[acorkery]

Good points there. The autopilot thing - I don't see it like that at all. You can be doing a repetitive task and thinking at the same time. It can help you focus and relax. Also when you finish the menial task, you get a little smug satisfaction. "I've earned that beer". Autopilot for me is sitting on the couch asking your electronic friend if the fridge has cleaned itself yet.

Many favorite hobbies are repetitive and in theory could be outsourced. Some people enjoy knitting, raking the yard, organizing their record collection, finding Waldo etc..

Hey, it's all down to personal preference and where you get your kicks. I won't labour the point as I've gone on too much. Just putting forward another perspective.

[TeMPOraL]

Fair enough :). I do find myself oddly relaxed when doing some of the menial stuff, especially when that stuff can't be easily automated away (if it can be, then tend to think about how to automate it instead).

I suppose I blended two distinct topics too much in my response. The whole dislike for going on autopilot through life came from various attempts at enforcing a structure on my day. At some point I always start to feel a strong discomfort for such routines. These days, when I plan days out, I treat those plans as kind of sane defaults, things to do if I don't have anything more important, and not as absolute commitments.