Hobbies?

Mike Hartman · #1 12-02-2005, 08:48 AM

The following question might be somewhat personal to some, but I'm just curious as what people do after work as hobbies, activities, etc.
I like visiting and talking with family (I'm a family-man

), going out with friends to just chit-chat and visit. I love anime and hope someday I'm able to visit Japan. Maybe I can make it an annual thing too...? Maybe! But I love at times just sitting outside watching the snowfall (at this time of year). I also like the morning hours (like 4-6 am) just as the sun rises. It's quite amazing to me. And hopefully some day, I'll own a Franklin Lloyd Wright house (Falling Waters is the name of the house). But only in a dream will that happen!

lol

Anyone else want to discuss what they do and like?

Pete · #2 12-02-2005, 09:06 AM

When I was younger my hobbies pretty much revolved around the philosophy of "work hard, play hard". So that meant clubbing and hanging with friends at the bars. Now I take life a little more slowly. I love to just chill with my wife and dogs quite often, maybe with a movie, maybe with a book, or as you said, this time of year, just watching the snow fall. My family has always been a big "game" family, so as often as possible Wanda and I meet up with my brother and his girlfriend for game nights. Right now, our current favorites are "Ticket to Ride" and "Bohnanza". Also been playing "Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magical Carrot" but the jury is still out on that.
I also love to spend time at my grill, at home, BBQing up a storm for us and the neighbors. And of course there is always travelling, though recently it has pretty much been relegated to short little regional trips, but that is ok, because there is a lot see and do in Wisconsin (especially visiting all the breweries). That is fine with us, since Wanda and I want to one day open up a B&B or small country inn. We justify our trips as research.

We also used to do a lot of camping but recently all our camping companions moved away so we haven't been in a while.

phatch · #3 12-02-2005, 11:04 AM

Ticket to Ride is good fun. Settler of Katarn/Katann(spelling?), Carcassone are some other recent games of good fun.

My hobbies. The outdoors, cooking, I'm not a pro so it's a hobby. Knives, but that kind of goes with the outdoors, reading. Certainly family time is in there too.

Phil

Pete · #4 12-02-2005, 12:20 PM

Im hoping for both of those for Christmas and/or my birthday.

Hint, hint!

Mezzaluna · #5 12-02-2005, 01:21 PM

I love to travel- mostly hunting for food! Well, besides scenery and culture. I love to read, mostly science fiction, fantasy and historical (fiction and non). I enjoy movies very much, usually the same genres as for books, but my DVD collection is very eclectic: Time Bandits, To Kill A Mockingbird, Emma, LOTR, When Harry Met Sally, Gettysburg, Harry Potter I, II and III,....you get the idea. I love reading cookbooks of all kinds and want to expand my horizons into Indian cooking. I had signed up for a class at the local technical college, but it was cancelled so the quest continues. I enjoy being with friends, which usually happens over food. I spend a lot of time doing various tasks for my synagogue (Nosh Squad/food committee, writing and publishing the monthly bulletin, committee work, leading worship on occasion). I love snow but as I age it gets harder to enjoy it other than looking at it!

Guilty pleasures include Bloobs (an arcade game) and watching TV.

chrose · #6 12-02-2005, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mezzaluna

Guilty pleasures include Bloobs (an arcade game) and watching TV.

Me too

Oh..."Bloobs"

Mezzaluna · #7 12-02-2005, 04:46 PM

OMG! A Bloobs Buddy! What's your high score? Mine is 225,575 (easy level).

Headless Chicken · #8 12-03-2005, 07:18 AM

I love my anime as well and too hope to visit Japan. I also studied karate for 12 years of my life though I havn't been able to go back since starting college.
Video games galor on my PC and now my recently purchased PSP.
Movie fanatica, 4 shelves worth of DVDs and growing, I've given up on the theaters unless its something I really want to go see.
Computers was my fortay up till my last year of high school. I've build, re-build, and upgraded my computer like 5x since I first got it nearly 8 years ago.
I'm a bit of a shutterbug since little with my grandfather's Nikon SLR which hes left me since passing away. I still am with my digital cameras, I come back from a 1 week trip with 400 pictures and videos.

Pete · #9 12-03-2005, 07:57 AM

I just recently broke down and bought a digital camera. I really am a film buff, but really like the fact that I can manipulate my own photos. Bought a Canon A95. I really wanted an SLR style digital, but way too expensive for me right now. The A95 is nice though. 5 megapixal, and it allows me to shoot fully automatically, use 15-20 presets, or override all the presets and do it all myself. That was the biggest thing I wanted from a digital since I feel that part of the joy of shooting pics is in manipulating what the camera captures.

Andrew563 · #10 12-03-2005, 11:10 AM

My hobbies and relaxing activities change with the seasons. When its nice out, I always look for an outside activity. Nothing too strenuous, a nice hike in the woods. Relaxing in my neighborhood park. Or messing around in the yard. When its cold and wintery(like now), a good book, maybe some video games or any other insde activites. I seem to eat more during the winter too.

Peachcreek · #11 12-03-2005, 01:55 PM

Lately we have been doing a bunch of remodeling on our house. I do the painting, basic electrical and plumbing. We are going to have a contractor do our bathrooms and kitchen.

I also like watching movies and am constantly upgrading my home theater. We got a big plasma screen this year that makes movie watching a thrill. From spring through fall I am an avid rockhound and spend my weekends off in the wilds. I'm also big into mountain biking. During our remodeling process we turned one room into a small home gym with a treadmill and stationary bike. I like being able to go exercise whenever I want. My wife and I also like to travel. We went to Bora Bora for two weeks this year. I am trying to talk her into two week in New Caledonia next year. She is a little apprehensive about the 29 hour plane ride....I have 8 months to work on her.....

Stephanie Brim · #12 12-03-2005, 03:38 PM

I'm a gamer. That said, my boyfriend just got a new Xbox 360. There's just one problem I'm having: I'm not getting addicted to any of the games that show off the great graphics capability of the thing, I'm getting addicted to Hexic! It's a puzzle game somewhat like Tetris where you have to rotate hexagons in groups of three...the more you knock out in one turn the better your score becomes. I enjoy my Call of Duty 2 as much as the next avid first person shooter fan, but Hexic is just plain fun. Reminds me of the old days when Pong and Pacman and Space Invaders were still the coolest of the games.

blue_wolf · #13 12-04-2005, 08:34 PM

I'm also a gamer, but to a different extent. I've been playing D-n-D for over 15 years now, been to several conventions and ran games. Most of my friends were jelious because my wife games too. But, I do also tap into the electronic world, playing City of Heroes and City of Villians when I get a chance and can keep my eyes open. Other than that, just about anything outdoorsie will do. Hiking, camping, sitting under a tree and reading, football with my friends (that one hasn't happened in sometime). Lately, the big one is just spending time with my otherhalf and baby-to-be. Oppisite scheduals means the time together is less and less. Make the best of what you got.

gonefishin · #14 12-04-2005, 10:40 PM

Hi guys and gals,

Oh, I've got a good number of hobbies and past times. Most important and m favorite...spending time with the family. I also enjoy fishing (who would have thought

) and hunting...although I don't get out much any more.

Cooking is another hobby of mine...which is driven by my love for food. The Wife and I used to go out to eat quite often when we were courting and recently married (I think 13 years now)...but with the addition of (now) two children...we just don't get out as much to eat. Not nearly as much. But...before we would usually go to mid to lower priced restaurants. Because we really don't eat out much any more. We make going out to eat much more of a treat. Going to places that we would really love to eat at. I know we're still way money ahead...and we're eating some nice food

Also...my audio system is a hobby of mine. I enjoy listening to music and also building my system. It's just a fun hobby

take care,
dan

phoebe · #15 12-05-2005, 02:02 PM

As a non-pro, obviously one hobby is cooking

. And spending too much time on-line and with books reading about food.
Another great love is vegetable gardening, but I've let work take way too much time away from my plants. Right now I've got lots of different lettuces, sugar snap peas, carrots, peppers, various herbs and three types of broccoli growing.
I love reading, but my work involves so much reading and writing, that at night I just want to vege in front of the TV.
We go to theatre and dance when there's something interesting in town, and we love to travel--Alaska most recently.