Sometimes I can detach by just laying in the yard and staring up at the sky.
I think about this Paul Auster passage all the time:
--------------------------
From City of Glass (1985):
"More than anything else, however, what he liked to do was walk. Nearly every day, rain or shine, hot or cold, he would leave his apartment to walk through the city - never really going anywhere, but simply going wherever his legs happened to take him.
New York was an exhaustible space, a labyrinth of endless steps, and no matter how far he walked, no matter how well he came to know its neighborhoods and streets, it always left him with the feeling of being lost. Lost, not only in the city, but within himself as well. Each time he took a walk, he felt as though he were leaving himself behind, and by giving himself up to the movement of the streets, by reducing himself to a seeing eye, he was able to escape the obligation to think, and this, more than anything else, brought him a measure of peace, a salutary emptiness within. The world was outside of him, around him, before him, and the speed with which it kept changing made it impossible for him to dwell on any one thing for very long. Motion was of the essence, the act of putting one foot in front of the other and allowing himself to follow the drift of his own body. By wandering aimlessly, all places became equal, and it no longer mattered where he was. On his best walks, he was able to feel that he was nowhere. And this, finally, was all he ever asked of things: to be nowhere."
More times than not I experience the opposite of your much coveted "detach, decompress and think" mandates at the movie theater where people talk, consult their phones, etc./etc. Constant interruptions. Go to a theater that serves food and drinks and your third act is diminished by movie theater waiters getting everyone to pay for their dinner or lunch. I hardly ever go to the movies because people can't seem to immerse themselves like they used to. I prefer to watch movies on my big screen TV with excellent sound -- alone on my couch.
I still go to the theatre. Most movies i want to see aren’t huge films, so at most there are 4-6 people seeing the movie. The problem i run into sometimes is vaping. I’ve had that happen more than phone calls.
My ideas are generated in the shower. I've seen 13 films since Thanksgiving but only one in the theater. I have to admit I was shocked to have to pay $40+ for two senior tix to A Complete Unknown.
Sometimes I can detach by just laying in the yard and staring up at the sky.
I think about this Paul Auster passage all the time:
--------------------------
From City of Glass (1985):
"More than anything else, however, what he liked to do was walk. Nearly every day, rain or shine, hot or cold, he would leave his apartment to walk through the city - never really going anywhere, but simply going wherever his legs happened to take him.
New York was an exhaustible space, a labyrinth of endless steps, and no matter how far he walked, no matter how well he came to know its neighborhoods and streets, it always left him with the feeling of being lost. Lost, not only in the city, but within himself as well. Each time he took a walk, he felt as though he were leaving himself behind, and by giving himself up to the movement of the streets, by reducing himself to a seeing eye, he was able to escape the obligation to think, and this, more than anything else, brought him a measure of peace, a salutary emptiness within. The world was outside of him, around him, before him, and the speed with which it kept changing made it impossible for him to dwell on any one thing for very long. Motion was of the essence, the act of putting one foot in front of the other and allowing himself to follow the drift of his own body. By wandering aimlessly, all places became equal, and it no longer mattered where he was. On his best walks, he was able to feel that he was nowhere. And this, finally, was all he ever asked of things: to be nowhere."
More times than not I experience the opposite of your much coveted "detach, decompress and think" mandates at the movie theater where people talk, consult their phones, etc./etc. Constant interruptions. Go to a theater that serves food and drinks and your third act is diminished by movie theater waiters getting everyone to pay for their dinner or lunch. I hardly ever go to the movies because people can't seem to immerse themselves like they used to. I prefer to watch movies on my big screen TV with excellent sound -- alone on my couch.
I still go to the theatre. Most movies i want to see aren’t huge films, so at most there are 4-6 people seeing the movie. The problem i run into sometimes is vaping. I’ve had that happen more than phone calls.
Vaping is a whole other level of misanthropy. Not only in theaters but subways, elevators, IN MY FACE.
My ideas are generated in the shower. I've seen 13 films since Thanksgiving but only one in the theater. I have to admit I was shocked to have to pay $40+ for two senior tix to A Complete Unknown.