it is now 1:37 am. if i sleep now, i will have to wake up in an hour and a half because tomorrow (today) is the first day of campus harvest in baguio. so part of me doesn't want to sleep because it's only going to be difficult for me to wake up. but, im dead tired, that even a few hours seem so precious. i'll wait and see which side wins out.

in the meantime, im going to talk about my list of boredom busters. i consider myself an authority on this (this doesn't really mean anything. it doesn't matter what i consider myself an authority on, unless i am also an authority on which people are proper authorities for what subject.). I say this, firstly, because of all the boring things ive ever had to endure in my life. but we all have to go through boring things, what makes me so different? well, i hate being idle at any time. this is why i bring a book wherever i go, because should i ever become bored or idle, i need to simply open it and i am transported out of that class, lecture, presentation, or conversation. (hehe, sama) so these two traits have combined within me to form an appetite for boredome busters, and a critical mind about their efficacy.

i actually wrote about this in my journal...*sniff, sniff...it's still missing...i can just see it out there...all alone...be strong, joe. be strong...*ahem*

anyway, i rated the different boredom busters on two scales: their entertainment value, meaning how un-bored they were able to make me, and their productivity value, which was how useful was what i was doing.

for example, one of my boredom busters was doodling. unfortunately, im not a good drawer...este, artist. and while my stick figures live rich mental and emotional lives, there's only so much that their scrawny frames can convey, so it becomes boring right away. therefore, it's entertainment value is low. however, it is my own work, an expression of my very being, and as such, will prove valuable to fans, treasure-hunters, and archaeologists in the future. therefore its productivity level is high.

another doodling example is the drawing of spirals or swirls on a page. i think i learned this from linny, and i tried it with gusto. i was so into it, that i once filled a sheet of bond paper with swirls during a really boring class. obviously, the entertainment value of this is high. however, there was no use for it. i hadn't learned anything, developed a new skill, or helped anyone by it. so it's productivity level is low.

the key, therefore, is to find an activity that has both high entertainment and productivity values. such activities are hard to come by, but they do exist. unfortunately, i am sleepy now. so i'll write about them another time.