What works for us when you’re in a city is to pick a restaurant you want to go to, then walk in the general direction there. Allow spontaneous detours in corners you find interesting.

This allows one to flaneur but still have a destination.

On vacation, one can literally eat lunch, then wander about the city until it is tea time, then repeat until dinner. Beautiful way to spend the day and explore the city.

For me it's the plain old mind daemon screaming "Why aren't you busy?! You are certainly missing some super important obligations!". Curiously, it doesn't activate when I'm actually wasting time. It's the aimless walking that activates it.

But not the aimless scrolling on HN?

Of course not then! "Curiously, it doesn't activate when I'm actually wasting time."

Interesting. I do get the feeling when scrolling aimlessly, usually I relent to aimless consumption when I'm stuck on something hard I can't figure out. Whereas walks I view more utilitarian: they're good for me and the changing of environments helps me stay focused.

Have you considered why this is?

Listen to an audible book while you do it. Treat it as meditation time. Treat it as exercise. Use the time to call your mum or dad.

Lots of things can be done while aimlessly walking.

One of the most amazing things about aimlessly walking is the opportunity to let your mind wander freely! Not to say that you can't multitask while walking, just a thought :)

that's not normal