I'm in need of finding some hobbies, but I tend to have a lack of interest in ... everything.

What do y'all do for fun? What shenanigans keep you busy offline?

Aug 18, 2024 21:49:04 GMT KJ said:

I'm in need of finding some hobbies, but I tend to have a lack of interest in ... everything.

What do y'all do for fun? What shenanigans keep you busy offline?

I am going to monitor this thread,I'm a bit like you.

I was talking to my business coqch last month about my future and I have no idea what my goals should be, because I don't seem to really take joy in anything... Not that I'm unhappy.

Not a lot these days, between work and family, any down time is usually spent in front of the TV. 

But I've been restoring an old car since 2019. I lie, it was pretty tidy when I got it, but it's much better now. I'm aiming to get to a few car shows this year when it warms up. 

It's not a show-stopper by any means, but considering it's over 40 year old, the exterior looks brand new now, the interior has a few marks and wear & tear as expected. But my plan was to just make it a neat example, and something of an ode to my first car. It was a similar model, but when I was 18 I covered it in skateboard stickers, installed big speakers and did some questionable modifications to it. I've avoided that and aimed to put together the car I should have had at 18.  

Aug 18, 2024 22:59:20 GMT iNCY said:

Aug 18, 2024 21:49:04 GMT KJ said:

I'm in need of finding some hobbies, but I tend to have a lack of interest in ... everything.

What do y'all do for fun? What shenanigans keep you busy offline?

I am going to monitor this thread,I'm a bit like you.

I was talking to my business coqch last month about my future and I have no idea what my goals should be, because I don't seem to really take joy in anything... Not that I'm unhappy.

Your goals, considering the path you're on financially should be to retire early and find a nice beach somewhere and never leave it.  

Offline? <_<

I have no real hobbies honestly. Doom scrolling and other mindless entertainment. Absent of a family it's probably why more of my focus has shifted to work in the past 10 yrs.

I play a role playing game every Thursday evening online with friends. Typically Pathfinder but it can vary.

Occasionally I play video games. A couple times a year I’ll pick a game and play it through.

My main hobby is live poker. I typically play Wednesday and Saturday evenings, sometimes Monday.

Aug 18, 2024 23:26:51 GMT Gyro LC said:

I play a role playing game every Thursday evening online with friends. Typically Pathfinder but it can vary.

Occasionally I play video games. A couple times a year I’ll pick a game and play it through.

My main hobby is live poker. I typically play Wednesday and Saturday evenings, sometimes Monday.

Do you go to a Casino?

Tough call for me KJ. What defines a hobby? I feel like you need free time to do that. I'll expand my own criteria, and present things that I enjoy doing when I'm not spending time with my children. Or in some cases, my kids are starting to be involved with me and some of these activities.

Comic books (and reading in general). My oldest loves to read, and starting to get into comics. Dogman, CatKid, Captain Underpants, Dragonstone of Wrenly Place, TMNT Sat morning adventures, Sonic the Hedgehog...I love it. So he comes with me occasionally to the comic book store. He's 6, and starting to get a small allowance so he occasionally buys something for himself. I still read every night, mostly comics. I know you're a lapsed fan, and I think we read very different books when you were active in the Nerdery. My DC books are still really only Green Lantern, main Batman, and JSA.

Sauna - I've had an infrared sauna for a number of years now. It's something I enjoy doing before bed on most nights (less often during May - Sep) and I read when I sauna so it's a double hobby.

Gardening - the season is short here, but I do tend to it most evenings after the kids are bed. Plus doing the seedlings in the spring. They love the strawberries and helping me water it too when we're in the back playing.

Baking - both boys love to make cookies, banana bread, focaccia, muffins, you name it. They fight over who gets to add which ingredients, and of course reap the rewards once everything is ready

Smoking - (which reminds me, gotta update that thread) get some meat on the smoker. Experiment with almonds, bits and bites, mac n cheese, cornbread, whatever. Smoked meat is amazing and the best way to eat most of those cuts

TV - sitting on my ass for an hour in the evening. That's good for my brain

Fantasy football - only because I'm such a huge NFL fan and always have been. It's easy to switch to fantasy and play in multiple leagues and chat with friends and try to make trades.

I would say a hobby is something you spend time and money doing outside of work and home life.

I don't know that I have any hobbies per se anymore. Like Foos said there are things I enjoy like reading and watching TV, but no actual hobbies. I used to write, collect comics/statues and scrapbook (all of which cost me a small fortune in time and/or money), but I've decided to spend all my money on a mortgage and home renovations instead. I think this winter I'm going to spend it sorting through the 8 bins of moms' loose photos and negatives so that should be interesting. I bought a gadget to help me read what is on the negatives so I can then catalogue them. Thought we'd do it before she can't remember who people and places are anymore.

Aug 18, 2024 23:07:11 GMT NATH45 said:

Aug 18, 2024 22:59:20 GMT iNCY said:

I am going to monitor this thread,I'm a bit like you.

I was talking to my business coqch last month about my future and I have no idea what my goals should be, because I don't seem to really take joy in anything... Not that I'm unhappy.

Your goals, considering the path you're on financially should be to retire early and find a nice beach somewhere and never leave it.  

I don't know... Maybe for a month, but then what?

Aug 19, 2024 5:48:59 GMT iNCY said:

Aug 18, 2024 23:07:11 GMT NATH45 said:

Your goals, considering the path you're on financially should be to retire early and find a nice beach somewhere and never leave it.  

I don't know... Maybe for a month, but then what?

Nothing.

That's the point. Retirement.

I write: Usually just fan fic to keep the muscles going. I had some fun worldbuilding projects in the past but never fleshed out any grand narratives and I struggle with plot structure. Writing a book/short story is a challenge when compared to a pro wrestling BtB. Not trying to sound conceited but I'm pretty good at poetry, could likely get some work published but I don't really have a passion for it.

I draw: I could be a lot better but never applied myself. Attempted to go to school for graphic design but tuition was ridiculous and from what I gathered from most peers, it saps you of the fun anyways. I do it more for the meditative process and that sense of accomplishment more than anything else.

I game: Used to dominate my time, now its under much better control. I think the last time I turned on my PS4 was weeks ago. Played for maybe an hour? Also a lot of stressful things going on lately so I haven't really had the time.

I (used to) play music: I was in a couple bands, played rhythm/bass guitar and could sing but I'm nothing special. Mostly self-taught, no expert on theory. I miss it but my guitar is shit and I don't have the ambition to Wonderwall it anymore. Need to pick it back up one day eventually though so I don't forget how to play any old songs of mine.

I (used to) be an avid reader: I have trouble keeping my attention focused when reading. Some writers can write in a way that flows and keeps me going, others not so much and I have to circle back constantly to reiterate the text in my brain. So I'm picky. But there are some sci-fi novels that I'm dying to read right now though off of plots alone, need to make this old hobby a habit again soon

Also got back into D&D before my dad's health started getting worse. He's an old school DM and so I grew up around table top RPG's. I suck at roleplaying tbh and don't have the same level of passion but it was still a fun way to spend the day off occasionally. A buddy of mine wanted to do a GRPS campaign with Star Wars but I just haven't had the time lately.

Me and Lady Rad have also gotten into doing puzzles together. I suck at the 3D ones but traditional ones are fun. If I had more cash to blow I'd be splurging on fun board games.

Aug 19, 2024 2:09:59 GMT KJ said:

Aug 18, 2024 23:26:51 GMT Gyro LC said:

I play a role playing game every Thursday evening online with friends. Typically Pathfinder but it can vary.

Occasionally I play video games. A couple times a year I’ll pick a game and play it through.

My main hobby is live poker. I typically play Wednesday and Saturday evenings, sometimes Monday.

Do you go to a Casino?

Yes, the casinos here are 45 min into the mountains so it's a nice drive.

Aug 19, 2024 8:22:44 GMT rad said:

e and Lady Rad have also gotten into doing puzzles together.

Mom and I do puzzles together too while we watch TV because it's supposed to help keep your brain engaged and sharp.

Aug 19, 2024 16:03:31 GMT iron maiden said:

Aug 19, 2024 8:22:44 GMT rad said:

e and Lady Rad have also gotten into doing puzzles together.

Mom and I do puzzles together too while we watch TV because it's supposed to help keep your brain engaged and sharp.

Prior to children, Mrs Foos loved puzzles. We have so many Ravensburger puzzles in the basement. Luckily for us, both kids love doing puzzles. Mrs Foos doesn't do puzzles anymore.

Do D&D and random shit with the twitch community I hang in. And still fuck around with card magic stuff.

Aug 19, 2024 17:56:11 GMT c said:

Do D&D and random shit with the twitch community I hang in. And still fuck around with card magic stuff.

Parlor tricks or the gathering?

Sports
Wrestling
Classic TV
Video Games
Music

Also, I've just started a collection of old Nintendo Power magazines. Out of the 285 issues in its history, I've already got 40 in the collection.

Aug 19, 2024 18:35:15 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Also, I've just started a collection of old Nintendo Power magazines. Out of the 285 issues in its history, I've already got 40 in the collection.

Post the shelf man.

Aug 19, 2024 7:51:23 GMT NATH45 said:

Aug 19, 2024 5:48:59 GMT iNCY said:

I don't know... Maybe for a month, but then what?

Nothing.

That's the point. Retirement.

I love the idea of never HAVING to do anything ever again.
The reality though of never doing anything ever again is depressing.

Everyone needs purpose, this is what I am realising late in life.
Without purpose there is no reason to get out of bed, no reason for anything.
People strive towards retirement then fall apart, because the reality of doing nothing breaks them.

Somehow we need to find a way to do more of what we love and less of what we don't, doing this consistently, until we are only doing what we love... I heard someone speak on this topic and it was very convincing.

It also ties into what I have been reading about Addler psychology and how the measure of happiness is to be useful to others, with that service being something that is not sacrifice to yourself.

Aug 19, 2024 20:21:27 GMT @ness said:

Aug 19, 2024 18:35:15 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Also, I've just started a collection of old Nintendo Power magazines. Out of the 285 issues in its history, I've already got 40 in the collection.

Post the shelf man.

I don't have a shelf right now.  I currently have all the issues in a box right now.

I can tell you that the earliest issue I have is #26 (Robin Hood), and the latest was one I kept when I was a subscriber (#285, aka the last issue).

Other notables in my collection are #73 from June '95 (the first unveiling of the then Ultra 64), the 100th issue, and a subscriber exclusive version of #104 from January '98.

#1 would be listening to music. I listen to approximately 100 albums a month and even though I am edging past the age when you stop enjoying new music (and I've noticed a couple of my friends who I used to go to gigs with and talk about bands with drop off lately!) I am still invested in the latest stuff. I have a burgeoning vinyl collection although annoyingly prices have exploded in recent years as it becomes more popular again.

#2 would be the NFL. I would have left PW by now if it were not to have somewhere to talk about football. NFL podcasts get me through my long commute to the office, and last year I was watching 4-5 games per week. I love how tactical the sport is, how there are so many different approaches to success, and most of all how fine the margins are which results in so much drama. I can't wait for the season to start again.

#3 tends to be a movable feast. Six months ago I would have said reading because I was on a big book kick, but that's dropped off lately and instead I've been running more. Running used to be a necessary evil for soccer preseason, but I've got to the point where I actually enjoy it for what it is. At some point I will do a half marathon.

1) Gaming
(Yeah, I am really in the know on as much as I can be with gaming. I got all the consoles, chat with us at V&G, we don't bite!

Platformers
JRPG
Action/Adventure ala Soulsbourne & Metroidvanias
Visual Novels

Probably my core 4, dash in some horror and other genres here and there.)

2) Watching sports
(I dialed it back with actually playing them but honestly besides football, I found myself not being fully dialed in sans some spurts of the Knicks and or St Johns Red Storm basketball. Jets I get really passionate about tho, don't believe me? Ask the Sports Empire posters! I think COVID-19 and the shutdown of sports here really stunted my Yankee fandom and arguably, Rangers fandom too. I just don't get angry whenever the Yankees lose. Shit the Jets have lost so much for so long that I am even numb to the shit. I'm gonna be 35 tomorrow, the fuck do I need anymore stress in my life for? )

3) Exercising/working out
(Mainly cardio/jogging but I try and shoot for anywhere from 8-10K daily when I am not working from home. Weekends are an easy 2 hour go through my bike path, when I am in the city for my job, I focus in on a good 20-30 minute walk during my lunch break, especially if I prepared for my lunch. Was in so much better shape in my 20's, weren't we all? Still good though but I used to just run much longer distances, growing old sucks.)

4) Cooking/BBQing
(I know I slacked off in the BBQ thread Foos , forgive me! I like to cook, especially when with my grandmother who is 85 and isn't able to do as much as she used to. I can do BBQ stuff like Grilled Tofu or Burgers or seldom Hot Dogs or Chicken Shish kebab. I do Fried fish, Eggplant Parm, prep for Tuna Salad or Sandwich for work, I am decent! I try and eat healthy for the most part, maybe once a week at best I do take out.)

5) Music
(Synthwave, Classic Rock, Metalcore, I am good with modern music or stuff from past. Country, most R&B, most JPOP & KPOP and modern rap aren't for me but can roll with everything else. Video game music too, especially the classical shit hits hard. Them Soulsbourne games son.)

I used to do gardening with my grandmother but time issues here and there. Still do weed pulling, rearranging or carrying pots, rocks for placing or trimming or now, getting on the ladder to get some figs from the fig tree. Lot of the stuff she can't physically do, I do but mainly on weekends or sneaking it in during WFH on a downtime. She just shot calls and makes sure I don't fuck it up while she chills on a chair observing :lol: Didn't want to list that there since it's nowhere near as frequently but I am doing garden work 1-2 times a month for sure, heck even more. We have a couple of trees that I swear just grow & grow within 1-2 months, pains in the ass. Mosquito season ruins it too for me from enjoying this as I am allergic to the venom bite. 

before covid I liked going to hole in the wall live music venues seeing future stars and singers/bands that are past their prime. Seems like all the good places shut down.

I don't get to do it much now, but photography was a great hobby for me. I bought an old Nikon 35mm film camera and would walk around taking pictures.

I really loved going out late at night, taking long exposures. It would be too dark out for the film to capture an image with a normal shutter speed. So I'd have to put the camera on a tripod and open the shutter for extended periods of times. Sometimes 5 seconds, sometimes more than 90 seconds, and everything in between, depending on the amount of light, or lack of light. Those seconds were so peaceful.

There's also something so cool about a long exposure seeing things the human eye can't. If you expose film long enough to a landscape you can't see, the photo will show it to you. Light, even a light too dim for the human eye hitting film for an extended period of time, and the chemical reaction that comes with development will see what we can't. That's pretty rad for a 147-year-old technology that is mostly viewed as obsolete. 

I remember one time, I found an empty lot overlooking a canal where a house used to be. They had just torn it down, put a fence up, but I hopped the fence. I placed the camera towards the canal and pretty blindly came up with a composition. It was so dark, I couldn't see what I was framing. I checked the exposure with my phone, and did the math for how long I'd have to keep the shutter open to capture an image, which was close to two minutes. I don't remember exactly.

The reason I remember this one picture is because in that two minutes, all the bullshit in my head just stopped. It was like the the two minutes it was going to take to capture a moment suspended time for me. I felt a breeze coming off the water on my face that was there the whole time. I could smell the salt in the air. I heard the rippling of water where snappers were swimming at the surface. I heard the creaking sound as boats rubbed up against floating docks. I heard seals in the distance. All of this was always there, but I could only notice it in those two minutes with the shutter open that was forcing me to stand there longer than I ever would have. At some point I became aware that it was the most peace I felt in a very long time. 

The two minutes were up, I closed the shutter, grabbed my camera and tripod, and hopped back over the fence.

When I eventually developed the film, the picture was unextraordinary. I got the exposure correct, and saw details in the photo that I couldn't see with my eyes that night, but the composition looked like what it was: blindly placing a camera and taking a picture. But that didn't matter because every time I look at that picture I think of the feeling I had taking it.

This was an important lesson for me. We get so bogged down at "becoming good" at things, this results based mentality, that we lose sight that the most important aspect of anything is simply the doing. The picture isn't good? Who gives a fuck? If I didn't go out to take pictures that night, I would have sat on my couch depressed instead. It got me out there. It made me feel good. That's what hobbies are supposed to be for. That's what everything is supposed to be for.

I don't get to shoot much anymore. Film became very expensive (again) after the chain supply got all messed up. One of the benefits of film photography enthusiasm 5-10 years ago was how dead it was in the digital age. You could find the best film cameras of the 20th century on Ebay for dirt cheap. And Kodak/Fuji were selling film for almost nothing to the few holdovers. Now there's more film photographers than there is film, so it's back to being expensive, and I am, unfortunately, broke. But I still get out there once in a while. 

There is now a hideous McMansion on that lot blocking the view of the canal. 

Aug 19, 2024 23:17:22 GMT @admin said:

#1 would be listening to music. I listen to approximately 100 albums a month and even though I am edging past the age when you stop enjoying new music (and I've noticed a couple of my friends who I used to go to gigs with and talk about bands with drop off lately!) I am still invested in the latest stuff. I have a burgeoning vinyl collection although annoyingly prices have exploded in recent years as it becomes more popular again.

#2 would be the NFL. I would have left PW by now if it were not to have somewhere to talk about football. NFL podcasts get me through my long commute to the office, and last year I was watching 4-5 games per week. I love how tactical the sport is, how there are so many different approaches to success, and most of all how fine the margins are which results in so much drama. I can't wait for the season to start again.

#3 tends to be a movable feast. Six months ago I would have said reading because I was on a big book kick, but that's dropped off lately and instead I've been running more. Running used to be a necessary evil for soccer preseason, but I've got to the point where I actually enjoy it for what it is. At some point I will do a half marathon.

Assuming the music is new, how do you find new stuff/news that new albums are out?

Aug 20, 2024 15:34:46 GMT System said:

Aug 19, 2024 23:17:22 GMT @admin said:

#1 would be listening to music. I listen to approximately 100 albums a month and even though I am edging past the age when you stop enjoying new music (and I've noticed a couple of my friends who I used to go to gigs with and talk about bands with drop off lately!) I am still invested in the latest stuff. I have a burgeoning vinyl collection although annoyingly prices have exploded in recent years as it becomes more popular again.

Assuming the music is new, how do you find new stuff/news that new albums are out?

A combination of going down rabbit holes on Spotify, albumoftheyear.com, and indieheads/hiphopheads on Reddit.

Playing video games, watching movies and TV shows, watching/listening to real crime stories, reading, occasionally writing, doing diamond arts, board games, listening to music, wrestling.

I used to play guitar but haven’t done that in a while.
Haven’t played D&D in awhile either but I still keep up to date with it. Have started playing Magic The Gathering too.

Getting into bike riding too, and in summer love going swimming.

Board games - My dominant hobby of the past two years. It started when I moved to a new city and wanted to find a social activity. I'd always enjoyed board games but not had much chance to play them with people. I found a group and it's become my favourite thing to do. I should clarify: by board games I don't mean Monopoly, Risk etc. There's a whole universe of board games of all different shapes, sizes and themes. Hundreds, if not thousands. I've made some great friends.

The drawback is, as with all interests, I get too obsessive to the point where my other interests suffer. I spend a ludicrous amount of time playing board games online with strangers - there's a fantastic website for that. It's not that I don't enjoy it, because I do, but having some balance with my other interests would be nice. Curse my poor self-control.

Chess - I separate chess from board games. It's been my dominant hobby since I was a child, but I lost a lot of the chess mojo during the pandemic. The passion is always there, but right now it's like a dying ember, on the brink of life. Sometimes the motivation fuel comes back, but never for long.

Kilgore wonderfully describes the feeling of being in flow, that meditative state that we all seek to achieve. I experience that during a chess game. Not an online chess game, but sat at a physical chess board, concentrating on the pieces in front of me. That's the best way I escape from the bullshit in my mond. It's magical. Yet I don't do it. Why? Well, it does require a large time commitment, and usually a significant amount of travel, beacuse you can't just play a serious game of chess any time, any place.

I do have a strong desire to play in international tournaments and the occasional weekend event, but playing on weekday evenings like I used to? Unlikely.

Video games - Probably my favourite hobby. Its meditative power is strong but still a distant second to chess. But video games are more accessible. I appreciate simple pick-up-and-play video games, and video games with a profound story. Preference for the latter: most of my favourite video games are lengthy RPGs. However, much like an epic fantasy series, these require a huge time investment, so these days I tend to pick the shorter and simpler games. Perhaps to my detriment.

Reading - As above, something I used to do a lot more than I do now, and I wish I did more. I'm really sensing a pattern...

Pro-wrestling - For many years I have been wrestling with my mind on whether pro-wrestling is a hobby or an entertaining obligation I've created for myself. The good thing is I am definitely enjoying pro-wrestling more than in the past decade, where I mostly was watching it out of inertia. WWE is better than it's ever been. NJPW is not, but the G1 Climax is as awesome as ever. Truth be told, I'd probably be (slightly) happier if I cut wrestling out of my life, but it's a difficult habit to break.

Exercise - I left this until last because I'm not sure I'd classify this as a hobby. First it was yoga, over five years ago, then three years ago I stepped into a gym for the first time and haven't looked back. I do enjoy it while I'm there to varying degrees, especially with my trainer who is phenomenal, but I often have to will myself to go, so not a hobby in the traditional sense. However it's a regular activity, I usually hit three times a week.

Aug 21, 2024 7:45:29 GMT @admin said:

I've been running more. Running used to be a necessary evil for soccer preseason, but I've got to the point where I actually enjoy it for what it is. At some point I will do a half marathon.

I know this sounds awfully judgmental but I can't fathom how people enjoy running. What do you enjoy about it? I'm genuinely curious.

Aug 21, 2024 18:04:18 GMT Kilgore said:

all the bullshit in my head just stopped. It was like the the two minutes it was going to take to capture a moment suspended time for me. I felt a breeze coming off the water on my face that was there the whole time.

I already spoke about this regarding chess but I wanted to highlight the beauty of this quote. It's exactly what I feel during an in-person chess game. As iNCY pointed out (maybe in another thread), we should all be striving to do something that makes us feel this way as much as possible.

All this reflection makes me feel I spend too much time on the quick-and-easy hobbies (i.e. online board gaming), and I need to shift focus to more long-term satisfaction hobbies such as reading, video games, chess. Food for thought.

Aug 19, 2024 18:17:36 GMT @ness said:

Aug 19, 2024 17:56:11 GMT c said:

Do D&D and random shit with the twitch community I hang in. And still fuck around with card magic stuff.

Parlor tricks or the gathering?

Parlor tricks, but play MtG a bit in the Commander format.