21 Comments

I was actually listening to Jonathan Haidt this morning, talking about how we’ve traded boredom and risk for safety and convenience. The disconnect from our own nature—our need for movement, purpose, and real engagement with the world (and each other)—is something we barely notice most days. This is so timely, and so well articulated.

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Thank you, Erin. I appreciate that and will look into Haidt's work.

I'm starting to think we need a field of study called "mindful boredom."

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I think you’re onto something.

…and you’ve just about convinced me to take up wood carving.

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I've read a couple of histories of the Lewis & Clark expedition. When reading about the physical strength and mental fortitude of the participants, I had the sense that they were members of a different species. Just shows how much we have weakened/deteriorated in our post-industrial cocoon.

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I’m in awe of them as well. Though I think that we could revert to that level of resilience within a couple of weeks by removing the internet and most fossil fuels. Nothing dystopian; just a solid connection between work and outcomes.

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Just finished the latest Meateater audiobook on the Mountain Men -- talk about the full spectrum of boredom with those guys... from snowed in the Rocky Mountains during the winter to Colter's Run to the Rendezvous!

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Thanks Lou. You’re the second person who’s mentioned that audiobook to me- I’ll have to check it out. I occasionally fantasize about living in those times and how hard it must of been. I think boredom existed, but sometimes I think they may have been too tired to be bored or simply thankful to be alive!

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One way to avoid boredom is never see a hill, metaphorically, that you don't want to climb. It’s the struggle, the endeavor that counts. Summit or not, you still go climbing the next day. Swap exhilarating challenges for boredom.

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That's a great metaphor, Rob. Each day is new; each day is an opportunity with a mountain to climb.

Thanks for reading and commenting.

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Fantastic! This disconnect between the modern world and how humans have evolved to live is something I've recognized and feel on a deep level. It's the essence of what gives me such satisfaction in backpacking!

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That makes total sense, Erik. Backpacking is tapping into that evolutionary line where you do the activity that you're made to be doing.

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I completely relate to the boredom as a “check engine light,” and I extend that metaphor to include ignoring it (as many do) and just putting a piece of tape over it, rather than actually addressing the issue and fixing it. Great piece.

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Timothy- Thanks for this; the tape analogy is spot-on. We ignore that light to our detriment.

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Love this piece.

That being said, I would be one of the guys who shocked himself. Not because I can’t deal with boredom, but because it sounds like a fun form of intentional stress…

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😂 Me too

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The fact that people were willing to shock themselves over sitting in boredom was alarming and surprising

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I was a little surprised by that as well. Though, when I think about everyone's knee-jerk reaction to look at their phones in all situations, instead of around them, it wasn't that surprising.

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Great piece. The thing i've always feared in life is not the things and risks i encounter in the wilderness as with so many, it's precisely the lives most people live. Terrifying to me. Sentenced to a life of hard boredom, they are.

The dog analogy is spot-on, and one i've observed myself over the years. There are wolves and there are fat showbred cocker spaniels lying on a cushion on the other end of the spectrum, and we are mostly the latter now. See us at our country clubs, chasing little white balls. The more useless for most things we become, the more useless our animals. Our horses are our runway models, our dogs are ourselves. Nothing more expected, nor wanted.

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You've summed it up perfectly.

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The Labrador retriever example is rather convincing, a jolt to face today’s reality. Thank you for this thoughtful piece.

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Thanks, Jenny. I appreciate you reading it.

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