I had an interesting realization last night. It seems that constant boredom to the point of extreme stircraziness was just what I needed to bounce back from the burnout I've been experiencing. Lately I have not felt inspired to create any personal art, as I poured all of my available energy into my job, schoolwork, and side-projects for other people. Burnout was inevitable really, especially when you factor in the constant sleep deprivation. Anyway, I got temporarily laid off from my job right after I finished my classes a couple of weeks ago, and I have been going crazy without the constant demands of work and school that I'm used to. The thought of having no obligations and no schedule to adhere to made me feel a bit panicky and even a little bummed. Over the last couple of weeks I began to experience actual boredom, a rare and scary thing for me as usually I have no time to be bored. This led to my becoming increasingly restless and anxious until last night, when I regained the interest to draw something for myself once again. It started with some sketches and today I am actually painting, something I haven't done in a long time. I feel the desire to improve my skills and express myself artistically returning to me. It's great to feel inspired and interested in art once again.

Another thing I've noticed is that during the last two nights I have had really vivid and disturbing dreams. I've always had dreams like that but they have been unusually rare these last few months. I have missed them and am glad they are back. I think it is another sign that my depleted creative energies are returning to normal levels.

I feel reassured knowing that I can recover from even the worst burnout with lots of rest and downtime, and that boredom may not be such a bad thing after all.