Since how long you’ve been really bored? Nowadays, people seem to believe that there is an inalienable right not to get bored. We have TVs, radios, computers, videos, cell phones, digital cams, as well as movies on CDs and DVDs. Heavens forbid if anyone should ever spend time getting bored.

Remember when it was actually possible to spend a boring afternoon? We were forced to find creative ways to entertain ourselves like reading books, doing crafts work, or just day-dreaming. But not anymore. We cannot afford to be bored long enough to dream or think creatively. We rush to push buttons before boredom sets in.

Somehow our gadgets are not quite as entertaining as they used to be. Hundreds of channels on the cable and still we can’t find anything worth watching. Thousands of websites, but we surf aimlessly from one site to another. We have become multi-taskers - eating, watching TV, working on the computer and talking on the cell phone - all at the same time. The more stimulation we have, the more we seem to be in need. It keeps us away from getting bored. Could it be that we have become so overly stimulated that nothing truly entertains us? We are always looking for something better, something more interesting, something more exciting and something less boring.

“I’m bored,” is not heard often anymore. Bored children get in trouble. You have to keep kids busy and entertained. That’s hard to do when keeping busy itself has become a bore.

There is too much to see, too much to do, too much to entertain, and too much competition for our time and attention. There is no time to watch sunset, go for a walk, feed the birds, or rediscover the thoughts, meditations and dreams. That’s boring!

Soon nothing will be stimulating enough to keep boredom away. We will sit among our electronic gadgets surfing channels, pushing button after button on the remote control, clicking from one website to another, reading e-mail after e-mail as we look for something we’ve not seen or heard a hundred times before. Perhaps, it’s time to sit back and just do nothing for a while. We need to take a little time to clear our minds and just get bored. Maybe, a little old-fashioned boredom is not such a bad idea!