[HN Gopher] Ask HN: What are your hobbies?
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Ask HN: What are your hobbies?
Inspired by the post about being 35, confused in life and without a
purpose a lot of folks talked about how they find joy in life
through their hobbies. I would like to know what are your hobbies!
I'm currently selling a lot of equipment I used for music
production because I find it hard to sit in front of a DAW and
produce after a 8 hr workday in front of a computer.
Author : kcindric
Score : 21 points
Date : 2022-02-06 19:02 UTC (3 hours ago)
| mmierz wrote:
| Combat sports. Right now I train judo and armored combat (I.e.
| fighting in full armor with blunted swords and axes)
|
| As a side benefit this forces me to stay fit. I find few things
| as motivating as knowing there's a set date in the near future
| when I will be locked in a ring with someone who is going to try
| to hurt me
|
| A lot of 30-something programmers like jujitsu since is has the
| same competitive aspect and a little bit of danger without the
| heavy impact and attendant risk of brain injury
| pyrrhotech wrote:
| Running, reading, gaming and algotrading
| kradeelav wrote:
| design manager in the day job, I consider playing with tech to be
| a hobby.
|
| otherwise - reading, drawing, gaming (almost exclusively on
| nintendo consoles).
| kcindric wrote:
| What are your favorite Nintendo consoles and games? I'm
| thinking of buying a Switch for the exclusives but I'm
| wondering if Steam Deck will provide good enough emulation for
| the Switch.
| davidwparker wrote:
| Fitness:
|
| - Trampoline wall
|
| - Aerial Straps
|
| - Handbalance / Handstands
|
| - Calisthenics
|
| - Breakdancing (though not as much since Covid)
|
| Reading way too many books
|
| Creativity:
|
| - Making chocolate truffles
|
| - Making ice cream
|
| - Slowly introducing myself to Kintsugi
|
| - Watercolor
|
| I also like to work on side projects and I wanted to get into
| Pixel art and making music, but I agree with OP about it being
| hard to sit in front of the computer after being in front all day
| for work.
| manpagereader wrote:
| powersnail wrote:
| Job: Programmer
|
| My biggest source of happiness comes from playing the violin and
| listening to music. I tried getting into making electronic music,
| but I too hit the wall of not wanting to sit in front of a
| computer anymore after workday. That's why I like the violin's
| pure analog-ness: absolutely raw and crude, no abstraction, no
| interface, fret-less, zero-config, no knobs to be _fiddled_ with.
| You sound as good as you can control your muscle.
|
| Cooking is both a necessity and an absolute joy.
|
| I also read books for entertainment (and for learning English). I
| especially like reading good prose aloud, and feel the rhythm of
| the language. And I sometimes write short stories.
|
| At times, I hike with my SO and friends.
|
| I also jog, but only for the health benefit. It's a torture, but
| the lesser evil compared with my nascent obesity.
| f0e4c2f7 wrote:
| I'm not very musically inclined but I really enjoy playing with
| this little device as a way of making electronic music without
| sitting at my PC.
|
| OP-1 https://youtube.com/watch?v=yuXq3gBQ0dI
| kataklasm wrote:
| Just like user f0e4c2f7 said in the sibling comment, I'd advise
| you to check out hardware synthesizers if you are looking to
| create electronic music without being in front of a monitor.
| Maybe take a look at Teenage Engineering's Pocket Operator
| line, a bunch of synthesizers in pocket calculator size. They
| are extremely limited but if you know how to work them they can
| create suprisingly complex tunes ranging from hip-hop beats and
| R&B to industrial and hard techno; and of course everything in
| between.
|
| Currently I am toying around a lot on an Elektron Model:Cycles,
| a roughly Letter-sized FM-Synthesizer (Frequency Modulation)
| box that harnesses great potential, much more than I can dream
| of using right now; but it's a journey, right?
|
| Beware, it's easy to fall into the rabbit hole of modular
| synthesizers because they allow the maximum degree of control,
| meaning full, over the sounds you can call into existance.
| kcindric wrote:
| I'm not powersnail but I'm the OP - I tried going the DAWless
| route and bought myself a synth and a drum machine/sequencer
| Digitakt. Generally I enjoyed the process but I still feel
| it's too much of a programming approach to creating music
| which made me feel fatigued too fast (after a workday). I'm
| genuinely happy playing an 'analaog' instrument like a guitar
| without an aim to creating something, just fiddling around.
| kataklasm wrote:
| Totally understand your viewpoint, sometimes I do feel the
| same way. It tends to feel a lot like programming because
| in a sense, it is. It can feel very deterministic and
| absolute, especially when you are fatigued and stressed out
| from work/studies. Sometimes you have to take a step back
| and reconsider what is possible. If handled the 'right' way
| (there is no right way, just what sounds good to the
| creator) you can create some quite unexpected stuff, almost
| feeling like you are distancing yourself from the absolute,
| deterministic and hard-edged nature of it.
| victorstanciu wrote:
| I build and repair bicycles: https://tegowerk.eu/posts/bicycle-
| repair/
| kcindric wrote:
| That was a great read, thanks! In my town we have a volunteer
| bike repair shop that is only open on Thursday afternoons and
| it's one of the mosz wholesome places out there.
| kif wrote:
| Lately I've had an increased desire to learn things. Usually I'd
| be gaming or watching tv shows, now there's so many shows to
| catch up on because I apparently like learning. Maybe I was
| depressed -- I don't know.
| kataklasm wrote:
| That put a smile on my face. That's good to hear, friend. Have
| fun in your newfound learning journey. Take care!
| prosaic-hacker wrote:
| Day Job: Training Programming and Sysadmin (between 500 and 1000
| workdays till retirement) Hobbies: Repairing thing for others to
| save money and not throw out stuff too soon (rewired lawnmower
| battery for $50 instead buy new $500 mower. working for 3 years,
| untangled badly knotted fine link gold chain,melt value $40
| retail $250) Breadboard circuits for amusement not a side hustle.
| Wado Karate : Stopped formal classes 10 years ago(just life).
| Just repeating the training positions and katas I know to make
| sure the joints don't go bad on me. Might try Tia-chi in
| retirement.
| guidoism wrote:
| Meta: It's so awesome how many of these hobbies are essentially
| free these days. For example,
|
| You already have a computer and all of the best languages and
| libraries are free so programming is now free.
|
| You already have a quality camera on your phone and you don't
| have to buy film and have it developed and print it on physical
| paper so photography is now free.
|
| So much of the world's literature is now available online for
| free, sometimes not-so-legal, but if you live in a poor country
| or out in the woods reading is free too.
|
| If you want to learn about new hobbies or watch others do then
| beautifully then YouTube has amazing videos to watch. More than
| you could consume in a lifetime.
|
| What a time to be alive!
| howenterprisey wrote:
| juggling, piano, learning how to draw, editing wikipedia, biking,
| hiking, running, reading
| mrfusion wrote:
| Pickleball! Give it a try. Like tennis with all the worst parts
| removed and a gradual learning curve so you're always having fun.
| hunter321 wrote:
| Scuba Diving - it's great, everyone should try it. Although it's
| fairly expensive as hobbies go.
|
| Equalise early and often!
| cliffwarden wrote:
| My hobby is hobbies! I'm notorious for picking up new hobbies all
| the time. For me the enjoyment is diving into something as a
| beginner and building up a basic mastery. Normally, at that point
| it get a little bored and move on. Granted, i do not feel like a
| master of anything i pick up, but i feel like i have a grasp of
| the basics and enough to more fully enjoy the topic. For example
| when i was really into photography i took it to the level of
| building my own dark room and developing my film/prints. For me
| its all about the learning process and not necessarily even the
| end result i care about.
|
| Current obsessions - Leather working - Watching making / repair
|
| Prior hobbies - kayaking - homebrew (beer) - making bread - lock
| picking - various electronics - photography - knitting - welding
| - every programming language ever - wood working
|
| If you are interested in any of these i'm happy to chat you up
| jsnodlin wrote:
| What exact welding machine would you recommend for someone that
| has never done it before but wants to build a significant
| structures (a greenhouse, bunk bed, work table etc.)? What
| YouTube channel or books/other resources do you recommend?
| jsnodlin wrote:
| I have a lathe and CNC machine and want to make a clock from
| scratch out of brass. Do you have a specific design you can
| recommend? What additional items do I need (I assume an
| indexing wheel for the gears)? I know of clickspring, was
| looking for something a little bit simpler.
| specproc wrote:
| Painting miniatures for tabletop gaming, and almost no tabletop
| gaming.
| chrisaycock wrote:
| Traditionally: fencing
|
| Now: golf and squash
|
| I was a fencer for a long time. I've even competed on the
| national circuit in the past. Ever since the pandemic though,
| I've looked into other sports. So I've recently started lessons
| in golf and squash.
|
| I spend most of my day in front of a computer, so any kind of
| social or athletic outlet is a must for my sanity.
| kataklasm wrote:
| My 'day job' is being an engineering student so I'm kinda short
| on time and energy as well.
|
| Currently my main hobbies consist of riding bicycles (fixed-gear,
| singlespeed), analog large format photography, bouldering, and
| hardware synthesizers making mostly hard techno/industrial tunes.
|
| I am saying 'currently' because these do tend to vary over time,
| sometimes some of them fade out, others take their place or maybe
| the others take over their spot. Hobbies are somewhat fluid for
| me and I think this is beneficial for me as it prevents hobby
| burnout somewhat, I found.
| sdwolfz wrote:
| I drilled a hole in a fridge and put temperature and humidity
| sensors inside, plus a fan, and a dehumidifier. Now I have a
| miniature "basement" that I can inoculate with good mold, fill
| with different types of meat, and make my own charcuterie.
|
| Been doing this for a year now, had a few successful produce as a
| result, and many many failures.
| alifbae wrote:
| Making music, DJing and Production
| ketanmaheshwari wrote:
| Long walks. Reading Technical books as leisure (reading Michael
| Kerrisk's Linux Programming Interface now). Brewing teas and
| coffees.
| bhub wrote:
| Family, brewing beer, lock picking, repairing stuff (which ties
| in with learning new things), cooking.
| jeffreygoesto wrote:
| Keeping a Triumph Spitfire 1500 from 1978 in good shape and
| driving it (best tour ever were 18 passes in the alps in 3.5
| days). When I did not have kids I went on sea kayaking tours. A
| bit of guitar (I'm really bad, but it's fun and relaxing).
| LandR wrote:
| Hiking & photography mostly.
|
| The photography I'm not very good at, but I enjoy it and I'd like
| more time to do it available to get better at it.
| vgeek wrote:
| Best way is practice. The photo per day challenge makes you
| accountable. Plus it is a reason to go places you otherwise
| wouldn't.
| alar44 wrote:
| Or people can just enjoy things in an organic way. I'm tired
| of "challenges". It's ok not to practice something every day.
| We don't need to be constantly working on ourselves. It's ok
| to just be.
| kataklasm wrote:
| Seconded.
|
| I too call photography one of my hobbies and when I started
| out back then (it's been 7 or 8 years now) I'd run into
| creativity blockades all the time. So I did what most would
| do and took to the internet, especially forums, which told
| me to just do the 'Photo a Day' challenge for a year
| straight. Well, suffice to say it just made me feel even
| worse about the hobby and nearly made me sell my gear back
| then because it just drained every bit of creativity I had
| left.
|
| My anecdotally-based advice in this situation: take a
| break, put your gear somewhere it is easily accessible and
| in arm's reach but, most importantly, out of sight. You
| don't want to be reminded of it every day if you need a
| break. For me it went so far as to me selling every piece
| of photographic equipment I owned which wasn't a smart
| decision financially but after two years of not shooting at
| all i suddenly had the urges again, bought all the
| necessary (and none more) gear and got back to it, better
| than ever before!
|
| Long rant, point being: take a break when you feel like it.
| Hobbies are just that: hobbies. They shouldn't feel like a
| job, you (hopefully) already got that covered; don't make
| it one.
|
| And lastly: have fun with whatever you deem fun, don't
| stress out too much :)
| vanilla_nut wrote:
| - reading (in particular, I love long, epic series, which keep me
| from having to decide on another book when I finish one)
|
| - bicycles (repair, improvements, and, more importantly,
| touring/getting around my city)
|
| - coffee, in particular espresso
|
| - writing, though admittedly I haven't produced as much fiction
| as I'd like
|
| - hiking
|
| - running
|
| - DIY repair, from laptops to ovens to dishwashers (or maybe I'm
| just cheap?)
|
| - building out and managing my music library and self-hosted
| streaming setup
| ChrisArchitect wrote:
| a previous thread from 5 months ago:
|
| https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28413011
| resonator wrote:
| I have many. Mostly woodworking, restoring old bicycles and
| playing guitar (delta and chicago blues).
| kulikalov wrote:
| Why woodworking exactly? I read about various cs engineers
| having this hobby surprisingly often.
| bladegash wrote:
| At least for me, I like wood working for many of the reasons
| I like engineering - I like building things! One aspect of
| wood working I really enjoy is how peaceful it can be, in
| that it can get you away from your phone and other
| electronics and requires pretty significant attention/focus
| at times (e.g., using a saw, chiseling, using a lathe, etc.).
| It's also really cool to have something to show for and that
| is functional when you are done (my first project was an 8
| foot picnic table).
| [deleted]
| resonator wrote:
| I pretty much only use hand tools and I construct things
| using traditional joinary. It is challenging on a lot of
| levels. Finding a design that works, the joints you choose,
| the order you alter each piece of wood and the skill in which
| you weild your tools.
|
| It's hard. There are so many ways to get it wrong and it's
| obvious when you have. It's usually a fixable when you or
| cheap enough to do again, so it there is low pressure except
| from yourself to be good.
|
| The basic skills are highly transferable so it makes sense to
| invest in yourself.
|
| I find this combination suites my personality. I've been
| doing it for 7 years and love it just as much as when I
| started. Probably more.
| chillpenguin wrote:
| Reading, Guitar, Piano. I used to go to the gym a lot too before
| the pandemic disrupted that hobby. I've been meaning to get back
| into it.
| MrGando wrote:
| Jazz Piano.
| [deleted]
| steve_gh wrote:
| Outdoor sports. Rock climbing (from climbing and bouldering walls
| through to alpinism on 4000m peaks), ski-ing (prefer touring or
| cross country to piste), and trail running (less now than
| previously, although I went through a phase of running ultras).
|
| Day job: Technical director in the data science group of an
| infrastructure management company
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(page generated 2022-02-06 23:02 UTC)