Hobbies

[Isildur]

What are yours?

Some of mine:

Go: My father taught me the basics when I was a kid, but it didn't really catch me at the time, partly because I didn't know of any other people to play it with. A number of years later, the anime Hikaru no Go rekindled my interest in the game, and I started playing on-line, with people at my university (we now have a club, though attendance this semester has been low due to some scheduling snafus), and sometimes with a local Go club that meets at people's apartments. At the internet Go server on which I play, I'm currently rated 5 kyu.

(A note to any potential beginners: Mentioning on Go servers that Hikaru no Go manga or anime got you into Go doesn't guarantee you a good reaction, particularly if you're a beginner. Many Go players like the anime, but there are some players who view HnG as having brought in a flood of irritating, sometimes AOLspeak-typing, otaku newbies who are enthusiastic at first, but are then disappointed when they don't rapidly become masters, and quit. Personally, I doubt that the percentage who drop out because of frustration or any other reason is that significantly greater among HnG viewers than among any other beginners, and I have little doubt that the overall effect of HnG on the world of Go has been extremely positive. That said, picking a name like Hikaru435 or Sai2331 isn't as clever as you think.

More generally, Go can be a very rewarding game with many layers of strategy unfolding before you as you get better, but don't expect to get there fast-- it takes time and effort to get better, and even as you get better, you'll still be losing half your games, because you'll be playing stronger opponents. The goal isn't to win most of the time, the goal is to deepen your understanding and play thought-provoking games.)

Hiking: Not of the rope-requiring variety, though maybe at some point I'll try that too. I've mostly hiked in the Northeast Catskill Mountains. I used to also do some mountain biking, but I haven't done it in a long while. (I'm not quite as physically fit as all this may make me sound, however. That is, I'm decently strong, but also a bit overweight, though not terribly.)

Computers: programming, poking into stuff that perhaps I shouldn't, etc.

Art: Some amateur photography, drawing of various sorts, flash animation, etc.


What are some of your interests and activities?

[SpaceTiger]

I share your enthusiasm for hiking and photography, and often like to combine the two. Here are some photos from my recent trip to Yellowstone:

Yellowstone Photos

This goes well with my enthusiasm for bird- and wildlife-watching, which I picked up from my dad when I was a kid.

Of course, I also play a lot of video games (though probably not as many as some folks on here). I tend to like RPGs and action/adventure games and spend a lot of time playing games on the classic consoles (NES, SNES, etc.). I keep up with the video game scene, but try to limit the time I spend on it, as my obsessive personality can lead to addiction with certain games.

During the summer, I like to play softball. I was the head coach for my department team (again, in grad school) and I'll play any position I'm needed at -- they usually put me at shortstop or outfield

I'm one of those people with a short attention span for hobbies, so I've dabbled in a lot of other things over the years, including politics, philosophy, web scripting, etc. Really the only thing that has consistently kept my attention is songwriting. I have a large collection of songs (though very few recordings) and I was the singer/songwriter/guitarist in a band in grad school. I haven't been active in the music scene for about a year, but I'm always trying to come up with stuff in my head. Aside from my girlfriend, family, and work, music is probably the most important thing to me.

[The 9th Sage]

Ah...let's see...I like to draw. I don't do as much of it as I should though, and some of them are not very good. If I still lived out in the country I'd be taking pictures with my camera too. I took some awesome stills of nature before I moved down here. Also I guess video games and computers, like everybody else here. This means homebrew too. You can do some awesome things with homebrew on your Wii (including Wii Linux...it's too bad the compiler was giving me issues :P).

Yeah, I gotta start drawing more again. I think the problem is that I draw better and more with inspiration, which I've not had lately.

[JadussD]

I like:

EATING FOOD, INTERNET, DRINKING BEER

I am also fond of:

THINKING HARD, LIKE A TARD

[Haoie]

My biggest hobby, most likely, is the written word.

I've got to say, reading is something I just can't do without. Moreso than games, that's for sure.

[Isildur]

Originally Posted by SpaceTiger

I share your enthusiasm for hiking and photography, and often like to combine the two. Here are some photos from my recent trip to Yellowstone:

Yellowstone Photos

This goes well with my enthusiasm for bird- and wildlife-watching, which I picked up from my dad when I was a kid.

Wow, gorgeous pics.

[kone191]

I like very unuasual hobbies; as you know I like to rom hack and also I'm pretty good in bownling (average 180 points).

[Bodomi]

I like drinking beer, watching anime, and sleeping.

[hcs]

There was a time when I'd say "programming" without hesitation, but now I have to think about it a bit. I haven't really had any fun projects in a while. Right now I'm trying to figure out what to do with vgmstream, which is the sort of project that could be in endless development. It's kind of a drag, but so much work has gone into it I think it would be a waste to not see it to some kind of completion.
I'm trying to design a video game, but have only vague ideas presently. It's led me to do a lot of reading, though, researching design and psychology.
I like photography, but I rarely do any. I don't have any skill (or interest) in the technical aspects of it, I just try to keep my camera with me and capture interesting scenes.
Otherwise I mostly listen to music and read books. I've tried the production sides of both of those, gotten further with writing than musicing but still nothing much worth reading.

[SpaceTiger]

Originally Posted by Isildur

Wow, gorgeous pics.

Thanks! It was a great trip.