A green path

[BobH]

I think, perhaps, that my daily perusal of Scuttlebutt might be 'Niksen.' But then again, I'm only a very small part Dutch due to my 18th Century ancestor, Simon DeArtsen ( later 'Muricanized' to DeHart).

Is Niksen a homonym for Nixon?

[HansV]

Is Niksen a homonym for Nixon?

Yes, although there are regional differences - in large parts of The Netherlands, the "n" at the end is silent ("nixuh"), while in the north-east, the "e" is almost silent ("nix'n").

[ChrisGreaves]

Walking at a brisk pace in the countryside is not really 'niksen' in my opinion.

So Niksen, like Beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder?
I can see that a strenuous walk - one that elevates the heart rate and/or blood pressure - might not be Niksen, but sitting in a car at a relaxing pace could be argued as Niksen.
Rowing calmly on a placid lake?
Sunbathing on a towel on the back lawn?
Unless like me and Ken you would spend the time worrying about skin-burn?

The other side of the coin is that if you were averse to caffeine, sipping a coffee might not be relaxing, walking with a bad knee would not be relaxing, ...

Cheers, Chris

[HansV]

Of the things you mention, sunbathing on a towel on the back lawn sounds most like 'niksen'.

But the article is somewhat overblown, it's not as if the Dutch really practice 'niksen' to battle stress.

[BobH]

Over the span of my life of awareness of earthly things beyond my street, 3 things stand out as most pronounced for me:

• greatly increased population density (world population has tripled in my lifetime)
  increased dependence on motor vehicles
  less time spent at relaxing pastimes.

I think maybe adopting the practices of 'Niksen' as we've discussed them would do wonders for all people everywhere.