“I’m Bored!” February 5, 2019
Posted by nrhatch in Home & Garden, Humor.trackback
I learned early on that complaining to mom about being bored would back-fire.
Big Time.
Mom did not feel that it was her job to entertain us.
Her job was to feed us, clothe us, chauffeur us to doctor’s appointments, and admonish us if our moral compass fell short of the mark.
It was our job to entertain ourselves.
That’s why she had four kids. So we could amuse each other.
Want to know what happened if we vocalized “I’m Bored!” around mom?
She would give us a chore to do. Options on her hit list included: scrubbing toilets, weeding the garden, ironing handkerchiefs, cleaning up dog poop, etc.
Aah . . . that’s entertainment!
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Spirit Lights The Way 
My mother did the same thing, Nancy! We quickly learned to never say we were bored. I’m glad I had books and board games to keep me occupied when I was a kid.
Me too! Because I learned to entertain myself as a kid, I am NEVER bored as an adult. There is always something interesting to read or think about or do.
I’m glad that she taught me that BORED = CHORED!
Ha ha! So true!
I did the same with my three kids… the word bored was not a word I tolerated.
Good for you, Pip! Learning how to entertain ourselves is such a great life skill to have!
I don’t remember ever being bored as a child as I usually had my nose in a book or was practicing my piano. The only times my sister and I may have felt a smidgeon of ennui, was when we visited our great aunt and uncle and had to sit quietly whilst the grownups chatted over tea. The wonderful pastries she made were quite good compensation though. 😃
Same here ~ I read, I played games, I did arts & crafts, I played the piano and the guitar, I did homework, I rode my bike, I shot hoops, I played frisbee, etc.
But I did not say “I’m bored!” if mom was in earshot.
Your mother must have been related to mine, Nancy. My sister was always bored, not me. I have always found ways to entertain myself.
We had great moms, Jill! I loved to read, so a book was my failsafe fallback.
As long as I had a book in my hand, I was never bored. My kids also learned to not say that word!
Books, games, puzzles, crafts, cooking, music ~> why be bored?
So true!
What a great lesson from your mom Nancy! Either find something to be interested in or have a chore to do. Both are okay!
My mom was a good mom in so many ways, but teaching us that BORED = CHORED was one of the best life lessons.
HA! The old “find something to do – or I’ll find something for you to do….dusting, ironing, cleaning the bathtub….”
Lucky is the one who learned young to entertain themselves!
Yes! Learning to steer our own ship = PRICELESS!
My mother must have been related to your mother. My brothers were much older and out of the house when I was growing up so I was raised as an only child. I learned early how to entertain myself.
Knowing how to amuse ourselves is a valuable skill! It sounds like most of our moms read the same “How To Be A Good Mom” book!
Being able to entertain yourself is an important life skill. My husband had strong feelings about children who said they were bored. I guess he thought it was a failure of imagination and something no child of his should ever admit to. They didn’t.
Boredom is a failure of imagination . . . with everything there is to do, be, and think about, it’s a lazy “imagineer” who gets bored.
Of course, sometimes boredom means we’re short of sleep, too tired to think, and need to enjoy a nap! 😉
You and me both learned this as children! Never say you’re bored, unless you want to be doing the dullest, most tedious chore in the world. By yourself. As a reminder that you have it good, kid– so don’t whine.
YES! That seems to be the consensus here. Parents did not feel the need to entertain the troops . . . so if the troops were bored, they could sign up for KP Duty!
I must have been a strange only child because I was never bored. And I’m still not!
Perhaps it’s just the “younger generation” that looks to “mom” to entertain them? And how does she do it ~> she addicts them to the closest hand-held device, smart phone, or tablet. ACK!
When you see young children and their electronic addictions…. it makes you wonder how we ever managed to grow up without them.
Oh, wait… we used our imaginations and had fun.
Yup! We knew what to do with empty boxes!
You and me both! The freedom to get out and have fun was enormous and brilliant, leaving the house after breakfast and coming home when hungry. Perhaps boredom is more likely when kids are kept indoors out of fear for their safety. I loved ironing the hankies and we didn’t have a dog! 🙂
I expect that being stuck inside does make one want to reach for technology . . . which can be B~O~R~I~N~G!
Pssst! Don’t tell mom but I didn’t mind ironing the hankies either.
Mothers are no fun, seriously. I need to play with her, when I was a child, Now I’m older, I entertain them so that they don’t feel bored.
Some mothers are some fun some of the time. 😀
It was the same in my house, growing up. I learned very quickly that admitting one’s boredom out loud would quickly result in being given something to do. Better to take a nap, when bored.
Taking a nap = another terrific life skill to have! 😉
Suddenly the discovery comes that one would prefer to be bored than chored!
Yes! Once chored, twice shy! 😆
it wasn’t tolerated in my home, either, Nancy. Same thing…dole out the added chores. I guess it worked,though. I don’t really know what it is to be bored. 🙂
Agreed! If I’m “bored” . . . it means that sick, or tired, or both. 😀
Nice words , to me getting bored is a blessing and here’s why https://sunniesmybunnies.wordpress.com/2017/08/22/bored/