OT: What hobby keeps you busy ?

[80shusky]

What do you think the groundhog has been eating?



View attachment 14439

No wonder he doesn't feel it when you shoot him!

 

[Leebo]

I study Japanese and talk to people on Skype in Japan.

And I'm moving there in 2 weeks, so I'll get a bit more practice.

 

[80shusky]

I study Japanese and talk to people on Skype in Japan.

And I'm moving there in 2 weeks, so I'll get a bit more practice.

Wow, good luck!

 

[temery]

Bass fishing. All about that bass.

^^ username checks out.

 

[coachRD]

How would you recommend getting started hunting in CT? I have never even shot a gun and have no idea how to start. I heard a podcast with this hunter named Steve Rinella and have become obsessed with the idea, read 2 hunting books, listened to dozens of podcasts on hunting, etc but am totally clueless. I told myself last week that I don't want to eat meat until I kill an animal but I am 6 days in and am getting tired of eating beans.

Not trying to hijack the main theme of this thread, but there are TONS of great vegan cookbooks out there and you can find awesome recipes online for free-access to creative, tasty recipes has exploded in the last several years. I've been vegan for a long time and eat a huge variety of foods-I'm never bored of what's on my plate! Good on you for putting thought into your food choices-wherever it takes you.

 

[coachRD]

I retired a few months ago, and I'm already going nuts with all this free time.

What's your favorite hobby? Any plans for beginning something new?

Do you live near an animal rescue? If that's your thing, lots of these places are looking for people to walk dogs, spend time with cats, etc....

 

[CTMike]

Know anything about Daisy BB guns? I've been looking for one to help persuade a groundhog to leave my garden alone. I hit him with paintballs, and he don't even acknowledge he's been hit.

I'd like to get a nice vintage one like the one I had as a kid. I think it was made in the 40's or 50's.

 

[temery]

Do you live near an animal rescue? If that's your thing, lots of these places are looking for people to walk dogs, spend time with cats, etc....

I looked into volunteering at a rescue shelter, but I'm told it can be a bit depressing connecting with animals that may ultimately be euthanized.

 

[temery]

View attachment 14441

Not an eye, but I damn near shot my finger off when I was a kid. Got the BB gun, pumped it up, and put my hand in front of the barrel to feel how much air came out. Apparently the bb gun had been bought, returned, and re packaged with bb's still loaded.

And yes, I know it was an incredible stupid thing to do, regardless. I wasn't allowed to use the gun for months.

 

[Dove]

I retired a few months ago, and I'm already going nuts with all this free time.

What's your favorite hobby? Any plans for beginning something new?

Have you tried tennis?

 

[NYC_HUSKY22]

Let's see... when work isn't keeping me busy:

- Aquariums, for anyone who read the novel I posted on the Aquarium post. There's something calming about it - plus the science behind the water, and the fish themselves I find fascinating.
- Computers. Recently built a nice work from home station. Rebuilt a laptop with a SSD and hooked it into three screens, plus an old mac i refurbished and hooked into the other HDMI input in the main monitor. So all I have to do is flip the source on the main monitor and switch keyboards and BOOM instant change from a PC to a Mac. Plus i've hooked 6 TB of external space into it as a movie home server and for all my photos. which leads into my next hobby.
- Photography. I got a GoPro for Christmas a couple of years back and things began snowballing after that. Now I have the GoPro, DSLR (Nikon D3300) and a Drone (which I'll get into in a bit).
- Travel. My girlfriend and I have been dating for a couple years now and we've made it a point to travel to world together. She is Peruvian so we have been to Peru once (and are going again for Christmas) and recently visited Thailand in April. We have a deal where we take a trip every year and we rotate who gets to pick the destination and then we plan it together. I'm up to suggestions for the next trip!
- Drones. My buddy convinced a few months back to buy a really nice Drone (DJI Phantom 3) and it is really awesome. Ties back into photography but the thing is more of a tool then a toy. The video you get from it is fantastic as the camera gimble moves independently to the drone itself. So no matter what the conditions you get beautiful 2.7k video. Plus the thing flies high. I mean REALLY high. I've maxed it out around 1700 feet.
- Home Theater. I have a pretty sophisticated set up at home and am continuously improving it. I have the TV hooked into a 7.1 surround sound, with all of the inputs hooked through the pass through HDMI (apple TV, Xbox One, Blueray) and have set up a home server for the movies. So basically the mac i have is set up as a shared desktop computer / dedicated server. I utilize a VPN to download any and all movies I want and am able to stream them via the Air Video app to the Apple TV.
- Video Games. I keep buying old systems off Ebay in attempt to fashion my future man cave. So at some point in the future I will have a library set up to play all the games i loved growing up as a kid. Right now we're up to N64, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Game Cube, Sega Genesis, Wii, PS1 and PS2. Been really into the Assassins Creed series recently.

Oh yes, and UConn Basketball.

 

[Northbound]

I looked into volunteering at a rescue shelter, but I'm told it can be a bit depressing connecting with animals that may ultimately be euthanized.

Nah. I ran one of the oldest in the country and we had like 1000 volunteer. Just ask to do events or something and pick you animal welfare agency wisely, not all shelters space euthanize. I'm actually not an animal welfare guy personally I hunt and fish. Quite the interesting match with my former staff.

 

[coachRD]

I looked into volunteering at a rescue shelter, but I'm told it can be a bit depressing connecting with animals that may ultimately be euthanized.

Every place is different....sounds like you're attacking this free time issue with a vengeance-you'll find something good soon I'm sure!

Adult Ed classes at local high schools can be a great way to try out something new without breaking the bank-4 or 6 sessions on making pottery, etc.

 

[Northbound]

I hunt,fish,build guns,shoot guns,watch sports and do yard work to keep the old lady happy lol.

This is what I do - fish, hunt, tie flies. There's a hunter safety course that you'll have to take to hunt unless you got to a preserve. I'd recommend spending some cash and go to something like and Orvis shooting school in Manchester or Sandanona (man that a nice course there). I recommend that because for most outdoorsmen it's handed down from a fsmily member. Without that a school is the way to learn to shot. I'm actuLly going to get some tweaking of my shooting. Or join a local gun clu and do their trap/skeet nights they'll be plent of folks that will give your pointers

 

[Deepster]

Know anything about Daisy BB guns? I've been looking for one to help persuade a groundhog to leave my garden alone. I hit him with paintballs, and he don't even acknowledge he's been hit

Tuna can with antifreeze in it. Say good night, groundhog.

 

[DaveHuskiesFan]

Do you live in CT? You can take any class at any Connecticut public school (UConn, UConn Law, Southern, etc) free of charge if you're over the age of 65 (I believe).

 

[Chin Diesel]

Kayaking or canoeing can be a relaxing exercise during the summer.

Also, find some parks and trails and just go for a walk/hike. It is very refreshing just to go along a trail (or make your own trail) when you don't have to worry about time. See something along the trail that interests you? Spend 10 seconds or 10 minutes enjoying it. You can combine this with the photography or other activities others have mentioned.

Above all, do something. Anything. Keep your mind and body active and it will lead you to something. It might take a year or two until you find your post-teaching retirement sweet spot.

 

[donyell34]

I'm a fisherman and have a new Canoe/ kayak from Old Town its a one person fishing vessel, 13ft and only weighs 53pds with the most comfortable seat with backrest you can get. I'm 3 miles from the Quinebaug River and fish almost daily on the water 4:30 and off by 8:30 with always good results catching and releasing 6 to 8 large mouth and small mouth bass. Great fun and exercise ah its great being retired as I come home and take my afternoon siesta. All retires get off your ass and to something. Have a great summer fellow boneyarders and husky fans.

 

[Minicoop69]

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I grew up off Baldwin st in Waterbury CT. I moved to Missouri at 15. Never once been hunting or held a rifle. I actually just bought one off this redneck and taught my self how to hunt and shoot. He showed me the basics just like any gun store would.most shooting ranges will let you rent what ever gun you want to shoot,and show you how if needed. Hell everything is on YouTube these days. As far as where you can hunt in CT? May have to find private land and get permission. Look into qouta hunts in the state to apply for. Here in Kentucky You can center your name into a drawing to hunt on Fort Knox.we also have WMA here"wildlife management areas" its public land anyone can hunt. Can only take deer with a bow on them. Best advise would be is to purchase a rifle and learn how to use it and operate it safely. Practice and know what you are capable of before ever taken a shot at an animal.

I grew up on sylvan Ave in Waterbury and moved to Indiana in 2005.

Anyway, about hunting in CT. You can't use guns I believe in Fairfield county. Must be bow and arrow if I'm not mistaken.

Basically you need to get deer tags if you want to hunt deer. Squirrel and pheasant there is just a limit on how many you can get. I used to hunt in the Naugatuck state forest for all of them. Didn't get any deer, but squirrel is a plenty. They used to release pheasant there at the beginning of each season.

You can hunt on state land, just make sure it's state land and not someone else's.

 

[tdrink]

Ironic that people are suggesting hunting as a hobby to someone who doesn't want to kill a varmit on his own property.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

Someone mentioned drinking every craft beer. Maybe try out home brewing instead?

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

I'm not sure if smoking weed and playing video games is a hobby, but I'm pretty good at it.

I did recently download the free Unity 3D Engine and started going through the tutorials to make my own video games, which is actually pretty rad. But you might find that excessively nerdy.

 

[Leebo]

I've made games, too, but not in a couple years, since I switched my focus to Japanese. I do want to return to it, but I'll probably stick with 2D or browser games, as opposed to something like Unity.

 

[boba]

I'm not sure if smoking weed and playing video games is a hobby, but I'm pretty good at it.

I did recently download the free Unity 3D Engine and started going through the tutorials to make my own video games, which is actually pretty rad. But you might find that excessively nerdy.

Or Blender the 3d drawing software if you like that sort of stuff. If you have a .edu address, you can get any Autodesk AutoCad software, but you will spend a few years learning it. Blender is fairly easy to master, and I think the files (object) transfer to stuff like this.
There's a great deal of buzz around Swift, Apple's open source dev software. I prefer gardening.

 

[Waquoit]

Horse Racing. It's perfect for retirement. The more homework you do, the more successful you can be. And the more you learn, the more you find you need to know.

Without the gamble, how about making short films? I just came across this - Werner Herzog Teaches Filmmaking. Only $90., I'm in!

 

[Fishy]

I'm not kidding when I say you should download pokemon go and learn to play. It's free, you'll stay active, keeps the mind active, and most of all it's a ton of fun. I've seen multiple 60+ year olds playing and got my grandfather to do so. he was apprehensive at first but he's addicted now.

I'm going to say that I think this is an excellent idea.

I'd add that I think photography would be a good hobby for you - you already like to hike and photography is a natural extension of that.

Doh...feeling my post was stinging and downright insensitively horrific, I deleted it. Without knowing you replied.

God, I hate myself.

That never happens to me.

 

[temery]

That never happens to me.

The having a conscience part, right?

 

[mauconnfan]

My hobbies are golf, more golf and pissing people off on the BY. I'm better at the latter.

 

[UC313]

Considering you don't have the space for woodworking but have a good background knowledge with the tools from your cabinet making past, what about picking up old tools and refurbishing them? You could tag sale and flea market your off on the weekends and derust and tune during the week. The ebay market is still pretty strong on vintage tools so there could be a couple of clams to be made as well. You don't need much space, hell you could do 90% of the work outside if you choose. Its a deep rabbit hole to fall into. Hand planes, saws, chisels, marking gauges, miter boxes .... If you really want to torture yourself you can learn to file and sharpen handsaws. Some good fun is to drink 3 double IPA's all while filing a handsaw sitting down. Once you finish stand up real fast.

Ive got plenty of info on that kid of stuff if you happen to become interested.

 

[August_West]

I retired a few months ago, and I'm already going nuts with all this free time.

What's your favorite hobby? Any plans for beginning something new?

Interesting thread. Fascinating to see how different peoples clocks tick. Some need to be busy, some need to work all their lives etc.....

Me? I dream of doing absolutely nothing. I could be content having no aim or purpose and seeing what each day brings with no other constraints other than what I feel like doing that exact moment.