To wonder what on earth all these myserious hobbies on MN are?

[Abbinob]

I see so many posts with things like "when i'm doing my hobby" "DH spends 2 hours a week doing his hobby" "a friend from my hobby"

WHAT ARE ALL THESE HOBBIES?

I've never heard anyone say this in RL
"so what you doing tonight?"
"oh you know, i'm going to do my hobby"

It makes me all nosey and agitated trying to work out what these hobbies are

Ah! Nout wrong with model railways one day when I have a huuuuuge house I want a big winter Lego village with a lovely little festive train running all over the place. (Now that's sad!)

I think this use of "hobbies" is more common across the pond. I spend some time on a predominantly American forum and I noticed the references to "Hubby" doing his hobbies, or poster not having time to do their hobbies. It's a word I haven't used since I was a child in the 70s when hobbies were a thing. I never got the hang of it, collecting hideous, annoying little stickers was all the rage in my social milieu aged 8 to 10.

People also have "hobby rooms", which I always imagine populated with those cross stitch kits where the crinoline ladies are already printed on the fabric and you are just sewing by numbers, or Airfix models or something.

Stamp collecting, model making and battle reenactments are classic hobbies.

Every weekend hobbies are usually fishing, golf, sailing, football, rugby, cycling, running, other random sports, singing, drama etc. However I prefer to imagine extreme sports, LARPing, dogging, swinging, pigeon chasing...

Is swinging a hobby or lifestyle choice?

I think it depends on the height of the chandeliers.

What is pigeon chasing?

Merd I agree, nothing wrong with model railways. It seems like a fairly harmless hobby. I just think there's a danger that mentioning it would derail a thread into a discussion of the merits and faults of model railways as a hobby. Same with most hobbies I guess.

Your dream Lego village sounds lovely BTW.

'What are your hobbies?'

Reminds me of learning foreign languages when you ask people questions you wouldn't in normal life.

I resist the urge to answer in pidgin Franglais. J'adore faire du ski. Et toi?

I have lots of interests though, but if I listed them I would risk being outed because they are quite specific and unusual.

For example if I said I do judo, draw manga, learn Russian and play the tuba...if you were a friend of mine you'd say 'that's just got to be CuntTrollingRs'.

So where does the difference lie?

I always think of hobbies as stamp collecting type activities whereas an interest or passion is more a way of life like owning horses maybe.

I run, do have horses in fact, dogs, practice yoga but I wouldn't refer to any of them as a hobby as such. They are just part of my life and have been for decades.

Do you regularly compete with your horses, and if so, would that make it into a hobby (horse) ?

I agree with wheatchief.

I work full-time. I have two kids. I have just spent most of a month at the bedside of my dying mother. My partner quite often works late. I've said upthread I don't particularly think of singing as a 'hobby', or his martial art, but it takes both of us out of the house one night a week and in all honesty it enriches and fulfils our lives.

Totally your world view is obviously the same as the women who would give me the side eye or openly comment on the amount of time I spend doing something I love just for me. I have job, husband, children, family responsibilities, friends but I am obviously a selfish piece of work because that isn't enough for me. Thank god my lovely husband accepts me as I am because I ave never been able to fit the traditional female role - when I hear what men and women are 'supposed' to be like I often wonder if I am, in fact, a man

Now, now, whats don't lump me in with those arseholes who are side glancing judgemental dicks. That's really unfair. I'm talking about my life, not yours. I was surprised on my own behalf about the question "what are your hobbies?". Most of my friends are I the same boat as me, time in snatches to do some activity, but not enough time or money to peruse a child free dedicated hour or two every week regular as clockwork.

Like lightdrizzle mentions, Hobbies to me are things you do with air fix glue, in an exclusive non family space, or all day long in a dodgy costume while the wives take up the slack. The term "golf widow" is there for a reason.
That's my knee jerk reaction to the word "hobby"

At this point in my life, with a DH who often has late and unpredictable hours, and no childcare budget, I cannot have a scheduled "hobby" time. I try and get out for a walk at lunch time, when the kids are in school, and someone is in the office to man the phones. That's not a hobby, that's just a quick leg stretch and a think.

For sure I can do something (an activity, like crotcheting) I can put down and pick up again, but actually doing something with other people, at a specified time, no. It wouldn't make sense as I would most probably have to miss half of it, and if I'm paying, it really doesn't make sense as that would be a waste of money.

Motherinferior, I'm sorry to hear about your loss: my own mother is getting very frail, and I'm thinking I'll have to move her in with us soon (that's another thread..) I'm glad you've found time to sing, and your DH to do his martial arts. I don't think of these as hobbies either- just something you do with other people, and it's good you can schedule time to do it.

Thanks wheat Maybe when my kids are older, and need me less, (and I won't mind leaving them on their own for a while, if my DH is late), I'll be able to get back to doing something at a regular time, just for me, not for work, with other people. Like many of my women friends, I'm just not there yet.

At least my DH doesn't play golf all weekend, (like some of my friends' husbands) or have a Lycra / bike thing going on?
I would feel volcanic very put out if DH had his exclusive, possibly expensive, child free 'hobby' while I could not have an hour a week. Fair's fair and all that.

I don't say what my DH's hobby is because i am embarrassed by it. I think it's a very stupid hobby and MNers would hate MrKoala more than they already do!

My hobbies on the other hand are very valid and important of course...

Everybody on this thread will now think MrsKoala's DH has an embarrassing hobby, wonder what it is when they see your name of course .

clash same here, I always think it would be a better test of skill if they had to get a hole in one up a slope and through a giant tiki mask.

Haha - oh yes, well, the fact we are furries is not embarrassing at all, this is way worse

Is that him after yet another embarrassing accident engaging in an age inappropriate sport?

Totally I do think life should be more than being a mum and supporting your husband to work long hours. Obviously we are all different, but that could never be enough for me. I can understand why people ask about hobbies as I think most people must have something other than raising their children and working and/or supporting someone else to work. I don't know, maybe that is how lots of people live, but I think they are far stranger than the people with the odd hobbies - including Mr Koala, whatever he may do

oh no! what's happened to the little chap? No, he's not really a koala and neither is he one of those people who wank off koalas for artificial insemination

In fact if he was a furry or something like that, i think there would be loads of right on MNers defending his right for sexual exploration .

I enjoy cycling and running but I dunno, are they hobbies?

Hobbies/interests/past times - they all mean the same to me, which is basically doing something you enjoy just for you.

My hobby is more of a grand passion, but I realise not everyone has such an all consuming interest