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[Drake]

So I've noticed this about myself over about the last 2 years or so. Just as a point of reference I'm in my late 30's.

When I say say "nothing", I mean sit around and watch TV and basically get nothing accomplished. When I was in my 20's that was a perfect day for me. Now that I'm in my late 30's I just cannot do that anymore. I feel like I have wasted a day. Really, the only time I watch TV is before bed. Same thing with playing video games, or surfing the net. Maybe like an hour or 2 a day. I always feel like I need to be doing something. You would think it would be the opposite, that as you get older you want to do less, but in my experience that has not been the case. Does anyone else feel similar?

 

[TaySan]

It's the opposite for me. My home time is my leisure time away from the stresses of work. I do whatever i please.

 

[Dr_Salt]

Nope. The older I get with the corporate job I have just makes me want to have a day that I do nothing productive at all.

 

[Flying Toaster]

I can relate OP. I hit a stage in life that I actually view my time as important to learn skills and make my overall life better through enrichment. It is annoying but honestly better for me long term.

I read, backpack, and attempt to work on a hobby with my girlfriend. Just to enrich my life in a way that I don't wake up the next day and feel as though I wasted my time. I am also in my late 30's. Keep in mind we are from a generation that played outside and was inspired by the internet as a tool not a nanny.

 

[EviLore]

“We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.”

― Confucius

 

[p_xavier]

I can't stand doing nothing, and not being allowed to travel is getting me crazy.

 

[Flying Toaster]

I can't stand doing nothing, and not being allowed to travel is getting me crazy.

Depending on where you are just getting out for a weekend even if it is getting dropped off next to a trail and doing 24-48 hours of packing is brilliant if you can.

 

[Pagusas]

I am a boom or bust person, when im doing things I do them to the extreme and go crazy with it, devote all my attention and make amazing things happen, trips, work shop projects, house things, building a house, building a pool, building a car. But then I go through periods of extreme “I just want to relax and rest”. Usually that last like 2 - 3 weeks then Im on to the next project.

 

[MaestroMike]

If I worked most of the week, being at home eating, sleeping, watching movies and playing games is the best.

 

[-Arcadia-]

Somewhat similar. It’s hard for me to not think about all the opportunities to get stuff done lost, or just do something more meaningful with the day than vegetate.

There are some days though, where I’ve gotten plenty and meaningful amply done, and I will literally just be the laziest person on the planet. Switch and tablet movies/TV, under a blanket and with a good drink, for hours on end. I regret nothing about those, because they are earned.

I guess it’s down to what EL quoted. I’m not that old... but the countdown, in a manner of speaking, is on. I want to make every day special. Likewise, I think you get your fill of childish ODing on entertainment, and realize how unfulfilling it really is, when you’re younger.

 

[p_xavier]

Depending on where you are just getting out for a weekend even if it is getting dropped off next to a trail and doing 24-48 hours of packing is brilliant if you can.

I bought a new house to renovate and finished in two months what was thought to be done in two years. I could kill myself for results.

 

[DESTROYA]

Somewhat similar. It’s hard for me to not think about all the opportunities to get stuff done lost, or just do something more meaningful with the day than vegetate.

There are some days though, where I’ve gotten plenty and meaningful amply done, and I will literally just be the laziest person on the planet. Switch and tablet movies/TV, under a blanket and with a good drink, for hours on end. I regret nothing about those, because they are earned.

I guess it’s down to what EL quoted. I’m not that old... but the countdown, in a manner of speaking, is on. I want to make every day special. Likewise, I think you get your fill of childish ODing on entertainment, and realize how unfulfilling it really is, when you’re younger.

Watch out granny alert !
I get you OP but I was always like that, not much of a TV watcher and get bored easy.
Not that I don’t want any downtime but the time to myself I have I like to do things I enjoy and yes that includes video games which I consider more of a enjoyable hobby than time waster.

 

[Stouffers]

Your days are numbered. Make hay while the sun shines.

 

[-Arcadia-]

Watch out granny alert !
I get you OP but I was always like that, not much of a TV watcher and get bored easy.
Not that I don’t want any downtime but the time to myself I have I like to do things I enjoy and yes that includes video games which I consider more of a enjoyable hobby than time waster.

Don’t want to derail the thread around myself, but not. that. old. Remotely. Lol. (Punches you in the arm)

 

[bitbydeath]

Time goes too quick when you sit in front of screens. If it weren’t for that I probably wouldn’t mind so much but I have too much else to do.

 

[Flying Toaster]

I bought a new house to renovate and finished in two months what was thought to be done in two years. I could kill myself for results.

Time to make furniture.

 

[Drake]

Somewhat similar. It’s hard for me to not think about all the opportunities to get stuff done lost, or just do something more meaningful with the day than vegetate.

There are some days though, where I’ve gotten plenty and meaningful amply done, and I will literally just be the laziest person on the planet. Switch and tablet movies/TV, under a blanket and with a good drink, for hours on end. I regret nothing about those, because they are earned.

I guess it’s down to what EL quoted. I’m not that old... but the countdown, in a manner of speaking, is on. I want to make every day special. Likewise, I think you get your fill of childish ODing on entertainment, and realize how unfulfilling it really is, when you’re younger.

This is a pretty good observation and I wonder how much truth there is to it. I still enjoy things like movies and video games, but I cannot binge them like I once could. At this point in my life I enjoy those things in moderation more than excess now.

 

[highrider]

I can fuck off and not do much for a week or two but then I get anxious for a job to do. Even when fucking off I’m kind of actively fucking off lol.

 

[Pagusas]

This is a pretty good observation and I wonder how much truth there is to it. I still enjoy things like movies and video games, but I cannot binge them like I once could. At this point in my life I enjoy those things in moderation more than excess now.

Same. Video games and movies and such no longer give me that high they did when i was younger (except for a select few like FF7R). Now I'd rather be going on an amazing vacation or road trip, doing things that'll matter to me.

I look at it this way, when I'm on my death bed, I'm going to be thinking about that time I had the best sex of my life, or that beautiful sunset in Hawaii, or things like that, I'm not going to care about any piece of entertainment. Games and the like are distractions, fun at times, but distractions.

 

[Punished Miku]

I hit heavy extremes on both ends.

 

[teezzy]

Idk man, I'm watching Thundercats right now and posting on an internet forum.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Anyone with a fighting spirt knows this the question is will you continue to watch TV. It has some excellent shows, sports.

 

[Falcs]

Yeah, also can't just sit around and do nothing. But it's because I don't have the time, not coz I don't want to.

 

[bigsnack]

I’m 41, and you have defined my life exactly. Having young kids set this in motion, but I can barely sit still for 5 minutes now. There’s always a meal to cook, something to pick up, a board game to play. Now I can’t “sit around” with my free time anymore either, it actually doesn’t make me feel relaxed, it makes me feel wasteful / lazy.

I’ve now found comfort in longer projects: reshaping guitar necks, building electronics, etc. I’ve purchased a few games on steam clearance, but can’t put in more than about 30-45 minutes before the guilt sets in and I have to go do something else. I can’t last more than 10 minutes in front of the TV before falling asleep.... I’m such a stereotypical old dude.

 

[Lionel Richie]

Sitting around doing nothing is akin to embracing the nothingness. We don't have a single clear goal in life, so keeping ourselves busy is a good substitute. When we're younger we have the illusory mirrors keeping us at stasis, then we learn life is not about every small experience we have.

 

[Tesseract]

at 34yo, i'm feeling the tick of the clock and pushing myself harder than ever to finish what i've started

as my determination grows, interest in other aspects of life falls way, some good others bad

 

[Slings and Arrows]

It doesn't matter either way OP, we all end up in the same place.

Exciting life, boring life, successful life, waster life, busy life, relaxing life, they all the same.

 

[MetalAlien]

I only do nothing when I'm watching movies, even then sometimes I pause because I forgot something.

 

[mango drank]

I dunno if it's an age thing, but I've felt the same way the last few years.

One other thing that's changed: I used to have an office job. After work, I'd either sometimes go out with friends then go home and veg, or just go straight home, make some food, and then veg. I'd binge stuff on Netflix or play games, for hours on end, whether it was weeknights or weekends. There was no guilt, and it didn't feel wrong. But then, the last couple years, I've been working from home, and I dunno if the fact that the boundary between "work time" and "free time" is blurrier now or what, but I have a much harder time just doing nothing. I'll start up a game, and within minutes I'll be thinking, "this is lame, I should be doing something productive." But it's not necessarily that I feel like I should be working, it's that I feel like I should be doing other random shit (learning programming, art, working on fixes to the house, whatever). I definitely miss guilt-free relaxing.

 

[Tranquil]

My problem is outside of work the only thing I have to do is games or movies. My house looks good, car is fine, grass is cut. I don't have anything else to keep busy with.

 

[Droxcy]

Go to a job I like but hate the people around me, come home and feel unmotivated to do anything. Been a vicious cycle this year. I used to never be like this, I always wanted to be on the up and up doing hobbies like Graphic Designing or Editing but now I could give two shits. This year really just made me age 10+ years.

 

[Brian Fellows]

Nope nothing is still my favorite thing to do.

 

[JimmyRustler]

Well, I certainly can't sit around all day long playing video games. Some time ago me and a few guys from our department were playing CS GO for like 3 hours. I can't do this any more.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

It's the opposite for me. My home time is my leisure time away from the stresses of work. I do whatever i please.

Same here.

I'm the opposite.

All I want to do is "nothing" now and sometimes it is just that, as in sitting amd staring at wall.

I try to stay home as much as I can. I don't want to go anywhere and I do not want to interact with anyone.

I even quit social media and I do not post here much even anymore except fot tonight.

I've lost interest in general.

 

[notseqi]

Home is for doing nothing and I try to keep things as simple as possible. Might aswell sit in a single room with a nice kitchen, my PC, bathtub/lavatory/sink, sadly I'm not in Tokyo.
Life happens when I'm out and about.

 

[JimiNutz]

I'm just about to turn 35 and feel incredibly lethargic and depressed if I sit down all day.

I just quit my office/home job for this reason and will be starting a new role where I'm up on my feet and outside for the majority of the day.

I don't think humans are supposed to be sat down all day. Chilling for an hour or two playing games or watching TV is fine but not if you've already been sat down for 8+ hours working at a computer screen. The majority of modern humans spend their time sitting down.

 

[DavidGzz]

Yep, I can't sit anywhere for more than 5 minutes unless I'm at the movies. Even at my desk I have a recumbent bike I sit at. When I get tired of that I stand. Standing desks are very affordable now.

What Jimi said, when you sit at work for 8 hours, sleep for 6-8, and then sit in front of a computer or tv for the rest of the day, you're on your way to being quite unhealthy.

 

[poodaddy]

Lift weights OP. I feel the same way about my days, and honestly I get kind of down and depressed about it sometimes. Had me just doing chores around the house that didn't need to be done just to feel like I wasn't being useless lol; washing clothes that were fine, doing dishes over again, mowing grass that was like an inch and a half tall. I was medically discharged from the Army nine years ago, going on ten soon, and for a while I felt like such a fucking loser ya know? Like I didn't matter, like I failed at the only thing I ever did that was good and decent. Thought I'd be a horrible example for my daughter, thought my wife secretly pitied me and found me unattractive, and to be honest my .38 special started looking tasty after a while. I know I know, emo as fuck but it's true. Sounds ridiculous man, but I got pretty deep into a few hobbies and it gave me back my confidence. One, I got really into lifting and general exercise science and nutrition. Got so into it I decided to get a degree in it. It's the kind of hobby that keeps on giving, as you never really know it all and there is always so much more to learn. Second, I got really into learning about general tech stuff, mainly general PC components, display technology, and audio. In particular I'm really, really liking audio, but goddamn this is such an expensive rabbit hole lol.

Didn't mean to write that much OP, but my point is this: find yourself a hobby that gives you true passion and makes you feel like you're constantly progressing in some manner. That's what life is about I think, progress. As long as we are always progressing in some manner, then it's difficult to feel like you're just burning rubber, even if you're spending some of your days engaging in largely sedentary hobbies. I still don't feel great about myself, and I have some confidence issues, but the weight room has been a constant for me for the past decade, and it makes me feel like I always have something to work towards. I happily play a game for 4 or 5 hours straight now, and I don't feel like a fat piece of shit for it anymore, so long as I "earned" that game time with some hard work under a barbell earlier. Find that thing OP, your "barbell." It can be anything; gardening, reading, art, practicing an instrument, but you just gotta find that thing ya know?

 

[JimiNutz]

Yep, I can't sit anywhere for more than 5 minutes unless I'm at the movies. Even at my desk I have a recumbent bike I sit at. When I get tired of that I stand. Standing desks are very affordable now.

What Jimi said, when you sit at work for 8 hours, sleep for 6-8, and then sit in front of a computer or tv for the rest of the day, you're on your way to being quite unhealthy.

Standing desk is a good shout!

In terms of sitting down all day, I've read articles that suggest it's even worse for you than smoking. Excess sitting supposedly leads to heart disease, diabetes, cancer etc. Not to mention depression.

I used to think that I could just got to the gym in the evening and lift weights or box for an hour but I don't think that's enough. One hour in the gym per day isn't going to negate 8+ hours of sitting each day.

 

[GymWolf]

The opposite for me, when i was younger i was far more energetic.

 

[DavidGzz]

Standing desk is a good shout!

In terms of sitting down all day, I've read articles that suggest it's even worse for you than smoking. Excess sitting supposedly leads to heart disease, diabetes, cancer etc. Not to mention depression.

I used to think that I could just got to the gym in the evening and lift weights or box for an hour but I don't think that's enough. One hour in the gym per day isn't going to negate 8+ hours of sitting each day.

Nope, that one hour in the gym will burn 200-300 calories which can easily be replaced. That's a pop tart and a half at most which can be eaten in a minute.

Life is too easy and food is too palatable and calorie dense for us to not take action to reduce the rate that the real epidemic increases. Obesity is the real problem killing more people than anything else. People are more worried about a flu virus than the yellow squishy substance suffocating them.

It isn't easy you just have to start and make better choices, habits. At 39 co-workers jokingly call me a vampire because I look to be in my mid 20s. I'm in the best shape of my life. It is never too late.

 

[jufonuk]

If you waste time doing what you love. Is it time wasted ?

 

[JimiNutz]

Nope, that one hour in the gym will burn 200-300 calories which can easily be replaced. That's a pop tart and a half at most which can be eaten in a minute.

Life is too easy and food is too palatable and calorie dense for us to not take action to reduce the rate that the real epidemic increases. Obesity is the real problem killing more people than anything else. People are more worried about a flu virus than the yellow squishy substance suffocating them.

It isn't easy you just have to start and make better choices, habits. At 39 co-workers jokingly call me a vampire because I look to be in my mid 20s. I'm in the best shape of my life. It is never too late.

Yeah it's so easy to slip into a complacent and comfortable life.

Many of my co-workers used to just sit down all day, snacking on garbage food, then drive home and do exactly the same thing at home. They were all older than me and would make little jokes about me coming in with my chicken/fish, rice and veg all prepared and my gym kit so that I could change after work and head straight to the gym.

So many people fall into the trap of modern life and then think it's too late to stop. During lockdown, when gyms were closed, I also found I was drinking more and working out less. I still tried to get some weekly runs in along with some kettlebell and bodyweight circuits but I could feel myself starting to slip into a more lazy and complacent life. Luckily I'm pretty self aware and always do something to make changes when I notice this kind of shit happening to me.

 

[Kadayi]

Life has seasons. The first half of the year I did a bunch of productive things, didn't play any games or anything. But around about July, I eased up and I've been chilling in my spare time playing games etc for the last few months as work has been pretty intense. However, I'm feeling the need to get back on the productivity track. I'm off for a week come the end of today and so I'm taking the opportunity to re-orientate and gradually steer back but down a more balanced approach of productivity with some allowed chill periods in there. All work and no play makes Kad a dull boy.

 

[Threeshotgamer]

I find myself guilty of this as i'm getting older. Even sitting and watching TV with the family I find myself answering emails and other work related activities.

 

[JSoup]

I am increasing fine with staring at a blank wall, awaiting the heat death of the universe.

 

[teezzy]

When this whole Covid garbage started, I was doing my best to remain super productive


I fell off of that

Gotta get back in the habit tbh

 

[Dr_Salt]

I find myself guilty of this as i'm getting older. Even sitting and watching TV with the family I find myself answering emails and other work related activities.

I wish I loved my job that much where I would rather read work emails than spend time with my family.

 

[teezzy]

One thing that's odd to me is that a lot of my friends want to spend time just "hanging out"

Like dude, I'm a grown ass man. I don't just go over other people's homes to watch TV or play video games. Give me something to do, assshole.

 

[Threeshotgamer]

I wish I loved my job that much where I would rather read work emails than spend time with my family.

As the owner I have over 50 families including my own relying on me keeping the company profitable and functioning.