What do you do when your bored?
It is very rare for me to experience boredom. When boredom sets in, it lasts only as long as I permit it to, which is not long. Boredom is a negative state of mind, brought on by certain patterns of thought, activity or inactivity. When bored, I simply change my mind by changing my focus or activity.
In cases where boredom sets in and I cannot change my activity, like when Diane is asleep and I am driving my shift two days into a cross-country run, I of course keep driving but change my focus by listening to something different on the radio or iPod, thinking about something else (upcoming events, upcoming pieces for EN or my blog), doing math exercises in my head (dividing the next number I see on a mile marker into the next number I see on a license plate), thinking deeply about a particular characteristic of expediting or
trading, focusing on new aspects of familiar routes (geological features not noticed before, architecture of the buildings on route, plants and trees, etc), mentally spec'ing the house we plan to build one day, or even running entertaining and distracting fantasy scenarios through my mind (also known as daydreaming, my current favorite is me being a great NFL quarterback who has a small shop in a strip mall and does nails in the off season).
It does not matter what I am doing when boredom sets in, boredom can be turned off as if with a light switch, simply by focusing on or doing something else.
If you find that not to be the case, it may not be boredom you are feeling. It may be a mood disorder or depression. Those can be dealt with too but with different techniques and resources.
