--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied…" description: "\"“Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the woods. Indeed, something is to be said for going there to forget it, but it is well to develop..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg" --- # Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the… ![“Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the woods. Indeed, something is to be said for going there to forget it, but it is well to develop a habit of noting times for distances traveled.” quote by Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg) > ““Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the woods. Indeed, something is to be said for going there to forget it, but it is well to develop a habit of noting times for distances traveled.”” [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It advises balancing time in nature with mindful tracking of progress, emphasizing both escape and purposeful measurement. **In simple terms:** Enjoy nature but also note your journey’s distance. Key Takeaway Balance relaxation with purposeful tracking. Themes mindfulness nature productivity self‑discipline Mood calm thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - hiking - travel - project planning - personal development Key Concepts time management goal setting reflection Questions to Reflect On - How can you integrate mindful observation without losing immersion? - What simple metrics help you feel progress? A Different Perspective Over‑tracking can diminish the restorative effect of nature. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Habit Noting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit-noting-4081220/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Noting Times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noting-times-4081218/) [Preoccupied Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preoccupied-time-4081219/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-woods-4081217/) [Woods Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woods-said-921736/) ## Related quotes > [I'm going to sound a little weird here, but I like to spend a lot of time on my own in the woods. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-m-going-to-sound-a-little-weird-here-but-i-like-to-spend-a-lot-of/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [“I’ll go live in the woods,” said Malone. “You’ll be lonely,” said Sutherland. “Even Thoreau went to town in the afternoon to gossip.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-holleran/i-ll-go-live-in-the-woods-said-malone-you-ll-be-lonely-said/) [Andrew Holleran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-holleran/) > [Things worth having don't come easy," Woods said. "You have to fight for it until you're tired of fighting, and then you take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbi-glines/things-worth-having-don-t-come-easy-woods-said-you-have-to-fight-for/) [Abbi Glines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbi-glines/) > [Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/chaos-often-breeds-life-when-order-breeds-habit/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/we-need-to-discover-all-over-again-that-worship-is-natural-to-the/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) > [“I settled into a contented routine of working, spending my free time with Veronica and, back in my student room, wanking explosively to fantasies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-settled-into-a-contented-routine-of-working-spending-my-free-time/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [“When it comes to smarts, adolescents like Jesse have plenty. What they lack, however, are some of the brain-based skills that we all need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-guare/when-it-comes-to-smarts-adolescents-like-jesse-have-plenty-what-they/) [Richard Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-guare/) > [As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-you-begin-changing-your-thinking-start-immediately-to-change-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“the mind-numbing routine. It was the castration of thought,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/the-mind-numbing-routine-it-was-the-castration-of-thought/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/winning-is-a-habit-unfortunately-so-is-losing/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [I doubt that we Americans can come to terms with our money neuroses without understanding the more florid pathology of the very rich for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-slater/i-doubt-that-we-americans-can-come-to-terms-with-our-money-neuroses/) [Philip Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-slater/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/) [Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/) > [“Malchut is also the Alma D’Itgalya, “the Revealed World.” Here our latent potential is actualized through behavior and expression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laibl-wolf/malchut-is-also-the-alma-d-itgalya-the-revealed-world-here-our-latent/) [Laibl Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laibl-wolf/) ## More by Robert L. Mooers Jr > [“The idea is not to get your bearings periodically, but to never lose them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/the-idea-is-not-to-get-your-bearings-periodically-but-to-never-lose/) [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) > [“Human sense of direction, if anything, is a sense of wrong direction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/human-sense-of-direction-if-anything-is-a-sense-of-wrong-direction/) [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) > [“Nature moves fast in obliterating man's scars.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/nature-moves-fast-in-obliterating-man-s-scars/) [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) > [“So here it is - the end of the trail at the end of the road - and the beginning of a startlingly real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/so-here-it-is-the-end-of-the-trail-at-the-end-of-the-road-and-the/) [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) > [“A map may become outdated when a newer version comes out, but the old one is never useless. With time a map becomes a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/a-map-may-become-outdated-when-a-newer-version-comes-out-but-the-old/) [Robert L. Mooers Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) [Explore all 6 Robert L. Mooers Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/) ## More Habits quotes > [“Malchut is also the Alma D’Itgalya, “the Revealed World.” Here our latent potential is actualized through behavior and expression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laibl-wolf/malchut-is-also-the-alma-d-itgalya-the-revealed-world-here-our-latent/) [Laibl Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laibl-wolf/) > [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/) [Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [I doubt that we Americans can come to terms with our money neuroses without understanding the more florid pathology of the very rich for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-slater/i-doubt-that-we-americans-can-come-to-terms-with-our-money-neuroses/) [Philip Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-slater/) > [Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-lombardi/winning-is-a-habit-unfortunately-so-is-losing/) [Vince Lombardi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-lombardi/) > [“the mind-numbing routine. It was the castration of thought,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/the-mind-numbing-routine-it-was-the-castration-of-thought/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-you-begin-changing-your-thinking-start-immediately-to-change-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When it comes to smarts, adolescents like Jesse have plenty. What they lack, however, are some of the brain-based skills that we all need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-guare/when-it-comes-to-smarts-adolescents-like-jesse-have-plenty-what-they/) [Richard Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-guare/) > [“I settled into a contented routine of working, spending my free time with Veronica and, back in my student room, wanking explosively to fantasies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-settled-into-a-contented-routine-of-working-spending-my-free-time/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/we-need-to-discover-all-over-again-that-worship-is-natural-to-the/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) > [Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/chaos-often-breeds-life-when-order-breeds-habit/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you're in a meeting and a man talks loudly over you, rather than copying that behaviour and normalising it, what you could do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-foster/if-you-re-in-a-meeting-and-a-man-talks-loudly-over-you-rather-than/) [Dawn Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-foster/) > [Transparency pertains to impartial behavior, implies openness, communication, and accountability. Inculcate transparency in attitude and experience a life free of controversy and blame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-anil-kr-sinha/transparency-pertains-to-impartial-behavior-implies-openness/) [Dr Anil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-anil-kr-sinha/) [Browse all 12,567 Habits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the woods. Indeed, something is to be said for going there to forget it, but it is well to develop a habit of noting times for distances traveled.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert L. Mooers Jr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-with-time-in-the-woods-indeed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Habits" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-with-time-in-the-woods-indeed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/robert-l-mooers-jr-56398_habits_ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-w_1272041.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied with time in the woods. Indeed, something is to be said for going…” — Robert L. Mooers Jr", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Robert L. Mooers Jr", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-l-mooers-jr/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Ordinarily one need not be preoccupied...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-with-time-in-the-woods-indeed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-l-mooers-jr/ordinarily-one-need-not-be-preoccupied-with-time-in-the-woods-indeed/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```