Pass-Times

What are valid pass-times? Gearhead recently wrote me with this quandary. He is a practical sort who never wastes time. He also thinks many moves ahead, and I envy people who can do that, since they are way better at seeing cause and effect. He is a gear head who is constantly engineering things or fixing and restoring old machinery, motorcycles, tractors, cars and trucks. He invents stuff as well.

After he posed that question to me I find that few of my pass-times would be valid in his eyes. They are barely valid in my eyes. So many of the things that were once my pass-times have become work to me. My pass-times now are the total opposite of work. They are a total waste of time.

I wish I could find joy in sports or politics. I wouldn’t even mind becoming a regular customer at a local pub. These things too are a waste of time. I am as proficient as I need to be with the technology I use. I used to spend hours learning things on the computer. I feel no need to do so any more. I have no interest in taking any classes.

Maybe I’m in some sort of funk where the only pastimes I have are writing blog articles, watching the Daily Show and getting to bed at a reasonable hour. It is somewhat sad when I see people achieving things like Gearhead. Some of you readers have told me about painting and creating art, restoring houses, cooking and reading. All valid pass-times in anyone’s eyes. You are honing your skills hoping for personal betterment The more I think of it, the more guilty I feel for all the time I waste in this short life.

I would like to write more about this topic, but the Daily show comes on in three minutes and I have to hunt down a snack.