I’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bay, Watchin’ the tide roll away, Sittin’ on the dock of the bay, wastin’ time. Michael Bolton, Sitting On the Dock Of the Bay.
The above is one of my favorites, especially the version sung by Otis Redding. Since my days with my grandmother I’ve been accused of “wasting time.” She’d catch me sitting under a big shade tree daydreaming when I was supposed to be mowing the lawn. What was my sin? — “Wasting Time.”
Almost all my life I was encouraged to “keep busy.” It wasn’t until my dear friend Louis Conte’ explained to me that not all quiet time is “wasting time.” He asked, “Webb, if you walked by Einstein’s office and saw him sitting in a chair with his eyes closed would you think he was ‘wasting time?’ No, you would tip toe by the door knowing Professor Einstein was thinking.”
Not all inactivity is time wasted. Some of the world’s greatest discoveries occurred when someone was “wastin’ time.”
Holy Uselessness