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Anyone taking up new hobbies?


FreshFluff

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I’ve taken up a pursuit in an area in which I had no previous experience. I’m not sure how I feel about it. I unintentionally chose a competitive, careerist venue, and I only intended to do if for a few weeks. Months later, I’m still here. It’s a rocky, uphill climb and an exercise in humiliation. At its best, it can be fun though. 

Anyone else?
 

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Yes, I’m considering the hobby of cleaning my house myself.  I’ve not released the housekeepers yet though 😉

But seriously, you described yours as a hobby, but “careerist.”   I’d love to hear more.

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I love puzzles and anything requiring concentration and problem solving. Since the lockdown March 2020, I’ve done a lot of complex paper folding and knot tying - learned from books, but more recently YouTube videos. I started the new hobby of knot tying last year during the pandemic when I was a slightly bored and looking to keep my fingers/ mind busy. It requires a  lot of visualization and dexterity.  I also started playing old piano competition pieces and working on a Schubert piano (Fantasie in F minor) duet with my good friend. 

I’d love to learn wood working and the japanese art of kumiko- using little jigs to assemble a lattice. Alas, i do not have the space for such a hobby… perhaps in the future. 

Edited by cany10011
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15 hours ago, BnaC said:

Yes, I’m considering the hobby of cleaning my house myself.  I’ve not released the housekeepers yet though 😉

But seriously, you described yours as a hobby, but “careerist.”   I’d love to hear more.

It turns out to be a gatekeeping mechanism for the entertainment industry. I feel like an extra on A Chorus Line. 

Edited by FreshFluff
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I did a lot of volunteer work during the early years of the AIDS epidemic, and I was getting burned out. I decided I needed a new hobby, so I took up something I had always wanted to do, which was play the piano. I was in my late 40s, had no experience and couldn't even read music, but hired a teacher who lived near me, who was recommended by a friend. She was an elderly graduate of the Curtis Institute, and she gave lessons in her home, so I had to buy my own piano to practice at my home. She was a delightful personality; we chatted a lot, and I discovered that she had been the favorite pupil of Isabella Vengerova, whose own piano teacher had been Johannes Brahms! One day she had to cancel our lesson because she was having lunch with her old friend Lenny, who was visiting--it turned out to be Leonard Bernstein. My interest was classical music, but after two years of lessons, I could barely manage a short and simple piece by Mozart, and it was time to admit to myself that my goals had been far too ambitious. I was about to go off to Czechoslovakia for a one year sabbatical, which was an ideal excuse to use for stopping my lessons with Bella, and shortly after I returned, I had new responsibilities which were an excuse not to resume them. I would sit down occasionally to practice at home after that, but my heart wasn't in it any longer, once I realized that I would never be able to play for my own entertainment. I sold the piano before we moved to California.

During the pandemic, I sometimes wished I had the piano back, so I could use the empty hours at home to try to practice again, but I knew that was really just foolish day-dreaming.

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10 hours ago, Charlie said:

I did a lot of volunteer work during the early years of the AIDS epidemic, and I was getting burned out. I decided I needed a new hobby, so I took up something I had always wanted to do, which was play the piano. I was in my late 40s, had no experience and couldn't even read music, but hired a teacher who lived near me, who was recommended by a friend. She was an elderly graduate of the Curtis Institute, and she gave lessons in her home, so I had to buy my own piano to practice at my home. She was a delightful personality; we chatted a lot, and I discovered that she had been the favorite pupil of Isabella Vengerova, whose own piano teacher had been Johannes Brahms! One day she had to cancel our lesson because she was having lunch with her old friend Lenny, who was visiting--it turned out to be Leonard Bernstein. My interest was classical music, but after two years of lessons, I could barely manage a short and simple piece by Mozart, and it was time to admit to myself that my goals had been far too ambitious. I was about to go off to Czechoslovakia for a one year sabbatical, which was an ideal excuse to use for stopping my lessons with Bella, and shortly after I returned, I had new responsibilities which were an excuse not to resume them. I would sit down occasionally to practice at home after that, but my heart wasn't in it any longer, once I realized that I would never be able to play for my own entertainment. I sold the piano before we moved to California.

During the pandemic, I sometimes wished I had the piano back, so I could use the empty hours at home to try to practice again, but I knew that was really just foolish day-dreaming.

Great story.  Thanks for sharing.  In the Kevin Bacon game of personal relationships, nice that you are 3 links removed from Brahms🏆👍😊. The 

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12 hours ago, rustyrex said:

Funny, I used to draw.  I started doodling again last night.  Better than a stick figure but far from real life portraits.  The goal is to create a life like drawing of a gorgeous naked man that would be worthy of hanging in a museum...or an erotic book cover. 

Maybe having a live, nude model might help👍😀.

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On 11/1/2021 at 9:19 AM, Charlie said:

I did a lot of volunteer work during the early years of the AIDS epidemic, and I was getting burned out. I decided I needed a new hobby, so I took up something I had always wanted to do, which was play the piano. I was in my late 40s, had no experience and couldn't even read music, but hired a teacher who lived near me, who was recommended by a friend. She was an elderly graduate of the Curtis Institute, and she gave lessons in her home, so I had to buy my own piano to practice at my home. She was a delightful personality; we chatted a lot, and I discovered that she had been the favorite pupil of Isabella Vengerova, whose own piano teacher had been Johannes Brahms! One day she had to cancel our lesson because she was having lunch with her old friend Lenny, who was visiting--it turned out to be Leonard Bernstein. My interest was classical music, but after two years of lessons, I could barely manage a short and simple piece by Mozart, and it was time to admit to myself that my goals had been far too ambitious. I was about to go off to Czechoslovakia for a one year sabbatical, which was an ideal excuse to use for stopping my lessons with Bella, and shortly after I returned, I had new responsibilities which were an excuse not to resume them. I would sit down occasionally to practice at home after that, but my heart wasn't in it any longer, once I realized that I would never be able to play for my own entertainment. I sold the piano before we moved to California.

During the pandemic, I sometimes wished I had the piano back, so I could use the empty hours at home to try to practice again, but I knew that was really just foolish day-dreaming.

Did you give any recitals? For me, it was fun until that point. Now, I constantly feel that I’m letting down others. (How I ended up at this point without being any good is a long story.)

Next time, I’ll try crochet. 

Edited by FreshFluff
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  • 1 year later...
On 10/31/2021 at 6:06 AM, FreshFluff said:

Anyone taking up new hobbies?

 

On 10/31/2021 at 7:47 AM, cany10011 said:

I love puzzles and anything requiring concentration and problem solving. Since the lockdown March 2020, I’ve done a lot of complex paper folding and knot tying - learned from books, but more recently YouTube videos. I started the new hobby of knot tying last year during the pandemic when I was a slightly bored and looking to keep my fingers/ mind busy.

 

On 11/1/2021 at 11:02 AM, poolboy48220 said:

I was thinking of taking up harmonica.  i tried years ago but never stuck with it. There's a music shop about two blocks away that sounds like it has a decent selection.

 

On 10/31/2021 at 10:25 AM, Rudynate said:

I'm thinking of learning to play blues piano.  So far, the only thing I have done is buy a book called "The first 50 Blues Songs" and play the first couple of pieces. I'm more interested in blues improv and there is a bunch of goog tutorials on you tube that I have played with.

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Sadly, I am VERY proficient at this hobby, having honed my skills throughout my life.

Edited by samhexum
for shits and giggles
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Does this count as a new hobby?

The other day I was watching the 1980 porn flick Hot Truckin'.
 
The last scene begins with Gordon Grant and Nick Rodgers sitting on the back end of an open box truck whilst a younger guy on a bicycle cruises them.
 
As he circled, I could make out the street sign that said Westpark Dr, but couldn't make out the number.  That set me off on a half-hour search for the intersection, as Westpark Dr. starts and stops in multiple places.  Finally, I went back to the scene and was able to make out another street sign:  Calvert St.
 
Back then there were so many trees you couldn't even tell it was along a freeway exit ramp, as you can now:
 
 

 

Edited by samhexum
for shits and giggles
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