Hobbies

[iloveyoga]

Since you do wood refinishing.....my sister likes to buy really cheap small tables and dressers and refinish and or paint and then sell on Facebook Marketplace. It keeps her busy and happy and she makes just a little $$ doing this.

My personal favorite is yoga, not really a hobby, but it helps to mark my days and I can always do it at home with my teacher's on-line studio.

I still work about 10 hours a week so when I quit doing that at age 65 I will probably be looking like you for one more thing.

Good luck.

 

[Dalmore]

Pickleball is my newest hobby. Growing sport, healthy, and easy to find other players. DW and I play several times per week. She also plays once per week in a women-only group. DW gave me a choice of pickleball or ballroom dancing.

DW and I just started pickleball back in March. Our city just opened up 4 courts at the end of April and they are free to play. We've been playing 3-4 times a week. As news spreads about the new courts, the popularity of the sport is becoming more and more evident. At 10am on Friday there were close to 30 people playing or waiting to play.

 

[pacergal]

Reading, cooking-trying new recipes, gardening, walks around town/parks, Duolingo language (not consistent though!), time with Grandkids, online forums, TV in the evening with DH, going for country drives a couple times a week and eat out if we find a fun looking place, sometimes just sit on the deck drinking coffee and doing Nothing!

I also suggest trying the "Get a Life Tree" exercise, if you haven't done it before.
His book is very good.

 

[Cobra9777]

I do woodworking and enjoy DIY projects around the house. I play guitar, keyboards, and write/record music. I enjoy hiking and biking. DW and I have a Class B camper van that we explore the country in.

I'm also learning Spanish. I do about an hour of DuoLingo every day. And I subscribe to several Spanish YouTube channels. I enjoy cooking low-carb meals every evening. We have a vegetable garden that is in full production right now. I also enjoy podcasts, listening to about an hour per day on average.

 

[Starsky]

I dabbled in several new hobbies since ER - model rockets, frisbee golf, shooting, walking, mold making, hammocking, pizza, astronomy, DSLR photography, bread making, cooking - most have stuck, some I just tried for awhile. I also play keyboards in a jam band every Sunday with my friends.
I don't know if it's a hobby, but one of the unique things about retirement has been taking the time to catch up with old, old friends from younger days. Like the new hobbies, some relationships re-blossom, some don't. Life goes on.
There are a few hobbies that I used to do a lot, and I just can't seem to rekindle my passion in. It's like having writers block. I have all the gear, ready to go, taking up my space; but no interest - that's the most frustrating thing.

 

[ivinsfan]

What I will be doing is searching online for a therapist to help me deal with my feelings of slothfulness after reading this thread.


I do what I want to, some days I do more and some days I do less. (some days I might do nothing but sit on my screen porch with coffee and my kindle.)


OP is bored the same as restless? You could get a job to help fix that problem

 

[SJhawkins]

Not retired yet...2-5 years out is the current thinking, been giving this lots of thought as of late. I started a thread a few months back about returning to past hobbies. Like many here I play instruments, woodworker, fly models, ham radio, big diy person, walk a lot, etc.

My dream retirement, going to catch some flack for this maybe, want to build a lake place or fix up some dumpy cabin then spend time keeping it up, call me nuts but puttering around the current homestead is just something I enjoy. Doing additions, building decks/screen houses/garages/etc is something I have done to date, if I have a hammer and nails were building something The issue with this one dream is the cost, it's not cheap to pull off and I'm cheap, see the internal struggle.

Another idea, expand the "garden" to a few acres, would pick up a 20-40 acre chunk within 1/2 hour from the current place and just grow simple stuff, nothing crazy, build a shack maybe too.

Used to gig a lot 25 years ago, got a good case of tinnitus going. Would love to start playing out but not at the risk of making things worse. I need to talk to the doctor about this risk.

The above three are more a less a youg person's game, need to get this fire thing figured out soon!

I would be curious if others have done similar to the above and to what age (not to hijack the thread)?

 

[Ronstar]

Not retired yet...2-5 years out is the current thinking, been giving this lots of thought as of late. I started a thread a few months back about returning to past hobbies. Like many here I play instruments, woodworker, fly models, ham radio, big diy person, walk a lot, etc.

My dream retirement, going to catch some flack for this maybe, want to build a lake place or fix up some dumpy cabin then spend time keeping it up, call me nuts but puttering around the current homestead is just something I enjoy. Doing additions, building decks/screen houses/garages/etc is something I have done to date, if I have a hammer and nails were building something The issue with this one dream is the cost, it's not cheap to pull off and I'm cheap, see the internal struggle.

Another idea, expand the "garden" to a few acres, would pick up a 20-40 acre chunk within 1/2 hour from the current place and just grow simple stuff, nothing crazy, build a shack maybe too.

Used to gig a lot 25 years ago, got a good case of tinnitus going. Would love to start playing out but not at the risk of making things worse. I need to talk to the doctor about this risk.

The above three are more a less a youg person's game, need to get this fire thing figured out soon!

I would be curious if others have done similar to the above and to what age (not to hijack the thread)?

I don't think you're nuts. I'd love to build a lake place or fix up a cabin. I've remodeled most of our house and built small things for decades, but haven't built a house or garage in the past 20 years. A bigger project like a house or cabin could be quite an undertaking for an old man. So my suggestion is to do it now before you get too old.

 

[AZ2020]

Learn a new language, learn to play a new instrument, start a garden.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I need a hobby. Refinished all wood cupboards (kitchen & 3 bathrooms). Replaced 1/3 of floors. Ordered replacement furniture. Cruising every 4 months. Luncheon every weekend. Basketball on weekends. Dog park 3 times a week alternating with hiking. Music several times a month. And still bored.

What do you do?

I joined a dog-training club. It's fun, a nice social outlet and life-enriching for the dog. Here's a link to a club near you: https://www.mddtc.org/

 

[Scuba]

Write angry letters to the editor of the local paper

Chase kids off my lawn

Post here

Post on Next Door about suspicious people I see through the blinds.

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23] You made me laugh out loud!

 

[Scuba]

I’ve been retired for over 5 years now and have spent my time in quite diverse ways as outlined below. The point is that retirement is a time when you can experiment, walk away from activities or commitments that aren’t making you happy, and try new ones. Also life has a way of throwing curve balls - COVID, and now for us a bunch of medical issues this year. I think it really helps to be adaptable.

Year 1 - Visited family in the Southeastern US and spent 3 months in the USVI on a retirement celebration trip. Went back for a month after Hurricanes Irma and Maria to do volunteer relief work.

Year 2 - spent a lot of time getting more fit, and have kept these activities going as much as possible. Also spent 6 weeks in Greece and took a couple of other shorter vacations. Volunteered as a mentor for university students and was selected as “Mentor of the Year” which felt really good to know I was really helping young people.

Year 3 - took a vacation to Palm Springs from the CA coast and unexpectedly decided to move there! Searching for real estate and moving consumed several months. My sister had a lot of problems that year and we spent a lot of time helping her.

Year 4 - Planned and executed a major remodel of our Palm Springs home. This was 2020 so lockdown wiped out most social activity and travel. My sister passed away and I was the executor of her estate. She was only 65 so this was somewhat of a shock despite her issues.

Year 5 - Spent a lot of time settling into our remodeled home, selecting new furniture, artwork, etc. Did our first big family trip with DH’s adult niece and nephew and their significant others, which was great fun. Spent 2 months in the USVI. While we were there, I decided I needed a little more going on when I got home, so I added volunteer work for our HOA to my plate. I also started a Meetup group. It’s a social group for women and now has 350 members!

This year, my Meetup group and our travel plans were keeping me pretty busy. Then DH had his heart attack and quadruple bypass surgery and now I’m facing shoulder repair surgery and hip replacement surgery. So it looks like Year 6 will be largely dominated by medical issues and recoveries.

Every year of ER has been very different for us. Some constant themes for me have been trying to live a healthy lifestyle and keep fit, traveling, spending time with family and friends, and trying to be useful to the broader community in some way. We love being retired and having the flexibility to focus our time on what we want to do. It’s also wonderful to know that it’s ok to drop activities we don’t enjoy.

 

[Marita40]

Sounds like you already have a lot of hobbies. How about volunteering for a cause you are passionate about? Or taking a course online or at a local college for intellectual stimulation?

 

[DrRoy]

Travel, and photography.
Lofoten Islands, Norway.
.

 

[Music Lover]

Learn how to play guitar.

 

[Lsbcal]

I need a hobby. Refinished all wood cupboards (kitchen & 3 bathrooms). Replaced 1/3 of floors. Ordered replacement furniture. Cruising every 4 months. Luncheon every weekend. Basketball on weekends. Dog park 3 times a week alternating with hiking. Music several times a month. And still bored.

What do you do?

Seems you like very active things which is great.

Maybe follow the path of your curiosity. For instance, there was a thread here on bees. Mostly bee keeping. But that got me interested in watching a few videos on bees. Then I went out in the garden and identified a few species myself. Like carpenter bees which seem to like the Abutalon I planted.

Then there is gardening and watching the growth and birds/bees attracted to them.

I also like reading novels towards evenings. Also online chess on Lichess for mental stimulation.

 

[Dog]

write angry letters to the editor of the local paper

chase kids off my lawn

post here

post on next door about suspicious people i see through the blinds.

My first five years of retirement I spent a lot of time hiking, snowshoeing, scrambling and climbing in the mountains (PNW) gradually building up my skill level and researching routes, gear, etcetera. It kept me so busy that I wasn’t home much or spending time with DH and I’m finding my risk tolerance is waning. I’ve been transitioning to activities closer to home; gardening, golfing, beekeeping, local walks/hikes and daily workouts at the gym. I still plan to do mountaineering, just scaled back. No lack of things to keep me busy.

 

[rk911]

my hobbies and interests are amateur radio and flying. I earned my Sport Pilot certificate when I was 62 and though I self-grounded myself a few years back I still consider myself as part of that fraternity.

Ham Radio no longer requires morse code proficiency, just a written exam.

The Sport Pilot cert. requires no medical exam..just a valid driver's license, a written exam (ground school), flight training and a final oral and flight exam. the Sport Certificate privileges are very similar to the Private Pilot cert. The major differences are

- Daytime VFR only
- Limited to Light Sport Aircraft and older aircraft that meet the requirements (max TO weight 1320-lbs)
- 2-seats

you can earn endorsements to fly into and out of any airport.

 

[Lsbcal]

...

Ham Radio no longer requires morse code proficiency, just a written exam.
...

When I was a teen I wanted to buy a ham radio set. So I rented one of those Morse code machines you could practice on. I think it had some paper tapes you could feed it to get faster at listening. I never got much past that stage though. What I really needed was the internet in the early 1960's.

Eventually I satisfied my interest in electronics by becoming an EE. Semiconductors were more interesting then vacuum tubes.

 

[eytonxav]

As others have mentioned, pickleball. While I was skeptical at first whether I would like it, I have found it to be the most addictive sport I've ever participated in. Also, target shooting and reloading might be another enjoyable activity.

 

[Lisa99]

I walk several miles every morning with my pup at a wonderful park. I garden, read A LOT, enjoy taking care of my own yard, and I play online survivor-based video games. Oh and pickleball

 

[MBAustin]

Haven't seen yarn crafting (knitting or crocheting) mentioned. I started off about 10 years ago knitting prayer shawls for our church (very simple rectangles) and have done more than 100 of them so far. During COVID I ramped up my skills with online classes and YouTube and made two sweaters (just started on a third with a complex yoke pattern) and several pairs of socks. I like the mix of doing things for others (there are plenty of charities that need knitted or crocheted items) and for myself/my family. Also there's decent evidence that the combination of brain work (to follow the pattern) and hand work is good for memory and cognition.

End of shameless plug!

 

[SJhawkins]

When I was a teen I wanted to buy a ham radio set. So I rented one of those Morse code machines you could practice on. I think it had some paper tapes you could feed it to get faster at listening. I never got much past that stage though. What I really needed was the internet in the early 1960's.

Eventually I satisfied my interest in electronics by becoming an EE. Semiconductors were more interesting then vacuum tubes.

Ham Radio is really a life time hobby with so many different roads to go down. I been at it for 30 plus years and feel like I have not scratched the surface. It's a hobby that I think will ramp up more when I actually retire. Today I'm mostly involved as a Volunteer Examiner, I enjoy that. Also tought some classes, had some fun build groups over the years etc. Fair warning you can spend as much or as little as you want on that hobby

 

[lem1955]

Walk the dog ~ 6 miles total a day or shorter walk and cycle 20 - 40 miles. Pilates, weight lifting, knitting, reading, reading discussion group, baking bread, cooking, travel, yard work and gardening. I try not to read too much current news and politics but want to know what is happening.

 

[eytonxav]

Ham Radio is really a life time hobby with so many different roads to go down. I been at it for 30 plus years and feel like I have not scratched the surface. It's a hobby that I think will ramp up more when I actually retire. Today I'm mostly involved as a Volunteer Examiner, I enjoy that. Also tought some classes, had some fun build groups over the years etc. Fair warning you can spend as much or as little as you want on that hobby

Ham Radio is great until the HOA comes after you