Idle Inspirations: celebrating laziness

[Exrook]

This seems appropriate for this discussion:


Laziness might have an evolutionary advantage

Researchers at the University of Kansas have theorized that species that use more energy on a daily basis are actually more likely to go extinct, compared to ones that use less.

 

[imoldernu]

I'll try:
Idle... means time to look around.
The quiet time begins when the busy time is done.
When mind that is twisted with concerns, unwinds.
The open time.
When it's okay to step out the "you" and into the "me".
From the need to, to the want to.
From the straight and narrow, to the path less taken.
When what happens next, isn't planned, it's what is right.
Something to learn.
Something to make you more complete.
To be what you knew you could be.
To take what is good.
To give where it's needed.
Peace that allows compassion and Understanding.
To give and accept love.

Laziness? No... Idleness... and definitely time worth a celebration.

 

[trumpeting_angel]

I've semi-retired, and with my 4-day weekends and newly purchased house, I've been able to garden again. It brings me such joy to have flowers blooming. For the first time ever, I live in a place with a deck. And for the first time ever, I can sit and do nothing but enjoy the sight of the flowers, butterflies, birds, and the turkeys who happen by.

There's a courtyard at the hospital where I w*rk, and it's a great place to eat lunch. I find it hard to go back upstairs, though, because I can just sit, near the flowers. This is all a new experience for me, and it's wonderful. So many years of rushing home to feed a family, or go to a second j*b! I think I'm going to enjoy this a lot when I have even more time to myself. My DH is a great idler, although he also loves being busy with chores and carpentry. Life is good.

 

[pacergal]

I'll try:
Idle... means time to look around.
The quiet time begins when the busy time is done.
When mind that is twisted with concerns, unwinds.
The open time.
When it's okay to step out the "you" and into the "me".
From the need to, to the want to.
From the straight and narrow, to the path less taken.
When what happens next, isn't planned, it's what is right.
Something to learn.
Something to make you more complete.
To be what you knew you could be.
To take what is good.
To give where it's needed.
Peace that allows compassion and Understanding.
To give and accept love.

Laziness? No... Idleness... and definitely time worth a celebration.

I like this!

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

"The idler is by definition an amateur. His few pastimes are pursued sporadically and at a leisurely pace, as a source of pleasure. His time is spent exactly as he chooses. He feels nauseous at the mere whiff of professionalism, for a simple diversion is transformed into a compulsory and cheerless chore if pursued professionally. Instantly it becomes obligatory and contractual. Even art and literature become dreary and dull if transformed into work. But the idler refuses all work. He will do only that which he finds interesting, pleasurable, or amusing. And as soon as his chosen pastime loses its charm, he will immediately cease to follow this course." - Stephen Robins

That describes me to a "T". Well, except for the term "idle".

Perhaps many folks would call me LAZY, which is defined as, "1)averse or disinclined to work, activity, or exertion; indolent. 2) causing idleness or indolence. 3) slow-moving; sluggish.

Nor am I fan of the definition of IDLE, "not working or active; unemployed; doing nothing 2) not spent or filled with activity. 3) not in use or operation; not kept busy."

I don't think that's a good description of what I "do". I prefer LEISURE as I think it better defines my activities, "freedom from the demands of work or duty. 2) time free from the demands of work or duty, when one can rest, enjoy hobbies or sports, etc. 3) unhurried ease.

And wow...typing that out was not leisurely at ALL.

 

[oldphd]

If you want something done utilizing the least effort possible (efficient!), ask a (smart) lazy person.

 

[aja8888]

No one is really "idle" as your heart is actively pumping blood through your veins, the brain is processing oxygen and disposing of fluid, and your nervous system is standing at attention and ready to spring into physical action in the event of an alert.

If you are "none of the above", then you are dead.

 

[Palmtree]

To the OP and others. I too will admit to the feeling that I must be productive, even in retirement. I've generally got a couple of "to-do" lists going all the time. To relax at home all day somehow seems.......wrong or lazy. Three years into retirement and I'm still doing home improvements. The only time I feel free of this work ethic is when we are on vacation. There I do feel free to smell the roses, idle in cafes and have that second or third glass of wine while I watch the world go by.

 

[Palmtree]

To the OP and others. Even after three years of retirement, I too feel the need to be productive every day. I generally have at least two "to-do" lists going. To relax around the house all day feel lazy or wrong somehow. The only time I feel free of this is while on vacation. There I can relax and enjoy that second or third glass of wine in the cafe while watching the world go by without a care.

 

[Dtail]

To the OP and others. Even after three years of retirement, I too feel the need to be productive every day. I generally have at least two "to-do" lists going. To relax around the house all day feel lazy or wrong somehow. The only time I feel free of this is while on vacation. There I can relax and enjoy that second or third glass of wine in the cafe while watching the world go by without a care.

Agree to some extent but once in awhile (possibly 1 day every 2 weeks), we just do nothing all day and it reinforces why retirement is so great.

 

[unclemick]

Yeah, no kidding. I was brought up Presbyterian, which is a denomination highly influenced by Calvinism. Definitely provided a good, strong dose of protestant work ethic. Luckily I managed to ditch that work ethic to some extent, but it took me until I reached my fifties to do that.

And another thing that really ticks me off - in hindsight when I accidentally take myself seriously.

All the time I wasted in watching the markets, reading books, going to investment club meetings(coffee/doughnuts were good), etc. Meanwhile to paraphrase the big dog on the porch or 'lead sled dog' was the index fund I auto invested (via 401k) and pretty much totally ignored. Thus 'Bogle's Folly' anchored my ER.

Hmmm.

heh heh heh - Now all those years I spent watching the Saint's snatch defeat from victory were not mis spent. Right? I mean they did make to the Superbowl finally.

 

[ER Eddie]

One of the things I've noticed is that being idle can sometimes be more challenging than being immersed in activity. When I'm idle, thoughts come to mind such as, "How am I doing with my life?" Feelings put on the back burner can come up, too, which are easy to ignore when I've been busy. A little anxiety or sadness, maybe. I get reflective, and Big Questions come (am I doing the right thing with my life? etc.) which are not easy to answer.

So in some ways, it's easier to be busy than it is to just sit quietly.

 

[Dawg52]

I've embraced laziness my entire life. No adjustments for me when I retired.

 

[ER Eddie]

Three from Mark Twain:

"Do not put off until tomorrow what can be put off until the day after tomorrow just as well."

"Rise early. It is the early bird that catches the worm. Don't be fooled by this absurd law; I once knew a man who tried it. He got up at sunrise and a horse bit him. Wisdom teaches us that none but birds should go out early, and that not even birds should do it unless they are out of worms."

"I have seen slower people than I am ... and more deliberate ... and even quieter, more listless, and lazier people than I am. But they were dead."

lol

 

[ER Eddie]

I find it pretty easy to go through the day without taking time to just sit or walk idly. I always seem to be doing something. I enjoy the things I'm doing, but there's a chronic busyness to my mental life -- one external stimulus after another -- that is probably not optimal.

So here are some more quotes to remind me to turn away from the external voices and tend to my own garden once in a while.


"What is liberty? Leisure. What is leisure? Liberty." - George Bernard Shaw


To me, that reminds me of the distinction between doing something freely and doing it out of obligation or because you feel you "should." I lapse into the former state a lot, so my choices are less free than I'd like, more a result of an internal boss. Obligation sucks the enjoyment out of things, though.


"It was such a lovely day, I thought it was a pity to get up." - W. Somerset Maugham

Heh, I like that. It's been a while since I felt that way, but I can still remember it.

I used to read a lot of Somerset Maugham when I was a teenager. Razor's Edge was a formative book for me. It had one of the first heroes I encountered who thought independently, didn't care about status or approval seeking, said what he thought, and lived his own life. Always admired that.


"Philosophy developed as a result of idling. The Greeks believed idleness led to discussion, and discussion led to wisdom. Many of the key works of Greek philosophy are written as dialogues, as this is how their ideas were arrived at -- in idle conversation." - Stephen Robins

At a forum like ER.org, there should be plenty of leisure, so plenty of idle discussion. Maybe we will even bump into wisdom occasionally.

 

[ER Eddie]

I'll let the quotes speak for themselves this time.

"We must be indulgent to the mind, and from time to time we must grant it the idleness which serves as its food and strength." - Seneca

"A faculty for idleness implies a strong sense of personal identity." - Robert Louis Stevenson

"It is from his leisure that a man constructs the true fabric of self." - Agnes Repplier

"...the great secret society of layabouts, enjoying the scorn of a world which works too hard." - Paul Morland