the Bored Yawn
I’m just tired, really.
Why is it that when you yawn, people assume that you are bored?
Have you ever honestly yawned and had it strictly due to the fact that you are bored and not tired? I don’t think anyone ever has.
And you know what, even if there were some people who had, I really don’t think it’s enough to attach the stigma to a yawn with boredom.
Scientists can’t even really figure out the complexities of a yawn, yet man attempts to remove the sleep factor from yawning.
I’ve yawned three times while writing this. So if you don’t think yawning is contagious, how many times did you yawn?
Maybe you’re just bored.
January 8th, 2009 at 7:54 am
I had to chuckle over this. I’m a motivation coach and the flip side is I’m something of an expert on boredom. I’ve tried to find photos of “boredom” to illustrate my blog (in support of a book in progress) but all the photos so labeled are MAYBE boredom but also something else, often yawning. So I had cartoons made to show boredom, and yeah, I had to add balloons saying “I’m bored.” So I agree, yawning people may not be bored; they may have stayed awake till 3 AM with insomnia the night before or chopped a cord of wood this afternoon.
That said, boredom does often masquerade as sleepiness or tiredness. If you are feeling drowsy and someone presents you with an intriguing invitation to do something, doesn’t the sleepiness disappear. If you hear something while sleepy don’t the get-up-and-go chemicals hit your brain. When you’re having fun or engrossed in an interesting project, don’t you stay up way past your bedtime? Interest overcomes sleepiness just as it overcomes boredom. The too are sometimes, not always, related.
So if you’re sleepy, take a nap. If you’re bored, see ThePowerOfBoredom.com
Thanks for the thought… Letitia
*Mr. Complain edit – advertisement deleted
January 8th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
i’ve yawned when disinterested. buyt yeah, like the lame spammer said, you get drained when you’re bored.
January 18th, 2009 at 12:15 pm
One of my biggest turn-offs are people who “are bored.” How hard is it to be interested in something. Honestly, boredom is a sign of a true toolshed.