Ask HN: What's your favourite hobby and how did it start?
I love tech too much and would like to find something social or at least different in my spare time that pulls me away...
110 comments
Learning Ableton opened me up to a whole world of meeting new people and picking up new skills.
https://www.ableton.com/en/live/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iuRsiKtObw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxY0x1i3XhY
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9oiyAGA6zOTSPR5-ttojODT4...
Getting some teenage engineering pocket operators is also something I'd strongly recommend. They're affordable and fun! Check out this 8 year old building a tune with them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhFIUdICYSA
https://www.ableton.com/en/live/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iuRsiKtObw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxY0x1i3XhY
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9oiyAGA6zOTSPR5-ttojODT4...
Getting some teenage engineering pocket operators is also something I'd strongly recommend. They're affordable and fun! Check out this 8 year old building a tune with them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhFIUdICYSA
Can you explain how picking up this hobby lead you to meet new people?
Btw thanks for the links, they look super helpful.
Btw thanks for the links, they look super helpful.
After a couple of years of work, I started to DJ for fun and met so many people, and as I got more into synths I go to synth meetups and music maker spaces. Basically unlocked a new friend group!
I have a different perspective. Ableton is fine, but the "Hacker tool" of the sequencer world is Reaper. Very programmable and it has great terms of use. But it does have a learning curve.
Also, I unfortunately didn't care for the pocket operators - only musical instrument I've ever returned. People will likely have more fun with the volcas, the Circuit or inexpensive Behringers.
Also, I unfortunately didn't care for the pocket operators - only musical instrument I've ever returned. People will likely have more fun with the volcas, the Circuit or inexpensive Behringers.
Recently I got a Circuit Tracks and it's been a hoot. I like using it standalone more than with Ableton (because I haven't gotten around to trying to make entire actual songs). I mostly make grooves and ideas to play with. I got a MicroFreak to go with it but have yet to unlock its features.
8 hour course? Did you actually get through the entire thing? Was it worth it?
I learned ableton through trial and error, but I have watched the whole video and got a lot from it. I wish I'd had that resource when I was starting out, would have saved me a lot of time. So I'd say: yes, it's worth it if you're picking up ableton.
8 hours is not a bad investment at all!
I also learned ableton without any resources, but back in 2003 when it was a simpler product. It begs to be tinkered with (I think that’s the draw of it) but it’s a deep bit of software.
I also learned ableton without any resources, but back in 2003 when it was a simpler product. It begs to be tinkered with (I think that’s the draw of it) but it’s a deep bit of software.
Thanks, I will give it a try. I picked up ableton a few months ago and have been poking around. A deeper course like this might open up tricks that I am not aware of.
I like running (now). I never played sports growing up, and would not consider myself particularly athletic. I joined my country's military as an officer, and always found myself running at someone else's pace, which was also awful.
When I finished my undergraduate degree, I found I had a huge vacuum of time. So, I started running. I signed up for a marathon with some friends and the training was fun, because I was running (!) the show. I ended up running pretty well, and kept it up.
Nevertheless, I met a girl while running who really put me through the ringer on a "running first date"-- She turned out to be an Olympian in track. This past week, I actually got to watch her compete at the World Championships in Budapest in the 5000m, and was even luckier to propose to her about two days ago.
I still think it's kind of funny, as a guy who really hated exercise growing up. She's a great foil to my dorkiness. Anyways, feel free to ask us anything about running. We're just killing time right now.
When I finished my undergraduate degree, I found I had a huge vacuum of time. So, I started running. I signed up for a marathon with some friends and the training was fun, because I was running (!) the show. I ended up running pretty well, and kept it up.
Nevertheless, I met a girl while running who really put me through the ringer on a "running first date"-- She turned out to be an Olympian in track. This past week, I actually got to watch her compete at the World Championships in Budapest in the 5000m, and was even luckier to propose to her about two days ago.
I still think it's kind of funny, as a guy who really hated exercise growing up. She's a great foil to my dorkiness. Anyways, feel free to ask us anything about running. We're just killing time right now.
Very cool. I'm guessing one of the two US athletes!
It was a great race - love watching Hassan race too. Also enjoyed the mens 5km and was very happy (as a Brit) to see Josh Kerr beat Ingebrigtsen in the 1500m :)
It was a great race - love watching Hassan race too. Also enjoyed the mens 5km and was very happy (as a Brit) to see Josh Kerr beat Ingebrigtsen in the 1500m :)
What was your rampup or training like? How long did it take you to run continuously?
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu - It's an odd combination of intense physical activity and human chess (setting up attacks in advance while also trying to deflect your opponents attacks, except using chokes or joint breaks). Grapplers are either freak athletes, 120lb stoners, or business professionals. BJJ is one of the most unique sports/martial arts out there, and I encourage everyone to try it at least once.
I started after enrolling my children in it, and then figuring "why the hell not, I should train too."
I started after enrolling my children in it, and then figuring "why the hell not, I should train too."
BJJ is great. I wrestled folkstyle in high school, and then transitioned to BJJ and submission wrestling as an adult. It's a ton of fun and a great workout. Can't recommend highly enough.
I only got out of it because of a combination of A. lack of time, and B. injuries (note: the injuries were more from mountain biking than from BJJ, but I did tear a hip adductor muscle once in BJJ training).
I only got out of it because of a combination of A. lack of time, and B. injuries (note: the injuries were more from mountain biking than from BJJ, but I did tear a hip adductor muscle once in BJJ training).
I was looking into BJJ as well for a while but decided against after reading about it and the topic of injuries came up a lot.
Currently, birding. Got really into it in 2021 since it pretty much runs in the family. I feel that observing the lives of our fellow creatures helps me really destress and put my mind off work. Interestingly, I find that birding while walking in the nature works better in this regard than just walking in the nature.
Get a good pair of binoculars, a bird sound recognition app for your mobile[1], and a bird field guide (as a European, I prefer [2]), and you're good to go.
[1] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.tu_chemnitz...
[2] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.natureguid...
Get a good pair of binoculars, a bird sound recognition app for your mobile[1], and a bird field guide (as a European, I prefer [2]), and you're good to go.
[1] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.tu_chemnitz...
[2] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.natureguid...
Nice, i'm an amateur birder, meaning i'm just standing in front of the office building and ..watch the birds. But lately i have been thinking more and more about professionalizing it.
It's so calm and fascinating.
My favorites are Corvids.
My favorites are Corvids.
I love to spot any raptor - I'm even a little superstitious about them and tend to take sighting a hawk as a good omen. I also always love to watch a heron/crane - they just seem so dinosaur-ish. Very interesting birds.
Woodworking - It started when someone on my work slack posted an image of an arcade machine they had made. I thought "I want one of those". So I borrowed a circular saw and made one. Then I was hooked. Now I'm doing lots of home improvements, such as building a coffee bar and converting an unused area into a pantry. I'm currently building some shop furniture, then I'll be converting an unused cupboard near our entry way into a mud room.
The two downsides are: * It's easy to want to buy all the shiniest tools, which are expensive * I don't want to buy furniture anymore, I want to make it. But there just aren't enough hours in the day.
The two downsides are: * It's easy to want to buy all the shiniest tools, which are expensive * I don't want to buy furniture anymore, I want to make it. But there just aren't enough hours in the day.
> I don't want to buy furniture anymore, I want to make it.
Why would you spend $400 on a piece of furniture when you could make it yourself for $800?
I too have been bitten by this bug.
Why would you spend $400 on a piece of furniture when you could make it yourself for $800?
I too have been bitten by this bug.
Actually, if you want to get out of this cycle, turning is a good subset of the hobby. A good small turning setup will cost around $1500 brand new (for the lathe, carbide tools, vices, drill bits, etc.). After that the wood tends to be cheap because you can use other people's offcuts or waste material.
Pens in particular are easy to learn, make gifts that people ooh and aah over, and don't take a ton of time. Materials for a pen range from $10 (for a cheap kit) to $35 (for a top of the line kit plus a fancy blank). Once you've made a few you should be spending an hour to an hour and a half per pen. If something goes wrong mid-project you lose the wood and the tubes, and replacement tubes are cheap, so you don't have to re-buy the whole kit.
Once you master that there are a variety of projects that will ramp up the skill step by step. And there are tons of classes around that'll help you gain those skills.
Pens in particular are easy to learn, make gifts that people ooh and aah over, and don't take a ton of time. Materials for a pen range from $10 (for a cheap kit) to $35 (for a top of the line kit plus a fancy blank). Once you've made a few you should be spending an hour to an hour and a half per pen. If something goes wrong mid-project you lose the wood and the tubes, and replacement tubes are cheap, so you don't have to re-buy the whole kit.
Once you master that there are a variety of projects that will ramp up the skill step by step. And there are tons of classes around that'll help you gain those skills.
For me too. Though it’s more DIY in general (plumbing, electrics, decorating etc too).
Built myself a shed from scratch earlier in the summer as a warm up for building a garden office.
Currently have the roof off the porch (somewhat regrettably given the state the summer in the uk) because the ivy got to it before we purchased the house and it was rotting away. Having to learn a new set of skills around tiling hip rafters. Thank the Lord for YouTube!
It’s amazing the number of tools you end up needing as you go along. Though a circular saw and an impact driver will take you a long way.
Built myself a shed from scratch earlier in the summer as a warm up for building a garden office.
Currently have the roof off the porch (somewhat regrettably given the state the summer in the uk) because the ivy got to it before we purchased the house and it was rotting away. Having to learn a new set of skills around tiling hip rafters. Thank the Lord for YouTube!
It’s amazing the number of tools you end up needing as you go along. Though a circular saw and an impact driver will take you a long way.
A bit that makes it attractive to me, if I pay someone and the job is done in a way I don’t like, I end up fixing it anyway and am out of pocket.
Do it myself and any issues are easier to live with as they are my fault.
Do it myself and any issues are easier to live with as they are my fault.
Totally. I’ve reworked a lot of the plumbing and electrics I paid pros for because I wasn’t happy with the results.
I make a lot of mistakes, but as you say, you can make your peace with them.
I make a lot of mistakes, but as you say, you can make your peace with them.
yeah this is the same for me. I've slowly built most of our furniture and it's really hard to pay moneydollars for the crappy stuff (even high end) sold anywhere. I can't stand veneered products from Herman Miller for $2k that would be fun to build, but I don't have enough time to build them.
Not the healthiest of hobbies but I stumbled into DOTA (the league of legends precursor) 20 years ago and have never fallen out of love.
It's been a dangerous addiction at several points of my life, but in many ways has revealed to me more insight about myself than any other activity.
There is so much variation and nuance, there's always something to learn. For a naturally curious and slightly competitive person, it's quite an intoxicating cocktail.
It's been a dangerous addiction at several points of my life, but in many ways has revealed to me more insight about myself than any other activity.
There is so much variation and nuance, there's always something to learn. For a naturally curious and slightly competitive person, it's quite an intoxicating cocktail.
That's hardcore. I play StarCraft 2 (Protoss) arcade style--quick ladder matches.
Before that my obsession was Go, the board game. Still enjoy it but don't ever feel I have 40min - hour to spare for a game and don't enjoy smaller/faster formats. I'll sometimes do problems on a phone app.
Before that my obsession was Go, the board game. Still enjoy it but don't ever feel I have 40min - hour to spare for a game and don't enjoy smaller/faster formats. I'll sometimes do problems on a phone app.
I gave it up about 7 years ago, but have recently started again. It's so fun, but so addictive!
Music is a fantastic option. I've always loved listening but didn't dig into it for a long time. I imagined myself getting into synthesizers and DAWs and figured I didn't need another hobby that keeps me at the workbench or computer. During the pandemic I decided to buy a bass guitar and it turns out there is something to these analog instruments after all. A key part of it for me was intentionally avoiding electronics like pedals or obsessing over amps and pickups. Being able to grab an acoustic and play some tunes around the firepit has been great.
I'm in the same boat, but I like recording too so I got a "digital 8 track" that can completely replace a DAW and allows me to record my acoustic or electric instrument or my voice, and edit the recording, and mix it down into a final product, all on the device.
If you have any interest in recording & want to maintain the part where you stay away from the computer/workbench while you play music, I cannot more strongly recommend a digital 8-track recorder. It's been life-changing for me.
If you have any interest in recording & want to maintain the part where you stay away from the computer/workbench while you play music, I cannot more strongly recommend a digital 8-track recorder. It's been life-changing for me.
Care to recommend any?
Motorcycling.
Motorcycling is a high bandwidth sensory experience both alike and unlike the puzzles of flying a high resolution monitor and keyboard during the day job. It is an endless excuse to explore the endless physical world. It is something for sharing but also fundamentally a personal experience.
Motorcycling was my father's midlife crisis. I learned on dirt bikes when I was 11, riding old Japanese dual sports through closed strip mines and down power line cuts. Getting lost, getting stuck, and then getting home.
You, or anyone in the US, can learn from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation basic rider course: https://msf-usa.org/start-your-ride/basic-ridercourse/
Motorcycling is a high bandwidth sensory experience both alike and unlike the puzzles of flying a high resolution monitor and keyboard during the day job. It is an endless excuse to explore the endless physical world. It is something for sharing but also fundamentally a personal experience.
Motorcycling was my father's midlife crisis. I learned on dirt bikes when I was 11, riding old Japanese dual sports through closed strip mines and down power line cuts. Getting lost, getting stuck, and then getting home.
You, or anyone in the US, can learn from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation basic rider course: https://msf-usa.org/start-your-ride/basic-ridercourse/
Skydiving.
I did an ifly 2 minutes flight (indoor skydiving), and my co-worker asked me if we should try to go do a real skydiving. I had 0 friends and knowledge about it. We went to website, looked that you can pay 300 to go solo, and 200 for tandem. Without even thinking, we payed for solo 300, just assuming it is a better experience.
We were sitting in a class terrifying while listening for 6 hours what might kill us. We both jumped the next day after the class (weathered out the day of the class). My friend did not continue. I am getting close to 1400 jumps.
There are several things I like about this sport. Adrenaline. While you skydive, you definitely don’t think about how to fix THAT bug, your focus is on Dropzone. People. 99% of people I have met during skydiving are the best people you can have around you. Various professions, various hobbies, ages, statuses. But in the plane and on skydive we are all the same. Bag of meat falling out of the sky. Some do it better than others.
Skydiving opens the world. There are so many activities around the places, where it is hard to get access to, but people in skydiving looking for various options to jump in those areas. I had one of the best experiences traveling around Iceland in a cargo plane with always open door, so we can jump in various national parks and awesome places where you need to hike for hours. One week trip was 4000 EUR per person, including food, lodging, skydiving and transportation. I definitely want to do similar to Africa and Egypt at some point.
I did an ifly 2 minutes flight (indoor skydiving), and my co-worker asked me if we should try to go do a real skydiving. I had 0 friends and knowledge about it. We went to website, looked that you can pay 300 to go solo, and 200 for tandem. Without even thinking, we payed for solo 300, just assuming it is a better experience.
We were sitting in a class terrifying while listening for 6 hours what might kill us. We both jumped the next day after the class (weathered out the day of the class). My friend did not continue. I am getting close to 1400 jumps.
There are several things I like about this sport. Adrenaline. While you skydive, you definitely don’t think about how to fix THAT bug, your focus is on Dropzone. People. 99% of people I have met during skydiving are the best people you can have around you. Various professions, various hobbies, ages, statuses. But in the plane and on skydive we are all the same. Bag of meat falling out of the sky. Some do it better than others.
Skydiving opens the world. There are so many activities around the places, where it is hard to get access to, but people in skydiving looking for various options to jump in those areas. I had one of the best experiences traveling around Iceland in a cargo plane with always open door, so we can jump in various national parks and awesome places where you need to hike for hours. One week trip was 4000 EUR per person, including food, lodging, skydiving and transportation. I definitely want to do similar to Africa and Egypt at some point.
I got into birding earlier this year. I went birding, usually early in the morning, every day for one hundred and sixteen days in a row.
http://bjornwestergard.com/log/2023-04-05-birding.gmi
http://bjornwestergard.com/log/2023-04-05-birding.gmi
I've been riding a bicycle for a little over a year and really enjoy it. About once a week I'll ride 4-5 miles to a coffee shop and work from there in the afternoons. Otherwise, I do small errands on my bike, like picking up groceries, picking up take-out food, or checking out a book from the library. The trips are short and my area is pretty flat, so it's light and pleasant exercise. I also save some gas money by not driving my car so much, and it's just so nice to be outside and feeling the wind go by me.
One aspect I'm enjoying more than I imagined is tinkering with my bicycle. I think that tickles the nerdier part of my personality: comparing different ways to carry cargo, adjusting various things to achieve more comfort, light maintenance like inflating tires and lubing the chain, etc. It's fun.
Historically, a lot of my hobbies involved me sitting in front of a screen (movies, video games, recording music, etc). Now my work is more screen oriented than ever, and I found such hobbies felt a little too much like my work, so I needed to find something very different. Biking has been good for me.
One aspect I'm enjoying more than I imagined is tinkering with my bicycle. I think that tickles the nerdier part of my personality: comparing different ways to carry cargo, adjusting various things to achieve more comfort, light maintenance like inflating tires and lubing the chain, etc. It's fun.
Historically, a lot of my hobbies involved me sitting in front of a screen (movies, video games, recording music, etc). Now my work is more screen oriented than ever, and I found such hobbies felt a little too much like my work, so I needed to find something very different. Biking has been good for me.
Rock climbing. I always did sport when I was younger (gymnastics, martial arts etc). Then moved to a different country and lost the habit (despite I've kept myself in good shape because of doing calisthenics at home). A year and a half ago, a friend of mine insisted me on give it a try to climbing with him in an indoor gym and oh, boy, I got absolutely hooked to it. A good side effect is that it made me to pursue enjoyment in life. It made me realise that work is not the main thing in life.
Making music. At the ripe old age of 16, I bought DJ Shadow's "Entroducing" album, and wanted to make music just like that. Started out making "music" with the Wave Editor that shipped with Windows 95, and the rest is history.
In the last 26 years or so (man that sounds like a long time), I've learned a number of different DAW's, put a modular system together, learned to play instruments (piano, guitar, drums), and wrote hundreds of songs. It's such a fulfilling hobby. Which has been equally fulfilling every step of the way. From noob to whatever I am now. Can't imagine life without it.
In the last 26 years or so (man that sounds like a long time), I've learned a number of different DAW's, put a modular system together, learned to play instruments (piano, guitar, drums), and wrote hundreds of songs. It's such a fulfilling hobby. Which has been equally fulfilling every step of the way. From noob to whatever I am now. Can't imagine life without it.
Any interest in sharing some of the resources/communities that helped you? Or any examples of your work?
It's pretty dependent on what exactly you want to do, but I have found the Signals Music Studio channel to be a great resource for learning some music theory and composition stuff.
Music theory is not a necessary entry point per se, but it can help to get some basic concepts into your head to play around with. But really, the best thing you can possibly do is just pick something that seems adjacent to music you like and just start screwing around (if you're a metalhead, maybe guitar, if you like EDM, pick any DAW, if you like jazz, get a decent midi keyboard, etc). Music really isn't an intellectual exercise, just start doing something, see what you like, and what you don't like.
I wrote this comment a while back on learning music theory, which has some more thoughts and also some links and pointers to various tools and resources: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37078383. Might be of interest.
Music theory is not a necessary entry point per se, but it can help to get some basic concepts into your head to play around with. But really, the best thing you can possibly do is just pick something that seems adjacent to music you like and just start screwing around (if you're a metalhead, maybe guitar, if you like EDM, pick any DAW, if you like jazz, get a decent midi keyboard, etc). Music really isn't an intellectual exercise, just start doing something, see what you like, and what you don't like.
I wrote this comment a while back on learning music theory, which has some more thoughts and also some links and pointers to various tools and resources: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37078383. Might be of interest.
Music theory isn't a necessity, and I didn't using anything but samples for the first 5 years or so. But, I'd recommend people learning it as soon as possible. Even just picking out the root, third, fifth, and seventh of a key. Then, making random melodies / sequences until something sounds cool.
LPT: If someone is new, and looking to make house, techno, etc. I'd recommend sticking to minor keys when exploring music theory.
LPT: If someone is new, and looking to make house, techno, etc. I'd recommend sticking to minor keys when exploring music theory.
It's changed a lot over the years. There were forums I belonged to early on, but most are gone these days. Typically, if I have a question about something particular these days, I Google it, and usually run into a YouTube video, or a random link (a lot of those end up being Reddit).
I don't release music (although I do consider from time to time). I mostly just enjoy the process, and listening back to older work.
I don't release music (although I do consider from time to time). I mostly just enjoy the process, and listening back to older work.
> I don't release music (although I do consider from time to time).
I think you should!
Not that my opinion counts for anything, I need to take my own advice. But my guitar teacher said something recently that really hit me - "You don't need to wait 20 years until you're the perfect player before you put music out into the world."
This was a big part of what made me feel confident enough to publish the solo video I linked in my other comment, and I've got some other stuff in the works too. I am trying (to some very small success so far) to be a little less fearful of looking stupid or putting something half baked out into the world.
Music is for everyone! Share it. (Or ignore this advice, that's ok too, don't let me tell you what to do ;)
I think you should!
Not that my opinion counts for anything, I need to take my own advice. But my guitar teacher said something recently that really hit me - "You don't need to wait 20 years until you're the perfect player before you put music out into the world."
This was a big part of what made me feel confident enough to publish the solo video I linked in my other comment, and I've got some other stuff in the works too. I am trying (to some very small success so far) to be a little less fearful of looking stupid or putting something half baked out into the world.
Music is for everyone! Share it. (Or ignore this advice, that's ok too, don't let me tell you what to do ;)
Photography has been the only real 'non tech hobby' that Ive stuck with through the years. It encapsulates everything I love into one hobby:
- Fun social activity if you make friends with other photographers/find a club locally
- Instant Visual creation of something (since my brain rejects spending too much time on something like a drawing, only for it to turn out crappy)
- Fun/Neurotic Tech options when it comes to Lenses/Bodies/Gear. Love the rabbithole of researching exactly what I need/want.
- Lots of technical detail involved in learning different aspects of it, and really understanding properties of light
- I love DataHoarding, so organizing photos on my NAS using Lightroom makes my brain happy too.
- Actually gets me active, outside and moving, which has been a problem for me in the past (since I hyperfocus on logical problems, and loathe the gym as a waste of time)
The only downside is that during the winter I find it harder to get out and take pictures, but at least they're getting warmer!.. :(
- Fun social activity if you make friends with other photographers/find a club locally
- Instant Visual creation of something (since my brain rejects spending too much time on something like a drawing, only for it to turn out crappy)
- Fun/Neurotic Tech options when it comes to Lenses/Bodies/Gear. Love the rabbithole of researching exactly what I need/want.
- Lots of technical detail involved in learning different aspects of it, and really understanding properties of light
- I love DataHoarding, so organizing photos on my NAS using Lightroom makes my brain happy too.
- Actually gets me active, outside and moving, which has been a problem for me in the past (since I hyperfocus on logical problems, and loathe the gym as a waste of time)
The only downside is that during the winter I find it harder to get out and take pictures, but at least they're getting warmer!.. :(
Modular synths. Yeah, it's more tech, but it's so different from making electronic than on a laptop. I used to make music with a laptop, but after spending eight hours on a computer at work, the last thing I wanted to do was sit at a computer for "fun", so I gave it up.
About a decade ago, a friend of mine got into modular synths and got really good. (He ended up founding New York Modular Synth Society, btw. [0]) I'd see what he was doing and got jealous. So a few years ago I gave it a shot and put together a "small" system for a few thousand dollars. Now somehow I grew that to a $20,000 system. I'm still not "good", but fuck it. It's so much fun. I'm not very social, but there are a lot of modular communities out there, and they're all pretty welcoming and helpful.
[0] https://nyms.love/
About a decade ago, a friend of mine got into modular synths and got really good. (He ended up founding New York Modular Synth Society, btw. [0]) I'd see what he was doing and got jealous. So a few years ago I gave it a shot and put together a "small" system for a few thousand dollars. Now somehow I grew that to a $20,000 system. I'm still not "good", but fuck it. It's so much fun. I'm not very social, but there are a lot of modular communities out there, and they're all pretty welcoming and helpful.
[0] https://nyms.love/
Pigeon keeping, well, I use to keep them as a kid. Found an injured wood pigeon, broken wing, an old woman next door had a few lofts at her farm that use to belong to her husband - I was allowed to keep it there and managed to splint the wing, after it healed I let it back into the wild. An avid pigeon racer who use to visit her noticed my interest and gave me my first racing pigeons. I started racing them, earned some okay results for a kid my age. Switched to my focus to fancy pigeons later on, mainly tumbler breeds. I stopped keeping them when I moved out of my parents house. Missed them ever since as they brought me a kind of peace. I loved having them around me.
I recently bought a house with a nice garden and I’m in the process of starting again. Fancy pigeons, 2 specific breeds. Planning the loft build as we speak.
Besides that, I love woodworking - which I learned from the same pigeon guy who owned a woodworking company.
I recently bought a house with a nice garden and I’m in the process of starting again. Fancy pigeons, 2 specific breeds. Planning the loft build as we speak.
Besides that, I love woodworking - which I learned from the same pigeon guy who owned a woodworking company.
Violin! It was a pandemic hobby I started in 2020, but has turned into a super important aspect of my daily life. I played sax for about 12 years, but wanted to learn something completely different and that always seemed “virtuosic” in my eyes.
Been an awesome journey and just about to learn my first Bach Violin Sonata!
Been an awesome journey and just about to learn my first Bach Violin Sonata!
DJing and it was naturally born out of the love of music.
I’ve invested a fair amount of cash in the equipment (4x CDJ-1000 mk2, 3x PLX-1000, a DJM-750mk2 mixer, etc - c. €8-9k all in) but it’s fun to have friends over for B2B mixes (or B2B2B2B depending on who’s around!)
I enjoy the ability to easily switch styles/technique. Quick-mixing d&b every 16/32/48 bars or looping techno over 4 (digital) players is a very different experience to the tactile, analogue - and brutally unforgiving - world of vinyl.
Thanks to DVS (digital vinyl system) technology I can also mix/manipulate digital music as if it was vinyl.
Also cycling - 5 bikes and counting :-)
I’ve invested a fair amount of cash in the equipment (4x CDJ-1000 mk2, 3x PLX-1000, a DJM-750mk2 mixer, etc - c. €8-9k all in) but it’s fun to have friends over for B2B mixes (or B2B2B2B depending on who’s around!)
I enjoy the ability to easily switch styles/technique. Quick-mixing d&b every 16/32/48 bars or looping techno over 4 (digital) players is a very different experience to the tactile, analogue - and brutally unforgiving - world of vinyl.
Thanks to DVS (digital vinyl system) technology I can also mix/manipulate digital music as if it was vinyl.
Also cycling - 5 bikes and counting :-)
Magic: the Gathering.
Started playing very casually before stepping into a more competitive scene. It's both strategic (intersection between poker and chess) as well as creatively expressive (deckbuilding/theorycrafting).
Downsides: $$$
Started playing very casually before stepping into a more competitive scene. It's both strategic (intersection between poker and chess) as well as creatively expressive (deckbuilding/theorycrafting).
Downsides: $$$
Why people don't just play with fake cheap cards?
They can. My friend got his whole deck proxied online for about $50
Problem is that it’s worthless to anyone but him.
The cards are expensive but they also hold some relative value (can be resold) and only real cards are legal in tournaments.
That said, for casual games, proxies are growing in popularity and I always say they’re a moral imperative. Only problem is some people use proxies that use non-standard art or borders, which can really hamper the game (or in one case, be incredibly cringe and awful to play against).
Problem is that it’s worthless to anyone but him.
The cards are expensive but they also hold some relative value (can be resold) and only real cards are legal in tournaments.
That said, for casual games, proxies are growing in popularity and I always say they’re a moral imperative. Only problem is some people use proxies that use non-standard art or borders, which can really hamper the game (or in one case, be incredibly cringe and awful to play against).
That's what we did in high school back in the 90's. Nothing live having five "black lotuses" in your deck.
Violin.
I can't spend one day without it, as a break every few hours of coding or meeting, it's really great
It's quite a lot of work, but really the best way to make your brain two sides work together - as well as your fingers, arms, body...
I started 5 years ago, with some prior knowledge of music from being a kid.
Oh, and now I can play with people, to people. I started in my mom's retirement home - she loved it, and other residents too, and even the staff, because all the residents would be so quite after that... and now that I play better I can play to my friends, family..
It changed my life.
I can't spend one day without it, as a break every few hours of coding or meeting, it's really great
It's quite a lot of work, but really the best way to make your brain two sides work together - as well as your fingers, arms, body...
I started 5 years ago, with some prior knowledge of music from being a kid.
Oh, and now I can play with people, to people. I started in my mom's retirement home - she loved it, and other residents too, and even the staff, because all the residents would be so quite after that... and now that I play better I can play to my friends, family..
It changed my life.
Fixing things, maybe a bit beyond the typical DIYer because I'll even do things that don't exactly make sense. Stage 1 I would say is that you diagnose and replace entire major components yourself. Stage 2 is you diagnose further and replace subcomponents. Stage 3 is you start replacing the smallest failed component on a subcomponent (replacing the capacitor on a small sub board on a larger device)
I'm at stage 2.
If the alternator on my car gives out, I'll figure out which component failed (brushes? voltage control module?) and I'll replace or fix it.
If my washer acts up, I'll basically fix whatever it is.
My dad's cement mixer stops working ? Take it apart and notice the pulley driving the drum is loose because the set pin came undone.
Basically I'm acting like the typical person outside of cities just a generation or two ago.
The best part is, once you fix something once, you learn about it and then you really don't want to throw the device away when the next thing breaks because you feel like you already know and understand it a bit so might as well keep going.
It doesn't always make sense once you factor in your time, but that applies to many hobbies. Atleast this one technically saves you money instead of costs you money.
Tldr; fixing mechanical things is a bit like debugging and troubleshooting, but instead of just fixing some code that annoyed someone somewhere, I'm fixing things I use everyday.
I'm at stage 2.
If the alternator on my car gives out, I'll figure out which component failed (brushes? voltage control module?) and I'll replace or fix it.
If my washer acts up, I'll basically fix whatever it is.
My dad's cement mixer stops working ? Take it apart and notice the pulley driving the drum is loose because the set pin came undone.
Basically I'm acting like the typical person outside of cities just a generation or two ago.
The best part is, once you fix something once, you learn about it and then you really don't want to throw the device away when the next thing breaks because you feel like you already know and understand it a bit so might as well keep going.
It doesn't always make sense once you factor in your time, but that applies to many hobbies. Atleast this one technically saves you money instead of costs you money.
Tldr; fixing mechanical things is a bit like debugging and troubleshooting, but instead of just fixing some code that annoyed someone somewhere, I'm fixing things I use everyday.
My biggest one right now is music. I recently started taking some guitar lessons again (my first lessons since high school). It's been a great motivation to bust through some plateaus.
It's been a big encouragement too to pick up some other skills - I've been getting into recording and DAWs and even have done some (very noobish) video production.
I was really inspired recently by Ben Levin's music channel, so I cribbed a format he used for a few videos, and recorded myself playing a solo and then did some after-the-fact analysis on it. I really like how the video came out, although there a million things to improve upon, especially in terms of audio quality. (That video is here if that sounds interesting to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2FkjeOXchc)
I have always had a (bad...?) habit of picking up and dropping various hobbies - I love learning new stuff, and I really love how quickly you can get the first 70-80% of a new skill. Over the past few years some of those have been cooking, fishing, weightlifting, and writing. I'm not super active in any of those right now (though I really need to get back on the wagon with lifting and exercise).
Oh, also - pinball. So much fun, I could bang quarters into those machines all day long. One of these days I'll have a table in my house...
I also have three kids, one of whom is a baby, so my time for multiple hobbies is basically nil. I'd love to find more time for all of them!
It's been a big encouragement too to pick up some other skills - I've been getting into recording and DAWs and even have done some (very noobish) video production.
I was really inspired recently by Ben Levin's music channel, so I cribbed a format he used for a few videos, and recorded myself playing a solo and then did some after-the-fact analysis on it. I really like how the video came out, although there a million things to improve upon, especially in terms of audio quality. (That video is here if that sounds interesting to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2FkjeOXchc)
I have always had a (bad...?) habit of picking up and dropping various hobbies - I love learning new stuff, and I really love how quickly you can get the first 70-80% of a new skill. Over the past few years some of those have been cooking, fishing, weightlifting, and writing. I'm not super active in any of those right now (though I really need to get back on the wagon with lifting and exercise).
Oh, also - pinball. So much fun, I could bang quarters into those machines all day long. One of these days I'll have a table in my house...
I also have three kids, one of whom is a baby, so my time for multiple hobbies is basically nil. I'd love to find more time for all of them!
I'm not sure that's a bad habit - exploring lots of different interests is totally okay (especially for children but also adults). Each of those things you try teaches you something you may apply elsewhere. There's a quote I can only partially paraphrase where if you only stay motivated for some period of time for different activities, then "maybe you found what you were looking for" in one that you put down or rotated away from.
For myself, I'm sporadically very motivated to take photography seriously, but don't beat myself up if I'm not motivated for a few months.
For myself, I'm sporadically very motivated to take photography seriously, but don't beat myself up if I'm not motivated for a few months.
Yeah, I'm not sure it's bad either, hence the question mark - but there are tradeoffs when you bounce around between stuff. Jack of all trades, master of none, etc. Still, I'm not going to change that aspect of myself - it's fun!
yep, agreed. I think of it as a tradeoff, where a huge amount of effort (and opportunity cost) is required for marginal gains after a certain point. Becoming a "Master of One" requires giving up 20 other things, and the breadth of those other activities is what gives me joy, purpose, meaning, variation, etc. As long as I'm okay with not being a world class sponsored climber, or exhibiting photos at the smithsonian then I can just enjoy what I happen to be motivated by right now, which feels healthier anyway. My friends who've optimized for a single thing have a hard time when they eventually decided to pursue something else.
I've been having a lot of fun with HAM radio lately -- it's tech adjacent, and very social.
I'm into 'overlanding' which is basically mild offroading. I got into ham radio a few years ago on a whim, and combining the two is great fun and gives a bit of purpose to both hobbies.
Each trip I get to research repeaters. Program the radios. Test while traveling in different locations.
Why am I driving 200 miles into the mountains this weekend? To use the ham radio. Why am I researching and using ham radios? To make driving in the mountains alone safer. It's a win/win.
Each trip I get to research repeaters. Program the radios. Test while traveling in different locations.
Why am I driving 200 miles into the mountains this weekend? To use the ham radio. Why am I researching and using ham radios? To make driving in the mountains alone safer. It's a win/win.
Camping and ham radio are an excellent combo. Being completely isolated while still being able to communicate with people at a distance. Something very cool about that.
Minor nitpick: it’s “ham”. It’s not an acronym.
I build scale models (aircraft, military vehicles, etc.). Very relaxing and surprisingly social-- there are clubs all over the world. When I moved from Oklahoma to Colorado, and later Colorado to California, I got in with local modeling clubs first thing. Started my development of a new circle of friends right off the bat.
(My involvement in it started at age 4; I had a knack for taking things apart, so my dad bought me a model kit to encourage me to be more "constructive"...)
(My involvement in it started at age 4; I had a knack for taking things apart, so my dad bought me a model kit to encourage me to be more "constructive"...)
Electric unicycle aka EUC (by InMotion/Solowheel). It's an amazing ride and had no falls in more than 5 years but am constantly careful for traffic. I highly recommend it and the few hours of training needed are totally worth it to enjoy this device. Tip for beginners: take it to a supermakert parking lot and use a cart to hold onto for balance then push it forward and in circles for a few hours. Once learnt it's easier than walking, no kidding!!
Beekeeping. It’s fairly inexpensive and most people love honey (you end up with masses).
You can find swarms pretty easily and it’s very satisfying to save them. A bedraggled clump of sad bees in the rain can be transformed into a productive monster given the right home.
You can learn it from a friendly beekeeper, a local club, or a good book. There is no substitute for seeing a skilled person work with them though.
And coffee. I don’t care an awful lot how it’s made (unless it’s instant or pod) as I subscribe to the Gruber rules [1], minus that weird bit about keyboards.
You can have a great coffee very inexpensively and it’s another one that is widely appreciated. I toast the bean and grind them in the grinder I restored and brew on a reproduction Faema E-61 [2]. It’s a massive luxury and is one of the more beautiful bits of engineering in existence.
[1] https://www.foursides.ca/keys-to-success-by-john-gruber/
[2] https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61-MONOFASE-ANNIVERSAR...
You can find swarms pretty easily and it’s very satisfying to save them. A bedraggled clump of sad bees in the rain can be transformed into a productive monster given the right home.
You can learn it from a friendly beekeeper, a local club, or a good book. There is no substitute for seeing a skilled person work with them though.
And coffee. I don’t care an awful lot how it’s made (unless it’s instant or pod) as I subscribe to the Gruber rules [1], minus that weird bit about keyboards.
You can have a great coffee very inexpensively and it’s another one that is widely appreciated. I toast the bean and grind them in the grinder I restored and brew on a reproduction Faema E-61 [2]. It’s a massive luxury and is one of the more beautiful bits of engineering in existence.
[1] https://www.foursides.ca/keys-to-success-by-john-gruber/
[2] https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61-MONOFASE-ANNIVERSAR...
Interesting! I’ve always wanted to get into beekeeping. How big of a space do you need for a hive though?
About 1 square metre. For each hive you need enough space for it and then double it (for when you take boxes off) with room to stand. That said, bees work best in the sun and beekeeping is easiest with two hives.
Keeping it from messing with neighbours too much is a good idea, as dirty washing or stings wouldn’t be appreciated. Heaving the entrance to the hive close to a wall or fence is a traditional way to get them to fly high and away from people.
Keeping it from messing with neighbours too much is a good idea, as dirty washing or stings wouldn’t be appreciated. Heaving the entrance to the hive close to a wall or fence is a traditional way to get them to fly high and away from people.
Do you need to take care daily? Or is it something that can de done once a week for example?
> Do you need to take care daily?
With the bees, no. It’s very variable among beekeepers. I open the hive once every 1-2 weeks in spring and maybe once a month in summer. The honey harvest is quite hard work in autumn and then I close them up until spring, not going in for 4-5 months.
Opening a hive should be done with an objective and is sometimes a quick 5-10 minute job (are there eggs?) and sometimes a bit protracted, like the first spring check which took me about 90 minutes last weekend (disease check, stores check, clean up frames. Look for eggs and the queen, treat for varroa, added a box and queen excluder to the hive).
The honey harvest is hot, heavy work and I have got a lot better at it but it still takes me 4-5 hours once a year, early autumn. It’s been as much as 250kgs of honey from my 2 hives and hot, hard work when organised so you can imagine what the first few times are like as it’s bees, sticky honey and heavy boxes and buckets.
I look at the entrance every few days, but that’s not required.
Watching a beehive on a warm day is a bit like watching a fire in winter, its slightly hypnotic.
> Do you need to take care daily?
With coffee, it’s much more rigorous and needs attention 2-3 times per day.
With the bees, no. It’s very variable among beekeepers. I open the hive once every 1-2 weeks in spring and maybe once a month in summer. The honey harvest is quite hard work in autumn and then I close them up until spring, not going in for 4-5 months.
Opening a hive should be done with an objective and is sometimes a quick 5-10 minute job (are there eggs?) and sometimes a bit protracted, like the first spring check which took me about 90 minutes last weekend (disease check, stores check, clean up frames. Look for eggs and the queen, treat for varroa, added a box and queen excluder to the hive).
The honey harvest is hot, heavy work and I have got a lot better at it but it still takes me 4-5 hours once a year, early autumn. It’s been as much as 250kgs of honey from my 2 hives and hot, hard work when organised so you can imagine what the first few times are like as it’s bees, sticky honey and heavy boxes and buckets.
I look at the entrance every few days, but that’s not required.
Watching a beehive on a warm day is a bit like watching a fire in winter, its slightly hypnotic.
> Do you need to take care daily?
With coffee, it’s much more rigorous and needs attention 2-3 times per day.
Self-reliance as a hobby, it may not be recognised as such but I consider it to be mine. It more or less grew out of my desire to come as close as I could to my interpretation of the concept of 'homo universalis' [1]. This really just comes down to ditching the idea that 'I can not do this' or 'I will never learn this' and doing the thing instead - badly first but usually better later on. Most of this does not square with the drive for hyper-specialisation but... I don't care. This is my life of which I only have one so I'll just keep on exploring.
Build a house, fix a car, pick up an instrument, make a mural, raise children, read books and start writing, paddle a river from source to sea, climb a mountain, build a synthesizer from scratch, start a band, never stop... Don't be discouraged by naysayers, just try until you succeed or decide to move on.
[1] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Renaissance-man
Build a house, fix a car, pick up an instrument, make a mural, raise children, read books and start writing, paddle a river from source to sea, climb a mountain, build a synthesizer from scratch, start a band, never stop... Don't be discouraged by naysayers, just try until you succeed or decide to move on.
[1] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Renaissance-man
I grew up without TV and learned all the things to keep my mind occupied. The ones I spend most time on:
Woodworking
Playing music (guitar, piano, sax, drums, and Audulus 4)
Programming (started around 90 in qbasic)
Gardening (simple stuff these days, herbs and peppers, tomatoes; I make a lot of sauces to add to meals)
Engine repair (started with tractors, now I just fix small engines)
Building building (just built a greenhouse for friends; designing mine now)
Logic circuit design (EE started in motherboard design as a career, switched to software as hardware went overseas)
I went deep on all these at various points. Anymore really only spend enough time on them throughout the year to keep a connection, muscle memory.
If I had to recommend any I’d say gardening and music.
Learning a musical instrument fosters connectivity between both sides of the brain in a way no other skills based learning does[1]. I credit musical instrument skills for the abundance of creative energy I feel. That I spend time on daily or I feel depressed and “off”.
And a fresh sauce makes boiled potato taste like Michelin star cuisine.
[1] https://youtu.be/R0JKCYZ8hng?si=wkyGmTs51d0yp9zI
Woodworking
Playing music (guitar, piano, sax, drums, and Audulus 4)
Programming (started around 90 in qbasic)
Gardening (simple stuff these days, herbs and peppers, tomatoes; I make a lot of sauces to add to meals)
Engine repair (started with tractors, now I just fix small engines)
Building building (just built a greenhouse for friends; designing mine now)
Logic circuit design (EE started in motherboard design as a career, switched to software as hardware went overseas)
I went deep on all these at various points. Anymore really only spend enough time on them throughout the year to keep a connection, muscle memory.
If I had to recommend any I’d say gardening and music.
Learning a musical instrument fosters connectivity between both sides of the brain in a way no other skills based learning does[1]. I credit musical instrument skills for the abundance of creative energy I feel. That I spend time on daily or I feel depressed and “off”.
And a fresh sauce makes boiled potato taste like Michelin star cuisine.
[1] https://youtu.be/R0JKCYZ8hng?si=wkyGmTs51d0yp9zI
Skiing, I skied since I was a kid going on holidays to the Alps with my family once a year. We were also lucky to have Avon dry-ski slope nearby so I could ski after a fashion in the south of the UK. I snowboarded through my teenage years and then fell out of it when I was a student and couldn’t afford it!
In my mid-twenties I met a crazy New Zealander at work, got into ski touring after shaking some of the rust off, skied all over Scotland including a bunch of gullies people normally climb and generally got much, much better. Then I moved to Iceland which when the conditions are good is a ski touring paradise. Skied all over here, various bits of the world (Japan is unreal!) took part in the first freeride comp in Scotland and have generally had a lot of fun.
I’ve calmed down a lot with two kids, it’s a bit unfair to everyone to disappear on day+ long trips all the time. I’m really enjoying teaching them to ski and pootling about on the piste as a family.
It’s a sport like climbing or swimming which I also love where you can feel when you’re doing it right and everything flows effortlessly.
In my mid-twenties I met a crazy New Zealander at work, got into ski touring after shaking some of the rust off, skied all over Scotland including a bunch of gullies people normally climb and generally got much, much better. Then I moved to Iceland which when the conditions are good is a ski touring paradise. Skied all over here, various bits of the world (Japan is unreal!) took part in the first freeride comp in Scotland and have generally had a lot of fun.
I’ve calmed down a lot with two kids, it’s a bit unfair to everyone to disappear on day+ long trips all the time. I’m really enjoying teaching them to ski and pootling about on the piste as a family.
It’s a sport like climbing or swimming which I also love where you can feel when you’re doing it right and everything flows effortlessly.
Pickleball, it’s the only recreational sport I’ve liked as much my entire life, and I’ve tried many: tennis, soccer, judo, golf, basketball, biking, hiking, snowboarding, etc.
Things I like about pickleball are: it’s relatively cheap, easy to pick up, fun to play, highly social/community driven, and just the right intensity level for me.
Things I like about pickleball are: it’s relatively cheap, easy to pick up, fun to play, highly social/community driven, and just the right intensity level for me.
Outdoor activities
It started with rock climbing, but these days it's trail running, skiing, and mountain biking. I've always loved being outside and being active, so they were natural hobbies to pick up. I've chosen where I live so I can do this 365 days a year.
Piano I can't actually get outside 365 days a year, because I need rest days. I also wanted a non-physical hobby to exercise my brain. I played drums when I was a kid and missed making music. I bought a digital piano and dabbled for 4 or 5 months then started taking weekly lessons. If you have any interest in music related hobbies, I'd highly recommend learning piano.
Cooking This is normally more of a winter hobby for me, but I'll try and cook through a whole (or most) of a cookbook. It's interesting to really get into one cuisine or style of cooking for a while, vs. hoping all over the place every couple of weeks.
Piano I can't actually get outside 365 days a year, because I need rest days. I also wanted a non-physical hobby to exercise my brain. I played drums when I was a kid and missed making music. I bought a digital piano and dabbled for 4 or 5 months then started taking weekly lessons. If you have any interest in music related hobbies, I'd highly recommend learning piano.
Cooking This is normally more of a winter hobby for me, but I'll try and cook through a whole (or most) of a cookbook. It's interesting to really get into one cuisine or style of cooking for a while, vs. hoping all over the place every couple of weeks.
Magic the Gathering. Got a box of Starter 1999 at my local game store (LGS) as I was growing out of playing Pokémon.
I’ve been paying off and on ever since; usually ON when I have money (summer I worked in college and once again when I graduated and started making Engineer money)
I often joke that it’s like Golfing for Tech. I’ve met so many lifelong friends through the hobby. I’ve taught people how to play on first dates (and yes, they continued to date me haha). It’s been a hobby that has helped me establish new friends when I’ve moved cities. I’ve even played semi-competitively in Modern and Legacy, which is just a fun conversation starter.
Nowadays I play Cube and Commander weekly and I buy the yearly Commander decks and play them with my friends that like to play occasionally but leave the Hobby to me.
I’ve been paying off and on ever since; usually ON when I have money (summer I worked in college and once again when I graduated and started making Engineer money)
I often joke that it’s like Golfing for Tech. I’ve met so many lifelong friends through the hobby. I’ve taught people how to play on first dates (and yes, they continued to date me haha). It’s been a hobby that has helped me establish new friends when I’ve moved cities. I’ve even played semi-competitively in Modern and Legacy, which is just a fun conversation starter.
Nowadays I play Cube and Commander weekly and I buy the yearly Commander decks and play them with my friends that like to play occasionally but leave the Hobby to me.
Contact improvisation dance. It's a kind of intuitive movement practice you do with other people. Here's a video of some people who are pretty high level: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ED8hNoulZv4
It's great exercise, really joyous, and in my experience the people who go to jams are excellent. A friend told me about it and I just decided to go, knowing that I could opt out of any movement or dance that didn't feel ok. Now I go to the contact improv jams in my city every week and even went to some international jams while traveling recently. There's usually contact improv events near most major cities.
It's great exercise, really joyous, and in my experience the people who go to jams are excellent. A friend told me about it and I just decided to go, knowing that I could opt out of any movement or dance that didn't feel ok. Now I go to the contact improv jams in my city every week and even went to some international jams while traveling recently. There's usually contact improv events near most major cities.
I got a bicycle at age 6 and a minibike at age 11 and have ridden bikes and cycles ever since, mostly on-road but I'd love to do more off. I only wish it was safer to share the road. Most drivers act like running down a cyclist is their god-given right.
This, I got hit by a car on my lunch break two weeks ago. I've been riding for 30 years + now and this is the first time that's happened, but all it takes is once. MTB is fun, but injuries are more frequent. Motorcycles and racetracks are really fun, but they have their own risks. 2 wheels is magical though.
Aikido and Kenjutsu (more traditional Japanese sword than Kendo).
Started due to a book read while in Italy nearly 40 years ago - it had a list of dojos in the back - rang up, went along and kept it going.
A friend once referred to it as "old man's judo" and that has a ring of truth.
Decades later, it has given me a circle of friends, continuing research topics, a level of continuing physical activity (supplemented by other things), intellectual and physical challenges and rewards.
Somewhat overtaken by things like MMA/BJJ these days, but well worth checking out.
Oh and music remains an ongoing interest...
Combat Robotics! Do you know Battlebots or Robot Wars? Turns out it is a pretty good hobby! You'll learn a lot about materials and parts and their suitable application(s), 3d designing and offcourse building a bot hands on.
I am interested in this but don’t know how to find local competitions or guidelines or getting started etc
- Karaoke: a friend of mine did a monthly outing to a karaoke bar and invited me along. It turned into a great friend group as well as a fun skill to practice, and now I host karaoke parties and write karaoke software.
- Theater: got into it in middle school and never looked back. The way to get into it now is either to just audition for community shows, or take classes somewhere.
I have found that cooking, building furniture, sewing and other forms of craft are interesting for the same reasons coding is interesting, but without a group of friends who do that stuff I've found it hard to maintain momentum.
- Theater: got into it in middle school and never looked back. The way to get into it now is either to just audition for community shows, or take classes somewhere.
I have found that cooking, building furniture, sewing and other forms of craft are interesting for the same reasons coding is interesting, but without a group of friends who do that stuff I've found it hard to maintain momentum.
What does your karaoke software consist of?
Not sleeping. I just love the quiet night hours or the quiet early morning hours where it's just me in the house and my laptop and I can focus on my little coding projects that never seem to go anywhere.
So.. When do you actually sleep?
Electronics. I was always drawn to understanding 'how things work', and the answers increasingly relied on knowing things like circuit design, digital microcontrollers, and general electricity fundamentals.
Later I picked up Basic, which was coincidentally used by the Basic Stamp that my school had a few spares of, which led to my software career, but hardware is still taking up my benchspace.
Hackerspaces and working on physical things in general i think brings the social element, especially when someone needs a tool you have and you need something they have ;)
Later I picked up Basic, which was coincidentally used by the Basic Stamp that my school had a few spares of, which led to my software career, but hardware is still taking up my benchspace.
Hackerspaces and working on physical things in general i think brings the social element, especially when someone needs a tool you have and you need something they have ;)
Photography.
Started with film when I was a kid but was always scared by my parents because of the "high cost" and then when I got my first digital there were no more restrictions.
It opened up other areas of interest that are tangentially related to it: I go hiking/camping, learned Photoshop and video editing, spend time learning about the masters in Painting/Photography/Film making, scouting for locations where to go on holidays. Even started a, not very successful but fun, YouTube channel.
It is also possible to enjoy it daily once you know what is out there.
Started with film when I was a kid but was always scared by my parents because of the "high cost" and then when I got my first digital there were no more restrictions.
It opened up other areas of interest that are tangentially related to it: I go hiking/camping, learned Photoshop and video editing, spend time learning about the masters in Painting/Photography/Film making, scouting for locations where to go on holidays. Even started a, not very successful but fun, YouTube channel.
It is also possible to enjoy it daily once you know what is out there.
I started playing chess online recently. I found it a bit too addictive:)
I mean, I'm also a poor lost soul here, but HG Wells was right:
The passion for playing chess is one of the most unaccountable in the world. It slaps the theory of natural selection in the face. It is the most absorbing of occupations. The least satisfying of desires. A nameless excrescence upon life. It annihilates a man. You have, let us say, a promising politician, a rising artist that you wish to destroy. Dagger or bomb are archaic and unreliable - but teach him, inoculate him with chess.
The passion for playing chess is one of the most unaccountable in the world. It slaps the theory of natural selection in the face. It is the most absorbing of occupations. The least satisfying of desires. A nameless excrescence upon life. It annihilates a man. You have, let us say, a promising politician, a rising artist that you wish to destroy. Dagger or bomb are archaic and unreliable - but teach him, inoculate him with chess.
Cooking and climbing.
Cooking is something that grew on me, I was a horrible cook when I moved out of my parents house. I just started with simple recipes, learned basic techniques, and expanded from there.
I joined the local climbing association way back in college and loved it. Before climbing, other sports didn't really interest me much. I guess it scratches my puzzle solving itch. I loved being outdoors and travelling to places, but these days I mostly just go bouldering at the local gym.
Cooking is something that grew on me, I was a horrible cook when I moved out of my parents house. I just started with simple recipes, learned basic techniques, and expanded from there.
I joined the local climbing association way back in college and loved it. Before climbing, other sports didn't really interest me much. I guess it scratches my puzzle solving itch. I loved being outdoors and travelling to places, but these days I mostly just go bouldering at the local gym.
Past summer I’ve been playing Ultimate Frisbee. I love running routes and cutting.
My work hosts daily lunch hour pickup games on our field. Once a year they sponsored a tournament. We even have a lot of non-employees play with us.
Now I’ve been meeting people outside the work games in local leagues and pickup games through a Meetup group.
Would recommend. The community is really open to newcomers in my area.
My work hosts daily lunch hour pickup games on our field. Once a year they sponsored a tournament. We even have a lot of non-employees play with us.
Now I’ve been meeting people outside the work games in local leagues and pickup games through a Meetup group.
Would recommend. The community is really open to newcomers in my area.
I have a lot, but photography, building things (lots of woodworking but some electronics and art), rock climbing, camping, going deep on random cooking projects, etc. key is to just follow a thread of interest for as long as you find it interesting. Investing in gear upfront can sometimes be worthwhile, but prototyping can help there.
You should take an introduction to sewing class, which should basically walk you through the main functions of a standard sewing machine. Then you can go down the rabbit hole of early to mid 20th century antique sewing machines and ponder the downfall of manufacturing once plastics were introduced (mid to late 20th century).
This summer I started playing pickup volleyball in local parks in the city. I've found a meetup or facebook group for almost every day of the week, and I've gone from total beginner to pretty competitive in just a few months. It's free, a great way to meet new people, and a great way to stay active.
Triathlon for the last 8 years and more recently my passion for woodwork. I think the woodwork some how relates with what I do and love in software development, we need to use and build different tools to get the job done.
I’m a newbie in woodwork so any suggestions are appreciated.
I’m a newbie in woodwork so any suggestions are appreciated.
Paragliding. Someone else mentioned skydiving, and if you want the adrenaline, you can find it in paragliding with acro flying, or just in rougher weather.
But otherwise you can hang serenely above a sand dune, or below cloudbase, or pull into thermals.
Sailing gives something similar, playing with the wind as it were.
But otherwise you can hang serenely above a sand dune, or below cloudbase, or pull into thermals.
Sailing gives something similar, playing with the wind as it were.
Building furniture out of wood. I enjoy it a ton, even the boring stuff like sanding isn’t too bad. Sure beats staring at a screen all day (I’m a Software Engineer but left to my own I will be on the computer ALL day).
I find it creative, beautiful, practical, and an opportunity to be outside
I find it creative, beautiful, practical, and an opportunity to be outside
HEMA. Historical European Martial Arts.
I started when I was writing a novel with swordsmen and want to research historical moves, ended up getting addicted and now am trying to grow the sport in Asia. Guess it is how things start anyway.
I started when I was writing a novel with swordsmen and want to research historical moves, ended up getting addicted and now am trying to grow the sport in Asia. Guess it is how things start anyway.
Painting miniatures; saw a friend do it, then for Christmas got a kit to try it out together with my kids, and it turned out to be a surprisingly de-stressing form of hands-on tinkering.
Chinese. It’s the first hobby besides programming that is remotely as captivating. I can spend hours every day reading, writing, communicating with people, listening to music.
My hobby is journalling, my writing or note keeping is simplistic writing of ideas about software that feel interesting to me. I've been journalling in the open since 2013. I am interested in parallelism, multithreading, coroutines, programming language design and implementation.
Writing helps me think and really satisfying. Writing is thinking.
I hope you choose to do something good and positive for your spirit and full of love - something that gets you away from the computer screen, such as study God.
Writing helps me think and really satisfying. Writing is thinking.
I hope you choose to do something good and positive for your spirit and full of love - something that gets you away from the computer screen, such as study God.
Acroyoga. Tried it at a festival, and love it.
last year or so, the top answer on a similar question here was "baking", this year, i am the one adding this to the list. very zen.
Electronics. Great way to explore art and science.
Piano and Ableton. Also super fun and nice way to meet people
Piano and Ableton. Also super fun and nice way to meet people
Cycling. Started when I was a kid.
Cars. Started as a kid helping dad with the race car.
I like Sunvox for making music
Hmmm. Hard to say exactly which is my favorite: in some cases it's hard to even tease apart what is "just" a hobby and what is a hobby that I'm interested in for other reasons.
But no matter how you slice it, two of my top hobbies are definitely fishing (mostly freshwater fishing, mostly for bass) and bike riding (mostly MTB, some road, some BMX). Both are hobbies I took up when I was very young and have been with me for basically my entire life.
There are "tech" things that could also be considered hobbies, like messing around with discrete electronics, working with Arduino's and other microcontroller platforms, goofing around with Raspberry Pi, etc. But to some extent I have interest in those things simply for their own sake, but also for a career / financial / commercial sake. That is, I have ideas about building things to sell, or at least to learn things that will advance my ability to build other things to sell, etc. So "hobby" I guess, but not "pure hobby" if that makes sense.
How did these things start?
Well...
Fishing - my dad took me fishing as a kid. Both freshwater and saltwater. The bug didn't necessarily "bite" right away, but by the time I was around 11 or 12 I fell into a habit of going fishing a lot with an older friend from school who lived down the road from me, and I just slowly got more and more into it. I had a few pauses or gaps here and there where I didn't fish much, but the pull was always there even when I left other things take precedence and keep me away from the water. I got back into fishing really often in 2019 and have fished relatively regularly since.
Bike Riding - my parents bought me a bike when I was pretty young. 8? 9? I don't really remember. I didn't like it and never rode at all really. A few years later I met a friend who was into BMX riding (same friend from the fishing story, BTW) and begged my parents for a BMX bike. They didn't want to buy me one at first since I never rode the earlier bike, but somehow, by hook or by crook, I managed to convince them to buy me one. I started doing dirt jumps and some flatland freestyle stuff and was hooked. Riding Mountain Bikes came years later when I was in my late 20's or early 30's. A few years after that I bought a road, nominally for "cross training" to support my MTB hobby. But over the last couple of years I've started to see roading biking as something I do for its own sake as well.
Electronics - I was just always into taking stuff apart and tinkering with innards from a young age. Electronics and electricity always fascinated me. I found a good "basic electronics" book in the library at my high-school when I got to that age, and started actually studying some of the theory. For quite a while I thought I would major in electrical engineering in college... different factors led me to major in computer science instead, but I always kept that interest in electronics.
But no matter how you slice it, two of my top hobbies are definitely fishing (mostly freshwater fishing, mostly for bass) and bike riding (mostly MTB, some road, some BMX). Both are hobbies I took up when I was very young and have been with me for basically my entire life.
There are "tech" things that could also be considered hobbies, like messing around with discrete electronics, working with Arduino's and other microcontroller platforms, goofing around with Raspberry Pi, etc. But to some extent I have interest in those things simply for their own sake, but also for a career / financial / commercial sake. That is, I have ideas about building things to sell, or at least to learn things that will advance my ability to build other things to sell, etc. So "hobby" I guess, but not "pure hobby" if that makes sense.
How did these things start?
Well...
Fishing - my dad took me fishing as a kid. Both freshwater and saltwater. The bug didn't necessarily "bite" right away, but by the time I was around 11 or 12 I fell into a habit of going fishing a lot with an older friend from school who lived down the road from me, and I just slowly got more and more into it. I had a few pauses or gaps here and there where I didn't fish much, but the pull was always there even when I left other things take precedence and keep me away from the water. I got back into fishing really often in 2019 and have fished relatively regularly since.
Bike Riding - my parents bought me a bike when I was pretty young. 8? 9? I don't really remember. I didn't like it and never rode at all really. A few years later I met a friend who was into BMX riding (same friend from the fishing story, BTW) and begged my parents for a BMX bike. They didn't want to buy me one at first since I never rode the earlier bike, but somehow, by hook or by crook, I managed to convince them to buy me one. I started doing dirt jumps and some flatland freestyle stuff and was hooked. Riding Mountain Bikes came years later when I was in my late 20's or early 30's. A few years after that I bought a road, nominally for "cross training" to support my MTB hobby. But over the last couple of years I've started to see roading biking as something I do for its own sake as well.
Electronics - I was just always into taking stuff apart and tinkering with innards from a young age. Electronics and electricity always fascinated me. I found a good "basic electronics" book in the library at my high-school when I got to that age, and started actually studying some of the theory. For quite a while I thought I would major in electrical engineering in college... different factors led me to major in computer science instead, but I always kept that interest in electronics.