Secret Obsession

When people at work ask me how my evening went, I offer the non-committal "It was ok."  If they press me to elaborate on what I did, I usually default to saying I did a few chores (cooking and cleaning), went for a walk, and spent the rest of the time reading. For the most part this is true. (Aren't you jealous of the exciting life I lead??)

What I do not share is how I make hours disappear in a catatonic trance, watching my screen intently as my hand automatically points and clicks in the right pattern to destroy rows of gemstones for a countless number of points. Often, I log onto Facebook because it is the only platform I can access this vile time-suck.  Yet, the people of Popcap games have claimed my undivided attention with their deceptively simple Bejeweled Blitz. I know I am not alone, as I can see other friends' scores on the side. However, if ever one of those names gets higher than mine in the list, I feel compelled to continue playing until I am once again on top of the leader board. (In any other part in life, I swear I am not this competitive.)  And if it doesn't happen in ten minutes, I will give myself another ten to make it happen. This pattern continues until my hand cramps from the repetitive motion, I can barely hold my eyes open from exhaustion, or the real world intervenes and I have to do something of value to do.

While no real harm comes of this (at least not as of yet), I still feel silly wasting so much time engaged in an activity that does not bring me any great happiness, lead me on a path to enlightenment, or even keep me in touch with the world around me. How is it that I ended up falling for something so simple, so uncomplicated? Maybe it is because with all the extra stimuli around, it is sometimes necessary to fall into something so simple yet still requires enough focus to make it difficult to think of anything beyond "move this orange gem here, and that will cause the purple triangle to fall and destroy this row..." I always say that I am looking for something to keep my mind quiet. Didn't quite think this would be the answer though :)

What is one thing you are a bit embarrassed to admit that you do that others may find odd (but not really anything all that salacious...perhaps just something unexpected!)?