8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

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Rock
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註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Rock »

Session One: Why it’s good to be bored
https://www.theguardian.com/global/2020 ... o-be-bored

Hi, everybody wants to be happy, so let's talk about something we have in common-- boredom. It's better that you understand your enemy well if you want to defeat it, isn't it?

Nothing to do? Frustrated? Can’t summon the energy for even the smallest task? Fret not, says Elle Hunt. There’s a point to boredom, and it can offer us a chance to shape our own lives

I remember my first experience of boredom as vividly as my first kiss. The recollection is so clear I thought I must have been at least seven years old. Actually, my mother tells me, I was only three or four, which makes being bored my earliest memory. My sister and I were sitting in our family car, parked outside Mum’s friend’s house, into which she had disappeared. “Won’t be long,” she’d said. That had been 15 minutes earlier. I could do nothing but wait, but I wanted, strongly, to do anything else. I felt the bind on a physical level, the confines of the car consistent with the constraints on me. This was boredom, and I was appalled by it.

Neither the car radio nor my baby sister offered any relief. Then my gaze landed on a small hole in the velour lining of the car roof. One of the defining characteristics of boredom is that time seems to drag – minutes pass as hours. The inverse is also true: when we are highly engaged in what we are doing, we lose track. So I cannot tell you how long I had been happily at work on that hole when mum finally returned to the car to find the back seat, and both of her children, coated with foam.

I was in trouble, of course – but I was not convinced that I’d done anything wrong. Instead it was as though, in putting an end to that desperate boredom, I had narrowly escaped falling off some kind of precipice – and I knew I would do whatever it took to avoid going over the edge in future.

I did not understand then – two decades before my first conference call or doctor’s waiting room – that boredom was a fact of life no more avoidable than any other mental state, good or bad. At times, it may even be a dominant experience. Studies show boredom levels rise through childhood, peak in early adulthood, and then decline, hitting the floor in one’s 50s. But though boredom may be less prominent in middle life, it is still present – evidence suggests it comes creeping back in your 60s, especially among women.... (read the whole article through the link above)


Session Two
https://www.ted.com/playlists/581/why_i ... o_be_bored

Questions
Session One

1. Eastwood and Danckert define boredom as the uncomfortable feeling of “wanting to do something, but not wanting to do anything”. Do you agree? What is your definition of boredom?
2. Boring survey. Please make a list of things that are possibly boring to your group, and rate them from 1-10.
2.1 Find the average boring level of each item. What is the most boring thing of your group? And why?
2.2 Find the average bored level of you. Who is the one with the highest bored level in your group? And, again, why?

3. Where is boredom from? Is it subjective or objective? If you won the 3 billion lottery, would you be less bored, in general, for the rest of your life?
4. Have you ever done anything silly or stupid simply because you were bored? What happened?

Session Two
5. To be bored is often thought of as a character flaw, reflecting laziness or lack of curiosity. “Only boring people get bored,” goes the aphorism. Do you agree?
6. Why is it (sometimes) good to be bored?
7. Is it easy for you to handle boredom? What's your solution?


********************************************************************************************************************************************
Agenda:
6:45 ~ 7:00pm Greetings & Free Talk / Ordering Beverage or Meal / Getting Newcomer’s Information
7:00 ~ 7:10pm Opening Remarks / Newcomer’s Self-introduction / Grouping
(Session I)
7:00 ~ 7:40pm Discussion Session (40 mins)
7:40 ~ 7:55pm Summarization (15 mins)
7:55 ~ 8:0pm Regrouping / Instruction Giving / Taking a 5 Minutes Break (Intermission)
(Session II)
8:00 ~ 8:40pm Discussion Session (30 mins)
8:40 ~ 8:55pm Summarization and conclusion (15 mins)

********************************************************************************************************************************************
Meeting Date: As shown in the Subject Line
Meeting Time: 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Meeting Venue: 丹堤咖啡 Dante Coffee (Minimum Order $80)
Address: 台北市濟南路三段25號-捷運忠孝新生站3號出口步行3分鐘
Important Notes:
1. Participants are recommended to print out the questions for the discussion. Also, the supporting articles, if preferred not to access them via their own mobile phone.
2. Please read the articles and discussion questions provided by the host and write down your thoughts in English in advance.
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Janice Wang
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註冊時間: 週六 3月 25, 2017 7:45 pm

Re: 8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Janice Wang »

Boredom is a universally common experience that we all shared at one time or another in life. Having entered on the path of defining it, we may never come across one another either. My definition of boredom is - not wanting to do something, but have to do them with reluctance. As a longtime stay-at-home mom, I can name those tedious chores to get you bored stiff if you dare me to eat my words! To my surprise, I have been grinding out those same bloody tasks, repetitive routines, soul-sucking domestic chores years after years that could earn me a tiara for being the bored queen of performing chores.

Boredom is a relatively subjective inference. As an avid sports fan, I never get fed up with re-watching those classic winning games and plays by the teams and players I have rooted for over a long time. That, obviously, would be boredom to someone who is not into sports, and vice versa, to engage in trendy talking has bored me to tears with viewing some go-through-the-floor tv shows and movies. I have come to realize that boredom only occurs when a person is getting stuck in a groove of doing something little or with no interest, pleasure, or amusement.

For an impatient person like me, my mind is always wandering on the next act while I am in the middle of doing something. Unfortunately, I happened to fail at learning to multitask; I often seemed to race against the boredom that lurked in every tedious chore. It took me a while to finally figure out how to ward off the boredom from those time-consuming tedium. By coming up with more organized and creative chores SOP to ensure efficient use of time and resources to get the jobs done! Credits also go to my cooperative life partner, who understands cooperation will help him shirk from "sharing" the lion's share of chores.
最後由 Janice Wang 於 週二 8月 11, 2020 12:34 pm 編輯,總共編輯了 2 次。
Iris Wu
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註冊時間: 週二 5月 20, 2014 4:33 pm

Re: 8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Iris Wu »

Lately, I have been suffering the BPPV (a kind of positional vertigo). Every move of my head makes me dizzy and everything spins in my head. I was forced to stay put. I finally realized what “boredom” is and noticed that how little “downtime” we have allowed for ourselves in our daily lives!

It reminds me one of my favorite classes in college, the History of Chinese Fine Art. The professor once pointed at the empty part of a brushstroke in the big Chinese character, Dragon, in Chinese calligraphy, and taught us the “art of keeping blank space” (留白的藝術). Just like in life, “It’s the lingering charm of no-prepared.” he said, referring to leaving some room in our busy schedule and seeing the true self or enjoying the moment of our surroundings.

I am holding my head tightly and appreciate the constructive boredom. I think soon I'll put "Doing Nothing" on the top of my To-Do list, too!
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Rock
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註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

Re: 8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Rock »

@Janice,
It's easy to see that house chores would bore you. Your mind is too alive for those repetitive things. But I am happy for you that you became a queen, Your Majesty. :lol:

@Iris,
It seems that you can live with boredom peacefully, or even happily. I envy you. I always treat it as an enemy. Maybe I need to think twice next time when I try to eliminate it?
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
Sherry Liao
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註冊時間: 週五 12月 07, 2007 12:15 pm

Re: 8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Sherry Liao »

I thought this was your personal experience until I read the last paragraph... :o
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Rock
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註冊時間: 週三 10月 31, 2007 9:03 am

Re: 8/11 (Tue.) Why it’s good to be bored (Host: Rock)

文章 Rock »

:D Haha! But I don't clearly remember my first kiss. I was too young then.
In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
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