It’s a Saturday night and I can barely walk because I’m being crippled by period cramps. My energy is low and half my mouth has just regained feeling after being numbed all day post dental fill in. Through all of this, I rally to cook dinner, but not without my laptop on the counter streaming the Green Bay Packers/San Francisco 49ers playoff game; I’m rooting for the 49ers and can’t stand the idea of missing them play. In the midst of this, my mother walks in the kitchen and says “I can’t believe my baby’s a football fan.” I previously wrote about my obsession with sports documentaries, primarily football ones. This fascination has not let up, and I’ve found myself actively keeping up with the NFL for most of the season. At first I was watching because it was a tradition for my ex and I to watch the Patriots every Sunday, but after we parted ways I realized I didn’t want to stop watching football. In fact, I wanted to find my own teams to root for; I had discovered a new hobby.
Last year was the first time I realized that I needed a hobby. At the time, all my daily activities were dedicated to work, writing, and taking care of my personal responsibilities. I wanted to add something to my life that I wasn’t striving to be good at, and that I could just do for fun. Since coming to that realization, I’ve taken up watercoloring, crocheting, and now watching football. My anxiety melts away, and my excitement sky rockets, whenever I’m immersed in a high stakes football game. All of my hobbies provide something to get lost in and a way to decompress. Life can be stressful, and oh so serious, which is why we all need something healthy to take our mind off things from time to time. I can literally feel my body and mind relax every time I make a new crochet stitch.
So in case you haven’t gotten the message yet, get out there and get a hobby if you don’t have one already. The best place to start is by resuming something you loved as a kid. I’ve found that the things I loved in childhood, I enjoy just as much as an adult. When I crochet I reconnect with the eight year old girl in me. When I watch football, often with my brother, I’m once again that kid fascinated by the intricacies of her brother’s little league game.
I’m also opening myself up to trying new activities I never got around to as a kid. I was rewatching Wednesday last week and was fascinated by the amount of activities highlighted on the show - fencing, archery, beekeeping, rowing, choir singing. It reminded me that there are so many things I have yet to try and learn. This spring I’m exploring new hiking trails and starting tennis lessons; next winter I plan to snowboard for the first time. I’m twenty-eight years old and feeling a big kid energy come out. It’s said that Capricorns get younger as they grow older, like Benjamin Button, and I can feel that happening to me. I took life seriously for so long, but now I’m just looking for fun. What a luxury it is to have hobbies.
Tips for Finding a Hobby:
Start with something you loved in childhood. What was that thing you could do for hours and never get bored with? What did you dedicate your spare time to before you got a smart phone? Chances are that whatever that thing is, you’ll still love it as an adult.
Pick something that’s low friction. The more difficult it is to do something, the more likely you are to give up on it. If you’re new to the hobby universe, start by choosing something you can easily do in your house whenever you feel like it.
Don’t strain yourself to do it. Your hobby should be something that fits comfortably within your budget, and doesn’t take up too much of your free time. Choose accordingly.
Don’t try to be good at it. Naturally, you will become better at your hobby over time, but if you find yourself obsessing over being good at it, to the point that you’re being robbed of the joy of just doing it, then it’s time to find another activity.
It’s okay to switch hobbies, or go back and forth between multiple. I went from watercolor painting to crocheting, and now I’ve added watching football to the mix. It’s okay, and encouraged, to have multiple interests that you cycle through.
If you have a hobby that you love, please share it in the comments; your hobby might inspire another community member to try something new. Happy hobbying!
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Omg a fellow crocheter!! I started crocheting last year and it has been so fun and amazing. It made me realise how important hobbies are. How important it is to do something simply because you enjoy it and not for productivity or financial remuneration.
It’s also really exciting creating something and seeing yourself learn and get better.
I honestly want to fill my life with as much hobbies as possible and try out things I never thought I would. It makes life so exciting (plus you get to meet cool and interesting people).