non-skill-toy hobbies?

Yeah, I guess I should go first, huh?

I am a big geek, with geeky hobbies.

Reading- especially anything by Gaiman and A Song of Ice and Fire series

SCA- medieval re-enactment geekery. Sub-hobbies include costuming (especially 16th C Persian), playing the doumbek mediocre-ly and the oud (middle eastern lute) even worse. Embroidering and applique-ing a bit, and starting to play with leather work. Occasionally I do some illumination (painting) or other random SCA art.

D&D- Yup, like I said... I'm a geek.

Anime- See above. :-)

Bellydancing- I dunno if that counts as "vaudevillian" stuff....

heh, i'm also rather geeky.

my number one passion is photography. a close second is fiddling with photos on my computer.

i also love reading - my current favorite books/magazines are anything by mental floss. i love random trivia.

other random stuff: tie-dying, jewelry-making, beachcombing, stargazing, people-watching, various artsy fartsy stuff, and being a bum. *grins*

I am also a HUGE Gaiman fan. Met him once when he came to speak and read some unpublished works at a local university.. He's ridiculously sexy, if you ask me... Anyway, dark fantasy is my favorite genre to read. I also read a lot of nonfiction, mostly about beekeeping, organic gardening, homesteading, and the history and development of western herbal and allopathic medicine.

My other interests include gardening, wildcrafting, herbalism, making my own organic body products, crocheting, homebrewing mead, yoga, hiking, camping, tree-climbing, river-walking, and gourmet picnicking. I enjoy singing along with the radio in my car (badly). I like to play capoeira, though I haven't trained in almost a year (bad Coehlo!!).

I'd love to hear what everyone on here does for a "living" as well...
In the real world, I work in a medical laboratory as a phlebotomist and lab assistant. I'm in nursing school and hope to become a midwife someday... or maybe I'll go into Emergency Medicine... oh who knows!

Oooh! I really love Gaimen too!! Coehlo~I'm so jealous of you for having the opportunity to meet him. :) He is walking brilliance. I live about an hour away from Charles Vest who used to do a lot of illustrations for Neil. Every once in a while he does signings or events. They had a huge Stardust festival out there. Anyway, I always wished Neil would just up and come to support Charles.

In my spare time away from hooping I enjoy cocheting, reading lots of books, graphic novels, comic books, and articles~ drawing (especially anime), animals, hiking, tree identification, camping, etc. No matter where I've lived, I' ve always had to be in some mountains. Love me some Zombies! (novels, movies) I love staying active playing tennis, running, yoga. Also, I almost expect to get stoned when I admit this in this day in time but I love target shooting with guns. Hey!--I'm from the Appalachian mountains y'all! Whadya expect?! I do want to emphasize that I DO NOT shoot animals or anything like that. I also love going to shows or festies and dancing. Oh gosh--basically, I sound like a 10 year old boy in a woman's body! :0P

I just graduated university in the fall & finished the immigration process, --so I'm currently looking for a "real" job.

+ I love doing arts & crafts. I sew, knit, crochet... I find it so calming.
+ I also love to bake. I made my own almond milk the other day, & chocolate chip cookies yesterday.
+ If I'm not doing either crafts or baking, I'm most likely reading. A lot. I'm currently re-reading Robert Jordan's 'Wheel of Time' series (yes! Geekery!). I love mysteries, fiction, autobiographies...

Other things: feminism, cryptozoology, my bike, blogging.

I basically like to involve a little bit of creativity in everyday life.

heee. I too am a big Neil Gaiman fan! I have the entire Sandman collection (the hardcover volumes) signed with drawings of Morpheus in silver ink. I have all the monthly issues as well -- first printings -- and have read all his non-comic novels. I'm into comics in general, my favorite right now being Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

I like going hiking also, and have been known to occasionally get lost in video games. I am going back to writing -- something I set aside when I started spinning -- and I used to play cello but haven't picked it up in a long time.

I really like seeing what else hoopers are into!

i like this thread, natasha! :)

workwise i have been all over the map, still trying to figure out where i 'fit'. right now i am working in a law services office but want to get into some sort of community outreach or counseling, possibly some sort of healing work with more people contact and less sitting in front of a computer screen all day. i used to tutor kids, teach swim lessons and landscape.

hobbies outside the 9-5 are, in no particular order: knitting, crocheting, beading and making jewelry, sewing, playing guitar, yoga, writing... I used to write a lot more, mainly poetry, and I am trying to get back into that habit. I read constantly, a lot of soul-searching books, but fiction, poetry, harry potter, david sedaris, feminism, different religions or spiritual books are up on my list as well. i LOVE being outside...i love rock climbing, hiking, camping and swimming. i like to garden but city living is not conducive to much more than a few pots of things on my porch at the moment (most of which my cats end up eating large chunks out of every time I turn my back). I am not a big fan of tv but love to sit and watch movies with a big cup of tea nearby. oh, and live music. :) i love fesitvals!

I used to have hobbies, now I have children.;)
Prior to the arrival of the offspring, in no particular order:
supernumerary for the opera, walking player in Shakespeare group, character actor on cable access program.
I can play a few instruments with a great deal of mediocrity, you can recognize the tune, but no frills.
Cermaics, basketry, beading, oil painting, sculpture-mostly stone and clay, some metal work.

Still active hobbies:
camping, I take my daughter camping for a month each summer, we're leaving in one week for a month and a half in the southwest.
gardening-mostly medicinal and cooking herbs, some flowers and vegetables

I stopped working to be the stay-at-home parent, so I guess that qualifies as retired in a do all the cooking, cleaning, childcare, sort of way.

Do cats count as hobbies?

when not hooping or reading about hooping:
- I'm an electronica DJ, mostly Trance and Breakbeats, I've got 5 demos out and do a weekly residency at Tunel 21 in Sacramento. (See my profile for a blog with the demos for downloading)
- I'm a cyclist, I ride 30-40 miles in a go
- I'm a "retired" geek, but still love science fiction and read it when I'm reading, last book I really loved was "The Sparrow", though I forget the authors name, that book was a great social commentary set slightly in the future.
- burning man prep, got an exciting LED/EL costume in the works.
- Although I've slowed down lately, I have been an avid lindy-hop swing dancer for something like 8 years. I also am good at most ballroom dances (Waltz, foxtrot, salsa, balboa, charleston, etc)
-

Cool thread!

Aside from working in the computer industry (programming & UI design - studying usability) which I really like...

I play all sorts of instruments, have my own recording/performance setup. Kahn, would love to hear that cello! I LOVE to ride bicycles, mtb, road bike, cruisers, anything on two wheels. I mountain bike almost every day here in Austin on some of the best trails in the country, all within a few miles of my place. The outskirts of Austin are very friendly for road riding, too. I also love (and ride) motorcycles.

I like to read, on last book of Sword of Truth series - Terry Goodkind, Jungian psychology (Robert Johnson, mostly), Casteneda, Tom Robbins, The Artist's Way...etc. I am tapping into writing too.

Tai Chi. A little meditation here and there. Shadow boxing and demon wrestling.

Natasha, I too, am quite the geek. I love electronics of any sort and can often be found fiddling with them and seeing if/how I can connect them. :)

I am a photographer by profession and it's a profession and hobby I absolutely adore. Right now, I work in a studio but I am working on building my own business.

Another hobby is taking my daughter out on nature walks, going to museums and swimming at the beach.

Other hobbies include: gardening, yoga, spiritual studies, making dream catchers and beaded jewelry, making clothes, and makeup.

My favorite hobby, aside from hooping though, is truly bellydance. I'm always seeing how I can combine the two. :)

Although hooping has taken up the majority of my free time for the past few months, I still attempt to find time to read for pleasure (am now reading Fellowship of the Ring --- soso good), crochet (bags, hats, accessories), and watch movies. I have also had a habit of getting into computer games on the occasion. I am attempting to garden for the first time this year (finally I have a house and backyard instead of a small dorm room) and am terrified to leave my little plants when my lease goes up this year...

As far as fitness-related hobbies go, I no longer do any cardio or weight training (hooping has completely replaced this!) - but I still bike everywhere (no car) and do yoga. I try to go camping and get to music festivals when I can - I love live music so so much.

Other than being a full-time student (majoring in Economics) I also work at the New College Fitness Center. I am a TA for Intermediate Macroeconomics and also a research assistant (I look up and read articles dealing with state property tax law - very boring...). I am also about to begin researching for my thesis, so this will also take away more time from my hooping obsession...

Yes, we do have lives outside of hooping, don't we?
I'm the lead costumer of a fire troupe called Machina Candeo, here in Los Angeles. I perform with the troupe,as well (insert other skill toys here and hoop is one of them...sorry.) :)
I also do a lot of other costuming, clothing design and sewing. Love, love , love it.
I dance: Belly dance, Irish step dance, and various forms of swing dance.
I collect vintage clothing, dating from the early 1900's to the 60's. I also collect other antiques and things, whatever catches my eye and is somewhat interesting. My house looks like a museum to kitsch (sp?).
I have a dog.
I'm starting to get back into photography.
I also have a BF...would that be considered a hobby? ;)

Great question... and replies!!

My main activity outside of hooping is working with a group called Engineers Without Borders... we mainly work on engineering projects to improve the quality of life in disadvantaged communities. I just found out (tonight!) that I'll be spending 3 weeks in Rwanda, and included in that is World Hoop Day, and so I'll be bringing hoops to Rwanda (thanks to WHD Foundation grant). It's neat that the two have finally overlapped, since it's usually a lot more technical. :-)

Also, I enjoy hiking and backpacking and bicycling and gardening and cooking.

- I'm a bellydancer
- I'm an aspiring science translator/writer
- I make my own wine
- I like to flirt, often
- In the summer, I sit in a lot of parks

: )

There is a definite trend in these responses. Most people like to read and most have other creative hobbies. It's very interesting.

I love reading. I don't have a TV, so reading is important. I don't like science fiction or imaginary world stuff much though, which is definitely bucking the trend on here! I love novels which are well written as well as being good stories. I couldn't be bothered to read chick lit. I recently really enjoyed The Kite Runner. When I had more time I enjoyed painting with watercolours, but my drawing is poor, so I'm never going to be an artist. I play the piano, badly, but I like it. I love embroidery and wool work. I recently learned to knit better and like that but I also found that I really enjoyed crocheting. I enjoy restoring old furniture. I do my own period house restoration jobs and have taught myself all sorts of skills in that field.

For a day job I work for myself doing whatever I get the opportunity to do. Some restoration work, some decorating, some computer work and I'm the administrator for my husband's software development company. I have just set up my new Internet shop selling tapes in the UK. I don't do any other sort of exercise, hooping has definitely taken over there, I always disliked other forms anyway except riding a bike (which I can do whenever I want).

I'm very involved with the management of a 200 seat theatre. It eats into my time. I've just worked out that I've been either in rehearsal or production since the second week in January. Little wonder I'm feeling a bit tired at the moment!

I like this thread too. It's neat to see what folks are up to outside of hooping.

I love writing and I am a writer. In particular, I love writing and performing poetry. (I am so over slams ... which is more about the writer than the poem. To me, a poem is supposed to be a distilled experience -- you add your life experience to it then it comes alive for you. It is not a rhyme to be "slammed". How do you slam the scent of a rose, the hug of a mother? There are so many other kinds of poetry and they are all being forgotten for these rap style bombastic exclamations. It bugs me. I think there is room for more than one kind of performance poetry. Exiting soap box now...)

I love animals. I do wildlife rehab. I also dabble in animal behavior, in particular helping animals with mental health issues of all types.

I love gardening and rocks and sculpting with rocks and creating beautiful gardens of edible and medicinal plants. I also love getting my hands in the earth. I recently found an old dump that I am totally into! This dump dates back to the 1800's and, weird as it sounds, I like seeing what people threw away a hundred years ago. There are a lot of jugs (think: moonshine type jugs) and also lots of beautiful glass bottles in an array of brilliant colors! It's like a walk back in history.

I love Sci-Fi, especially Star Trek Voyager (Girl Power!), Dark Angel (Girl Power!) and X-Files (Boy and Girl Power!) I'm also a huge X-men fan and I have every X-men comic book from the late 60's to the mid 90's (when I finally had to break that addiction for financial and time constraint reasons!)

I study flamenco dance and, more recently, classican Indian dance and bollywood. I love dance of all sorts though and I think "So You Think You Can Dance" is the best thing on television. The new season is coming up soon! None of that (sur)reality bullshit, just people learning to dance dances that are often the kinds of dancing they are not trained in. I love to see a ballroom dancer take on hip-hop or a b-boy learning the pasa doble! I learn so much from them! The choreographers on that show rock too. Each dance is a piece of art! It's inspiring on every level. (Other tv I like: The Daily Show, The Dog Whisperer (which is about more than relating to dogs, let me tell you!) and You Are What You Eat.)

I like to help people and other animals. I'm into service. I try to see how the world could be better and then do something to make it better. I get involved. I enjoy serving others. It gives my life meaning.

I like to host performance parties where people come and do their thing. I like to encourage creativity and art of all sorts.

I love festivals and travel. I'm into yoga. I really really really dig bubbles, to the point of having a theme camp that revolves around (pardon the pun) bubbles -- Bubble Camp! Home of all things bubble, including bubble toys, bubbly beverages and cocktails, bubbly conversations and personalities and even bubble gum. I've even studied bubbles and I have an excellent recipe for making your own bubble juice. I've made some massive bubbles that have lasted as long as ten minutes!

I love learning. I believe in conscious evolution and I am working to consciously evolve in every way that I can.

I believe in Unconditional Love and I am working to consciously evolve on that level as well as plant seeds that grow in others. In fact, I moderate the Unconditional Love tribe. tribes.tribe.net/unconditionallove I want to write an advice column that is centered around the concept of unconditional love. I just have to work up the courage and go for it.

Finally, and most importantly, I love my family and friends. I am so blessed to have a wide circle of both, including my family of non-humans. (One of whom is preening my eyebrows even as I try to type this...)

I have a lot of interests. Obviously. Hope this wasn't too long and boring...

rock climbing
knitting
veggie gardening
and i REALLY miss ballroom and latin dancing, which i'd love to get into again whenever i move back to civilization

(i also loved the Sandman series)

and i'm a nursing student as well

I'm a dork! I love learning HTML/Java and website design. I lovelovelove fooling around with Adobe Illustrator and Flash (I'm not so great but its so much fun to learn!)

When it comes to reading, I'm a Tom Robbins ADDICT. If you've never read any of his books, you should pick one up. He's AWESOME.

I like cooking, but not recipes. I like to create my own things to eat. I guess thats because I constantly spend time at my boyfriends and half of his refrigerator is meat (I'm pescatarian) so I just throw a bunch of non-meat items together and see how it turns out. Liiiike, sauteeing sliced apples in sprite with cinnamon, sugar and peanuts. I'm so weird.

I liiike playing with my rats/dogs. Not at the same time. One of my dogs is afraid of my rats. Hah.





What are your hobbies?