Boredom and Intelligence

Silver King

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Well, I'm not betting, but I do support them. My husband loves them.
I don't like or dislike them, but I've bet heavily that they will win, far more than I probably should have.

But you know what they say: Life is boring unless you take risks!
 

Silver King

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...Sometimes, I think kids say they're bored when they want adults to play with them.
I believe this is true also. When I was growing up, though, my folks were never considered playmates. Nor would they have wanted to help me and my siblings occupy our time to avoid boredom. At the earliest signs of restlessness, we were ushered outdoors and told not to return until we were either tired or hungry or both.

As long as we stayed out of trouble and made it home before dark, we were free to roam whatever distant vistas appealed to us.

During that time we played sports, usually baseball, and rode our bikes all over hell's creation, sometimes pedaling up to ten miles from home. When I was twelve, the captain of a charter boat hired me on to bait hooks and tidy the vessel and otherwise keep his clients happy, all for five dollars per day. It was a king's ransom at the time, and my parents never knew that I sailed twenty-five miles into the Gulf of Mexico nearly every day during that summer.

Of course that was before cell phones were invented, and online games and hand held devices existed, which tend to keep many kids closer to home these days.

Perhaps recent technology has helped to enhance boredom, especially among younger folks, who may not feel entirely engaged unless they are connected to something or other in some way.
 

tjwriter

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There's also that stigma where if you don't keep your child close and well guarded all the time, you are a bad parent and neglectful.

So parents don't let their children run all over creation for fear of a CPS call.

I was everywhere as a child. My parents had a vague idea of where I might be found or who I might be with and I had to check in every once in awhile, but many summer was spent riding my bike all over town and playing sports.
 

M.Charles

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Honestly, parents are pretty screwed no matter what they do.

If they keep a close eye on their kids, they're labelled 'helicopter parents', and they're kids are being stifled, and will never be able to cope on their own.

If you give your kid some freedom, you're careless, neglectful, etc.

And then there's the Mommy wars...

*sigh*
 

backslashbaby

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OMG. My mother would shoo us outside, and we did all kinds of dangerous things that parents today don't allow. My grandfather could throw a knife well, for instance, so ummm... :D We only got in trouble for using her steak knives, not for playing with knives!

The one that freaked them out was when I was 6 and came back home with a baby water moccasin in a jar. They let us keep him for a few days in an aquarium.

This was in the suburbs at the time :ROFL: It was a small creek, really.
 

kenthepen

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I'm Dad of four, from 8-21. Over the years my goal became: Just get them to adulthood without f***ing them up too badly. And try to help them realize and find the beginning of the path they wanted to travel in life.

Jury's still out.
 

M.Charles

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I'm Dad of four, from 8-21. Over the years my goal became: Just get them to adulthood without f***ing them up too badly. And try to help them realize and find the beginning of the path they wanted to travel in life.

Jury's still out.
I hear you.

My kids don't have college funds. They have therapy accounts.
 

JimmyB27

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OMG. My mother would shoo us outside, and we did all kinds of dangerous things that parents today don't allow. My grandfather could throw a knife well, for instance, so ummm... :D We only got in trouble for using her steak knives, not for playing with knives!

The one that freaked them out was when I was 6 and came back home with a baby water moccasin in a jar. They let us keep him for a few days in an aquarium.

This was in the suburbs at the time :ROFL: It was a small creek, really.
A baby moccasin?

mxcin.jpg
 

rhymegirl

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As long as we stayed out of trouble and made it home before dark, we were free to roam whatever distant vistas appealed to us.

We used to do this, too. Of course, this was many moons ago. I can recall my youngest sister taking off, visiting friends-- and my mom would not know where she was. She'd say, "One of you girls get on a bike and go look for Rose."

Of course that was before cell phones were invented, and online games and hand held devices existed, which tend to keep many kids closer to home these days.
Perhaps recent technology has helped to enhance boredom, especially among younger folks, who may not feel entirely engaged unless they are connected to something or other in some way.

Very true. We lost our power during the hurricane last year for at least a day. My kids were bored silly. No computer, Internet, video games.

We ended up getting out a deck of cards and playing cards.
 

kayleamay

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My three boys are outside shooting each other other with Air Soft rifles right now. They're wearing protective gear, but I'm sure it will still end with one crying, one yelling and one swearing he hates the other two. They are not bored. However, the fact that they do this over and over again and expect a different result may say something about their intelligence.
 

M.Charles

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My three boys are outside shooting each other other with Air Soft rifles right now. They're wearing protective gear, but I'm sure it will still end with one crying, one yelling and one swearing he hates the other two. They are not bored. However, the fact that they do this over and over again and expect a different result may speak to their intelligence.
*snicker*
No, it simply says they're sibs.
 

kenthepen

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I've been told that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results........ but maybe that's just the definition of childhood. My stepson keeps snowboarding, even though he gets hurt often.
 

CChampeau

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Children are forced to pay attention in school. If that content bores them, they underperform or misbehave.

Adults aren't forced to do anything. If they start to get bored, they have the freedom to think about something else. (Although if you look in meeting rooms around the corporate world, you will find lots of smart people who are bored and probably misbehaving; doodling, mostly.)

It's all about what is age-appropriate. Doodling is a sign that a child lacks focus, but is also a sign that an adult has an active imagination. What used to be misbehaviour becomes a virtue when you get older. The underlying psychology doesn't change. The social acceptability of the mis-behavior changes.

Very insightful!
 

CChampeau

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Oh boy. That's right up there with "only stupid people work in factories".

Lol! All too true - and I would add that this "super-smart" guy was also super stuck-up. ;) I tend to think that he had just "hit his stride" at that time in his life, since he was very active in something he enjoyed and cared about.

I'm happier when something interests me and sad when I get bored...likewise, being depressed makes everything way less interesting and therefore boring.
 

Archerbird

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Lol! All too true - and I would add that this "super-smart" guy was also super stuck-up. ;) I tend to think that he had just "hit his stride" at that time in his life, since he was very active in something he enjoyed and cared about.

I'm happier when something interests me and sad when I get bored...likewise, being depressed makes everything way less interesting and therefore boring.

Oh yeah, depression is one of those big things that really messes with your motivation. What a brilliant thing it is to tell someone who is depressed that they're only bored because they're not smart enough to find something to do.

You get a lot of really "good" quotes from people who consider themselves geniuses. The factory-thing I got from a guy who worked at a course for unemployed people.

"You are too smart to work in a factory" or something similar. I don't consider myself particularly smart, and I tried really hard not to retort with "well, if I'm so clever, how come me can't think of something to say to that without making you cry, you dumb f*".

:roll:

Good times, that.