Your unusual talents/hobbies

[Karuka]

So, I picked up a new hobby over the last week, a very ancient craft that was rendered obsolete centuries ago, and, on my return, I thought that maybe other Althanians have rare or weird things they like to do in their free time.

Anything counts, really, from coin collecting (I like to collect foreign coins when I can) to stamp collecting, any collecting, artistry, crafts, whatever.

For instance, I knit. This is not my new hobby, but it was a gateway hobby. I like soft, thick, bulky yarns that knit up fast and warm. Unnecessary, but cathartic. And giving someone a hand-knitted whatever says "love."

My new and obsolete hobby is spinning. That's the process of turning fibers (in this case, mohair) into yarn by using a drop spindle (looks kinda like a cross with a dowel running through it at a 90 degree angle).

What about you guys?

[BlackAndBlueEyes]

I suppose that my radio drama qualifies as a hobby.

Whenever I'm not playing video games or lurking around here, I'm writing scripts for 1940's and '50's style radio plays. Once they're done, me and a few friends will record the lines and I'll mix everything together and post it on the internet.

It's a lot easier than shooting movies, and since I'm not really photogenic... Yeah.

[Terminus Mortis]

Guns. Can't really name anything specific here because I cover pretty much everything. I design them, I collect them, I sell them (I work in a gun store), I help out with safety and permit courses, and me and a few friend are organizing a hunting trip some time soon.

I also practice Krav Maga and Soyac Kali.

I, too, collect foreign currency, but not just coins. I have some Iraqi dinars with Hussein still 'gracing' the front, and a burmese dollar my grandfather gave me from his service during the Korean War.

I play paintball and airsoft, both on active teams.

And, obviously, I write.

[Taskmienster]

I can pop my sternum, yeah no clue how that works. And I can drink enough beer to make someone 3 times my size (at only 120 lbs) go comatose... that is pretty much my hobby. Though I also tend to write and read philosophy zealously.

[Requiem of Insanity]

I can have rare moments where the stars align and roll 10 ones on a six sided dice...twice. (IE: I pick up ten dice and roll ten ones.)

[Fenris]

Philosophy is rapidly becoming a hobby of mine, the more I read. It's like crack, but you can major in it.

And then linguistics is probably one of my more prominent bizarre hobbies. Learning, studying, creating. I "conlang," or invent original artificial languages. Not like funky-sounding-words-you-swap-out-with-their-English-equivalents ciphers, but honest-to-goodness full grammatical, syntactical, and semantic systems. :) For any fellow linguistic nerds, my current project is here (http://www.freewebs.com/feayranlang).

Also trying (and failing) to teach myself to juggle. :P Ahm...my music is an unusual talent, I guess. Been playing piano for eleven years and change, but I can't sightread to save my life. Takes me months to learn songs from sheet music, and once they're learned I forget them within weeks. But I can improv for hours, and people tell me it (typically) sounds pretty good. :)

[Caden Law]

Thought experiments on nightmare scenarios.

I am probably the best prepared in this thread to deal with anything from a hostage scenario to a zombie apocalypse :D

[Karuka]

I, too, collect foreign currency, but not just coins. I have some Iraqi dinars with Hussein still 'gracing' the front, and a burmese dollar my grandfather gave me from his service during the Korean War.

My mom has some foreign bills from her air force days.

[T. Morgan]

Other than simian flexibility, I have no real off the wall talents.

For whatever reason, I've been meaning to take a closer look at automotives and guns to see what I can make of them. I've known people who really excel in both fields, and frankly I think I'm jealous enough to try and see if I can read up on a few books or try and learn a few to see if I can take to either of em'. ;)

[Duo_Maxwell]

i have this weird ability to imitate perfectly any voice or animal sound i hear, like i can impersonate blue from blues clues, achmed the dead terrorist, hell i can even do things like a tyrannosaurs rex... and i can pop my shoulder blade out and back in

[Miehm]

Thought experiments on nightmare scenarios.

I am probably the best prepared in this thread to deal with anything from a hostage scenario to a zombie apocalypse :D

I'll argue that. I've planned everything from a home invasion to civil war, to foreign invasion, to aforementioned zombie apocalypse, and am at least partially prepared(if only in armament) for all eventualities.

That being said, I have a near encyclopedic knowledge of the band Metallica, from their first members, to an almost perfect ability to recite their track listing in order, from Kill 'em All to Re-Load.

I also have a fair knife collection, several swords, a very nice Traditions muzzleloader(a Pursuit for those of you who care, or know what I'm even talking about). I hunt, but do not fish. I have a varied and near encyclopedic knowledge of many basic firearms. I can tell you how to figure the gauge of a shotgun, and what gauge actually means(I was surprised my father in law didn't know that last one).

I'm also, I think, a fairly mediocre writer. I play a mean Tuba, and a middling Bass. Lemmy I am not. I have never taken a course in philosophy, and yet can hold my own in a discussion.

I can burn anything given enough time and materials(this includes NOMEX and Asbestos).

I scored a 98 on the ASVAB.

[Christoph]

I'll back Meihm on this one. I thought I was well prepared for a zombie invasion, but then he was all "yeah, I already have my secret hideout ready to go, and I have enough guns and ammunition to take over a third world country."

[MetalDrago]

I collect swords and knives...

More than that, I like to keep a collection of Linux and Windows Operating Systems nearby me at all times, and I also like to load them up on any computer I can get my hands on... Matter of fact, I loaded the Fedora OS on one of my school's computers just today.

A list of every OS I've ever, personally, used:

Microsoft
MSDOS (that is to say, a computer that ran entirely on command prompt... it was a nightmare)
Windows 95
Windows 98
skipped both Me and 2000
Windows XP
Vista (and I still hate it)
Windows 7 Beta

Linux
Ubuntu
Kubuntu
Ubuntu Server
Fedora

[Andhaka Adiir]

I sing. Competed with Spokane's chapter of the Sweet Adelines (large group A Capella barbershop/jazz) for two years. That group is the region 13 champion for the last decade or so. They just recently (without me since they are all rich old ladies and I am not) took second place in international competition. Other than that I did my first performance in front of a large audience who paid to get their seats (not counting church or charity events) in the sixth grade. I used to think I was good, but then I joined the last group (sweet adelines) where we spent a year (one hour a day, plus one day a week for eight hours and one weekend a month for forty-eight hours) practicing TWO SONGS and still finding room to improve...well, I am now pretty critical of what is a 'good' sound. I have dabbled in composing my own music..

Other than that...I like to count things. I used to have hundreds of books before I got robbed (who steals books, I mean HONESTLY. They left my tv, they took my books). I study languages too. I am semi-fluent in sign language, I know some Japanese and German, snippets of Spanish and French and my best friend is determined to teach me Russki (Russian), but I am horrible at it.

I like to play with words. Their meaning, their sound. It's fascinating. I love studying how the human mind works. Recently got into MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator... (http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp)if you are interested).

I have tons of other hobbies...I have racing thoughts, I need to keep myself occupied or I go a little cross eyed.

I like to talk...ok, I don't like to, I just do. On and on and on.

[Torin Reahkari]

Not really a talent, but I can play any video game or system without tutorials or help from people. Except soccer games. I really suck at soccer.

Uh..I always have to know how stuff works. I have several pieces of a hundred different electronics / paintball guns I took apart and put back together (most of the time..some are still in pieces)...

I can quote almost scene for scene anything I watch on tv. Or movies. That's more of a thing that annoys people though, not a talent.

I guess I'm pretty average. :p

[HeartOfLion]

A T-rex huh? You have serious lung capacity XD. Maybe you should audition for a voice part in a movie or cartoon. It's not every actor who can voice a t-rex you know!

I can smile and sound like Pikachu... That's as talented as I get.

[Cyrus the virus]

I'm awesome at being irreverent and annoying!

[Prodigy Child]

Hmm, some similar hobbies on here... I too read and write philosophy, and recently started learning krav maga.

I also practice brazilian and japanese jiu-jitsu (independantly at present since I can't get to a good gym), and yoga, which makes me flexible enough to weird people out often as not.

Also I think someone mentioned singing... I used to sing and act at a proffesional level, but kinda left those things behind... still, I love jamming with anyone who plays an instrument, and today I got on stage during a piece of forum theatre and apparently, outclassed the company :D

Oh, and I recently started smoking, which is actually more of a hobby than a habit for me.

[Daddy Skelly]

I practice martial arts also. I've trained in Karate, Judo and Taekwondo as well as the sword martial art Kendo. I train daily at my college here and am also a bodybuilder; My hobby is lifting heavy things! Yay.

I write too, of course. I used to bounce around role playing forums but honestly it never appealed to me, but I think that's only because I didn't find the right site. I tend to write in journals, things such as poems and stories (which rarely get finished).

Collecting katanas is also fun for me. I have about eight back at home, of varying colors and quality. I like to look at them and swing them, I used to want to be a Samurai as an aspirational child.

Task mentioned drinking earlier. I will take your challenge! My tolerance is unnaturally excellent. I always find myself only buzzed when my friends are keeled over the bathroom toilets.

[Witchblade]

Unusual hobby or interest, huh?

Well, I'm a paranormal investigator and am currently working on setting up my own group and recruiting people to join it. My co-found and I are still working on our group's name and once we get the people who are interested signed up and having filled out all the necessary waiver forms (you'd be amazed at the legal issues for starting your own paranormal team) we're going to start getting into some serious investigations. I already have two I'm working on. One is dependant around when the homeown is free, the other is a business, so it might be a little harder to get in with them, but we have our contacts.

Other than that, I like collecting sharp, pointy things, I love writing and I'm also into photography.

[Daddy Skelly]

That reminded me, I'm also interested in investigative journalism. I would consider it a hobby.

[Tenmatsu Tenimi]

does being in the porn business count as a hobby or anything?

[oFFCaboose]

well, i am a pretty much Computer Genius, although it's mor of a hobby then anything, im training to become a computer technician, and one day i want to get into robotics. i do have something sbnormal with me though, my muscles always have adrenaline going through them. so i always have insane strength, ontop of that, i like to make people laugh and feel better bout themselves.

i Remember frolicking through the snow with Witchblade over to a friends place. that day/night was fun

[Letho]

does being in the porn business count as a hobby or anything?No, but it does earn you some major coolness points.

[Daddy Skelly]

Hey, you aren't part of the porno business if you sit alone in your dark room and enjoy yourself while watching it.

That is NOT cool.

[Letho]

Yeah, that's just normal.

[Tenmatsu Tenimi]

Hey, I make and sell movies ok? anything you want it about, you name it, ive made it at least once.... :D

[Grammar_police]

Hey, I make and sell movies ok? anything you want it about, you name it, ive made it at least once....

Llama orgies?

[oren]

Hobby One: I have this thing for strange flesh eating/destroying diseases. Or anything that can burn or melt skin. I will actually sit at a computer for hours at a time and stare at traumatizing pictures of trench foot, acid burns, fire burns, flesh eating disease, and other forms of necrosis.

Hobby Two: Hand and foot fetish... I love drawing hands and feet.

[Tenmatsu Tenimi]

animated yes, real no, the bestialty stuff i do is animated, since i have no respect for the people who actually do that shit... makes me want to puke

[Grammar_police]

animated yes, real no, the bestialty stuff i do is animated

Even thats scary. :eek:

[Strickland]

Songwriting and managing to piss off every single person in a chat room simultaneously with one comment.

[Drago Tenmatsu]

Even thats scary. :eek:


Yeah but it puts food on the tables, clothes on my back and pays the bills.

[Strickland]

Yeah but it puts food on the tables, clothes on my back and pays the bills.

And the fringe benefits aren't all that bad either.

[Drago Tenmatsu]

No one ever said they were.

[Terminus Mortis]

Realized another talent today, the uncanny ability to sneak up on people like a goddamned ninja and get knife kills in an airsoft game.

[Grammar_police]

Realized another talent today, the uncanny ability to sneak up on people like a goddamned ninja and get knife kills in an airsoft game.

How about in real life :)

[Terminus Mortis]

Nah, I usually don't even need the knife in real life. ; )

Of course I have done Soyac Kali, so technically I have.