Hobbies [Archive] - The Art of Sound Forum

Mr Nad

23-08-2012, 19:35

sparrow

23-08-2012, 19:38

Fishing and believe it or not shopping (for music though)...also I like a good book occasionally.

Rare Bird

23-08-2012, 20:12

Always been with music (proper music that is :eyebrows: ) always wil be.. Hi-Fi used to be a great part of my life but sadly no longer.. No more Hobbies as such but many intrests & obsessions

Tim

23-08-2012, 20:27

I have never counted my musical passion as being a hobby, its a way of life ;)

I used to scuba dive a lot, not so much these days - I love to read and tinker with computers, I always seem to be building or upgrading something and finally my only other real passion is travel. When I have the time, I really like watching films too.

keiths

23-08-2012, 20:33

Apart from hi-fi, what hobbies do we have?

At the moment, I'm learning speed solving - solving the Rubik's cube as quickly as possible. It's a good way to relax, and keeps the circulation flowing through my fingers, and helps ease the carpal tunnel issues...

I keep a Rubik's cube on my desk and regularly solve it. I'm not fast - according to my log at http://www.cubetimer.com my average over the last 10 of 12 solves is 67 seconds. I just use the simple layer-by-layer method. I've tried learning Petrus' method, but my 49 year old brain just finds it too dificult to learn.

Rare Bird

23-08-2012, 20:37

I have never counted my musical passion as being a hobby, its a way of life ;)

That depend because some people just take music as a blank sheet & just listern. For others ;) It's a massive passion that involves a lifetime of research.

Tim

23-08-2012, 20:39

It's a massive passion that involves a lifetime of research.
Amen to that André :eyebrows:

Beechwoods

23-08-2012, 20:45

I don't understand people who aren't interested in the music they listen to. I get obsessed. To be honest, the more obscure the better. It's the obscure ones that get me hooked.

I don't have much time for hobbies at the moment though... :(

Ali Tait

23-08-2012, 21:00

Reading and spending a fortune on my Alfas, much to the disgust of my other half. She likes driving them though!

Alex_UK

23-08-2012, 21:23

I got quite good at the Rubik cube when I gave up smoking. As for hobbies, (I don't count music/hifi as a hobby, as others have eluded) I don't really have any - assuming drinking and w@nking don't count? ;)

Off-Road driving, motorbikes, photography, cycling, camping - all more interests than hobbies I would have said. One thing though that I've noticed about myself, and blokes in general I think(?) - I get into "the next big thing" and then get obsessive about it, want to buy all the best gear, all the magazines and just get really into it until I get a bit bored and then move on to something else for a while. I usually come back to what it was I got obsessive about, though sometimes I wonder where my head was at!

This is why I can't see music/hifi as a "hobby" - much more important than that, and something that is a constant in my life.

Tim

23-08-2012, 21:26

assuming drinking and w@nking don't count? ;)
. . . again Alex, not a hobby but a way of life :lol:

Beechwoods

23-08-2012, 21:27

Wanking is a career Alex, not a hobby!

Mr Kipling

23-08-2012, 21:39

Buying tat off eBay in the vein hope that I will get it working again. And instead of repairing what I've got - I end up getting more. I've really got to stop it. Keep saying I will, but can't seem to manage it. Latest aquisition is a Musical Fidelity Synthesis amp for £10. Not working and front panel broke. Regarded by Hi-Fi Answers and always fancied one.

Kind Regards,
Stephen.

synsei

23-08-2012, 21:41

I read a lot, mainly sc-fi and fantasy genres although not exclusively so. Watching films. I particularly like those with a good twist at the end, such as Se7en and Sixth Sense. I used to tinker with computers (I've built my own machines) but not so much now as I find leaning over all the time puts undue stress on my back which causes a great deal of pain. Never happier than when I'm listening to good music accompanied with a glass of Glenmorangie ;)

Mr Nad

23-08-2012, 22:03

I keep a Rubik's cube on my desk and regularly solve it. I'm not fast - according to my log at http://www.cubetimer.com my average over the last 10 of 12 solves is 67 seconds. I just use the simple layer-by-layer method. I've tried learning Petrus' method, but my 49 year old brain just finds it too dificult to learn.

I don't time myself, yet, but I think I'm averaging at around a minute I think. Until recently I was solving layer by layer, but started learning the Petrus Method, like yourself. However, I have moved to CFOP. Roux looks good, but I can't build a second 1x2x3 block no matter how hard I try. The F2L of CFOP I can do from almost any angle.

If I can reach 45 seconds with CFOP I'll give Petrus another go.

------------

Of course, music is a hobby, but not just any old music... library music. Finding the music from television programmes and adverts from my youth (and today). My taste in 'normal' music is frowned upon in my household, but I can get away with playing library music as it's generally inoffensive.

If ever I find "Children and Animation" composed by Johnny Pearson (KPM 1045) I'll be a very happy chap. It contains all the music from "Mary, Mungo, and Midge". I'll have it played at my funeral.

Audio Al

23-08-2012, 22:47

I enjoy my Harley

Photography

Woodwork

to name a few :)

the engine

24-08-2012, 06:27

Work...work.....a couple of hours with a vino and record player then work....then sleep then work.
Then sleep and dream about work.
I'm a bit busy at the moment.
And if I do ever get an hour to myself I practice being an amateur historian.
Then work......

Thing Fish

24-08-2012, 07:18

Apart from music...

Reading autobiography's

Green tea (proper imported loose leaf) not bags...!!!

Plank spanking (playing guitar)

Photography

julesd68

24-08-2012, 18:45

I used to scuba dive a lot, not so much these days.

Where did you go diving?

Me and mrs julesd used to love diving before a baby came along - Maldives was our favourite!

Such a shame - we have two full sets of gear just rotting away ...

shane

24-08-2012, 19:01

My other hobby:

http://www.thepippin.plus.com/Misc/DSCF0062%20%28Medium%29.JPG

guyhayton

24-08-2012, 19:12

I do consider my music/hi-fi as a hobby as I spend an inordinate amount of time on forums(here) and Amazon either talking about it or buying it. I used to contribute on forums about classical music as I am a patron of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra ( but not as much now ).

I read novels and autobiographies when I get the time (usually just before the bedside light gets switched off)

I suppose my other real hobby that takes up a lot of my time is Correspondence Chess. I used to play over-the-board but (a) I wasn't very good as I used to always run out of time and (b) I spent evenings travelling around Merseyside playing in leagues (too much of a commitment with young kids).

Now I play Chess with people all around the world, exchanging penpal-type letters about our lives and general chitchat. In general I have about dozen or so games in progress with people as diverse as Japanese students, Polish Lawyers, Canadian Accountants and currently a prisoner in a Texan jail.

Tim

24-08-2012, 19:46

Where did you go diving?
All over really, lots in the Red Sea, lived in the Cayman Islands for 2 years and haved dived Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Burma, all along The Bahamas, Galapagos and Cocos Islands - around 700+ dives, stopped logging them in the Caymans.

The best by far was Cocos;

Bajo Alcyone - Cocos Islands

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w63/greatgig/hammers.jpg

Every single day there was jaw dropping - but there's nowhere like Alcyone, one dive we dropped in on a whale shark, after he went we settled in at a Hammerhead cleaning station and I took the above, on the way back to the boat a pod of dolphins came in and got right up to us, inches away from us making direct eye contact, then a huge school of silkies that thought they would do the same homed in and had us getting back on the ribs as fast as we could - a little unnerving TBH. Then on the rib a humpback whale broke surface next to us so we jumped back in to see it dive away and listened to its calls as it went. One in a million and what a day's diving - I still cannot believe what we saw on that dive :scratch: and we all went back with very empty tanks, nobody wanted to leave!

The dolphins were a very emotional moment, I have been in the water with wild dolphins a lot, but never like that. It was almost like they were trying to talk to us with their eyes - incredible and very moving.

julesd68

24-08-2012, 19:53

I am extremely jealous Tim!!

I cannot think of a better dive than the one you described. And what a photo - it is my dream to dive with hammerheads, and to get dolphins aswell like that is simply awesome. I am sure you will remember that forever.

Alex_UK

24-08-2012, 20:05

Amazing, Tim. :wow:

Reid Malenfant

24-08-2012, 20:09

Reading, mainly science fiction, but also science fact :eyebrows:

Electronics & speaker design comes in handy :cool:

Astronomy, I have a reasonable motor driven 8" equatorial reflector - pity I'm in a city, though they are going over to LED lights that only radiate downwards gradually :)

Trying new foods has been a much more recent one, very enjoyable though I might add :D

walpurgis

24-08-2012, 20:13

I like getting back into photography every now and then. Always liked motorcycling, but I'm maybe getting past it! Definitely past doing Judo, which I used to train at 3 or 4 times a week for about 15 years.

Reid Malenfant

24-08-2012, 20:17

I would have added motorcycling, but my 1000 has been sat decaying in the garage since 1997 :rolleyes:

So while I still dream of a turbocharged Kawasaki ZX12R or Hayabusa, I think it's just that - a dream :eyebrows:

walpurgis

24-08-2012, 20:19

I still hanker after a Suzuki SV1000S with a set of decent cans. Nice looking, and plenty quick enough for me.

Reid Malenfant

24-08-2012, 20:23

Aye, a V twin would also be rather nice :eyebrows: TL1000R for me please :)

Sound of thunder :drool:

Tim

24-08-2012, 20:30

it is my dream to dive with hammerheads, and to get dolphins as well like that is simply awesome.
If you want hammerheads I wouldn't wait too long, they are under threat and long line fisherman are having a devastating impact on their numbers globally. I have seen huge schools in both Galapagos and Cocos, I have a video somewhere at Galapagos taken with me at 30m and you can actually hear me screaming ..... "look at all those f*****g hammerheads!" as they glide overhead - hundreds and hundreds of them. Its quite funny to hear :lol:

If you ever get the chance, go to Coco's and do it on Undersea Hunter. It's not cheap but you will never do anything like it again - you have to go in the summer wet months, the weather can be rough and the 36 hour boat ride there from Costa Rica is not for the faint hearted, but that's when all the big stuff comes in, so its worth the ride. Its a good time to bond with the other divers too (hic) ;)

I plan to go again when I retire, I may just hang up my wetsuit then.

Jonboy

24-08-2012, 21:05

I still love playing with old Stationary engines which is my first love and like to travel around Europe to different shows and other peoples collections to photograph and drool over, my travels gives an evenings worth of a photo/slide show for my fellow club members in our winter evening club meetings, also done the odd magazine article for a specialist publication and not one that comes in a brown bag either:lol:

Just got back into Land Rovers again and have swapped my old Discovery for a Series 3 stage 1, 3.5 V8 LWB now converted from a hard top to full tilt( convertible), i bought another complete LWB series 3 for spares and have now just bought a complete 3.9 V8 fuel injected Disco to strip out the engine and put into my stage 1 which should if all goes well be a bit of a beast :eyebrows:, so that totals three land rovers in my possession at the mo:doh:

I had a bit of a thing for watches and clocks for a while but really ought to have a clear out as they now total over 100 :mental:

Hifi has taken a bit of a back burner for now and prefer to be out and about this time of the year.

Scuba diving was something i did as a teenager and qualified as a sports diver as it was then with BSAC, one day i would like to get back under the seas again but would require me getting a lot fitter and loosing more weight :D

As with all hobbies you get to meet all sorts of wonderful and sometimes weird or should i say eccentric people from all walks in life from which much enjoyment and enrichment can be had.

I'm off to play engines this weekend if any ones interested in old shit of all kinds here's where we are

http://www.rudgwicksteamshow.co.uk/

Alex_UK

24-08-2012, 21:13

Just got back into Land Rovers again and have swapped my old Discovery for a Series 3 stage 1, 3.5 V8 LWB now converted from a hard top to full tilt( convertible), i bought another complete LWB series 3 for spares and have now just bought a complete 3.9 V8 fuel injected Disco to strip out the engine and put into my stage 1 which should if all goes well be a bit of a beast :eyebrows:, so that totals three land rovers in my possession at the mo:doh:

Ooh - sounds good! Just love the Rover V8 in any guise. :) My Maggie is currently in need of some TLC - trying to decide whether I stick with her and invest a few quid or start again. I'd love another 80" Series 1 - but I don't think my numbers came up this week! Show us some pics, Jon?? :)

Jonboy

24-08-2012, 21:41

Show us some pics, Jon?? :)

It looks like a heap of crap Alex which is what i like, my wife hates it, i did get her out in it once but she swore never again :lol: i will get some photos for you to laugh at soon, it is an ex water board vehicle and is plated to run a gross train weight of 7020kgs, it also has a habit of breaking down at the moment with fueling problems and did so the other day on a pedestrian crossing just outside a pub much to everyone's amusement and least of all my daughter who i was giving a lift to leaving her highly embarrassed :D.

The roar a V8 is a bit of an addiction and certainly don't think about mpg anymore, it's a bit of fun to be enjoyed ;)

An engine mate has just rebuilt his SWB series 3 and gone from a 3.5 up to a 4.6 V8 complete with 4 barrel carb and mild race cam, it sounds really nice and goes well as you can imagine

I did want another 80 inch like you as they are really good fun but as you say they have gone up a bit in price of recent, another mate has just put a 200 tdi into his 80 inch full tilt which has made it very usable machine, i got offered a 5 litre v8 86 inch recently but he wants to much money for what is essentially an unfinished project and a bit scary with all round drum brakes as well :mental:,

Maggie not worth rebuilding with a galv chassis and all that ?

walpurgis

25-08-2012, 09:52

Land Rovers and Range Rovers are fun, bit juicy though, even the diesels.

My motoring interest used to be Minis, the real British ones, not the BMW fakes. I rebuilt more than I can remember and at one point had seven lined up outside the house. I also had the fastest Minivan in town (well it was faster than any other I met), they are as rare as anything now.

julesd68

25-08-2012, 14:03

I have a video somewhere at Galapagos taken with me at 30m and you can actually hear me screaming ..... "look at all those f*****g hammerheads!" as they glide overhead - hundreds and hundreds of them. Its quite funny to hear :lol:

Would really love to see the video if u can dig it out sometime!

I think a trip to Cocos might have to be my retirement present to me and the mrs - not sure how I'd cope with the boat trip though ...:vomfest:

Tim

25-08-2012, 15:18

Would really love to see the video if u can dig it out sometime!

I think a trip to Cocos might have to be my retirement present to me and the mrs - not sure how I'd cope with the boat trip though ...:vomfest:
That is a factor admittedly, but here's a tail from my trip. We had a solo Japanese diver on my trip called Suki. She told me before we left she often had terrible seasickness and knew it was probably going to be tough for her, as she had been before. I thought if you know its going to be tough and you have already been, why put yourself through it again going to the same place twice. Suki stayed in her cabin the whole trip over, sleeping most of the time as she had come prepared with suitable meds.

After a few days diving she came over and sat next to me on the dive deck after a fantastic dive and gave me a knowing smile before saying 'That's why I came here again and why I will come a third time' She was of course right and it was worth it - she was a fantastic diver too.

I will look for that video for you ;)

Alex_UK

26-08-2012, 08:40

Your Stage 1 sounds "characterful" Jon! :lol:

Maggie not worth rebuilding with a galv chassis and all that ?

Problem is I just don't have the time or gear to do it myself - needs a bulkhead, and if we're doing that then might as well go for a galvanised chassis as you suggest - replace and lift the suspension... Got a good local specialist who is reasonable but I reckon it will still be about £5k, so just have to decide if that's what I really want, or put that towards something else - my missus says if we get a swb she'd drive it, whereas she won't the 110, and I would like a V8... we'll see! Good luck with yours!

sq225917

26-08-2012, 10:03

Rowing.

Not the shouty kind the wet kind.

Welder

26-08-2012, 10:28

Power Lifting.
BAWLA, BPF

County standard once (Black Grade 1).

Marco

26-08-2012, 10:44

Five-finger shuffling.

Marco.

Tim

26-08-2012, 10:45

Five-finger shuffling.
ooooo, me too :lol:

Welder

26-08-2012, 11:08

Oh arr, we’re all wankers. :eyebrows:

It’s just nice to be something else once in a while, even if it is just as a hobby. ;)

julesd68

26-08-2012, 13:00

In the immortal words of Beavis and Butthead -

"I wasn't born in a barn, but I know how to choke my chicken ..."

Audio Al

26-08-2012, 13:09

5 knuckle shuffle

and

Bashing the Bishop

also come to mind :D

snuffbox

26-08-2012, 17:05

I shoot arrows from my crossbow in the woods at foam animals most weekends with lots of other like minded people.

walpurgis

26-08-2012, 22:20

I do the same, but with a 0.50 Barrett at 2000 metres.

snuffbox

26-08-2012, 22:32

I do the same, but with a 0.50 Barrett at 2000 metres.

Foam animals?:scratch:

walpurgis

26-08-2012, 23:12

Yes, but with 3" steel plate behind.

Alex_UK

27-08-2012, 07:31

I do the same, but with a 0.50 Barrett at 2000 metres.

Interesting Geoff - is that an M85? I didn't realise you could even get Barretts outside of the military!

snuffbox

27-08-2012, 07:50

And where do you go to shoot such a beast?

bobbasrah

27-08-2012, 08:39

And where do you go to shoot such a beast?

"I do the same, but with a 0.50 Barrett at 2000 metres" = 2km away....:eyebrows:

snuffbox

27-08-2012, 09:16

Must be somewhere by the Uxbridge Road.

shane

27-08-2012, 10:37

Sounds like you might have more fun in Essex today!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-19388301

wiicrackpot

27-08-2012, 11:21

I hunt at my doorstep, Ned's keep appearing round the scheme, it's such a jungle out there and needs to be culled for it's very survival,
besides i keep hearing ''the animals are winding me up'' ringing in my ears (no the record player is off and Frankie's not singing),
have to go... my Browning's waiting. :guns:

walpurgis

27-08-2012, 12:41

And where do you go to shoot such a beast?

In the back garden, the neighbours are amazingly tolerant. Starts all the local dogs howling though and the masonry wall at the bottom will need rebuilding.

Macca

27-08-2012, 12:42

In the back garden, the neighbours are amazingly tolerant. Starts all the local dogs howling though and the masonry wall at the bottom will need rebuilding.

This is a wind-up of course...

walpurgis

27-08-2012, 12:45

This is a wind-up of course...

No, No, its windage you refer to, not wind-up. And get the elevation right too.

Macca

27-08-2012, 12:51

And get the elevation right too.

Yes you wouldn't want to bring down any low flying aircraft with a stray round, would you?;)

walpurgis

27-08-2012, 12:55

Yes you wouldn't want to bring down any low flying aircraft with a stray round, would you?;)

Its funny you should mention that. Who's been talking? I thought I'd got that little incident hushed up!

Macca

27-08-2012, 13:05

Don't you find the ammunition is just a little expensive? Or did you simply rob a miltiary arsenal in a scene resembling something from classic TV show 'The Profesionals'?

walpurgis

27-08-2012, 13:10

Its not that bad if you reload the casings and turn your own bullets up on the lathe.

Welder

27-08-2012, 14:06

While I’m waitng…..

I was fortunate to spend a couple of years training with Mr Leggett back in the 90’s.
I’m not sure if sport can be considered a hobby, but if it can, here is someone who is still a fantastic ambassador for a little know sport and an inspiration for those of us who think they may be getting a little long in the tooth for all that strenuous stuff.

XqYDeDEACy0