Why are we so time poor?

Three incidents in the last few days got me thinking about this quandary that we all seem to be in “these” days.  First my niece and her new pony – she is so busy with school and sport and other pursuits that she only gets to ride a few hours a week at best. 
Second is watching a girl who agists a horse at our rental property.  She rushes there on a Saturday, catches her horse, quick brush, saddled-up, 15 min ride in the arena, wash down and back in the paddock.  30 mins tops, she has other things to cram into a weekend.
Third is reading a post on a horse training forum how a coach is seeing way too many horses who have problems caused by a lack of time spent with them.
So how come in 2010 we have so little time when we are meant to have MORE leisure time due to all these time saving devices?  I know a washing machine saves us time, but I still always feel rushed when I have to peg the clothes on the line, and a lot of the times they don't even make it to the line! 
If I sit and analyse where my time is spent in a day, I can see where it goes.  Each day must start with a coffee and computer – emails, news, facebook, forums – all a daily need for information.  If its a work day then the next 9 hours are spent tied to a desk, then home exhausted.  If its a weekend, then its a rush to get washing done, clean the house, shopping, gardening and maybe a little leisure time.
Too much vies for our time, we overload on too much input – TV, mobile phones, computers – there is nowhere where we are not connected.  The happiest place for me is 1000kms from the city – where there is no mobile phone reception, no TV, no computers – just open space … and time.
How sad that those working live for their retirement – not because they want to stop working hard, but because they just want some time to “be”.  To slow down and literally smell the roses.
Will try and take things a little slower today, not rush so much and enjoy each moment without the urgency that what I am doing must be done ASAP so I can get onto the next thing.  Today is Sunday.  We have to prune all the garden as the council are doing a green waste collection.  Its time critical – we have to work to the council schedule as no longer can we prune all year and pile it up for a bonfire.  So we are going to rush about and get a years pruning done in half a day. 
The other half of the day will be spent shopping – the city is the only place open for Sunday trading.  We need new pillows – the old ones don't last a lifetime like the good old days, they are disposable.  More time shopping. 
Then that's it – Sunday, and the weekend over. 
I think the problem is the term “leisure” – its mistaken for cramming more and more into a day than its real meaning – quiet, down time.

Rare Saturday at Home

I was perplexed this morning about the Dog Whisperers theory on dog and packs and pecking orders.  The little princess of the Sinclair house, aka Miss Minty, spent the entire night wanting to go out and come in, go out and come in.  By about the 10th time I got up to let the little darling in or out, I put my foot down and tried to ignore the scratching and whining and made her stay IN!

Of course, anyone who has ever tried to sleep with a fidgety animal knows that its impossible.  So Caesar, where did I go wrong?   The result, very little sleep for me and the little white darling still tucked up in MY bed asleep.

Hmmm

Still not a happy camper today, tummy pains and back ache, but a day off is a treat indeed.  Went and did some shopping, bought a few snuggly winter clothes and some groceries.

Kim went to the rental house to mow the lawns and have a tiddy up while I did some washing and a potter about the house.

What I really did, was start reading my birthday book, Natural Horsemanship.  So absorbing and cant WAIT to have a horse to put all this into practice.