Bertrand Russell once wrote a 5,000 word essay in praise of idleness, but I don't have the time to match his dedication to the lazy. In between postgraduate study, political activism, community projects and a modicum of social life the closest I usually come is gardening or neighbours.

Yet Russell's tract fascinates me, the slow food movement invades my dreams, my Taoist inclinations tut at my hectic striving. So I present here my own ode to idleness, a reflection on my own pursuit of passivity.

Several theorists that I have come across so far when reading about alienation emphasise concepts of self-realisation and objectification, suggesting that un-alienated work consists in achieving them both. Indeed, they could be synonymous. Other candidates for features of un-alienated work are autonomy, scope for creativity and curiosity, passion and a particular interface between the individual and the contact communities.