On Boredom

“There’s nothing in California that you could not learn to hate here”

I think that boredom is equally a product of circumstance as one of mentality. 

Once again, the summer months have sluggishly flopped their way into the present. Like some cosmic trade-off, with the extra sunshine comes a tangible slowdown, a distinct emptiness. School days, social events, even basic companionship… vanished. While other school systems continue with shorter school days, the American curriculum has simply thrown me in the wild. Totally free, I am completely unable to make use of such freedom. 

For most American students, all of this free time is not remotely a problem. For students who can already drive, and whose friends stick around, summer is golden. 

Unfortunately, the law where I live does not look kindly on teen drivers. Additionally, as is the case at most international schools, nearly every student travels for the whole summer. Every student… except me, it seems. As is sadly often the case, my third culture scenario seems to have taken the worst from both worlds. Thus my predicament. 

This is not to suggest, of course, that I have simply neglected to medicate the illness. I tried getting a job. When it failed to fill my time adequately, I got a second one. Unfortunately, my research has concluded that jobs simply pay you to be bored, and usually not enough at that. 

The quote at the beginning is from a song, although the specific title I’ll leave as an exercise to the reader. I think it touches rather poetically on the solution to boredom. The singer describes someone who, in resentment of something, decides to move to California. While resentment isn’t necessarily boredom, when I’m bored, there are often things that I could do, but I loathe all of them. The only thing worse than having nothing at all to do is having many things to do and no such desire. 

I like to imagine the unnamed subject of the quote is bored, just as I am. The hatred mentioned is hatred of circumstance, which is why he/she decides to flee to California. The speaker, however, believes this change in circumstance won’t fix the boredom, because boredom is equally a product of circumstances as one of mentality. 

The solution to boredom, if the aforementioned thesis holds true, is to either change circumstances or mentality. Of the two, mentality is far less difficult to wrangle. For most of us teenagers, packing up and moving to California isn’t an option. Where circumstances refuse to bend to the will of those subjected to them, mentality is far more malleable than most would care to believe. 

I’m working on changing my mindset, starting with ridding “I’m bored” from my personal vernacular. I’ve become more spontaneous, more curious, and more helpful to those around me. Not having obligations scheduled is a blessing, as it allows us to become more attentive to the needs of those around us (now isn’t that peachy!)

It can be difficult to break free of the bored mindset, and going to California seems like the easy solution. Unfortunately, like many of the hobos and failed actors who populate the state, you may find it leaves something to be desired. This is not the fault of California, as fun as it is to find fault in such a state. In fact, I’d like to modify the quote slightly: 

“There’s nothing anywhere that you could not learn to hate here.” 

Your mindset ultimately will determine how bored you feel, even if your circumstances make it tougher to keep your head up and grinning. 

If, like me, you find yourself bored this summer, go swimming  in a golf course pond. Read a book, or better, read the Bible. Self-teach something or join a club. Most importantly, change your mindset. You’re not bored, you’re just relaxing!