woolgathering

Etymology

From wool + gathering.

woolgathering means The gathering of fragments of wool torn from sheep by bushes, etc. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 82 out of 100.

Why this word is great

WOOLGATHERING — [Noun] The indulgence in idle fancies or aimless, unfocused thought. From wool + gathering, originally referring to the act of gathering scattered tufts of wool from hedges, a seemingly aimless and unproductive task. Unlike reverie, which implies a dreamy, often pleasurable absorption, or preoccupation, which denotes a single, weighty concern, woolgathering is the mind's trivial scavenger hunt. It is tracing the path of a crack in the ceiling into a map of a forgotten coast, rehearsing imaginary conversations with a shop clerk, or compiling a mental list of all the blue objects in the room—the humble industry of a brain gleaning useless and lovely scraps from the brambles of the mundane.

noun

The gathering of fragments of wool torn from sheep by bushes, etc.
Indulgence in idle fancies or daydreams.“[while fishing] Alone with my tin of bait and my wool-gatherings, I was in a world of my own, localized and satisfying as such world always are.”