I never loaf anymore. I remember the days of loafing: childhood, college. Spending afternoons lounging on boats, on beaches, on sun-warmed boulders on mountains, on my bed on a rainy day with a book, on the porch while the green trees whispered in the wind.
I don’t know how to loaf anymore. I’m always doing. Always going. I tried to cut back on work to make time with my family and for our home. The first day I logged off after my eight hour workday, I folded five loads of laundry, emptied the dishwasher, wiped down the kitchen, vacuumed, organized doctor and financial appointments, and did two ten-minute free writes.
I exhaust myself just thinking about it.
But I don’t know if I even want to loaf. If I did want to, I would, right? I’m trying to think if I know anyone who loafs anymore. Do grownups loaf? Grownups in their 30s and 40s, with partners or families or jobs or any and all of those things?
Maybe loafing these days is watching TV. That’s not how I think of loafing though. Loafing to me is lounging outside or with friends. Reclining like a loaf of bread, horizontal with some parts upright — maybe your head and shoulders, maybe your knees.
Characters loaf in Cannery Row. They’re active, too, but there’s a lot of sitting around shooting the shit. I wonder what the definition of loafing is. It’s aimless, I’m sure. And sedentary. Maybe. Does it have negative connotations? Like, the creatives in Mad Men who lie around on sofas — would that be considered loafing? The lying around is part of their creative process. They empty themselves so they can be filled. It looks like loafing, but is it?
Loaf looks like a sofa to me. Someone who loafs takes that shape, at least internally if not physically. The shape of relaxation and comfort and idleness. I could probably do with more loafing in my life.
loaf v. – 1. to idle away time. 2. to lounge or saunter lazily and idly.
For the month of April, I will be publishing a 10-minute free write each day, initiated by a prompt from my prompt box. Minimal editing. No story. Just thoughts spilling onto the page. Trying to get back into the writing habit.
Butterfly Mind 
I never had thought of loafing relating to bread. It is perfect.
I understand the good ol’ days of a more carefree life with bun resting aplenty. I would consider sitting in front of a TV now a days to be my loaf-ability. I typically can only be still for so long however, my “getting moldy” days are over.
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Somehow for me loafing is associated with hot tubs
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I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but the older i get, the less I loaf.
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I don’t know if it’s loafing, but I try to read for half an hour before I have to make dinner. In the summer I’ll put down a blanket and cloud watch with the girls I babysit for. They love it, and so do I!
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Loafing may be necessary. It depends. Self care is necessary for joy in surviving, so if the little voice inside cries out to lie down in the grass and watch the clouds float by or to crawl up in bed on a rainy afternoon with a book, it is a good thing, if possible (and sometimes we have to MAKE it possible) to pay attention.
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I so relate to this. Every time I try to loaf, I end up falling asleep.
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I’m keen on this idea of people who loaf taking on the spiritual shape of a sofa. That made me smile.
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I feel loafing is necessary. I think people need time to be still and relax. Doing too much will get you tired mentally very quickly then you will be forced to be still. We all work hard to be able to loaf one day, so why not do so from time to time now?
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Reblogged this on Janet’s thread and commented:
I don’t think I have ever been a loafer. I kind of wish I could be.
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This makes me think of the “do nothing” – it’s a children’s yoga pose – they literally lie on the floor and do nothing and the words go like this, “Do nothing. It’s good for you.”
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Is a complete “Vegging out” the same as Loafing I wonder? I usually associate this with TV.
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Sometimes loafing is a required part of an individuals day to wind down from the trials and efforts of the hours previous. Other people don’t need it, and feel useless if they take a moments rest. Every person is unique, and has unique preferences.
I enjoyed this post. I enjoy the way your write and string words together. I am normally a fiction lover myself, but I am looking forward to seeing more from you!
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You nailed it!
As I read the first sentences, I thought the very same – I don’t know HOW to loaf anymore. ..
Perhaps we’ll relearn after 55. Or 60?
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I’ve been trying to make time for adult versions of loafing: an evening soak in a bubble bath; a Sunday afternoon spent messing about with watercolour paints; an hour after work to curl up with a good book. My house, predictably, is a disaster. 🙂
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