Snappy the Clam

There's an interesting essay in this month's Harpers called Quitting the Paint Factory, an essay on the necessity of idleness. It's a good essay, well worth reading. What's extremely amusing is to see the overcaffeinated multitasking blogosphere act as though goofing off is one of its so-called "core values." This from the medium that has spawned an entire literary subgenre, the mobile whine: the lack of wifi keeping you from getting work done between connecting flights. The horrible injustice of dialup Internet connections in your hotel. The poor quality of the free coffee in frequent flyer clubs. The people who would find some way to work in their sleep if they could. Yes, actually, just a bunch of carefree idlers. Wishful thinking or massive self-delusion? You make the call.