Further reading...

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”
- Annie Dillard

Oliver Burkeman, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals
Kieran Setiya, Midlife: A Philosophical Guide
Pema Chödrön, When Things Fall Apart

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Please note: This channel explores philosophical themes and is for educational purposes. It is not a substitute for professional mental health advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This is the only official Functional Melancholic YouTube Channel. This is not an AI channel. I am a real person. No green screens are used.

I read this somewhere the other day ….”you have the right to live a life no one else understands.”

The truth is I enjoy myself the most when I’m “wasting time”.

We’ve become human “doings” rather than Human BEINGS!

“We are here on Earth to fart around, and don’t let anybody tell you any different.” - Kurt Vonnegut

I'm 54.  I'm tired.  I work too much.  Too many aches and pains, followed by not enough fun.  Any time I can find to smile and laugh, or tune out from life's realities, is time well spent.

After I retired a few years , I felt like I wanted to do something purposeful. At 72-years-old, I accepted a position as caregiver. My previous career was as engineer tech, studies in Sociology. ..So I was referred to a 78 year old European gentleman, a former therapist/teacher recently diagnosed with dementia. One day we were sitting in his living room. He told me he could feel himself  "dying inside".  Something told me 🤔  that was my cue! I took that man to a soulful club to see people learning to line dance, a barbecue joint, an arboretum, a walking trail, etc every week I show up, I'll have a new experience for him. He doesn't care that I am African American, we have some of the same books, music and his sense of humor is off the chains! It's heartbreaking to watch this disease progress with him. He still has many moments of lucidity. I am going to make sure he has new, edgy experiences and laughter.

Zoning out and staring out the window just might be the best thought-free meditation you ever do.  It's an achievement, not a failing.

Watching your videos and listening to you is a very special thing to me. I am employed in an overnight job where I work completely alone. Every week I watch for your posts. It's actually a very intimate, personal thing to me... its like connecting with an old friend I've known my entire life. I've learned so much from you and I don't even know your name, which by the way, I  completely understand. The 30 minutes(ish) you share each week takes me a few days to absorb. You have a lot of amazing viewpoints. I'd like to thank you for sharing those parts of yourself with all of us who follow you.

You are doing something important right now for at least 227,000 (and counting) people who need you. Thank you.

My younger brother has played guitar (acoustic blues) all his life. He never plays for anyone. I once asked him why he didn't perform, and he said, "Why? is there anything wrong with playing for my own enjoyment?"

Listening to you was time well spent

I'm 73 and feel my life has little meaning, I keep myself busy every day restoring old motorcycles, I'm a good at keeping myself busy so I don't need to think about what I should be doing with my life.
I do get the satisfaction of riding a bike that I rebuilt myself and no one else has one.

You are so right about 'old dreams.' Like your younger self is holding you hostage. I feel that.

Thank you for helping us feel less alone. ❤

The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time--James Taylor

Now in my mid 50’s, i understand that wasted time is time spent surviving, monetizing, producing, etc and not the time spent enjoying and contemplating. Redefine a life worth living. ✌️

I spend up to 10 hours at the beach, swimming, having breakfast, drinking coffee, tea, listening to the sound of the waves, birds, watching the sunset, clouds, moonlight, stars, picking seashells, reading books.I stare at the horizon and get lost in thoughts. I go back home just to sleep. I don't think I'm wasting my life. On the contrary I feel alive when I'm out in nature.

Sittin' in the morning sun
I'll be sittin' when the evening comes
Watching the ships roll in
Then I watch 'em roll away again, yeah

I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay
Watchin' the tide roll away, ooh
I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay
Wastin' time

-- Otis Redding (Dock of the Bay)

I am 76 and have seen my parents suffer and fade away, and more people at church are in and out of the hospital then passing.  It has an effect on you.