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Matthew Vienneau
4 years ago

I like the idea of handstands.
Investing is gambling. I am reasonably well informed on investing, and manage all my own investments. It was a lot more fun 20 years ago when I was buying stocks and they all went up (bull market!) but the standard advice to all non-professional investors is to buy index funds, otherwise you’re gambling. I now own index funds…and just a few stocks.
In short, I don’t discourage investing or learning about investing, but if your plan is to buy individual stocks without spending massive amounts of effort to get more info than the average professional (and this is possible, but can be hard), then think of it as gambling (which for many is a fun hobby!).

Paul Sadler
4 years ago

As editor, first reader and spouse, I didn’t comment until now that you have gone “live”. My thoughts are:
a. Photo books are a bit “fun”, but they are also a lot like work. I’m a completist so of course I want to do one for every year, but I suspect the “trip” ones are more fun than the chronological ones. And the risk of having 15 to do for years, if they are work, is boredom. It’s been a hindrance for me, so you might want to focus on alternating or just do the ones that are “fun” memories to do to start until you are “faster” at it. Just a thought.
b. New recipes are also fun, but meal planning isn’t. That’s more “organization” than hobby to me. I think a “niche” within there could be more hobby / fun. Like bread, or buns, or pies, or cookies. Something that isn’t just substituting one way of making dinner for another.
c. Under my organizing comment, I would also throw under the bus the headings of financial planning, news, music discovery, home improvement, scanning photos, volunteering, scrapbooking, learning a new instrument, most online courses, self-improvement books, podcasts, investment, genealogy, chess, journaling, and Rubiks’ Cube. Highly satisfying, but are they “fun” for you?
d. Ones that seem to me that they COULD be fun, but may just be means to a fun end, are trip planning, learning a new language, handstands, documentaries, and app puzzles.
e. Ones that seem more likely candidates to me for “fun” because they are a bit more creative or at least social, I guess, are singing, knitting, crocheting, blogging (I separated from journaling as there’s no interaction with the journal), videos, band, trivia, and online groups.
f. I don’t know where to file movies and TV. I watch TV shows because I like serialized storytelling, I like the ways the stories are honed and crafted to deliver a mystery in 44 minutes for example. Some are mindless, some are fun. But I like the genre, including trying out new shows each year to see what producers thought might have a chance to find an audience. But I tend to avoid comedies, as I don’t usually find them funny. Out of trying 50 shows in a year, usually only about 5 make my ongoing playlist, and almost never a comedy. I find them boring, rather than funny. I don’t think it is a choice to “watch more TV” so much as “try some shows you think you might like” and see if you want to watch them. Same for Jacob…I don’t want him watching TV because he doesn’t watch anything, I kind of want him to try a few shows to see if there is anything he would enjoy? Hence why I suggested Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist for him — he likes music and dancing, curious to see if he would like the show. Likely not, but the super hero ones are too dark yet, in my view. Although he watched Hulk and Iron Man. 🙂
Paul