaining myself. I often will just lay down and stare at a ceiling for a couple hours, just thinking, and that is enough to entertain me.

 

[Vrecknidj]

I work about 80 hours a week, so, I'm almost never bored. As a matter of fact, I rarely have any time to myself. I spend some of that "free" time prowling the Internet (here, Facebook, a few other forums), keeping an eye on what's going on "out there."

But, really, I don't have a problem with boredom. I haven't for probably 20 years at least.

Which reminds me, I think boredom is a far bigger issue for youth than older adults. As a matter of fact, I'm quite sure Kierkegaard and some other notable philosophers have written at length about this.

If you're still bored, go find some books containing philosophical reflections on boredom.

Dave

 

[Peripheral Visionary]

from what you guys are saying boredom doesn't really seem to be as oft and annoying an occurrence as it is to me or as problematic or something, maybe it's just me being a whiney teenager

Well, if you are a teenager, I will assume you are still in high school. If this is the case, then you are a PRISONER to the state and social convention, forced to spend eight hours a day in a mind-numbing gulag that forces meaningless busy-work on you prepare you for your boring adult job in a cubicle.

In which case, I think your boredom is completely understandable.

Buck up. Your best years are ahead.

 

[kantor1003]

Strange, I was kinda expecting snafu to pop in this thread and present some schopenhauerían takes on the subject of boredom.

Regardless, I don't find myself getting bored. Usually, when anything of the kind arises in me, I would identify it more as existential confusion and uncertainty (ie. what should I do, and why should I do it - both of which usually are thought of in regards to the long term*), rather than what I usually related the notion of "boredom" with when I was younger (ie. I don't have anything to do and it makes me uncomfortable, I must do something!).
With regards to the latter kind, I find that thinking, watching movies, reading, or things of a similar kind has several lifetimes worth of occupation - at least, that's how I see it at this particular moment (easy to say when I'm not bored ). The problem obviously arises when these (activities you usually engage in) are no longer sufficient to cure, or prevent rather, feelings of an undesirable kind. If it's an overarching problem not only pertaining to a particular day, or an emotional state which hastens during the course of a few hours over to a new, more pleasant form - this can quickly, I reckon, spiral downwards towards what one might call an existential crisis; Boredom, not only limited to a minuscule amount of time, but a lingering feeling that casts a shade of grey over everything you do in your day to day life. What? Oh, I thought this was the depression club. My apologies.


*It's interesting to think about how the school system may have played a crucial part enforcing this way of thinking - thinking about every activity only with regards to the future and never appreciating them for what they are and give you in a particular moment.

 

[Reluctantly]

You could bake me some homemade cookies. I wonder what shipping would cost on that...

 

[C.J_Finn]

I read, watch TED lectures on youtube, watch history channel, and try to work out my ideas/theories. I also play guitar and I'm teaching myself to play keyboard too.

 

[snafupants]

I work about 80 hours a week, so, I'm almost never bored. As a matter of fact, I rarely have any time to myself. I spend some of that "free" time prowling the Internet (here, Facebook, a few other forums), keeping an eye on what's going on "out there."

But, really, I don't have a problem with boredom. I haven't for probably 20 years at least.

Which reminds me, I think boredom is a far bigger issue for youth than older adults. As a matter of fact, I'm quite sure Kierkegaard and some other notable philosophers have written at length about this.

If you're still bored, go find some books containing philosophical reflections on boredom.

Dave

That strikes me as ludicrously illogical as a wholesale statement. Perhaps you have an intellectually stimulating profession?

Kierkegaard did indeed write about boredom. He said that people who are thrilled with themselves bore others and vice versa. Smart guy.

 

[samjonathan]

Well, if you are a teenager, I will assume you are still in high school. If this is the case, then you are a PRISONER to the state and social convention, forced to spend eight hours a day in a mind-numbing gulag that forces meaningless busy-work on you prepare you for your boring adult job in a cubicle.

In which case, I think your boredom is completely understandable.

wow, thank you so much, everyone's responses were starting to make me feel like a some kind of life-retarded imbecile for having so much boredom

everyone keeps telling me these are the best days of my life and that it's all dowhill from here and i can't help but think that that is a grim prospect, i'd much rather believe that this is not the case (at least for some people) because i can see how there will be much much less boredom for me when i finally escape SJ-land (school and home)
especially since leaving home my NT brother seems to be living his life 1000 times better than when he was my age/in my position

 

[Minuend]

everyone keeps telling me these are the best days of my life and that it's all dowhill from here and i can't help but think that that is a grim prospect, i'd much rather believe that this is not the case (at least for some people) because i can see how there will be much much less boredom for me when i finally escape SJ-land (school and home)
especially since leaving home my NT brother seems to be living his life 1000 times better than when he was my age/in my position

Obligatory

I was more bored when I was younger, but I think that it was because I hadn't discovered what my interest were. Also, I had no friends.

Now there's always a book to read. Or I can always take a jog. Meditate.

 

[Peripheral Visionary]

wow, thank you so much, everyone's responses were starting to make me feel like a some kind of life-retarded imbecile for having so much boredom

everyone keeps telling me these are the best days of my life and that it's all dowhill from here and i can't help but think that that is a grim prospect, i'd much rather believe that this is not the case (at least for some people) because i can see how there will be much much less boredom for me when i finally escape SJ-land (school and home)
especially since leaving home my NT brother seems to be living his life 1000 times better than when he was my age/in my position

Yeah, that S-J line about "these are the best days of your life" only apply to S-J's, because they tend to be nostalgic and backward looking. I got the same from my parents, too.

As an INTP, you NEED intellectual and physical independence. It might be a few more years away, assuming you will remain somewhat dependent on your family through college or your first low paying job. But things will gradually get better and better.

You won't realize how thirsty you are until you chug down that ice cold draft of freedom.

 

[samjonathan]

Yeah, that S-J line about "these are the best days of your life" only apply to S-J's, because they tend to be nostalgic and backward looking. I got the same from my parents, too.

As an INTP, you NEED intellectual and physical independence. It might be a few more years away, assuming you will remain somewhat dependent on your family through college or your first low paying job. But things will gradually get better and better.

You won't realize how thirsty you are until you chug down that ice cold draft of freedom.

your words are nourishing my soul