Hobbies You Like to Try If Money's NOT an Issue?

[Semper]

If money wasn't an issue I would become one of those solar eclipse chasers. I would travel to whatever place in the world was having a solar eclipse and just be there to witness it. I got to see my very first solar eclipse in April 2024 and it shook me.

[killerscreen]

If I had infinite money and space I would dedicate tons of time and resources to keeping giant centipedes. I'm serious. I would love to try and breed the ones with the nicest temperaments, just to see how far I could go with creating friendlier/less prone to escaping ones. Also agree with the people who are saying horse riding. And collecting old electronics.

[CeruleanSnake]

If money was no object, I'd like to try and learn to play a hurdy gurdy. It's an ancient instrument thats played with a crank. Almost sounds like violin crossed with an accordion but it has a sound like no other.

Only problem is that it costs thousands of dollars for a basic one, but I have seen a project to build one yourself for much cheaper.

[loren]

in a real fantasy I'd love to fly bi-planes, but I think in reality I'm not sure I'd really enjoy it. Still the idea of being up in the clouds with no cabin and no borders and anywhere you can go sounds very dreamy.

i have a similar feeling, but about boats instead of planes! i really enjoy taking the ferry and kayaking, but the fantasy version for me is sailing out into the open ocean, traveling the world by the power of the wind. so dreamy, but i've never actually been on a sailboat before. i'm not sure how much i'd like actually managing the sail and being blown around in unexpected directions. it looks pretty complicated.

I got to see my very first solar eclipse in April 2024 and it shook me.

same!! it's so unlike anything else i've ever experienced. i would love to see another one.


if i had infinite money, i would probably buy a bunch of equipment for looking at things

• microscopes! for small things
  i would looooove to collect pond scum samples and look for microbes.
• telescopes! for distant things
  an observatory near me has public viewing nights, but it would be so cool to take my own telescope on a camping trip, where i could see the sky with less light pollution.
• expensive camera lenses! for both small and distant things
  i think it would be fun to carry around one of those giant telephoto lenses and take photos of birds. right now, i take a lot of photos of bugs with my cell phone camerra, but if i had a macro lens i could really see the detail on those little guys.

[nyxiezone]

sigh..      it’s gotta be fashion designing and sewing clothes. it’s a childhood dream job. i wanted to be like rarity when i was younger. 

[small_cypress]

I would love to keep a dart frogs vivarium! I have been watching this channel from a guy in Sweden and it looks awesome but the misters and other tech to keep it lower maintenance are out of reach, so I am sticking with boosting my aquarium/paludarium skills for now :)

[small_cypress]

so dreamy, but i've never actually been on a sailboat before. i'm not sure how much i'd like actually managing the sail and being blown around in unexpected directions. it looks pretty complicated.

It's super fun! Newbies often start on small boats like this which are kind of a step up from windsurfing. Elementary age kids can sail these. If you ever feel more inclined you can look up a local sailing "clinic" which is usually a weekend or 4-day intensive. You fall out a lot in the beginning but it's like kayaking - you learn to fall and right the boat and climb back in!

I would like to learn more about woodworking/carpenting. I feel of all practical skills, it is one I could actually do well in. Afaik the main way to learn this is to get schooled, and that's something I have neither the time or money for. DIY-ing doesn't sound like a good idea here.

Me too. I can do rougher structural projects pretty well (via DIY, lots of videos, a patient father in law) but I can't make really pretty finish work and mitered corners. I think everybody has a threshold for DIY, especially with power tools. I moved to a city with a tool library and it's helped me get comfortable with different ones and gives me humans to talk to before I do something dumb/expensive/dangerous. Kinda wild that people used to learn woodworking in school.

[JetDungeonDragon]

Kinda wild that people used to learn woodworking in school.

Is that not a thing anymore? I had woodworking back when I was in middle school.

[small_cypress]

Is that not a thing anymore? I had woodworking back when I was in middle school.

I've taught school for 12 years and not in any of mine. They did away with it before I was in high school in the early aughts. I am US based and it's too much of a liability for our litigious culture. I think a lot of kids would love it, it's such a novelty to them to make things.

[JetDungeonDragon]

I've taught school for 12 years and not in any of mine. They did away with it before I was in high school in the early aughts. I am US based and it's too much of a liability for our litigious culture. I think a lot of kids would love it, it's such a novelty to them to make things.

Interesting. I wonder if it's by state then, as I was in middle school during the 2000's when I took woodworking. Teacher had a horror story to get us to take the drill press seriously. Something about a girl's hair getting caught in it and she ended up bald for a while. I think he said it ripped the hair out from her scalp or something? Been too long to clearly remember his exact words.

[Julikins]

Funny how lots of folks talled about woodworking classes in school... I don't remember taking one when I was still a student myself. Granted, the only classes I remember taking that's not common core were drama and maybe a creative writing class I ended up having to drop because special ed classes made schedule shaky and had to drop it. I think there was also sewing class I took in freshman year of high school, but that was the year before the natural disaster took out the then high school and a good portion of the hometown...

I wouldn't doubt the state dependency when it comes to classes that are offered to high schoolers. Nowadays mine offers a bit more tech intensive stuff like coding which kinda makes me envious, NGL.

Going back to the sewing class though, I can see why I've gotten interested in plush crafting. Admittedly I didn't get quite a high grade in the class but I still had fond enjoyment from the class. Unlike the jewelry and metalwork class in college since I had been getting hit with theft of my class work. I'm still very angry about it and can't consider soldering practice partially due to the experiences... 

[Kie]

There's a bunch of hobbies I would like to pick up if money wasn't an issue.

First off the list has to be Magic the Gathering. I know this may sound a bit weird for people outside of the space, after all it's just a trading card game. But Magic cards can get suuuper expensive. And it's not like collection cards are the only expensive ones, but even the ones you simply.. need to play the game in tournaments are unaffordable. It's sad because Magic the gathering was one of my biggest passions back in highschool. I played with my friends that had a similar budget, tried playing "cheap"/budget formats, even printed some fake cards myself at some point. But it just got to a point where I felt like the gap between me and those who could afford the cards was too big  and so I stopped playhing.

Next up the list I think we have Warhammer, and other games that involve miniature painting! I'm an artist and it just looks so fun!! It's a pity it's so expensive. Some time ago I tried asking some people in the space for advice for someone who wanted to get into the hobby, and pretty much everyone warned me of how much of a money sink it was. So I kinda gave up on it.

And lastly we have 3D printing. I just can't afford a good 3D printer! But this is something I have hope for I've heard that sometimes libraries and similar institutions have 3D printers that you can use for a small fee. I'm also certain that my university has some, but I still have to find out if they let you use them for personal projects or just for school stuff!