Hey folks,
I have been trying to find some new hobbies to keep my anxiety/depression at bay. It seems, however, that my mind is not creative enough to find interesting things to do. So, I come to you to ask: What are your hobbies? Why do you like them?
Here are the things I’ve tried:
- Going to the gym (This is more of a habit than a hobby nowadays)
- Gaming (I’ve been getting less and less out of it as I get older)
- Bouldering (It’s fun, but not without a group of friends)
- TTRPG (I can’t seem to find a steady group or one online, but otherwise, it’s very enjoyable)
- Learning a new instrument (I started playing the guitar and I love it)
- Philosophy (Is that a hobby? I enjoy reading and reflecting on it)
So, folks, what are your favorite pastimes?
Thanks :)
I’ve taken up cycling recently, it’s a great time to think about absolutely nothing and clear my head, while also getting fresh air and exercise.
I’ve gotten into writing with fountain pens lately. It’s been pretty fun!
Reading, knitting, crochet. Also journaling! I like gaming sometimes too.
Solo boardgaming: tons of cooperative games can be played solo. At the moment, my main games are Marvel Champions and Arkham Horror LCG.
Cross-stitching: maybe the easiest kind of embroidery, perfect for pixel art patterns and you don’t need expensive stuff to get in.
skateboarding, smoking weed, weed edibles, ketamollycaine, nitrous oxide, eating food, watching tv, video games, dubstep, hot tub, snowboarding, disc golf, music festivals
Too bad weed is not legal here. I reckon that’d help with the anxiety.
Sim racing. There’s an initial expense to buy the wheel and pedals, but it’s a really fun hobby and if you find the right people a great community. I recommend starting with a Assetto Corsa which is an older game with an amazing mods. Avoid the temptation to get into iRacing until you’re sure you like the hobby.
I had a co-worker who was super into sim racing. He had this insane setup in his living room with a chair, pedals and so on. What wheels and pedals do you recommend to get started? 🤔
I love pickleball. Social, active, easy on the body, and loads of fun.
Something I have recently been trying to get into is sewing. I am still working on making it a daily routine, but I have enjoyed it so far. It is rewarding, relaxing, and a great way to get off the phone.
Playing games. I like games because they catch my attention for a long time. I enjoy card games, action games, driving simulators, RPG, platformers, arcade. I’m starting to get interested in TTRPG and I found a community you like that talks about playing them solo: !solorpg!solorpg@lemm.ee or you could go for !solorpg@lemmy.ml I also read, do crossword puzzles, and do puzzle games on the computer. I think gaming, doing puzzles, and reading are good because they keep my mind working. I also like to doodle. I have a book about keeping a doodle journal that I like called Doodle Art and Lettering with Joanne Sharpe: Inspiration and Techniques for Personal Expression I like doodling and lettering because it’s a nice way to get my thoughts out of my brain and into some other space. I also like walking and hiking, which combine well with reading.
- TTRPGS, especially pathfinder 2e: A fun way to stay in touch with distant friends
- Gaming, though I find it less interesting as time goes on
- Programming: I can always find something I meed automated, and I just simply like writing in Rust
- Homelabbing: i got some cheap servers on ebay and I like tinkering with them. The more enterprise-y and difficult to set up, the more rewarding it, even if I nuke that setup in a few days. Also, my home network is really capable now.
- Cybersecurity: hacking labs, CTFs, reading papers, and malware analysis are just simply fun and interesting to me, and it has the bonus of being practical experience
- Coffee and Espresso: Good coffee and a peaceful activity is fucking wonderful. Highly recommend if you already drink coffee. I started off with an aeropress for $30. Then I got a decent espresso-capable hand grinder for around $60. I got started with espresso for around $100, and that was easily one of my best purchases in the last year.
Okay…
Well, Programming - Except I am doing it… slowly. A lot of the days I just… feel stuck. Depressed. Buuut, I keep trying. I mainly use Common Lisp, and I try to make small games, or… things that will help me do something (e.g scrape some text and put together a epub?)
Reading books - This one, I can do a lot. Simply, a pleasure. I tend to do this with an approach of spray n pray, aka: Read few minutes of a book -> Move to next for few minutes, and I keep doing that few times a day, or more, and more often than not, It sticks, and I get actual big times out of that. (The result is, I am reading 5 books at once lmao)
Learning Japanese - This one, I am combining with my previous hobby, and I am simply aiming to read at the very least ~1 hour per day of reading in Japanese. Is fun.
There was also pixelart at some point, but I haven’t been doing that in a while. Maybe I should try again? Could be fun, again… perhaps…
Obviously, also, games. You know, some TF2 there and there, Hunt:Showdown, with friends.
Still thinking, if there are any other things I could try, and… wide out hobbies.
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Walking my dog - Better awareness of my neighborhood/getting to know my neighbors. Fresh air, sunshine, and time to work through my thoughts helps me stay clear headed. Cardio is good for you.
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Fencing - both physically and mentally challenging. It is basically violently enforced meditation. Hella fun and is great stress relief. Cons - can be expensive and relatively few adults.
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Reading fiction - I enjoy getting lost in other worlds. Helps to disconnect from the internet from time to time
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Yoga - reduces random aches and pains from sitting all day at work/high impact activities. It just generally feels good afterwards.
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Curling - team sport I do with my spouse. Throwing shit and drinking/eating afterwards is nice. Good community to socialize with.
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Watching movies/tv/YouTube - Lots of great stuff out there. Easy to do too much of this one, especially youtube.
Oooh… How… how expensive can be fencing? Because, kinda… sounds fun?
It can depend on where you’re located and how deep you get into the sport. For beginner classes, in my area, they are ~$100 for 6 weeks. It gets more expensive once you need your own gear and if you choose to compete and/or take private lessons.
I think the most comparable comparison in costs are probably club hockey and club soccer.
Oh That is actually… not that bad. I think, once I find a job again, I will definitely go for it. Thanks
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3D modelling, digital painting, photography, cycling, and knitting although it’s been a while since I did the latter. Need to get back into it.
- training my dogs
- fostering dogs
- walking other people’s dogs
- camping
- cycling
- tarot
in the colder months, i enjoy yarn crafts (crochet and knitting).