The desire for desires

Today I’m going to another famous university for the purpose of external examining . Each university course needs a critical friend who investigates the assesment processes and quality of delivery to confirm whether the provision is fit for purpose. This kind of peer review process is particular to the UK and is a jewel in the crown of HE in all sorts of ways. I have done this for a number of universities over the years but stopped about five years ago until a good friend persuaded me to engage with it again. I used to find it interesting and it was an important FPD and networking opportunity. Now I find it somewhat tedious and only agreed so I could spend time with my mate who I love to bits.

So I started thinking about boredom and the brain. As a dyslexic I have a relatively short attention span for reading certain kinds of texts. The prospect of being locked away in a small hot room with a pile of exam scripts, repetitively reading dull content and checking against academic criteria is already making me feel weary. The factors involved are about control, or the lack of it, the repetitiveness and simple nature of the cognitive activity. I have a tendency to be restless in these situations and zone out frequently. But then I realised how important these moments of zoning out can be; introspection, quiet reflection, entering into a personal world of thought. I suppose in some respects its another layer to the dialogue with my neurological self and the creative process, a conversation between activity and inactivity. It's an opportunity to explore more deeply understanding and thought. So on that note I made another drawing, where does boredom reside?