catbarf on 7/8/2011 at 18:30

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Figured it would be interesting to hear what other people do for fun besides gaming.

Over the last two years I've become pretty heavily invested in paintball and airsoft, which put me in contact with people that eventually led to me doing scenario exercises (as OpFor) with a SWAT team, using airsoft or (when the budget permits) Simunition. Usually it means I take an overwatch position somewhere in a drug house, take a few shots at the guys as they enter, and wind up getting captured at gunpoint (sucks), flashbanged (suckier), or shot at point blank with a burst of automatic fire (suckiest). Still, it's a rewarding experience, and the training may come in handy somewhere down the road.

Other than that, I play guitar and write and play wargames. I'm nowhere near where I'd like to be with guitar, as I've been playing for two years and am still not quite good enough to play most of the 80s metal I listen to, but I'm getting there. With wargaming, I play a mix of board and miniature-based games, and am currently working on writing my own.

So, what do you guys do? I know Fett at least could write whole paragraphs, busy guy that he is :p

Aerothorn on 7/8/2011 at 21:05

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There's a large gap between my actual and desired hobbies. See, a lot of fun hobbies (like paintball!) require other willing participants, which are currently lacking in my life. I'm likely moving soon so this may change, but here goes:

Actual Hobbies:
Playing vidgames (duh)

Watching movies (lame to list this a "hobby," I know, but I'm kind of a film buff and really try to keep on top of things, learn, etc.)

Reading Books (though this barely qualifies as "hobby" for me).

I've also fiddled with the guitar on and off, but never had the discipline to practice as much as I should, and I'm close to giving up on it, though sometimes I really enjoy it.

Ideal Hobbies:
Analog gaming (i.e. board games and pen-and-paper role-playing): this is something I really want to get into and, if this job goes through, I almost certainly will

Continuing Education: I like learning and am already missing college classes. I'm thinking of facilitating a class (maybe a game studies class) through MIT's (http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm) Open Courseware, wherever I happen to be located. I love taking classes but also love helping others take them

Fencing: I legit enjoy fencing, but a foot injury has prevented me from playing for the last five or six years. If it ever heals I want to get back into it.

demagogue on 8/8/2011 at 02:38

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Piano is the one thing I try to be disciplined about, actually practicing my technique & trying to learn different styles, jazz & classical, and composing a bit. Actually I have guitar stages & piano stages ... But piano is definitely my mainstay and guitar is more about making songs up on the spot for fun. I play differently for myself (really serious & disciplined) vs for others (lot of improv'ing, goofing around & fun). I'm trying to get around to recording for YouTube.

I'm not sure studying Japanese can be classified as a "hobby" but I do that too.

I read a craaaazy amount, all over the map. I read a textbook on civil aircraft design haha, just because I was honestly curious. But I have my favorite topics ... consciousness & AI, philosophy, obscure world history, astronomy & fundamental physics, classic religious texts, modernist lit, int'l law & foreign relations stuff...

Gaming of course, but probably modding more.
Does going to museums count? I can never go enough, even to see the same art. I also have an irrational love of just walking around town with a choice friend, maybe stop at a cafe for a spell, and mutually pontificating & verbally wanking. (Kind of what I do around here :) ...)

CCCToad on 8/8/2011 at 07:43

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Hmmm...where to start. First off, videogaming isn't a "hobby" anymore. Once back in the states I will be allowing my family to keep my gaming consoles, or relocating them with other friends if my brothers don't want em.

The biggest hobby I have is skiing. I go up in the mountains every year. Only gotten in one full season in ski country so far, but I can already handle everything except the most difficult terrain without trouble. I'm hoping to push it up to where I can take extreme terrain next year (the stuff with warning signs posted all around it), but we'll see. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense that I'd be good at this though: every time I've tried ice skating or rollerblading I fall flat on my ass. Repeatedly and painfully.

There' a laundry list of other hobbies I'll be getting back into. I'm going to re-start martial arts by getting into Krav Maga. That style has impressed me due to its its utility(what you learn is good for real fights) and physical intensity. Exploring the various mountain trails is also a great time, but due to my own schedule constraints I'm going to have to choose whether I want to get involved in a biking club or a running club. Which one is probably going to depend on the individual club's vibe. Another activity is that I'm going to take out a membership at the local climbing gym. I'd love to hop straight back into rock climbing, but its going to take some work on the rock wall first to build my wrist strength back up to where I can do that.

All of that, combined with my long hours (I often have 70 hour weeks) will be enough to fill up the typical week. This may sound odd, but self improvement is something I've gotten to enjoy. Toastmasters should be a good time investement and a needed one. While my public speaking has gotten much better over the past few years, I still have a ways to go before I reach that room-commanding level of presence. My other social hobby is one that the smarter of you will be able to deduce based on some of my other posts and specific terminology that I've dropped around the board. (hint: "bitch shield").

The closest thing to an actual "hobby" that I have is homebrew. First things first are that I've got a few gallons in my storage unit, waiting on my return. Hopefully a year in the dark will have a good effect on their taste. Getting back into that should be fun and I'm going to step it up by actually cracking my own grain

SD on 8/8/2011 at 12:38

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I collect toys. Not so much action figures, although I still have all that Star Wars and He-Man stuff from when I was a kid. The figures I collect tend to be smaller, non-articulated and, more often than not, mono-coloured. Some of these things go for crazy money ((http://www.ebay.com/itm/280677078378) example) and I seem to have a knack for unearthing cheap deals. Best purchase so far was a lot of 20 Garbage Pail Kids figures for £40; I sold 4 of them to an American collector for £600.

Funnily enough, I wasn't really into that sort of thing when I was younger, even though the 80s and 90s were a peak period for mono-mini figures (M.U.S.C.L.E. and Monster in My Pocket being perhaps the best known). If anyone has any they're looking to offload, get in touch ;)

My other main hobby is birdwatching. It's not something I'm serious about, and it's very on and off, but it's always something I come back to. Whenever I go abroad, binoculars and a field guide are two of the items I always pack.