Do your hobbies change in priority from time to time?

Other than trains (postwar Lionel and Flyer) I maintain six aquariums housing African cichlids. About seven to eight hours a week in that. Just turned 79 and beginning to think on cutting back on tanks if I can rehome some cichlids.

@jjames9641 posted:

Yes, my interests are always bouncing around seems like it depends on the time of year. Besides the trains (my main interest) R\C airplanes, R\C cars, Hot wheels, 1\24 scale diecast (just the older muscle cars} and driving my Dodge Challenger R\T Classic of course only in the summer and not on rainy days!!! LOL Just a big kid at heart, trying to enjoy what is left of life!!

Just thinking out loud, but Lionel made a GP9 "hot rod" engine at one time with car engine sounds I think.  Could the sounds of that engine be replaced with the sounds of different cars or hot rods?

@radar493 posted:

Other than trains (postwar Lionel and Flyer) I maintain six aquariums housing African cichlids. About seven to eight hours a week in that. Just turned 79 and beginning to think on cutting back on tanks if I can rehome some cichlids.

6 tanks........I can't imagine the work involved. For about 15 years, I had a 55-gallon freshwater aquarium with tropical fish. When maintaining it started to feel more like work and less like a hobby, I decided it was time for it to go, and it was a good decision. Over the years I had become well-acquainted with the staff at my local PetSmart, and they were happy to take my fish when I told them I was getting out of the hobby.

Indian Artifacts then metal detecting, trains, WW 1 spiked helmets, Coins….

thats enough

@BlueComet400 posted:

6 tanks........I can't imagine the work involved. For about 15 years, I had a 55-gallon freshwater aquarium with tropical fish. When maintaining it started to feel more like work and less like a hobby, I decided it was time for it to go, and it was a good decision. Over the years I had become well-acquainted with the staff at my local PetSmart, and they were happy to take my fish when I told them I was getting out of the hobby.

I have a 75 and four 55's with cichlids. A thirty with an angel. Not sure the big box stores around me take fish. Would like to get down to two or three tanks. About an hour and half per week to maintain the cichlid tanks.

You'll never know until you ask. Most people who work in stores that sell fish also have tanks of their own at home, and my fish ended up going there, not to be resold.

I have too many toys. 

Just sold my 71 RoadRunner:

But I'll hang on to my Mr Norm's 69 Dodge Coronet R/T: (for a while at least)

I'm selling my two drum kits as I have no time.

I also have a couple of these guys that I ride only a few times a year, but taking care of them every day:

I also purchase an old Ford 9N tractor that I'm going to futz around with.

I also love to hike, and the Appalachian trail runs right behind my house, but I'm not finding enough time to do it as often as I'd like.

Basically, along with my trains, I have two corvettes and a trans am. I also enjoy long range target shooting. I rotate. In the winter, mostly trains due to the weather. Spring Summer and Fall are for shooting and cars. Too many expensive hobbies! LOL

My trains are always downstairs, and I run them several times a week, but once spring comes (now!), I’m more involved with fishing (all types-spinning, conventional, and mostly fly fishing), both fresh and salt. I have a fishing kayak, a canoe, and aluminum runabout for lake and salt. I also tie my own flies, and have been doing it for decades. Hiking and camping, and target shooting take me outdoors a lot. I also have a small outdoor G gauge layout next to our little garden.

Used to have a fresh water aquarium.  Converted it into a zero maintenance model.

Other hobby,  building plastic car and truck models.

As the days go by, Hobby changes.  I go from flintlock deer hunting to running trains and layout work in winter months to getting garden and ponds going in spring,also with spring comes, trout fishing,Turkey hunting, hiking my mountain,and cutting grass,my own and three neighbors.  Summer, more of the same with gardening, fishing, hiking, and hand gun shooting.  Fall, starts with salmon fishing in upstate NY, bow hunting, grouse hunting, hiking, and rifled deer hunting, along with trains too.  So yes I change with the seasons.

I would not say my priority changed over time, but time changed.    When the kids were  young, I limited myself to one evening per week "playing trains" whether that meant visiting others or working on the layout.    My wife would leave me alone to do what I wanted that evening.    The other evenings I helped out with the kids and what not on house.   

As the kids got older, their activities took  up time such as soccer games and scout trips and activities.

As they moved out, more time became available.

The same is true of funding.    When the kids were little, the budget was tight and included "train" trips.    Things are a lot better now in that respect. 

So I would say the priority has been pretty much the same, but time to enjoy this hobby has evolved.

At one time I did maintain two large aquariums, but I didn't think of that as a hobby, as much as part of the stuff in the family room that we enjoyed.      I also had two sailboats over the years and that was family fun.   I never got into racing so again was it a hobby>

A lot of great responses!  I guess this begs the question, are there hobbies that aren't expensive?

My father and grandfather both had fresh water fish.  My grandfather had 15 tanks in the basement along with his collection radios and trains.  My father took care of 10 tanks when I was a child.  I wasn't allowed to have pets other than fish, but never personally took much of an interest.  They are a lot of work!  I did like Neon Tetras though.

I used to do extensive backpacking and mountaineering, but as I have gotten older I have let that get away.  I think about the time I finally got good outdoor gear is about the time I got away from it.  However, I still have an interest in getting out on the trail even it is a "get around to it" kind of hobby.

Finally, I used to collect glass insulators.  Most of them were found by walking tracks and old right of ways where the poles still existed or were cut down and left in place.  Honestly, the thrill of the hunt is actually more fun than anything else.  I still find one here and there when I get to travel, but most of the rare ones are already in collections.

I have found that my analog synthesizers that I got second hand in the 80's for next to nothing as digital ones started to take over have soared in value.  The Roland Jupiter 8 I used to have now sells for 30 times what I paid for it.  That is not a typo!  My baby brother Juno-60 is now worth 12 times what I paid for it and a 1975 vintage Oberheim is worth in the $6000 and up range and it was given to me as "junk".  I will say that they both need some repair as the electronics are all original.  Luckily they are a few places in town that rebuild vintage gear for fair prices. 

While I don't don't have many "valuable" guitars, my Gibson fretless bass has gone up about 4 times what I paid for it.  Of course this is theoretical as I have no plans to sell any of my gear after I let that Jupiter go.

I will say this however.  I always manage to come back to trains.  I plan on building a 2x4 display module that will become the first part of my future 2 rail layout starting next month before it gets too hot out.

I have too many hobbies, just ask my wife, that my interest in comes and then goes after a while.  For several years up until last year I spent most of my outdoor time bass fishing local lakes.  Just like trains, there is always another rod/reel that finds its way into the accumulation.  Embarrassed to admit it but I have more rod/reel combinations that have never been used than I have unrun train engines.  I can think of just one unrun train engine right now, a replacement Lionel J3A Hudson, still in its unopened shipper.  Bought an old aluminum boat that I sold early last year; it was time to renew its registration and I decided to put it on Craig's List to see if anyone would have an interest since I was tired of fighting with it when it came time to load on the trailer.  It sold that day.  Haven't been fishing since late 2020.

Not long after I "retired" (story for another day, maybe) I got interested in woodturning, watched a demo by the then owner of Easy Wood Tools at the local tool show.  Ordered a 12x20 inch variable speed lathe a few days later.  There are now two lathes along with many turning tools (more $$$) in the basement that haven't been used in quite a while.  I mentally justify my lack of woodturning activity because it is quite difficult to stand on the concrete floor for the length of time it takes to complete a project now.  I have floor mats all over my work area, doesn't really make a difference, IMHO.  Actually, the foot/leg pain was the justification for purchasing the fishing boat.  Additionally, after you turn so many pens, pepper mills, bowls, candle holders, whatever, it just got very boring to do.

Oh, another thing with regards to fishing, I have a few aluminum molds and the related tools, including a dedicated microwave oven, that I have used to make soft plastic lures.  Geez, I know there is one mold that I have never used to make soft plastic lures with yet.  Got to do that this summer.  I only made lures outside, in the garage, during the warmer months.

I have been interested in photography almost as long as I have trains.  I have purchased a number of cameras in my lifetime, including a couple specialty 110 cameras.  I actually bought an interchangeable lens 110 SLR that I sold after realizing I didn't like using it.  I still have my Minolta 110 Mark II zoom SLR somewhere around here.  I also still have one 35mm film camera, a Minolta Maxxum with a Sigma lens, haven't used them in years.  Sold all my other 35mm cameras and lenses at a garage sale a number of years ago.  I didn't even have them out as part of the sale, someone asked if I had any 35mm film cameras I would sell, so I dug them out and made him a great deal, probably too great actually.  I currently have four digital cameras, (not counting my iPad or phone), two of which I use on a semi regular basis.  Wife and I were members of a local photography club for several years, but the recent situation put an end to that.

My interest in my train hobby ebbs and flows from time to time but I have never been able to completely walk away.  At present I have one custom run engine on pre-order.  I have been adding some 6565 cars to the accumulation recently and that may continue along with a few other specialty freight cars, but storage space is becoming an issue again, so I need to convince myself to be satisfied with what I already own.

I have been spending time recently updating my inventory spreadsheet, it had become very out-of-date, and I need to get that finished soon.

If you made it this far, you are probably getting bored yourself, so I will stop now.

Like laz1957 my other hobbies run along seasonal lines. October through December I am focused on small game, turkey and deer hunting with both bow, rifle and shotgun.  Trout fishing and hiking also are a favorite past time during the autumn.  December through April I concentrate mostly on my layouts as well as running and maintaining my embarrassingly large roster of engines to include O Gauge, S Gauge and Standard Gauge motive power.  The latter part of April and May are devoted to spring gobbler season, hiking and more trout fishing.  Up until last year when the ravages of the aging process finally caught up me, I'm now 74, May through September were spent cycling and swimming on a daily basis but those days are now gone with the wind.    I have always enjoyed reading American civil war history and much to my wife's chagrin I have amassed a considerable civil war library.  All that being said, regardless of  the time year I always find at least some time for my trains.  

I seem to be backward from most of you.  With my trains being in an unheated basement, my train time is in the summer when it is comfortable down there! 

My other hobbies include fishing (not that serious), hunting for antiques that we can't seem to live without, and collecting nutcrackers for Christmas.  I also seem to have a pretty serious honey-do list that keeps me well occupied!

@GregM posted:

I have been interested in photography almost as long as I have trains.  I have purchased a number of cameras in my lifetime, including a couple specialty 110 cameras.  I actually bought an interchangeable lens 110 SLR that I sold after realizing I didn't like using it.  I still have my Minolta 110 Mark II zoom SLR somewhere around here.  I also still have one 35mm film camera, a Minolta Maxxum with a Sigma lens, haven't used them in years.  Sold all my other 35mm cameras and lenses at a garage sale a number of years ago.  I didn't even have them out as part of the sale, someone asked if I had any 35mm film cameras I would sell, so I dug them out and made him a great deal, probably too great actually.  I currently have four digital cameras, (not counting my iPad or phone), two of which I use on a semi regular basis.  Wife and I were members of a local photography club for several years, but the recent situation put an end to that.

How could I have forgotten about my photography!  Another expensive hobby, but a rewarding one.  I too started collecting cameras for a while.  Most of mine are 1920's and 1930's fold out cameras in the 127, 620, and 120 film formats.  I learned that if you want a vintage looking picture, use a vintage camera.  I also have a 4x5 Crown Graphic vintage 1953 that is in mint condition and a 1947 Graphlex View that I did landscape and architectural photography with.  Add that to my pair of Hasselblads (one for shooting with and the other a 1959 collectible), a Soviet era 1980's Hasselblad 1000F knock-off with a 180 degree lens made in the Kiev Arsenal factory, and my 9 Pentax film bodies including my first K-1000 from 1987 and I haven't even gotten to the digital ones yet.  Like the rest of us, I moved to digital and am on my fourth DSLR too.  All Pentax so I can use my old lenses.  I still like to shoot a roll of film once and a while to see if I still have the skill for it.

I was really focused on photography from about 1999 to 2010 prior to the economic turndown and have a few publications I can be proud of.

Like you, I want to get out of a lot of this gear as it is mainly taking up space.  I'll hold onto the best of the best, but my photography has really suffered from lack of time / practice over the last several years.  I am spending two weeks on the Rocky Mountain Explorer and the Canadian in May and will be lugging the DSLR along.  Maybe that will help reignite that passion.

BTW..I read all of your post and didn't get bored.  

@GG1 4877 posted:

Finally, I used to collect glass insulators.  Most of them were found by walking tracks and old right of ways where the poles still existed or were cut down and left in place.  Honestly, the thrill of the hunt is actually more fun than anything else.  I still find one here and there when I get to travel, but most of the rare ones are already in collections.

Jonathan, this reminded me.  When I was a kid, I picked up a couple blue glass insulators from the MoPac line near my house.  I dropped them in my fish tank as decorations.

Yep - Trains, Woodworking, Motorcycles.

Some activities are more seasonal than others.

Ftom 1981 to 2000 it was strictly trains.
I took a break in 2001 and started restoring Wheel Horse Garden tractors after I moved into a house with a large detached garage. By 2004 I grew tired of the work involved and found going to antique machinery shows

more of a hassle than fun . I still have my collection and still have my 56 Ford but if the right offer should come along I would dump the collection but keep the truck

From .

When I look around, it occurs to me that my real hobby is decorating my basement. Trains are probably the most expensive part, but not necessarily the biggest. I have an awful lot of diecast cars. I also enjoy pop culture items, and accidentally got myself caught up in Star Wars figures. While trying to help support a local toy store during the lockdown, I won a large play set with a bunch of Jedi figures. I continued adding more figures, so now I have a ton of them. Then, there are the Pops! If you’re unfamiliar, they are weird figures of literally thousands of different pop culture figures. You think you are just buying a few that really appeal to you, like Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper and Elvira, then you realize you have a few dozen of them.
I spent decades exploring the New Jersey Pine Barrens in my little Jeep Scrambler, but recent years have seen a new breed of folks who have truly torn up the trails, so I don’t like to go out there anymore.
I never really switch from trains to other diversions, but I certainly get more active in the fall.

@Scrambler81 posted:

When I look around, it occurs to me that my real hobby is decorating my basement. Trains are probably the most expensive part, but not necessarily the biggest. I have an awful lot of diecast cars. I also enjoy pop culture items, and accidentally got myself caught up in Star Wars figures. While trying to help support a local toy store during the lockdown, I won a large play set with a bunch of Jedi figures. I continued adding more figures, so now I have a ton of them. Then, there are the Pops! If you’re unfamiliar, they are weird figures of literally thousands of different pop culture figures. You think you are just buying a few that really appeal to you, like Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper and Elvira, then you realize you have a few dozen of them.
I spent decades exploring the New Jersey Pine Barrens in my little Jeep Scrambler, but recent years have seen a new breed of folks who have truly torn up the trails, so I don’t like to go out there anymore.
I never really switch from trains to other diversions, but I certainly get more active in the fall.

Any Jersey Devil sighting?

@Csxcellent posted:

Any Jersey Devil sighting?

Nope, but the first time I spotted a coyote was really cool. Did not know we had them until that moment. Saw my first bear recently, but he was crossing a paved road, so that doesn’t count.

i have a ton of Nerf guns. i have little wars with my brothers and sometimes the neighbors.

i also play world builder games like Garry's mod

i also have Train sim world 2 and trainz 2019 on my gaming pc.

i want to get into airsoft but since the guns these days are so realistic i have no where i can safely play with out someone getting the wrong idea

my favorite airsoft guns are the colt 25 and and anything made by a company called Classic Army . they make really good airsoft guns.

plus if i ever get into airsoft i need to raise my pain tolerance because those little plastic bb's can hurt especially at over 200 fps

but i still say trains are my number one hobby

We live not far from a very large, family-friendly gun club, with many different ranges ... from short rimfire plinking and handgun ranges, out to 300 yard hi-bore. 5-stand shotgun and archery, too. 2X4 board busting father & son/daughter contests, stuff like that. So, as soon as my oldest son hit 10, that took our family away from the O scale layout I built, as my sons were losing interest it the trains, anyway.

The state stocks pheasants from Pennsylvania in the woods near us, so that took up more time with my sons and me.

I bought this truck new in 1984. It turned into a non-running rust bucket out behind the house. My sons and I slowly re-did it over years. We put a crate engine in it. The only thing we didn't do were the final coats of paint. 

The kids are now gone and starting families of their own, my bird-finding lab passed on, and the price of ammo is through the roof. Model trains are now a big part of my life again, really enjoying it, but alone. Only small layouts, except for the Christmas carpet-central around the room.

Life rolls on.

@Scrambler81 posted:

... I spent decades exploring the New Jersey Pine Barrens in my little Jeep Scrambler, but recent years have seen a new breed of folks who have truly torn up the trails, so I don’t like to go out there anymore.

Many from out-of-state ... Philadelphia and such. I wish the state would put more resources in nailing those people ... impounding vehicles.

@paigetrain posted:

i have a ton of Nerf guns. i have little wars with my brothers and sometimes the neighbors.

i also play world builder games like Garry's mod

i also have Train sim world 2 and trainz 2019 on my gaming pc.

i want to get into airsoft but since the guns these days are so realistic i have no where i can safely play with out someone getting the wrong idea

my favorite airsoft guns are the colt 25 and and anything made by a company called Classic Army . they make really good airsoft guns.

plus if i ever get into airsoft i need to raise my pain tolerance because those little plastic bb's can hurt especially at over 200 fps

but i still say trains are my number one hobby

Fun stuff!!  At my last office several people had nerf guns.  It was fun. 

Funny story.  My best friend had a large surprise birethday party based on a James Bond 007 theme.  To play the part I wore a tuxedo, purchased an Airsoft Walther PPK with a "silencer", and a shoulder holster.  Other than the orange end of the barrel, the PPK was very realistic down to the manual safety and the removable magazine that held the BBs.  I kind of freaked a few people out so I get where you are coming from!

I used to play the original train simulator.  It was hard!  I finally settled on running the Acela on a Japanese line at full throttle for the fun of it.  When it came to actually doing real operations, I was awful at it and proved that it would take a lot to ever make me a true railroad engineer.  I always missed the station when braking and on the simulation of Marias Pass, I couldn't clear the siding without getting swiped by the oncoming train.

@GG1 4877 posted:

?

I have the 1920's version of that!

Wurlitzer - The original synthesizer!

This is an eight rank theatre pipe organ I installed in our home.  I build church pipe organ for a living, but the theatre organ is a welcome change of pace.  If projects on the home organ start to overlap with projects at work I move to the train room.  Seems that I have been spending a lot of time in the train room lately.

My wife is a candidate for Sainthood.  I have pictures to prove it!

Tom

@Tom Densel posted:

I have the 1920's version of that!

Wurlitzer - The original synthesizer!

This is an eight rank theatre pipe organ I installed in our home.  I build church pipe organ for a living, but the theatre organ is a welcome change of pace.  If projects on the home organ start to overlap with projects at work I move to the train room.  Seems that I have been spending a lot of time in the train room lately.

My wife is a candidate for Sainthood.  I have pictures to prove it!

Tom

That is so cool!  I used to have a 1950's Wurlitzer organ that unfortunately had to be stored under a tarp under a carport in my first Phoenix house after moving it out from NJ.  It didn't like the heat and rats got into it.  Ultimately, I salvaged all the tubes as they are gold top and labeled for Wurlitzer.  Most of them were 12FJ7s which while not as desirable the 12AX7s used in rock guitar amps, still command a decent price.

I actually forgot I had that instrument until you posted.  Thanks for the good memories!  It had a great sound for an electric organ.  Unfortunately, that was the same time in my life where I let go of several keyboard instruments in favor of guitars.  Live and learn and no regrets.

As an aside, there is a home built in the 1920's in central Phoenix that was built by one of the 0wners of the Wurlitzer Company.  It is a true Tudor home with all the materials imported from Europe and transported to the US around the Cape of Africa.  I got to tour the home circa 2002 when the current owner at the time installed a ground source heat pump that uses the constant temperature of the earth to heat and cool the house.  Extremely efficient in that he was able to replace 89 tons of air conditioning with 25 tons using this system.  It was an amazing original period home with a state-of-the-art environmental control system.  He also used his pool as a thermal couple and was able to keep the water at a constant 82 degrees year-round.  I totally geek out over that kind of forward thinking engineering.

There used to be a chain of pizza restaurants in the Phoenix area that were all based around theater organs.  It was quite a presentation to see one played by a competent professional.  Professionally as an architect, I have been involved with lots of religious facilities in my past and the the most interesting installation was a full tracker organ that had 32' pipes.  Since it ties into my hobby of architectural photography as well, this is the photo I took of the organ for publication at the dedication of the instrument in 2005.  My firm also did the architecture.

@taycotrains posted:

still have my 56 Ford but if the right offer should come along I would dump the collection but keep the truck

That is a very cool Ford truck!  And a good lookin' driver. 

This is a great topic and a lot of common ground with music and cars and hunters and slot cars, etc.

I like to paint, design, sculpture with foam, build stuff with my tools, solder things, and electrical work. I also like reading about transportation and American history.  Oh, wait.  That all falls within the framework of model trains.  Do we need more hobbies than trains?

I'm not a musician, but have built a music collection over the years that has gotten quite large.  I've also dabbled with vintage lighted and motion beer signs and love to ride on my Harley when the whether is nice.   When I bought my first Harley 28 years ago, HD stood for Hundred Dollars.  That was how much it cost to add a chrome part.  28 years later my Harley costs very little to keep up, but I'm dropping those $100s on names like MTH and Lionel and Woodland Scenics as my appetite is still alive and well.

Mike

"I took a break in 2001 and started restoring Wheel Horse Garden tractors after I moved into a house with a large detached garage."

Taycotrains, that is one impressive collection of Wheel Horses! I don't consider my tractor a hobby, but I do enjoy keeping it maintained and using it for chores around the house. It's  a Wheel Horse 518xi, and it's a beast. At over 20 years old, I'll still take it any day over something brand-new today. It's the last of the true heavy-duty Wheel Horse garden tractors before Toro ruined the brand.

One of my hobbies I let go in 2018 was this project.  I purchased it in 1992 as you can tell from the first photo and my ridiculous clothing and worked on it until 2006 when I let the gas got old and it froze three valves on a chilly November evening.  I never recovered from that and finally sold it to a friend for about what I paid for it.  No regrets.  It was a fun driver when it ran.  Non-synchro 4 speed and mostly original equipment.  It was fun drive.

I see most others have several hobbies, as it is with me.  As a kid I started in the basement with Dads tools and then started building models of mostly planes, balsa and paper covered, before the boring plastic kits.  I moved on to control line model air planes in HS and scratch built wooden boats, the last being a 3 yrs in building with a tube and 67 v battery radio control.  I wrote the Coast Guard for plans to a the 95 ft cutter I stared from a magazine plans with few details and they sent a complete set of blue prints and two 8x 10 photos, all free to a HS kid.

College came, Job, then marriage.  I started collecting used tools, jig saws, band saw, table saw and homemade work benches.  Later,the two children came and they needed a train board to hold the Christmas tree in a stand in the mountain.  That got me to start building my layout, with homemade $10 turntable in Jamaica in 1977 and it was finished by Christmas .  It is still going 44 years later.  It has been usually a cold weather hobby, the layout being down 2 months around Christmas, and a few train meets and a week for improvements/additions.

I played tennis for fun and doubles with my wife and golf once a week in the spring and summer.

I always had a stereo system for the holidays and my receiver failed in the early 2000s.  When the internet came I found AK audio forum and a guy told me how to fix it by soldering a cold joint.  Aha ,I could fix the vintage 70s stereos with hand wired circuit boards.  I started looking for 70s vintage stereos like Pioneer, Sansui, etc mostly 100 w/ch or more with wooden veneer cases and chrome and blue lighted dials at estate and garage sales.  They were findable for low cost as Vietnam veterans were unloading them.  Most did not know to use the internet to price them.  Sansui's kept finding me. Then, of course I had to have vintage west JBL and east AR3a coast speakers, RTR and cassette tape decks and turntables, most Dual and Technics.  And then I needed more LPs, cassettes and RTR tapes, CDs.

So a place was needed for the tools, permanent locate the O27 gauge train layout and vintage stereo gear.  In 2010, after retirement, a two story, two car garage was built to house all these hobbies.

I still walk a historic 9 hole golf coarse once a week, when weather permits year around, with my 4 year old schnoodle dog, Beau.

Charlie

I never have to do any priority changing myself, I'm married.

It's been a while since I've been on the site. And, it looks like I'm not alone in the fact that most of us have VERY EXPENCIVE hobbies. My trains have been put away for the past year and a half. I'm in the process of moving from Oregon to go back home to Ohio. But most recently, my time has been taken up by my dream car, 70 Chevelle (Frankie). The process of painting the car was completed last weekend.

I will now have a dedicated train room (basement) in our new home. My cars will now have a dedicated stable (barn) and the wife will now be able to park her cars in the garage. We leave Oregon for good a week from this coming Saturday. Hopefully I'll be back on the site more after the move.

Until next time...

@GG1 4877 posted:

One of my hobbies I let go in 2018 was this project.  I purchased it in 1992 as you can tell from the first photo and my ridiculous clothing and worked on it until 2006 when I let the gas got old and it froze three valves on a chilly November evening.  I never recovered from that and finally sold it to a friend for about what I paid for it.  No regrets.  It was a fun driver when it ran.  Non-synchro 4 speed and mostly original equipment.  It was fun drive.

That is a cool ride!   My own '69 is a long stepside, nowhere near as cool but i love the oddballs.

@Jayhawk500 posted:

It's been a while since I've been on the site. And, it looks like I'm not alone in the fact that most of us have VERY EXPENCIVE hobbies. My trains have been put away for the past year and a half. I'm in the process of moving from Oregon to go back home to Ohio. But most recently, my time has been taken up by my dream car, 70 Chevelle (Frankie). The process of painting the car was completed last weekend.

My first car was a 1972 SS Chevelle 350.  It was an Indiana rust bucket, but I drove it 20,000 miles in one year that included driving from Indiana to NJ, then to Arizona for an internship, back to NJ, and finally back to Indiana.  It treated me well.  Your '70 look a lot nicer than my '72 ever did!

@palallin posted:

That is a cool ride!   My own '69 is a long stepside, nowhere near as cool but i love the oddballs.

I love classic Chevy trucks up until about the 1972 model year.  Luckily mine went to a good home and someone I know.  It was just time to let it go as it had not run in 12 years and I was not in a position to put the funds it needed into it or store it.  No complaints.  Maybe when I retire I can find another one.  My goal is to find a '36.  I have a correct Arizona plate for that year too.

My primary hobby for the past several years has been O Gauge model railroading. I have also been hiking most Saturday mornings with a local hiking group (4 to 6 miles) and go on long athletic walks on Tuesdays and Thursdays (45 minutes to 1 hour at a time). I also play golf with my 33 year old son 2 to 4 times per year.

Prior to Covid, I did music, mostly performing my original songs at Open Mics.

Songwriting was my most meaningful hobby. It was a rich cup of tea for me, making me feel like I was living life to its fullest while doing it and, at times, it was very intense emotionally and hard work for me.

This is in contrast to model trains, which I find to be light hearted entertainment.

I love baseball and watch most televised Yankee games.

Many years ago I did archery (target shooting with recurve bow), played a lot of golf in a golf league, tennis, and a little fishing.

I played a lot of baseball, mainly as a pitcher, in the Little League through High School.

Arnold

OH yes, I have gone through many pursuits which most would call hobbies. Fast cars,  slow sailboats and airplanes all 1:1 scale and lets not forget the most expensive hobby of all Girls. However I always kept and returned to trains.          j