You can become very serious as a parent. That's got to be fought against. Tom Hodgkinson fightparent Change image and share on social
One of the least arduous but most productive of gardening jobs, the magic of deadheading never fails to delight me. It was a revelation when the principle was explained to me: that flowers are the attempt by the plant to reproduce itself. So if you cut the heads off before the flower turns into seeds, the plant will continue to flower. Tom Hodgkinson arduousattemptcontinue share on social
Deleting 200 spams a day is a drag. And I was checking my email constantly, rather than getting on with my real work, which is reading and writing. Email was becoming a distraction, a burden rather than a liberation. Tom Hodgkinson burdencheckconstantly share on social
We no longer sing and dance. We don't know how to. Instead, we watch other people sing and dance on the television screen. Christmas, which was once a festival of active enjoyment, has turned into a binge of purely passive pleasures. Tom Hodgkinson activebingechristmas share on social
Faffing, of course, does not fit the programme. We are supposed to be busy, productive citizens. Tom Hodgkinson busycitizenfaff Change image and share on social
Working is bad enough in the winter, but in the summer it can become completely intolerable. Stuck in airless offices, every fibre of our being seems to cry out for freedom. We're reminded of being stuck in double maths while the birds sing outside. Tom Hodgkinson airlessbadbird share on social
It's pretty obvious that Western lifestyles which rely on gigantic amounts of electricity use up far more resources than a subsistence-based life. A little more poverty would be a good thing. Tom Hodgkinson amountbaseelectricity Change image and share on social
Truly, the bench is a boon to idlers. Whoever first came up with the idea is a genius: free public resting places where you can take time out from the bustle and brouhaha of the city, and simply sit and watch and reflect. Tom Hodgkinson benchboonbrouhaha share on social
There's nothing new about anti-work philosophy. History is dotted with individuals and groups who decided that laziness was next to godliness and work was a waste of time. Tom Hodgkinson antidecidedot Change image and share on social
I suddenly realised, hey, I'm not a lazy idiot, I'm an idler! It's something to aspire to, it's part of the creative process! That's fantastic! Tom Hodgkinson aspirecreativefantastic Change image and share on social