For example, I sometimes will listen to sports radio in my vehicle. I don’t particularly care for the hosts or what they’re going on about. But I listen to them anyways when my mind doesn’t want to listen to the music on the ipod.
I like sports, but I just find all formats of sports talk boring and dragged out. But it’s something sometimes that I’ll turn to, to make me feel like as if I’m with everyone else when I know I don’t care.
Another example is when I watch late night shows, like Letterman’s or Conan’s. I know the scene is different now with Fallon and Kimmel and all. Whenever I watch a single clip or an episode of them, it feels like I’m just getting into the window of what’s going on in the world that’s being covered while I spend way too much time ignoring the world in general.
I try to see as much live music as possible (within the genres that I at least somewhat like). There’s something about being just another face in the crowd dancing to the music that makes me feel like I’m a part of something greater than myself. Everyone there at least has the common ground of liking the music regardless of their political stance, sexual preference, etc.
Yes, this is literally a mental-health component for me. Lack of shows during the pan really made it obvious how much I need them. Just last week I was telling my therapist how I was looking forward to a show that has since happened and I still feel the benefit from it five days later. I try to go to as many as possible (which works out to roughly one to two per month when averaged out).