woolgathering

The act of gathering wool; now applied proverbially or figuratively to the indulgence of idle fancies; a foolish or fruitle pursuit. The allusion is probably to the practice of gathering the tufts of wool to be found on shrubs, hedges, ., which nece itates much wandering about with little result. "His wits were a wool - gathering as they say."- Burton : Anatomy of Melancholy , pt. i., § 2.