Wow, have I ever been remiss!

This blog has been around for over a year now. That's like 30 in blog years. Most bloggers give up after a few months. It's understandable. You work your butt off for every pair of eyeballs in this business.

Anyway, I have managed to cover a lot of unemployment-related topics. One of the areas that inflames my passions is the emotional health aspect of unemployment; I really love writing about this and think that I know a thing or two about it. The emotional health issue is not as widely addressed as it should be. I really wish the government or somebody would offer grants for therapy (I do not know of any. If you do, please mention them in the comments.) because a lot of unemployed people could use it. Being unemployed, especially for an extended period, puts heat under a roiling cauldron of negative emotions that does not help anyone survive.

To my credit, I have addressed many of these emotional issues: anger, depression, fear, discouragement and probably a couple of others, like stress.

A big one has been neglected, though: Boredom. What unemployed person has not experienced it in spades?

Staying productive ameliorates boredom but does not slay it. Human beings (and, I happen to believe, all animals) need to have some fun. Being unemployed makes that difficult because having fun so often involves spending money in our culture. If someone else pays, it feels weird and detracts from the fun. That's how it is for me, anyway.

So how can you amuse yourself and beat back boredom? I'll make a list. (And I really hope somebody adds to it in the comments. Comments make me so happy!)

Ways to have fun when you are unemployed and bored out of your mind:

• Take a hike. I need to follow this advice but it's not easy for me living in the megalopolis without a car. If you live where it's convenient to hike, take advantage.
• Go jump in a lake. With winter coming, this isn't too feasible, but this post will still be up next summer. Seriously, swimming holes deserve to be included among top-five most awesome free things there ever could be.
• Hop on the bus, Gus. Take a cheapo tour of your town by getting on a random bus and seeing where it takes you. Get a transfer so that you can get off and explore interesting new neighborhoods.
• Play a musical instrument. If you do not know how, learn! I am convinced that if time travel is ever invented, it will involve music. For me, time literally disappears when I pick up my guitar. I'll start noodling, then I look up and four hours have passed.
• Write. If writing is not fun for you, don't do it, obviously. For me, it's a barrel of monkeys. Sometimes I giggle as I type. Silly, but who cares!
• Pull a prank on someone. Pranks are way better than jokes because you get more mileage out of them. People laugh about a good prank every time you recount it.
• Exercise. Some people do not consider this fun, but I would rather die than not have some form of physical exercise.
• Go fishin'. You might have to pay a small fee for a fishing license, but it will pay for itself many times over on those days when you catch your limit. Dig your own bait or tie your own flies for extra credit.
• Have a friend over. Brew a pot of coffee and chew the fat for a while.

OK, I've done my part. Add your own ideas!