a history of me

There's an old saying that "idle hands are the devil's playthings." Obviously this saying has meant very little to me since I consider "the devil" to be completely imaginary. But given my recent glut of spare time I have found a new respect for this expression. In my case, my "idle time" leads to far too much self-examination and occasion depression-level slumps.

The best solution, in my experience, is to do something meaningful. Sure, I could waste time playing Grand Theft Auto, but that doesn't accomplish anything. Beer is of similar emptiness. What does feel worthwhile is helping other people with their schoolwork. Now don't panic; I'm not helping anyone to cheat or otherwise circumvent the educational process. It's just that I have a lot friends here who are new to the United States and English is their second language. I can help them prepare for class by reading with them and re-interpreting some of the more difficult concepts. Frankly, it's a service I wish I had for my English class where I find the assigned texts to be very difficult.

So far, my opportunities to provide this assistance have been rare. I've been able to work with Kazu and Sachiko on occasion, but I know I could be doing more. Fortunately, Kazu is enrolling in one of my classes next semester, so we'll be able to work together more often. I wonder if I'll be able to help students in Japan like this?