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[pct-l] What about the tedium and boredom?



Though I don't see his name mentioned much on this list, I still think
Colin Fletcher put it best.  A short quote from the chapter of "The
Complete Walker" titled 'Why Walk':

    ... I nearly always find after a while that I am beginning to think
more clearly.  Yet "think" does not seem to be quite the right word.
Sometimes, when it is a matter of making a choice, I do not believe I
decide what to do so much as discover what I have decided.  It is as if
my mind, set free by space and solitude and oiled by the body's easy
rhythm, swings open and releases thoughts it has already formulated.

My 3 months on the PCT were my key to being able to achieve this mental
state.  Let the mind go where it will.  Boredom never occurred.  When I
switched to triathlons, long hours in the pool, on the bike, or running
were never boring.  I still find that even short hikes (20 minutes or
more) will bring back this mental state.  For me, it just took a lot of
practice.  Now that I've made my life too busy to indulge in extended
activities day after day, I'm satified with smaller doses.  Well, maybe
not satisfied, but willing to make the trade off.  It makes those
smaller does all the more special.
                   Jeff Jones

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