All in Favor of ‘Wasting’ Time!
I’m so thrilled to share with you my first ever Op-Ed piece in the International New York Times, celebrating the history of ‘wasting’ time, wandering, daydreaming, resting, getting lost, and whiling away the hours as delightfully as one can. I do hope you’ll enjoy it—and if you do, please share the link!
Here it is….http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/30/opinion/homage-to-the-idols-of-idleness.html?ref=international&_r=0
Daydreaming is a great way to spend an hour or two. And this is how I feel today—like Cinderella when the good fairy came. I’m so excited about my first ever Op Ed in the “International New York Times!”
The NYT should have allowed your readers to comment. Your essay is positively delightful.
Dear Sylvia,
Thanks so much for your kind email & for seeking me out. I’m so glad that you liked the essay.
Sending you all best wishes,
Jessica
I love this piece. Oddly enough found it while wandering my hours away and digging myself deeper into the “Why didn’t I go to sleep earlier?” hole that I’ll find myself in tomorrow. I want to revisit this and try to hold this philosophy and make it compatible with my 9-5 job as well as set up some sort of message or alert to notify friends & family that I’m alive and well but I’m wandering and can’t respond.
My new goal is to take this:
“You have no idea, unless you have tried it, how endlessly long is a summer’s day that you measure out only by hunger, and bring to an end only when you are drowsy.”
and still coexist with people (namely coworkers and boss) who value time as money and would find this kind of living a “waste” or “unproductive.” Although I guess that’s what breaks and lunch are for but it’s even harder to ignore the clock during those periods of time.
Thanks for writing, Tyler! I’m so glad that you liked the piece. And I totally agree–striking the right balance is key. The wandering must be completely untethered in order to be authentic and useful, and the coworkers of the world must be lured into being sympathetic!