I think that if it seems that "there is nothing new under the sun", you're probably looking at things from too far away. Try looking into more concrete matters (best: a specific problem, easiest: specific technology). In my experience I know that at times I have been engrossed in what would now appear to be awfully boring things, just because I dug deep enough.

[Corollary: if you think that revolutions in your field are happening every month, you may want to have a look at the state of things from afar.]