Actually finished painting. It now showcases flowers! Crocheting is hard. The patterns can be hard to figure out. You lose count of loops and stitches and rows. The yarn gets in knots every five seconds.
Pinterest isn't much help when it comes to my expectations for hobby-ing. I've rationalized my need to buy more craft paint and yarn based on the idea that these DIY projects are so easy even I can do it. I mean, the blogger said she only had a few years of experience with an electric saw before repurposing that old door into a corner shelf. I'm SURE I can pick it up quickly. I'm a fast learner - just look at my resume!
The truth is, jokes about heavy machinery aside, keeping up a successful hobby is no easy task. It used to be so simple, back in those sweet elementary school days, when eating paste could pass as a normal hobby. It was even easier in high school. Our hobbies were "hanging out with friends" and "watching TV" or "music (not necessarily playing music, mind you, just music)." All acceptable hobbies in teen society, mostly because getting more than a grunting response from a teenager is deemed a success.
Pinterest isn't much help when it comes to my expectations for hobby-ing. I've rationalized my need to buy more craft paint and yarn based on the idea that these DIY projects are so easy even I can do it. I mean, the blogger said she only had a few years of experience with an electric saw before repurposing that old door into a corner shelf. I'm SURE I can pick it up quickly. I'm a fast learner - just look at my resume!
The truth is, jokes about heavy machinery aside, keeping up a successful hobby is no easy task. It used to be so simple, back in those sweet elementary school days, when eating paste could pass as a normal hobby. It was even easier in high school. Our hobbies were "hanging out with friends" and "watching TV" or "music (not necessarily playing music, mind you, just music)." All acceptable hobbies in teen society, mostly because getting more than a grunting response from a teenager is deemed a success.
This is not so when you are in your 20's. I filled out more than my fair share of job applications post graduation and felt completely unprepared upon seeing a blank entry labeled: "Hobbies."
Dang. All this time I was out writing papers, building campaigns, and landing internships when I really should have been antiquing on Saturday mornings! Where was that in the curriculum? I would have taken a class on hobbies in a heartbeat!
Little did I know this class was only available after you were booted off campus and out into the world: Unemployment 101.
Finally, I had all the time in the world to discover my hobbies. I started crocheting, painting wine bottles (you needn't worry about where the empties came from), cooking, reading FOR PLEASURE and I even tried yoga a time or two. I balanced my activities well and was getting the chance to fill my days however I wished; doing the things I loved most. I even got really good at a few of them!
Dang. All this time I was out writing papers, building campaigns, and landing internships when I really should have been antiquing on Saturday mornings! Where was that in the curriculum? I would have taken a class on hobbies in a heartbeat!
Little did I know this class was only available after you were booted off campus and out into the world: Unemployment 101.
Finally, I had all the time in the world to discover my hobbies. I started crocheting, painting wine bottles (you needn't worry about where the empties came from), cooking, reading FOR PLEASURE and I even tried yoga a time or two. I balanced my activities well and was getting the chance to fill my days however I wished; doing the things I loved most. I even got really good at a few of them!
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.”
― A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh
Unfortunately, given the lack of funds and the daily shame from contributing nothing of significance to the world, it is difficult to retire at the age of 22. So a big girl job ended my education in the simple joys of life. I was off into the work force with the rest of the world. In all seriousness, I am thankful for the chance to prove myself in my field among my peers and am truly thrilled to venture off in my career. But I do miss the whimsy of long, free days, bouncing from one project to another, without the burden of alarm clocks and schedules.
Now my hobbies, my part-time projects, have been shuffled to the corner. Forgotten. Abandoned. But I know they are there. I see you, basket of untouched yarn! There is no need to judge me, unfinished crocheted "Zen Jacket!" I want to do these things. They are after all "what I do for fun." So then why do I fill my free hours with Law & Order reruns instead?
I say no more! I am officially recommitting myself to myself. No more excuses of being too busy or too tired. My hobbies and I are at a crossroads and I'm not gonna let myself off the hook that easily (no crochet pun intended). So with this new commitment, I will use this blog to hold myself accountable, to make sure that I am fully discovering all of my passions for life and tracking my progress along the way.
Unless you know, I get too busy or tired to blog anymore.
Now my hobbies, my part-time projects, have been shuffled to the corner. Forgotten. Abandoned. But I know they are there. I see you, basket of untouched yarn! There is no need to judge me, unfinished crocheted "Zen Jacket!" I want to do these things. They are after all "what I do for fun." So then why do I fill my free hours with Law & Order reruns instead?
I say no more! I am officially recommitting myself to myself. No more excuses of being too busy or too tired. My hobbies and I are at a crossroads and I'm not gonna let myself off the hook that easily (no crochet pun intended). So with this new commitment, I will use this blog to hold myself accountable, to make sure that I am fully discovering all of my passions for life and tracking my progress along the way.
Unless you know, I get too busy or tired to blog anymore.
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