Today's Boredom

Boredom is restlessness, a longing for action, a moment when one's creative impulses come to a halt. To appreciate boredom is difficult; the experience is unpleasant, but the agitation that boredom stirs up can be very fruitful. One must think of new ways to occupy oneself in order to emerge from boredom. One is compelled to creativity, at best. Though, at times, procrastination will do the trick...

I think that boredom was an important part of my childhood; I always had to invent new games for myself. Boredom helped me grow and stretch my imagination and my capacity for patience. I did have television as a boy, but not video or computer games, nor the internet.

I wonder what boredom looks like today (in the cities and suburbia of first-world nations). My worry is that boredom means sitting in front of the computer or TV, with no destination in mind. Here, I sound patronizing, I know. I think the child's imagination is alive and well today. I would also wager that children spend just as much time being bored today as they did when I was growing up.

Just some thoughts that I need to investigate...