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The Leisure Activities in America are familiarly apart from the perspectives of
work, family and society, to which the individual turns for relaxation,
diversion or broadening his knowledge and his spontaneous social participation,
the free exercise of his creative personality. Leisure is a way of thinking, a
way of being, a way of approaching life that brings joy...not just a
distraction, a waste of time, or a way to occupy the hours until one is working
again. The quality of free time, the degree of freedom that it contains--depends
upon characteristics both of the individual citizen and of society at large. The
conformist is never free, not because he happens to be doing the same thing as
others, but because he is doing it for reasons which have no relation to his
inner being. To a lot of people leisure is a period of time often referred to as
“free time” after or before compulsory activities such as employment, running a
business, household chores, education, day-to-day stress, eating, and sleeping.
The distinction between leisure and compulsory activities is not strict, as some
people do some work-oriented tasks for pleasure as well as for long-term
utility. A simple definition of leisure is "time spent out of work and essential
domestic activity".
A couple types of leisure are: Active leisure activities involve the exertion
of physical or mental energy. Low-impact physical activities include walking and
yoga, which expend little energy and have little contact or competition.
High-impact activities such as kick-boxing and soccer consume much energy and
are competitive. Some active leisure activities involve almost no physical
activity, but do require a substantial mental effort, such as playing chess or
painting a picture.
And Passive leisure activities are those in which a person does not exert any
significant physical or mental energy, such as going to the cinema, watching
television, or gambling on slot machines. Some leisure experts discourage these
types of leisure activity, on the grounds that they do not provide the benefits
offered by active leisure activities. For example, acting in a community drama
(an active leisure activity) could build a person's skills or self-confidence.
Nevertheless, passive leisure activities are a good way of relaxing for many
people. Some more examples of leisure activities are people who work indoors and
spend most of their time sitting and doing sedentary office work can add
physical activity to their lives by doing sports during their leisure time, such
as playing a ball game, going camping, hiking or fishing. On the other hand,
people whose jobs involve a lot of physical activity may prefer to spend their
free time doing quiet, relaxing activities, such as reading books or magazines
or watching TV. Some people find that collecting stamps, postcards, badges,
model cars or ships, bottles, or antiques is a relaxing hobby.
Free time is organized in many schools and institutions. Schools offer many
extra-curricular activities including hobby groups, sports activities, and
choirs. Other institutions such as retirement homes and hospitals also offer
activities such as clubs and meetings for playing games. Most people like
socializing with friends for dinner or a drink after a hard day at work. For
many young people, having a regular night out a week is a normal part of their
free time, dining out in a restaurant, watching a film, playing video games or
dancing the night away somewhere. Some people do leisure activities that also
have a longer-term goal. In some cases, people do a leisure activity that they
hope to turn into a full-time activity. Many people also study part-time in
evening university or college courses, both for the love of learning, and to
help their career prospects.
One thing we all like having is friends. Friendship is something nobody can
take away from you. The meaning of Friendship is a term used to denote
co-operative and supportive behavior between two or more humans. This article
focuses on the notion specific to interpersonal relationships. In this sense,
the term connotes a relationship which involves mutual knowledge, esteem, and
affection. Friends will welcome each other's company and exhibit loyalty towards
each other, often to the point of altruism. Their tastes will usually be similar
and may converge, and they will share enjoyable activities.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leisure
http://www.croydononline.org/leisure/leisurelink.asp |
