Hobby Thread - June 13, 2026 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread.

This is the second anniversary of TRex assuming the Hobby Thread helm. Hooray! That makes this my 105th Hobby Thread (not counting a few previous oddball contributions through MisHum). Thank you all for being here and participating. None of this works without you (even the lurkers).

In honor of the occasion, the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) took the night off and left a note that said "all of the above." What does that mean? Read on hobbyists...

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We all started somewhere. We found our hobbies and interests because someone showed us or we stumbled into it. As kids, we don't know what we don't know. We try things (sometimes voluntarily and sometimes less so). We get exposed to different things and sometimes we light up, even if we had no idea it would resonate until we tried it.

How many hobbies and interests started as childhood sparks? Even better, what childhood sparks blossomed into life-long hobbies? School, summer camp, YMCA, scouts, church groups, parents, relatives, neighbors, etc.

The archery theme last week was a great example of an activity many kids would not get the chance to try unless an adult took the time to make it happen.

What adult hobbies were ignited in your childhood? What hobbies did you try and HATE? What hobbies do you wish you would have tinkered with more as a child?

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What are you hobbying?

As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. All (legal) hobbying is welcome. We have a theme, but no need to stick with the theme. Even if the theme does not speak to you, find something else or offer something else relating to hobbying. Leave politics and religion to threads elsewhere (unless your hobby is building or restoring churches). Pants are optional. As always, puns are welcome and encouraged.

Play nice and do not be rude. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls.

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Random scouting merit badges:

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Not getting lost is an activity:

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Bird calls:

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Young rex's adventures with watercolor painting were not fruitful.

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When do kids learn robotics?

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Get into the water!

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Adorable:

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Friendship bracelets are a camp craft type thing:

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Leatherworking for beginners:

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How to make a massive backyard zipline:

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Is your hobby motorsports? Hope you're enjoying the 24 Hours of LeMans. Have you been to the race in person?

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Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week? We did an archery theme. The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.

Notable comments from last week that are, in part, responsible for the theme this week:

Notable hobbying comment from the Friday ONT comments:

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Words of wisdom:

"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).

***

If you have trouble finding something in the content or comments that resonates with you, contribute your own. Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Do mighty things.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 05:30 PM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 Candle making?

Posted by: OrangeEnt at June 13, 2026 05:30 PM (1Ff7Z)

2 Welcome Hobbiests

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:31 PM (Ia/+0)

3 The most successful bird call:

Hey baby! I just got paid.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at June 13, 2026 05:32 PM (1Ff7Z)

4 Of all the water-related sports that I took on, water skiing was the easiest to master.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 05:34 PM (XjKiU)

5 My wife makes candles every once in awhile
Bought her supplies for her birthday last year but she still hasn't used them.

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:35 PM (Ia/+0)

6 Of all the water-related sports that I took on, water skiing was the easiest to master.
Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 05:34 PM (XjKiU)

Every time I tried watersports, some big white balloon chased me.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at June 13, 2026 05:35 PM (1Ff7Z)

7 5 My wife makes candles every once in awhile
Bought her supplies for her birthday last year but she still hasn't used them.

------

Might I suggest an Amazon gift card for next year?

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 05:36 PM (XjKiU)

8 Thanks for another mighty Hobby Thread, T Rex!

And congratulations on achieving your second anniversary of hosting this thread!

*carefully hands a large piece of cake to T Rex*

Posted by: Legally Sufficient at June 13, 2026 05:36 PM (D/6p1)

9 8 Thanks for another mighty Hobby Thread, T Rex!

And congratulations on achieving your second anniversary of hosting this thread!

*carefully hands a large piece of cake to T Rex*

----------

Soon.

Posted by: The Chicxulub Meteor at June 13, 2026 05:38 PM (XjKiU)

10 Had a very successful morning taking in some metal scrap, aluminum cans and copper clean and with joints.

Still working on my truck tailgate I crushed weeks ago

And the Russian medallion for a cartridge box is basically carved out, its air dry clay so want to let it dry as much as possible when calling it done before pouring hot metal into it.

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:39 PM (Ia/+0)

11 *carefully hands a large piece of cake to T Rex*

Posted by: Legally Sufficient at June 13, 2026 05:36 PM
***
YUM! Thanks!

Maybe we should do a cake decorating or baking hobby thread theme at some point...

Posted by: TRex - terrible two dino at June 13, 2026 05:39 PM (IQ6Gq)

12 Afternoon, hobby folken,

My major hobbies as a kid were reading, and building plastic assembly kit models from Aurora and AMT, later Revell, and at last the big guys, Tamiya. I began with the snap-together Animals/Birds of the World from Bachmann (who I think are still around making model train layout accessories). Those came with a palette of paints, a brush, and a bottle of thinner, all for .98 to 1.49 (the big kits like the Parrot).

Later came the Aurora monster models; AMT's model cars (I never could get spray painting to work well for me); Revell's sailing ships; and at the last, Tamiya's German tanks in 1/35 scale.

There was story writing, true, and it morphed into an adult hobby that has yet to pay much money, but has been enormous fun.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:40 PM (wzUl9)

13 Ihave a mountain of aluminum, some brass snd a few hundred pounds of lead I want to get rid of in next few months

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:41 PM (Ia/+0)

14 We were so poor our hobby was collecting dirt. But at least we had arms to do it.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at June 13, 2026 05:42 PM (SRceu)

15 Ihave a mountain of aluminum, some brass snd a few hundred pounds of lead I want to get rid of in next few months
Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:41 PM (Ia/+0)

Repost this tomorrow on the Gun Thread.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at June 13, 2026 05:43 PM (1Ff7Z)

16 "What adult hobbies were ignited in your childhood? "

As a child I collected rocks and coins. Now I collect a lot more other things too.

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 05:44 PM (vFG9F)

17 TRex,
Congrats on your anniversary. The hobby thread is one of my favorites and anchors my Saturday evenings.

Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM (yTvNw)

18 Happy 2nd TRex! Well done!!

Posted by: HappyFun at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM (CoQfd)

19 Congrats, T Rex, and thanks for picking up the mantle of the beloved and belated Oregon Muse. His chess threads coaxed me out of my years-long lurker state, and your presence here has been a godsend...

Posted by: Joe Kidd at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM (nbLIj)

20 I don't really have any hobbies anymore. I guess you could say writing is a hobby because I've never gotten paid for it.

Too much money to get back into painting, and no time to do photography - taking people back and forth to work and school takes up most of my time.

Posted by: OrangeEnt at June 13, 2026 05:46 PM (1Ff7Z)

21 Now that I think of it, I did try those paint-by-number paintings; Dracula and the Wolf Man were two I completed. I didn't think they looked all that impressive, and the oil paints were very slow-drying compared to the enamels I used on plastic kits. Though I didn't waste the oil paints and tried them on some of the plastic kits. They still took forever to dry and I moved on.

Speaking of paint, if you recall, AMT offered its own line of spray lacquers for their model cars. Those dried very swiftly, and if I managed an even coat on the car bodies, looked darn good. Testor's and Pactra ("Pactra 'Namel") had spray paints too. The Testor's were basic colors you'd use on a stock auto kit like a '32 Ford, while Pactra offered a range of metalflake and candy colors for use on custom jobs. It was good training for me to judge what color suited the lines of a particular car -- dark blue for a Lincoln Continental, say, or emerald green for a '56 Chevy -- and what interior color would go with that.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:49 PM (wzUl9)

22 Maybe we should do a cake decorating or baking hobby thread theme at some point...
Posted by: TRex - terrible two dino at June 13, 2026 05:39 PM (IQ6Gq)
----
And cross the streams with the Food Thread?

Are you TRYING to tear a hole in the universe?

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 05:49 PM (gnNyN)

23 17 TRex, Congrats on your anniversary.
Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM

18 Happy 2nd TRex! Well done!!
Posted by: HappyFun at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM

19 Congrats, T Rex, and thanks for picking up the mantle of the beloved and belated Oregon Muse.
Posted by: Joe Kidd at June 13, 2026 05:45 PM
***

Thank you all! Much appreciated.

Posted by: TRex - meteor resistant dino at June 13, 2026 05:49 PM (IQ6Gq)

24 Pretty much the only hobby I actually do any more is gaming and commenting on aoshq. Work takes up a heck of a lot of time and both things can fit in either the late night hours or the wee hours of the morning.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 05:50 PM (G3T/K)

25 One of my big hobbies is/was Lego. Haven't bought any big sets for a while though, since I'm running out of room. (And I'm a bit concerned about future finances.) However, I just got notified that I have a lot of 'points' at the Lego store, that are set to expire soon. The points can translate directly into cash-discount on purchases, so there's no way I'm letting them expire without using them.

So, I have a dilemma of what to buy. The new Minas Tirith set? No, actually that's out of stock. The Rivendell set? the Barad-dur set? Both are tempting. But...Over on Bricklink, you can pre-order (for the next few days) a set called Dustmark Keep. It's a fan-designed set, and it's basically a huge, expert-level version of the Castles we got back in the 90's! Like a scaled-up King's Castle or Black Falcon's Fortress. It's wall on all sides, fully-playable, with 20 minifigs of new factions. ...Yeah, as much as I love LotR, I think I know how I'm spending my points...

Posted by: Castle Guy at June 13, 2026 05:50 PM (3v7ra)

26 22 Are you TRYING to tear a hole in the universe?

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 05:49 PM
***
The ways of the Wheel of Hobbies (TM) are strange and mysterious.

Posted by: TRex - decorated dino at June 13, 2026 05:53 PM (IQ6Gq)

27 Currently, of course, I have my briar pipe hobby. On my trip to Kansas in April I picked up a new one at a real tobacconist, a "basket pipe" -- i.e., less expensive, but if you pick a good brand you can often get a good smoker -- a Rigoletto straight apple in dark sandblast texture.

And running has been a hobby. I started with the original Aerobics book in '73, running in place at home, and lost twenty stubborn pounds and gained enormous energy over the spring that year. Later I worked myself into real shape running outdoors. My knees began to give me a little trouble about two decades back, and I shifted for a while to the elliptical machine at a nearby gym. That place closed. Now I do 1-2 miles 3-4 x a week, half trotting and half walking, 12-25 minutes depending on the distance.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM (wzUl9)

28 I started up a new game of Satisfactory recently.

I've finally unlocked the technology tier that allows for oil power instead of coal.

It's a game changer, but takes a lot of work to set it up.

Nuclear power is technically better, but it takes ENORMOUS effort to get all the components running at the right speed in the right order to make it all work.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM (gnNyN)

29 My most frequent hobby is biting sarcasm, so I probably should skip this thread....

BTW, here's another piece of cake.

https://youtu.be/G9hWy_wSMRc?t=55

Posted by: Hour of the Wolf at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM (qx7Zg)

30 Casting bullets is what started my lead to collecting

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM (Ia/+0)

31 An unsponsored car show happens at the Avon Indiana Lowes on Saturday afternoon. Very nice cars there

Posted by: The Ballots at June 13, 2026 05:56 PM (LOZbR)

32 I don’t know if it counts as a hobby, but…

I remember being 5 and watching Olga Korbut in the 1972 Olympics. My love for gymnastics started then and ended with me being a D 1 scholarship gymnast at a top 5 school.

It was my life, my love, my heartbreak and saving grace. I learned tenacity and honesty and that sometimes, no matter how hard you try and practice and prepare, sometimes you fail anyway. But never give up.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at June 13, 2026 05:57 PM (A5RD0)

33 Lego is the modern successor to the model kits that were everywhere in the '60s and '70s. Though much more expensive, they don't have to be painted and just snap together instead of requiring glue. (True? Or do you have to screw some parts together?) They have come a *long* way since I first saw them in Woolworth's, not much more than red, black, white, and clear cubes and rectangles.

In the local mall store I spotted some bonsai tree models that Lego offered a while back. Those looked darn good. Do they still sell those?

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:58 PM (wzUl9)

34 27 And running has been a hobby.

Now I do 1-2 miles 3-4 x a week, half trotting and half walking, 12-25 minutes depending on the distance.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM
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Outstanding! Wonder how many among the horde are or have been joggers. The pounding on my knees is too much, so I stick the the elliptical.

Posted by: TRex - running in circles dino at June 13, 2026 05:59 PM (IQ6Gq)

35 Ha, ha! The scouting vid was a reminder of just how old I've become. Take your compass and get off my lawn.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at June 13, 2026 05:59 PM (SRceu)

36 Model trains. If I had the space I'd be all over that shit. Building the landscape, buildings, doing a layout. Maybe not even something based on reality, but just, something cool and interesting.

I was in the model train club in jr. high. But I didn't get to see the final results. Graduated to HS.

Posted by: CA High Speed Rail at June 13, 2026 05:59 PM (jehhT)

37 Hubley offered a series of metal model kits in the Sixties also. The car bodies were metal, so I guess you could have used real auto paint on them. (The scale might have been off, though.) The chassis, I think, was metal, but the engine, windshield, and interior pieces were plastic, and the tires rubber or plastic. You had to screw the metal pieces together. Since I never built one, I don't know how the plastic parts attached, unless it was with plastic cement.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:00 PM (wzUl9)

38 Might I suggest an Amazon gift card for next year?
Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 05:36 PM (XjKiU)

I laughed. Mr Dmlw! and I have a closet full of hobby stuff we've bought for or with each other, that have been unused. We've just gotten so busy!

He got me some flint knapping tools, and shortly after that we got the puppies, and I don't have a good place to do that where their curious selves won't be nosing in there and getting cut on shards. I should take this to Mom's where I spend most of my week and re-visit the hobby there.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 06:01 PM (h7ZuX)

39 Now I do 1-2 miles 3-4 x a week, half trotting and half walking, 12-25 minutes depending on the distance.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 05:55 PM
***
Outstanding! Wonder how many among the horde are or have been joggers. The pounding on my knees is too much, so I stick the the elliptical.
Posted by: TRex - running in circles dino at June 13, 2026

***
Once I move and get settled, I plan to find a gym for elliptical and weight work, especially during the winter.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:01 PM (wzUl9)

40 All my life my favorite hobbies have been oriented around the ocean. It fascinates me the way space does for others. I don't even like being away from it for more than a couple days.

Today was day 2 of the annual New York Yacht Club Regatta. It culminates next Friday with the start of the Newport - Bermuda Race. Elvis and I watched some of the "action" today which was pretty lame because not much breeze.

Any day you can tip your toe in the ocean is a very good day.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:02 PM (viF8m)

41 Happy anniversary TRex - thanks for all the great subjects these past two years! Just perusing those have almost turned into a hobby. In the meantime, train layout construction competes with the model building - my life has so many tough choices to make these days . . .

Posted by: Patches at June 13, 2026 06:02 PM (338iJ)

42 An unsponsored car show happens at the Avon Indiana Lowes on Saturday afternoon. Very nice cars there
Posted by: The Ballots at June 13, 2026

***
Where is Avon within the state? Close to Indianapolis, I'd guess?

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:03 PM (wzUl9)

43 The spark for three of my adult hobbies happened in childhood.

Target shooting, specifically with black powder guns. My hometown was established twenty years after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth and had a rich history for the colonial (the frontier was central New England and New York) and Revolutionary War periods. Don't know if it's still done but in the 50s we were taught that history in grade school. Combine those stories, a youngster's imagination, and a Daisy BB gun and a spark ignited that persists. I didn't get my first BP gun until about thirty but the desire began a lot earlier.

Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 06:05 PM (yTvNw)

44 41 In the meantime, train layout construction competes with the model building - my life has so many tough choices to make these days . . .

Posted by: Patches at June 13, 2026 06:02 PM
***
Thanks! Any room for a race track in your train layout?

Posted by: TRex - rennsport dino at June 13, 2026 06:05 PM (IQ6Gq)

45 Never really got into model trains. Never had the space, I guess. Trains were the big fascination with the generation or two before mine -- a way to travel and see new places. With me it was cars.

Odd that I never learned to drive until I was almost 23. (My father refused to teach me, let alone help me buy a car, and my mother never learned to drive.)

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:06 PM (wzUl9)

46 I did a lot of troubleshooting on my tractor lately. Some mechanical issues earlier, then a drained battery yesterday. I think the grandkids might have been messing around with it. The key's always in the ignition, but they lack the weight to start it with the safety switch built into the seat.

More like a FWP honestly.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at June 13, 2026 06:09 PM (jehhT)

47
An unsponsored car show happens at the Avon Indiana Lowes on Saturday afternoon. Very nice cars there
Posted by: The Ballots

Every Saturday? Haven't seen it mentioned on Nextdoor.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 06:10 PM (Cqx++)

48 What adult hobbies were ignited in your childhood? What hobbies did you try and HATE? What hobbies do you wish you would have tinkered with more as a child?
1. drinking
2. jigsaw puzzles
3. automotive shop

Posted by: Eromero at June 13, 2026 06:10 PM (LHPAg)

49 I started collecting dolls when I was a girl because my mother had dolls before me. The oldest dolls are from the 1800's from my grandmother. One of my favorites is Queen Elizabeth I from an actual portrait , I think, and she has little fake pearls sewn all over her outfits I also treasure one of a little Jewish boy in a yarmulke lighting candles and a Red Riding Hood Doll which you flip over to get a doll of grandma, and then when you move her head kerchief you get the wolf. It's a very clever idea.

I would like someone else to take some of them now because I have no little girls to give them to.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:10 PM (ZeH0U)

50 Any day you can tip your toe in the ocean is a very good day.
Posted by: JackStraw

Agreed. I do it several times a week. Well, Puget Sound. Not quite the ocean, but it’s salty and cold. And there’s whales swimming around.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at June 13, 2026 06:10 PM (A5RD0)

51 My mother was a poor cook--my daughter claims the only thing she was comfortable making was jello. When I was in 7th grate, I told her if she did the shopping I would cook. And I would try anything! I made my own pasta.

There was one wonderful moment when my grandparents and my older sister and her 3-year-old son were visiting, and I made lasagna with spinach noodles I had made myself.

Everyone sat and stared. Finally someone said, see if Steve will eat it. Well, one bite, and he was shoveling with both hands! So everyone decided they liked it and it went into the rotation.

Certainly something that's given me pleasure all my life. I even worked in a cooking school for a couple of years.

Posted by: Wenda at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (UIfeN)

52 Was just thinking about a drum kit I got as a Christmas present when I was maybe 4. Pretty much a toy, but it had a kick, snare, a tom and a cymbal. Maybe tried it out a handful of times, but the folks were not exactly nurturing in that arena...

Posted by: Joe Kidd at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (nbLIj)

53 I was a Girl Scout back in the day, and still have my sash with patches on the front and half of the back. The work for those instilled some interests, increased my enthusiasm for others, and definitely ruled out others. I can't remember a time I wasn't making something: art, music, textiles, ornaments, etc. and that eventually led into cooking and baking. But I definitely recall that big box of crayola crayons and just being so excited about all the different colors.

Posted by: The Grateful - Acta Non Verba at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (IQ6Gq)

54 For a brief time in the '80s I had a couple of guns; a Ruger Single-Six convertible Peacemaker clone, .22LR/.22 short/.22 Magnum, and a Remington Nylon 66 .22LR rifle. We would drive out to a wilderness area in southern MS and fire away down into a big sandy pit at bottles and (if we could afford them and ammo too) clay targets. Once we brought a half-dozen honeydew melons. Those exploded nicely, but attracted wasps!

In '86 I sold them both, not sure why, and have been thinking about getting back into target and self-defense shooting in recent years. Now and then I drop in on the Gun Thread. But so many of you are so much more knowledgeable about weapons that I feel outclassed!

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (wzUl9)

55 Maybe tried it out a handful of times, but the folks were not exactly nurturing in that arena...
Posted by: Joe Kidd at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (nbLIj)

Oh! I wanted to play drums, when we were all being sorted for band in 5th grade. I had the best rhythm score of all my classmates.

Mom said no way. I guess with five kids, the house was noisy enough.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 06:14 PM (h7ZuX)

56 >>Agreed. I do it several times a week. Well, Puget Sound. Not quite the ocean, but it’s salty and cold. And there’s whales swimming around.

Any body of water that has whales qualifies.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:14 PM (viF8m)

57 I would like someone else to take some of them now because I have no little girls to give them to.
Posted by: FenelonSpoke

Please don’t give them away. Your son is young and may get married someday. And perhaps
You have a granddaughter.

I have a collection of original Madame Alexander dolls. They are in a box. I am hoping someday to give them to a granddaughter. Or they will get donated when I go.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at June 13, 2026 06:15 PM (/+SQR)

58 I started collecting dolls when I was a girl because my mother had dolls before me. The oldest dolls are from the 1800's from my grandmother. One of my favorites is Queen Elizabeth I from an actual portrait , I think, and she has little fake pearls sewn all over her outfits I also treasure one of a little Jewish boy in a yarmulke lighting candles and a Red Riding Hood Doll which you flip over to get a doll of grandma, and then when you move her head kerchief you get the wolf. It's a very clever idea.

I would like someone else to take some of them now because I have no little girls to give them to.
Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026

***
My mother owned a big doll she'd been given as a girl, in the early 1920s. It spoke when it was new -- it once had a little disk inside, like a record player, that would play a couple of recorded lines. The doll's face was not plastic, but a kind of china that had cracked a little over the decades.

I saw it more than once as a kid and young man, but I didn't find it when I cleared her place out after she passed. Perhaps she had given it away earlier.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:15 PM (wzUl9)

59 The best advice I learned about water skiing was from a high school boyfriend's dad. He said to "follow the boat".

Posted by: Mrs. Leggy at June 13, 2026 06:17 PM (dyL4B)

60 My main hobby/obsession is reading and that interest began early. The desire to understand those squiggly marks next to the pictures in my story books combined a child's curiosity, encouragement from the adults in my life, and a desire to seem older. Reading was seen as an adult activity and, like most little boys, I wanted to do grown up things.

Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 06:18 PM (yTvNw)

61 >>>Odd that I never learned to drive until I was almost 23. (My father refused to teach me, let alone help me buy a car, and my mother never learned to drive.)

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere

>I learned to drive when I was 6 years old on my great uncle's farm. He had me driving the tractor while he followed behind. He was a little off because he had been struck by lightning twice, but the big rule was to stay away from the PTO.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at June 13, 2026 06:18 PM (SRceu)

62 Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:15 PM (wzUl9

That's really interesting. I have not heard of a doll with a disc inside from that long ago.

I also have a hand made dollhouse with lots of furniture but I don't think girls even play with dollhouses anymore . They're mostly on their cell phones, I suspect.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:19 PM (ix8EF)

63 Fen my aunt had a big doll collection, Ithink she unloaded many but still has a few. Some were very old.

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 06:19 PM (Ia/+0)

64 Outstanding! Wonder how many among the horde are or have been joggers. The pounding on my knees is too much, so I stick the the elliptical.
Posted by: TRex - running in circles dino at June 13, 2026 05:59 PM (IQ6Gq)

I was a very good runner as a kid and in the Army. I've always liked it, but I haven't jogged for quite some time. On the plus side, I have no chronic joint pain, weird since I am 60. I can jog a bit, like when I am trying to catch the traffic light before it changes. i need to pepper my walks with a bit of light jogging.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 06:20 PM (0aYVJ)

65 Oh! Another thing I collected as a boy was the series of Hartland TV Western figurines. They'd be called "action figures" today, though the mounted ones like Cheyenne, the Lone Ranger, Tonto, and Roy Rogers were rigid figures. Their "Gunfighters" series were the standing figures with swiveling arms -- the chest was hollow, and a rubber band fitted around hooks at the arms and allowed them to move. Those included Bret Maverick, Bat Masterson (complete with cane and derby hat), Paladin, and more.

They were all about eight inches tall, beautifully painted, and sometimes even resembled the actors in the face.

I had a great number of them. My mother kept them in storage in our apartment, and it's one of the great regrets of my life that I didn't take at least some of them with me when I cleaned her place out. Not only are they nostalgic, they are worth some dough on eBay now!

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:20 PM (wzUl9)

66 Odd that I never learned to drive until I was almost 23. (My father refused to teach me, let alone help me buy a car, and my mother never learned to drive.)

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere
----
Eh...I didn't learn to drive until I was 23 either. I didn't own a car until I was 26.

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 06:22 PM (gnNyN)

67 That's really interesting. I have not heard of a doll with a disc inside from that long ago.

I also have a hand made dollhouse with lots of furniture but I don't think girls even play with dollhouses anymore . They're mostly on their cell phones, I suspect.
Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026

***
I'm pretty sure it was that old, Fen. Mom was born in 1916, and this was the kind of doll you'd give a girl age 12 or younger, I suppose. Her family was not wealthy, so I guess it was a major outlay of cash, or someone gave it to her as a birthday or Christmas present.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:23 PM (wzUl9)

68 Slot cars are making a bit of a comeback. Mostly with older dudes who haven't the room at home to setup a track... and have a wife who's not into a bunch of drunks living vicariously through a toy car.

But... some of the tracks that are setup in VFW's or the like are pretty impressive.

Then, there's the people who build scale model racetracks like Road America down to the smallest detail.

The hobby has passed me by.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at June 13, 2026 06:24 PM (jehhT)

69 Every time I tried water-skiing I was pulled up, over, and dragged behind the boat. I was never able to get my feet under me to stand up and after nearly being drowned three times, gave it up and never looked back. Did macrame while in middle school when that was the coming thing, also making belts and vests out of discarded soda/beer pull-tabs. The folks paid for piano lessons while I was young but found it too expensive and dropped it, which was a shame. And I've always drawn and painted and been into reading since I can remember...

Posted by: tankascribe at June 13, 2026 06:25 PM (NtoJk)

70 My sister had a Mrs. Beasley doll, as seen in Family Affair. I was always vaguely creeped out by it.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 06:25 PM (0aYVJ)

71 Posted by: nurse ratched. at June 13, 2026

I have some Madame Alexander dolls as well. One of my happiest memories was going
to a big doll museum at an Old Victorian House in a town nearby which had several floors of dolls. The woman who owned it became a friend of my mother and me. She liked Madame Alexander dolls.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:25 PM (ix8EF)

72 Odd that I never learned to drive until I was almost 23. (My father refused to teach me, let alone help me buy a car, and my mother never learned to drive.)

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere
----
Eh...I didn't learn to drive until I was 23 either. I didn't own a car until I was 26.
Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026

***
When I think of all the dating opportunities I missed, esp. in college, I could throw a rock at something. Cute girls were everywhere on campus, and they *wanted* to meet boys (unlike today) -- but they didn't want to ride on buses. My parents grew up in the era when you met and married somebody in your neighborhood and didn't need a car. But, as I told them in exasperation, it wasn't like that any more.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:26 PM (wzUl9)

73 >I learned to drive when I was 6 years old on my great uncle's farm. He had me driving the tractor while he followed behind. He was a little off because he had been struck by lightning twice, but the big rule was to stay away from the PTO.

Ha! I was a bit older than 6 when dad told me to get the tractor, no explanation or instruction, just go get it.

The only rule was stay away from the PTO.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:26 PM (viF8m)

74 Thank you TRex for two years of wonderful topics to explore.

I would have to say my youthful hobby of horses turned into a lifelong profession. Learning to use the forge for horseshoeing turned into creative metalwork.

The woodworking and sculpting are my hobbies now. I saw a beautiful piece of wood from a cut down tree in town that I am lusting after to be a base for a cat tree.

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:27 PM (5P5DO)

75 Happy Anniversary, TRex! Grateful for all that you do!

Posted by: tankascribe at June 13, 2026 06:27 PM (NtoJk)

76 I was a very good runner as a kid and in the Army. I've always liked it, but I haven't jogged for quite some time. On the plus side, I have no chronic joint pain, weird since I am 60. I can jog a bit, like when I am trying to catch the traffic light before it changes. i need to pepper my walks with a bit of light jogging.
Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026

***
In the savage heat here, I call my early early morning workout the "Bataan Death March."

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:28 PM (wzUl9)

77
My sister had a Mrs. Beasley doll, as seen in Family Affair. I was always vaguely creeped out by it.
Posted by: Pug Mahon

Must have been the glasses.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 06:29 PM (Cqx++)

78 Thanks, TRex for all your work over the past two years. The picture was cute as well.

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:29 PM (ix8EF)

79 I learned to drive while helping my father peddle milk (yes, he was a milkman). The truck was a standard shift and once, while parked on an uphill incline, I started rolling backwards - slammed on the brakes and broke about 20 glass quart bottles of milk (the good old days when milk was in glass bottles) For some strange reason, Dad didn't kill me.

Posted by: Admirale's Mate at June 13, 2026 06:33 PM (/enuJ)

80 Fenelon, my childhood doll house furniture was how I discovered eBay. I bought it as a child with nickels and dimes, and one day I typed in the brand, Renwal, and that led me to eBay, and pages and pages of my furniture. Still for only a few dollars.

So we set up my dollhouse plus furniture in a niche off the living room, and my grandkids played with it from babyhood on. When something breaks, I replace it. They're mostly college now, but when they visit, they arrange and rearrange the furniture.

Posted by: Wenda at June 13, 2026 06:34 PM (UIfeN)

81 Rex you do put up great threads every week, can't be easy

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 06:34 PM (Ia/+0)

82 44 Any room for a race track in your train layout?

Hmm, interesting idea. The layout is 1968 Germany, so at a minimum I could have a rally scene - I have the proper 1/87 scale cars . . . .

Did jog for decades, but have switched to daily walking as the main activity, unfortunately - do miss the running. Being 29 isn't what it used to be.

Posted by: Patches at June 13, 2026 06:35 PM (338iJ)

83 74 Thank you TRex for two years of wonderful topics to explore.
Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:27 PM

75 Happy Anniversary, TRex! Grateful for all that you do!
Posted by: tankascribe at June 13, 2026 06:27 PM

78 Thanks, TRex for all your work over the past two years.
Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:29 PM
***
Thanks all! Much appreciated. Thanks for being here!

Posted by: TRex - cake-enabled dino at June 13, 2026 06:36 PM (IQ6Gq)

84 JackStraw, how did you get into sailing?

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:36 PM (5P5DO)

85 2 years - congrats, TRex!
Hobbies, I’ve had a few..

Posted by: RI Red at June 13, 2026 06:37 PM (h8Bsl)

86 81 Rex you do put up great threads every week, can't be easy

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 06:34 PM
***
Thanks Skip! Appreciate you checking in every week!

Posted by: TRex - camp counselor dino at June 13, 2026 06:37 PM (IQ6Gq)

87 "slammed on the brakes and broke about 20 glass quart bottles of milk (the good old days when milk was in glass bottles) For some strange reason, Dad didn't kill me.
Posted by: Admirale's Mate"

What do you want to bet Dad did it ONCE too?

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 06:38 PM (vFG9F)

88 Steady 10-knot winds with gusts to 18, not to mention wild swells from the northwest and bright sunshine.

It was a day made for sailing, and the little ship handled it marvelously without a single hardware hiccup.

Now it's drinking time!

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 06:38 PM (XjKiU)

89 Fenelon, my childhood doll house furniture was how I discovered eBay. I bought it as a child with nickels and dimes, and one day I typed in the brand, Renwal, and that led me to eBay, and pages and pages of my furniture. Still for only a few dollars. . . .

Posted by: Wenda at June 13, 2026

***
Renwal? They used to make plastic model kits in the Sixties too. Their specialty was kits with a cutaway or visible pane. They had a ballistic missile sub kit with half the hull cut away so that you could see the interior parts you'd painted and assembled, the decks, reactor, missiles tubes, and everything. And I believe they were the ones with the Visible Man and Visible Woman kits, the clear plastic outer shells with the human organs in different colors inside.

Interesting to think they made, or make, dollhouse furniture.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:38 PM (wzUl9)

90 Historicon war game convention in a month, can't wait.

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 06:41 PM (Ia/+0)

91 85 2 years - congrats, TRex!

Posted by: RI Red at June 13, 2026 06:37 PM
***
Thanks! and thanks for checking in.

Posted by: TRex - density altitude dino at June 13, 2026 06:41 PM (IQ6Gq)

92 Cicero, same question to you. What made you choose sailing?

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:43 PM (5P5DO)

93 Now it's drinking time!
Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43)
*********
NOW? You're over an hour later, but welcome to the party!

Posted by: The Grateful - Acta Non Verba at June 13, 2026 06:43 PM (IQ6Gq)

94 In Linda's research into my genealogy, we found that my father had a small crackup in a Model T Ford when he was a young man (ca. 1925). He flipped it over and landed in a ditch. The event was mentioned in the local paper, though he apparently wasn't charged. No wonder he disliked driving over 35 mph.

My fiancee, later Mrs. Wolfus No. 1, taught me to drive. She inherited a tiny bit of money and bought a car, a new Ford Maverick sedan, and I learned on that. Not two years later I was driving an Econoline van for the Purolator Courier people. When I think back, I'm amazed.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:44 PM (wzUl9)

95 Oh, eBay has the guy Renwal stuff, too. If you want to know the difference between how girls and boys play, the dollhouse furniture is a few dollars because there's lots of it. The boys trucks are usually over $50 because so few of them survived!

Posted by: Wenda at June 13, 2026 06:45 PM (UIfeN)

96 When I was in sixth grade, in Sacramento CA, the guy that taught us science, just out of the blue, gave me the visible V-8 kit to put together and bring back. I did, with help from dad, and showed it to the class and then he gave it back to me. That was a cool teacher.

Then I got a Wankle kit and did that. Since then I have assembled many real motors.

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 06:46 PM (vFG9F)

97 The Grateful, I do consider reading the hobby thread and drinking wine a hobby!
Cheers

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:46 PM (5P5DO)

98 >> JackStraw, how did you get into sailing?

My parents were sailors. My early years were on Long Island Sound and they took me and my sister sailing before we could walk. It took with me.

My mom was a bit of anomaly for her time. Very smart but an even better athlete. I was her co-conspirator when it came to bending rules and doing things we loved. And she loved the ocean.

I have a very cool mom.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:47 PM (viF8m)

99 When I was in sixth grade, in Sacramento CA, the guy that taught us science, just out of the blue, gave me the visible V-8 kit to put together and bring back. I did, with help from dad, and showed it to the class and then he gave it back to me. That was a cool teacher.

Then I got a Wankle kit and did that. Since then I have assembled many real motors.
Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026

***
Right, the Visible V-8! I remember that one.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:47 PM (wzUl9)

100 Posted by: Wenda at June 13, 2026 06:34 PM

Good to know that your grandkids are still enjoying it!

Posted by: FenelonSpoke at June 13, 2026 06:48 PM (PFs9e)

101 I make candles out of old stained wine glasses. Not because it is fun, but because I do not like the scent of most candles, and I think the wine glass shape looks great.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at June 13, 2026 06:48 PM (PLxDd)

102 I have a real hard time saying "no" to my youngest, but I might be able to muster it up for drums.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at June 13, 2026 06:49 PM (BI5O2)

103 Cicero, same question to you. What made you choose sailing?
Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:43 PM (5P5DO)

-----------

I was a committed surfer in my teens and early college years. I took up sailing on small boats (lasers and sabots) in my late teens, which was just riding waves of air instead of water. I had a nice Ericson sailboat in my early professional years.

Then I moved away from the water, raised a family, and didn't return to sailing until a few years ago. I bought a beautiful little boat last year and I'm smitten all over again.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 06:50 PM (XjKiU)

104 53 I was a Girl Scout back in the day, and still have my sash with patches on the front and half of the back. The work for those instilled some interests, increased my enthusiasm for others, and definitely ruled out others.
Posted by: The Grateful - Acta Non Verba at June 13, 2026 06:11 PM (IQ6Gq)

I was never a girl scout, but I was in 4-H, and that gave me opportunities to explore lots of different things. Sewing, of course, but also photography, floral arrangement (which helped me pay my way through college), baking, gardening, painting, lotsa stuff.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 06:50 PM (h7ZuX)

105 JackStraw, your mom loves horses too so she is super cool in my book.

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 06:50 PM (5P5DO)

106 "Right, the Visible V-8! I remember that one.
Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere"

The pistons went up and down, valves opened and closed, and the spark plugs fired. If you paid any attention it would demonstrate the 4 stroke cycle.

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 06:51 PM (vFG9F)

107 My early years were on Long Island Sound...

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:47 PM (viF8m)

Mine too!

Rye, Rowayton, New Rochelle...anywhere we could rent something fun!

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at June 13, 2026 06:51 PM (PLxDd)

108 I was never a girl scout, but I was in 4-H, and that gave me opportunities to explore lots of different things. Sewing, of course, but also photography, floral arrangement (which helped me pay my way through college), baking, gardening, painting, lotsa stuff.
Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026

***
As has often been said, I was many things, but I was never a Boy Scout.

Posted by: Adm. J.T. Kirk, Ret., Star Fleet at June 13, 2026 06:52 PM (wzUl9)

109 I started coin collecting when I was a kid and continued off and on through adulthood. Also collected trapper pocketknives as a kid.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 06:52 PM (GseMx)

110 I did a SOTA hike this morning, before it got too hot. Got a few contacts on 20m and 30m, as well as a few locals on 2m. Came back to town and had a burger for lunch; it was good but very salty and now I'm carrying about 5 lbs of water weight.

Posted by: PabloD at June 13, 2026 06:52 PM (K1RVP)

111 Wolfus when you get moved, make a trip to the Austik, Cord and Deusenberg museum in Austin Indiana.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 06:53 PM (zZu0s)

112 >>JackStraw, your mom loves horses too so she is super cool in my book.

You two would have gotten along very well.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:54 PM (viF8m)

113 Auburn, not Austin. I am still fucking sick.

Auburn, Cord and Deusenberg Museum in Auburn, IN.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 06:54 PM (zZu0s)

114 Cheers Ben Had!

Posted by: The Grateful - Acta Non Verba at June 13, 2026 06:54 PM (IQ6Gq)

115 Excellent, PabloD!

Posted by: sock_rat_eez at June 13, 2026 06:55 PM (VyBeY)

116 Auburn, not Austin. I am still fucking sick.

Auburn, Cord and Deusenberg Museum in Auburn, IN.
Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026

***
Definitely. I consider the Cord 812 to be one of the most beautiful cars of any era. In '65 I built AMT's 1/12 scale model of an 812 roadster. I wish I'd kept it.

Posted by: Adm. J.T. Kirk, Ret., Star Fleet at June 13, 2026 06:56 PM (wzUl9)

117 >>Rye, Rowayton, New Rochelle...anywhere we could rent something fun!

Home port was New Rochelle.

We should do a northeast meet up on Block Island. That would be a hoot.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 06:57 PM (viF8m)

118 The rain has finally stopped here. Maybe we'll go out to eat, though I can't think of a place that won't require me to take out a personal loan.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:57 PM (wzUl9)

119 For Wolfus. Per the DM

"Homebuyers priced out of America's most expensive housing markets are increasingly setting their sights on an unlikely Midwest destination.

Topeka in Kansas has emerged as one of the nation's most affordable housing markets"

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 06:58 PM (vFG9F)

120 I got my atlas of imaginary places off the shelf (started it in 7th grade) and I'm adding another map to it. I'm not fussy about scale or accuracy -- who's to say how it should be?

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at June 13, 2026 06:58 PM (kpS4V)

121 Auburn, not Austin. I am still fucking sick.

Auburn, Cord and Deusenberg Museum in Auburn, IN.
Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026

***
Definitely. I consider the Cord 812 to be one of the most beautiful cars of any era. In '65 I built AMT's 1/12 scale model of an 812 roadster. I wish I'd kept it.
Posted by: Adm. J.T. Kirk, Ret., Star Fleet at June 13, 2026 06:56 PM (wzUl9)

American Pickers have come across all three.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 06:58 PM (GseMx)

122 "Homebuyers priced out of America's most expensive housing markets are increasingly setting their sights on an unlikely Midwest destination.

Topeka in Kansas has emerged as one of the nation's most affordable housing markets"
Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026

***
Salina's homes were affordable. The property taxes and home insurance were not.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 06:58 PM (wzUl9)

123 My main hobby is model railroading. The family Lionel train under the Christmas tree was the spark. Thanks to Dad who built a train table, bought an HO scale train set, laid the track and wired it and turned me loose at the age of 6. Fishing is the other big interest - bass, panfish, and some trout fishing. There was a park with a pond about 3/4 mile from our house where I first lived so I'd ride my bike there to fish for bluegill. (Who let's a 7 year old ride that far today to hang out in a park near water where they could fall in?). Also picked up the guitar when I was about 10, thanks to a future brother-in-law who gave me a guitar he's bought in Mexico. He also gave me a copy of a book and LP record "Folksinger's Guitar Guide" by Pete Seeger. Yes, an unrepentant commie, but I learned guitar basics from him.

Posted by: George V at June 13, 2026 06:59 PM (HUbHH)

124 Topeka in Kansas has emerged as one of the nation's most affordable housing markets"
Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026

I would like a ranking list of the most livable capital cities.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:01 PM (GseMx)

125 Baton Rouge has to be close to the bottom of the list.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:02 PM (GseMx)

126 My grandfather whom I never met was a railroader. My dad had some and me as well when I was a kid. Always thought if I didn't get into war gaming it would have been railroads

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 07:03 PM (Ia/+0)

127 I'll always remember Topeka for one thing: a horrible diner called The Roost, under the interstate. I was maybe 8 or 9. The food was awful, so I picked at it for awhile. The waitress became nasty and tried demanding I finish it. My parents hustled us out, and then we had to dodge giant cockroaches in the parking lot.

I'm sure there's more to Topeka than that, but I made it a point to never learn about it.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at June 13, 2026 07:03 PM (BI5O2)

128 Congratulations and a mighty thank you for two years of hostink the hobby thread.

Reaches out to shake hands....thinks better of it...,

I enjoyed the merit badges. I still have most of my scout stuff including a largeish collection of patches and mugs from the early '70s and prior mostly Gulf Stream Council, Florida

Need to figure out what to do with the mugs....send them to a MoMeet for target practice? I doubt any of the patches or mugs has any real value...

Posted by: Anonymous Rogue in Kalifornistan (ARiK's Phone) at June 13, 2026 07:03 PM (QGaXH)

129 Probably need to go with smaller cities. Wolfus, have you looked at Lancaster, Ohio? Though, with the growth of Columbus, Lancaster might be getting priced out soon. Maybe Newark, or Circleville.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 07:04 PM (h7ZuX)

130 I would like a ranking list of the most livable capital cities.
Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:01 PM (GseMx)

I am pretty happy in Boise. Is it perfect? Hell no. But it beats the hell out of where we moved from (Front Range, Colorado). The city government is the biggest problem, not county or state level. The mayor is a Karen transplant from Massachusetts. Never bothered to remember her name.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:04 PM (0aYVJ)

131
"Salina's homes were affordable. The property taxes and home insurance were not.

The article goes on to say:

"Kansas homeowners pay some of the highest insurance premiums in the country because of the state's elevated storm risk, according to Bankrate.

Meanwhile, NerdWallet estimates annual homeowners insurance costs can exceed $5,000 depending on the property and coverage levels"

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 07:04 PM (vFG9F)

132 The Station Agent was a good movie. It was where I learned there were train watchers.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:05 PM (GseMx)

133 I would like a ranking list of the most livable capital cities.
Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:01 PM
***
Top five per Grok:

Bismarck (ND), Lincoln (NE), Oklahoma City (OK), and Springfield (IL) or Jefferson City (MO)

Posted by: TRex - relocation dino at June 13, 2026 07:05 PM (IQ6Gq)

134 Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:04 PM (0aYVJ)

What college is in Boise?

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (GseMx)

135 Muncie indiana is where mammaw and pappaw lived up until I was about 20. I did love that house. They lived on the edge of town and where farmland began. I am pretty sure I do not want to look on Google street view and look at it now.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (zZu0s)

136 Those merit badges really take me back.

Some were a cinch, some were a real sweat.

Scouting - killed off and worn like a skinsuit by the left. Looking at you Rex Tillerson.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (RIvkX)

137 I did a SOTA hike this morning, before it got too hot. Got a few contacts on 20m and 30m, as well as a few locals on 2m.

Posted by: PabloD at June 13, 2026 06:52 PM (K1RVP)

This stuff is just ridiculously cool!

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (PLxDd)

138 North Dakota. Where there are only a few strands of barbed wire and a couple sheep between you and the arctic circle.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (zZu0s)

139 What college is in Boise?

-------

You never heard of Boise University of the Barren Frozen Wastelands?

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (XjKiU)

140 Posted by: TRex - relocation dino at June 13, 2026 07:05 PM (IQ6Gq)

Hmm. I might have to disagree with Grok on a couple of those.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (GseMx)

141
Probably need to go with smaller cities. Wolfus, have you looked at Lancaster, Ohio? Though, with the growth of Columbus, Lancaster might be getting priced out soon. Maybe Newark, or Circleville.
Posted by: Dash my lace wigs!

Van Wert

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (Cqx++)

142 Wolfus,

Topeka has some good spots, but best to live outside the city.

I kept my insurance down by bundling my two car insurance into the house insurance, and having a high deductible for the house. Before I got the new roof from hail damage, I had half of my high deductible for hail. I asked the underwriters what the big hazard was in Kansas.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:09 PM (u82oZ)

143 You never heard of Boise University of the Barren Frozen Wastelands?
Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (XjKiU)

Now that I think of it they have the blue football field right?

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:09 PM (GseMx)

144 Van Wert
Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (Cqx++)

Gnaw Bone, Indiana. Look it up.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:10 PM (zZu0s)

145 Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (zZu0s)

I visited my childhood town near Pittsburgh after 20 years away, for a funeral.

It was crazy. It got so bad all I could do was laugh.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at June 13, 2026 07:10 PM (BI5O2)

146 I've got merit badges in both sailing and canoeing. So I've got that going for me.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at June 13, 2026 07:10 PM (RIvkX)

147 What college is in Boise?
Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:07 PM (GseMx)

Boise State U. I work a few blocks from the campus. Good school, I suppose, but, well it's a university, so, yeah, plenty of woke-waves emanating outward, but far less than CSU in Fort Collins. There is a pretty good science and engineering thing going on.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:11 PM (0aYVJ)

148 I guess reading is a hobby. I managed to borrow a copy of Madam Foreman , Armanda Copley's book about her experience as a juror on the OJ trial. I had to get it from the Orange County (CA) library inter library loan program and the actual physical book came from the University of Miami Law library in Coral Gables, Florida.

They shipped it across the country to me. Free!

Posted by: Anonymous Rogue in Kalifornistan (ARiK's Phone) at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM (QGaXH)

149 Blue turf in Boise.

Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM (BI5O2)

150 I grew up in Lake Charles,LA. I have to admit it has progressed rather than regress.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM (GseMx)

151 TRex - relocation dino

I regard any relocation list with an Illinois city or town to be very suspect. Ask SMH how glad they were to leave rural IL for rural MO.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM (u82oZ)

152 It was crazy. It got so bad all I could do was laugh.
Posted by: Yudhishthira's Dice at June 13, 2026 07:10 PM (BI5O2)

There were three huge trees in front of their house. An Oak, an Ash and a Hickory. Supposedly the new owners immediately cut down the oak and hickory (the nuts could be a pain.)

But it would kind of ruin it. The whole front yard was shaded by this cathedral of limbs.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:13 PM (zZu0s)

153 Hobby but not theme related. CBD had a couple of paintings on the art thread this week that used the Pointillist technique. I found the process interesting and looked at some instructional videos. Turns out it can be done with anything that leaves a mark: graphite, ink, pastels, any kind of paint. Tried some pencils, just experimenting to see how it went. I was surprised at the way texture and highlights could be done only with dots. The effect, in the hands of an artist (which I'm not), would be different and effective, especially in monotone. But it is slow and a LOT of effort.

Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 07:13 PM (yTvNw)

154 >>Boise State U. I work a few blocks from the campus. Good school, I suppose, but, well it's a university, so, yeah, plenty of woke-waves emanating outward, but far less than CSU in Fort Collins. There is a pretty good science and engineering thing going on.

Boise State has a blue football field. At first I was opposed. Now I love it. And I have idea why.

Posted by: JackStraw at June 13, 2026 07:14 PM (viF8m)

155 They shipped it across the country to me. Free!
Posted by: Anonymous Rogue in Kalifornistan (ARiK's Phone) at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM (QGaXH)

---------

You do have to write a book report, right?

Minimum three pages, single-spaced.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:14 PM (XjKiU)

156 Van Wert
Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 07:08 PM (Cqx++)

Yeah! Or Van Wert!

A lot of these smaller cities still feel small-town, but have nice coffee shops and museums and festivals. I don't personally want to live in town, anywhere, anymore, but Lancaster is a lovely town.

I want acres, now.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 07:14 PM (h7ZuX)

157 Been through Gnaw Bone many times over the years.

Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 07:16 PM (Cqx++)

158 Baton Rouge has to be close to the bottom of the list.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026

***
It used to be a rather dull college town. Then Katrina happened, and the dregs of the Swamp -- criminals and wannabes, plus their hangers-on -- fled and infested BR.

As if that weren't enough, the streets are poorly paved and choked with traffic. I can't wait to not go there ever again.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 07:16 PM (wzUl9)

159 Phoenix is a good state capital. Carson City isn't bad. I've never been to Juneau but I hear good things. Both Juneau and Carson City are hard to get to.

Posted by: San Franpsycho at June 13, 2026 07:17 PM (RIvkX)

160 Now that I think of it they have the blue football field right?
Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:09 PM (GseMx)

Yup. Sometimes referred to as Smurf Turf. The Broncos usually have pretty decent football team, as well as basketball. Kellen Moore was the QB, and broke the wins-record for BSU. He's an NFL coach now. And, of course, he has car dealerships in the Treasure Valley.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:17 PM (0aYVJ)

161 Dash, I am so spoiled by sitting on 60 acres with no neighbors.

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 07:17 PM (5P5DO)

162 151 I regard any relocation list with an Illinois city or town to be very suspect. Ask SMH how glad they were to leave rural IL for rural MO.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:12 PM
***
Agreed, but Grok is just comparing cost of living index and median home prices to other US capital cities. It isn't assessing Illinois more broadly or using other criteria.

Posted by: TRex - relocation dino at June 13, 2026 07:18 PM (IQ6Gq)

163 My hobby is finding cool stuff. I had a huge cowboy collection - toys, bedding, clothes, dishes, and books with all the early tv cowboys. I sold it so I had a down payment for a house. I used to collect antique and vintage linens and have about 20 totes full.
I now have a booth in an antiques and collectibles mall so I can slowly divest of my own stuff plus fun things I pick up here and there. In itself a fun hobby that keeps me busy.

Posted by: SnailRacer at June 13, 2026 07:18 PM (Z2BHt)

164 I was at a college debate tourney circa 1990 and one of my judges was from McNeese state. As i recall, the round devolved into when the Sun would go nova. Anyways, McNeese is in Lake Chuck and she sounded like she was native.

Posted by: Dark L at June 13, 2026 07:18 PM (DZ9Lv)

165 SnailRacer, hello, my darlin.

Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 07:19 PM (5P5DO)

166 161 Dash, I am so spoiled by sitting on 60 acres with no neighbors.
Posted by: Ben Had at June 13, 2026 07:17 PM (5P5DO)

Oh, for sure. I grew up on about that (well, we had neighbors, but lots of hiking wooded acres for me. As soon as I was 18, I was out of there! To the big city! Now, I want nothing more than a similar 60 acres.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 07:19 PM (h7ZuX)

167 polynikes

Before I entered the Service, I flew into Heathrow. Was next to some very knowledgeable and obsessive plane watchers.

A PAO friend at a Naval Airstation in the US regaled me with stories of plane watchers tracking USN aircraft.

Later, I learned Intel agencies reached out to the community.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:19 PM (u82oZ)

168 Helena Montana is a nice capital city, but my son, who lives there, says it's really hard to find a good steak dinner. He goes to Townsend to get a good steak dinner. Helena is kind of weird.

Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:20 PM (0aYVJ)

169 Anyone know how Charleston WV is?

WV was once an option on my retirement list.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:20 PM (GseMx)

170 163 I now have a booth in an antiques and collectibles mall so I can slowly divest of my own stuff plus fun things I pick up here and there. In itself a fun hobby that keeps me busy.

Posted by: SnailRacer at June 13, 2026 07:18 PM
***
Very fun!

Posted by: TRex - collectible dino at June 13, 2026 07:20 PM (IQ6Gq)

171 Back in the day when I was scouting, our scout master, who also happened to be the commanding officer of national guard depot, would take us down to the river with miles of islands and deer bush, and he would set up a navigation course with a series of waypoints that you had to go thru to get your merit badge. We didn't have fancy compasses like they make today. Some scouts never made it due to weather and other conditions.

Posted by: Rev. Wishbone at June 13, 2026 07:20 PM (SRceu)

172 87 "slammed on the brakes and broke about 20 glass quart bottles of milk (the good old days when milk was in glass bottles) For some strange reason, Dad didn't kill me.
Posted by: Admirale's Mate"

What do you want to bet Dad did it ONCE too?

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 06:38 PM (vFG9F)

: -) maybe, but, dad was a lot smarter than I. My grandfather also helped me learn to drive in his 54 Buick in a field in his farm. When I asked why I couldn't drive it on a road, he said, "because he didn't want it buggered up" : -)

Posted by: Admirale's Mate at June 13, 2026 07:21 PM (/enuJ)

173 I now have a booth in an antiques and collectibles mall so I can slowly divest of my own stuff plus fun things I pick up here and there. In itself a fun hobby that keeps me busy.
Posted by: SnailRacer at June 13, 2026 07:18 PM (Z2BHt)

*waves at SnailRacer, because we keep different hours here. Also, I didn't know that about you!

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 07:21 PM (h7ZuX)

174 I've never been to Juneau but I hear good things. Both Juneau and Carson City are hard to get to.

--------

Since it became a staple of cruise ship itineraries, Juneau is a conglomeration of Alaska tchotchke shops and helicopter glacier tours.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:21 PM (XjKiU)

175 In the Shell collecting Hobby three I shard how my father's hobby of capturing live4 shells and displaying them after the snail was removed snapped my life.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:21 PM (u82oZ)

176 Helena Montana is a nice capital city, but my son, who lives there, says it's really hard to find a good steak dinner. He goes to Townsend to get a good steak dinner. Helena is kind of weird.
Posted by: Pug Mahon, Born in Butte, America at June 13, 2026 07:20 PM (0aYVJ)

Legends of the Fall.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:21 PM (GseMx)

177 I wish I still had my Boy Scout sash with all the merit badges. It was impressive and I was proud of it. Lost it somewhere with all the moves over the years, dammit.

Posted by: JTB at June 13, 2026 07:22 PM (yTvNw)

178 Been through Gnaw Bone many times over the years.
Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at June 13, 2026 07:16 PM (Cqx++)

*fistbump*

I would every time I went to school in Bloomington if I went all the way up to Columbus. I started going through Uniontown as it was a lot quicker.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:22 PM (zZu0s)

179 Funny how there is no lake in Lake Charles, Lousy-ana, or at least no big one, and none called Lake Charles.

The last time I was through there on I-10, the road was horrible. Again this chance to visit a different Lousy-ana city must slip by me.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 07:22 PM (wzUl9)

180 "Some scouts never made it due to weather and other conditions.
Posted by: Rev. Wishbone"

"Other" conditions? Like, bears?

Posted by: fd at June 13, 2026 07:22 PM (vFG9F)

181 I hated anything arts & crafts, because I have no talent. I did pick up an interest in photography at about age 12 at camp. My dad got me a secondhand Canon 35mm that I still have (but I think it is broken). I took it to Russia in 1996 and came back with a few absolutely brilliant (IMO) photos, and many mediocre-to-awful photos.

The hobby I didn't pick up til college is hiking. My parents both loved the mountains but were not hikers. In those days we stuck to scenic driving and picnicking.

Today I love to hike, but rarely get to because I'm always mowing my yard, and I share my hiking photos as calendars or framed prints. My family seems to like them.

Posted by: screaming in digital at June 13, 2026 07:23 PM (lOlUK)

182 {{{SnailRacer}}}

I no longer go to antique stores. The last one would not let me leave. Had to fight my way out.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:23 PM (u82oZ)

183 Time to say thanks before the next act takes the Ace of Spades stage. Thanks for being here tonight and for the last two years. Guess we'll keep it going...

You're welcome to hang here for a while but don't forget to check in at Club ONT later.

Posted by: TRex - be prepared dino at June 13, 2026 07:24 PM (IQ6Gq)

184 You're welcome to hang here for a while but don't forget to check in at Club ONT later.

---------

Pfft. I can never get past the big dude at the door.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:25 PM (XjKiU)

185 Time to say thanks before the next act takes the Ace of Spades stage. Thanks for being here tonight and for the last two years. Guess we'll keep it going...

You're welcome to hang here for a while but don't forget to check in at Club ONT later.
Posted by: TRex - be prepared dino at June 13, 2026 07:24 PM (IQ6Gq)
----
Thanks for being such a gracious host!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 07:25 PM (gnNyN)

186 I no longer go to antique stores. The last one would not let me leave. Had to fight my way out.
Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:23 PM (u82oZ)

Seems like they've all gotten that way, for me. Bastages.

Posted by: Dash my lace wigs! at June 13, 2026 07:26 PM (h7ZuX)

187 Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 07:22 PM (wzUl9)

I-10 has been re-paved. The lake you see from I-10 is Lake Charles. A connecting lake is Prien Lake. I actually did a painting of Prien Lake with a view of the I2-10 Bridge.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:26 PM (GseMx)

188 Thanks TRex.

Posted by: Aetius451AD work phone at June 13, 2026 07:27 PM (zZu0s)

189 184 Pfft. I can never get past the big dude at the door.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero43) at June 13, 2026 07:25 PM
***
Try giving him a Club ONT restroom token. That usually works. If not, ask the Moose for the spare key for the door around back.

Posted by: TRex - club ont DJ dino at June 13, 2026 07:27 PM (IQ6Gq)

190 and now I have to go finish mowing, but will come back to read all the comments during the movie thread.

Congrats on 2 years of hobby threading, TRex! Many weeks I've opened the hobby thread, read the theme, and thought, "I'm not at all interested in THAT" only to find myself engrossed just moments later. Thank you!

Posted by: screaming in digital at June 13, 2026 07:27 PM (lOlUK)

191 190 Many weeks I've opened the hobby thread, read the theme, and thought, "I'm not at all interested in THAT" only to find myself engrossed just moments later. Thank you!

Posted by: screaming in digital at June 13, 2026 07:27 PM
***
What a marvelous comment. Thank you.

Posted by: TRex - random interests dino at June 13, 2026 07:29 PM (IQ6Gq)

192 Got to go.

Tornado warning, and I am in the box. Maybe 7 minutes away.

Have a great rest of the weekend.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:29 PM (u82oZ)

193 Tornado warning, and I am in the box. Maybe 7 minutes away.

Have a great rest of the weekend.
Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:29 PM (u82oZ)
----
Stay safe!

Posted by: "Perfessor" Squirrel at June 13, 2026 07:30 PM (gnNyN)

194 Posted by: NaCly Dog at June 13, 2026 07:29 PM (u82oZ)

Stay safe.

Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026 07:30 PM (GseMx)

195 WE HAZ A MOVIE MARQUE NOOD

Posted by: Skip at June 13, 2026 07:32 PM (Ia/+0)

196 Thank you for the hobby thread, T Rex. It’s always a fun read, even if I have nothing to contribute.

Posted by: nurse ratched. at June 13, 2026 07:32 PM (A5RD0)

197 I-10 has been re-paved. The lake you see from I-10 is Lake Charles. A connecting lake is Prien Lake. I actually did a painting of Prien Lake with a view of the I2-10 Bridge.
Posted by: polynikes at June 13, 2026

***
I recall being told in jr. high that there was no "Lake Charles." Either my teacher was wrong, or I am misremembering.

I'm glad I-1o has been repaved, but I wonder how long it will last before the inevitable potholes, worn patches, cracks, and fault blocks appear.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 07:33 PM (wzUl9)

198 A tip of the chapeau to TRex, and a hearty "Stay safe!" to Salty.

Posted by: Wolfus Aurelius, Dreaming of Elsewhere at June 13, 2026 07:34 PM (wzUl9)

199 Thanks all! And best wishes for Salty. Guess dodging tornadoes counts as a hobby...

Posted by: TRex - windy dino at June 13, 2026 07:35 PM (IQ6Gq)

200 Hobby that is probably not on the Hobby Wheel is

Anime garage kits. When fans would sculpt and cast kits of their favorite anime just to build and paint them. Then folks like GP* started to actually market in fan magazines their kits for other fans to buy.

As the detail in anime has increased due to computer animation, so to has the detail and complexity of the figure kits. Back in the 1980s there might be four parts in a 1/8th scale figure, now a 1/8th scale figure might have thirty or more parts.

The summer show if the semi-annual Wonder Festival in Japan is focused just on figure kits.

*GP was named after Larry Niven's General Products. Some serious science fiction otakus. (Watche Otaku no Video to learn more.) GP would eventually become Studio Gainax which would redefine anime, over the following decades Gainax would crash and burn several times before finally shutting down.

Posted by: Anna Puma at June 13, 2026 07:36 PM (2GVsD)

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