In search of a hobby

Hey, folks! I’m going to start off by saying that I noticed something recently about my health: I haven’t had a blood pressure spike or shortness of breath in a long time. Sometimes, when I eat foods with a lot of sodium or sugar, I get a bad spike. But I haven’t had that, and it feels really great! I also haven’t been huffing and puffing by just walking up and down the stairs. My knees hurt less as well. Sometimes, it’s hard to notice things like that, since they happen so gradually. But I’m really feeling good, and I actually look like I’ve lost some weight.

So, onto the search for a hobby. I’ve mentioned this before: I have interests in a ton of things, but I am not an expert or really all that great at anything. I love playing sports, but I really need to get in better shape to take part in those. Also, most sports require human interaction, and there is this pandemic going on, in case you haven’t heard. I love playing golf, and I am actually sort of knowledgeable in that, but there are still a lot of things I do not know — and oh yeah, I am TERRIBLE at it. I also love baseball, and I know the game fairly well. But most adult teams that play for fun play softball, and I hate playing with a softball. I can throw a baseball, but a softball is just a pain in the butt to throw.

A friend suggested that I learn how to play an instrument, which is a great and fun suggestion, but my mom would kill me. The same friend had a few other suggestions for some fun things to try — though not as hobbies. I did try one — playing games with folks online — and I started playing Marbles on Stream on Twitch. That has been a lot of fun, and I’ve gotten to know several new folks while playing.

And that leads me to what I may focus on as a hobby that I can actually do during the pandemic: gaming. Waaaaaaaaaaaaay back in the day — when computers only just started popping up in homes and Windows didn’t exist — I played a lot of different games. I got to be sort of an expert. I had a PC, SNES, Atari and N64 growing up.

But then, I grew up and had to pay for things myself! The horror! The first console I bought with my own money was a Gamecube. The last console I bought was an Xbox 360. And then I fell out of gaming because I simply could not afford anything. I still have the Xbox, and I’ve played the same games on there over and over and over (mostly Oblivion, Skyrim, Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas).

But, I was able to buy a PC this year with my own money, and the first thing I did was download some games from my childhood. Now, I would love to play all those games all over again for sure. But I think that I am going to start really getting back into gaming. I love it so much, and it’s the perfect thing for someone stuck at home.

Although, I look at the specs on games and am just baffled. And the requirements on some are staggering. But I will learn! I have been playing two really popular games: PUBG and Fall Guys. Have you heard of Fall Guys? It is FUN. It is a big pile of frustration, yelling and SO MUCH FUN! PUBG is a much more challenging game that is going to take me quite a while to get any good at. But that’s the fun of gaming: conquering the game.

So, now I’m all overwhelmed by the insane number of games out there that I can play. I don’t really have money to just throw around on games, so the cost eliminates a lot of them. But I am really excited to have found something that I know I’ll have fun getting back into. I am hoping this leads to streaming on Twitch. I have been trying to order a webam, but the one I want is on back order, so who knows when I can get one.

And, one day, when the pandemic is over and I can go back outside, I will totally get back into golf. I do miss golf. Maybe by that time I’ll be physically fit enough to have a blast! And yes, I realize there is a sort of contradiction in “gaming as a hobby” and “physical fitness.” But I can totally do both!

Now, I’m going to go play Fall Guys and yell a lot. Until next time!

The Frazzled Daisy

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