Older Americans are alone half their waking hours, on average
I may be in the minority, but the older I get the more I want to be alone. I love my wife and kids, but there is almost too much pressure anymore to do this, do that. There are too many hands on my time. I recharge only when alone. I cannot do it with the TV on, kids in the background, etc. It&#x27;s one of the reasons I like hunting. Just me and the great outdoors. I really like getting up at 0430 and being in the deer blind by 0600, watching the night drain from the firmament and knowing I&#x27;m alone for several miles in any direction save animals. It&#x27;s a great feeling. It&#x27;s also why I tend to favor holidays in remote places with few to no tourists. My wife also likes this approach.<p>Editing to say that schools are now offering summer sports, which I hate, because it means less time in the evenings to relax after work. American culture is too busy. Too many games, too many expectations of parents to commit to this and that. Too many schools begging for money when I already pay taxes. It goes on and on...<p>Some people need lots of social engagement; I don&#x27;t. I don&#x27;t like parties. I do like two or three couples over for a BBQ and beer. It&#x27;s intimate enough, but controllable enough that there are not competing voices in the background.<p>At work, I&#x27;m fortunate to be able to keep the lights out in my office, draw the blinds and stream my psytrance while working. My colleague I office with likes the same things, so it&#x27;s a win-win for us. People think we&#x27;re weird that we like it dark, but I&#x27;ve never worked in an IT office where the lights were preferred. I think this may be an IT thing. I also dearly miss when IT was in the data center and not accessible to the general office staff.