Wasting Time

I was amused and entertained by this post by a young man who's about to finish the first active phase of his working life. I feel he's learnt a lot, especially about time management and disinformation management. I am happy for him.

I think that time's one-way arrow does indeed make it a murderous crime to waste someone else's time. In all my life, I've encountered people who tried not to waste your time, but those were in the minority. Some were not actively seeking to waste your time, but did it anyway because they didn't know any better. And some were deliberate time-wasters who loved the sound of their own voice, although they wouldn't have admitted it.

Sadly, I think the best experience in my life was teaching young people, while the worst experience was dealing with older people who should have known better (while I was teaching those young people). The political bullshit was appalling; the clearing up after the defaecation was worse. The worst was the time spent attempting to prettify the ugly.

I make no bones about it; I know I was a victim of political behaviour. But as my father taught me long ago, it is sufficient to recognize it for what it is and not to get involved, no matter what it costs you.