I sometimes forget that my siblings are very much like myself when it comes to our interests or the things that really intrigue us. For instance, my older brother has been getting back into drawing and sketching in the last few years, and has also been dabbling with 3d printing.
So, this past weekend I had stopped back down to visit my siblings after spending time with Dad, and my brothers and I were chatting about the makeshift workshop setup in one of the garages (my brothers live next to each) as well as the little project my older brother was working on. He had designed and 3d printed some tool guides and jigs to go along with some 3d printed mounting brackets for a portable tabletop easel he was making out of an old chair or something. The discussion eventually turned back towards some of my own projects, like the life sized Charmander that I’ve been painting, and I was telling them about the predicament I’m in with completing it. (I don’t have a separate workshop space, and airbrushing leads to fumes in the basement where my little hobby desk is.) So, we looked things over in the garage, talked about environmental factors, and tried to determine if it would be feasible for me to continue the project down there. Given that it’s getting colder now, it may not be a good idea because we would need a shop heater (my younger brother’s concern was fumes igniting, which is completely valid) and there may be too much saw dust yet around that can be kicked up (my older brother said he would look at getting the space better cleaned up) but we’ll see what they can solve for in the next couple weeks, as I might still take them up on the offer around Thanksgiving.
In the meantime, I am trying to create a temporary enclosure for my hobby space so that I can prevent excessive fumes from propagating throughout the basement because I’ll still have other projects even beyond working on Charmander that will require some kind of airbrushing.
Apologies for the lack of a post yesterday. I spent Wednesday evening through today (so far) with my dad as he was getting some surgery and I just didn’t have the mental faculties necessary for most of my usual daily habits.
So, for today’s prompt I decided to pull from the official DayOne app website where they have a post for Journal Prompts. As I was scanning through I ended up on the Inspiration section and decided to combine a couple prompts, but I wanted to focus specifically on the artistic side of inspiration.
When it comes to painting miniatures I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from several mini painters that I’ve discovered on Instagram over the last few years. I see the different styles and techniques that they showcase, thinking about how easy they make it look, and I feel like I want to give them a try myself. Obviously, those styles and techniques of theirs have been honed over years of practice, but that doesn’t mean I can’t try them out to see where I might shine or need more practice. I’ve been good about not being discouraged when I don’t “instantly master” what I’m trying to imitate because I remind myself of these facts, but it also spurs me on to watch them again and again, to repeatedly dissect what I’m watching in different ways to see what I can glean.
In recent months I’ve taken to more general creative hobby crafting through the YouTube channel Nerdforge and the mind blowing things that they create. I find it not just inspirational but also refreshing when a wild new video is uploaded to their channel and it turns out to be something incredible like the full sized Warhammer “mini” they made. The ideas that get pulled together from different sources to create the final result is absolutely amazing and stretches the way my mind thinks about how to approach different situations with techniques that may not have been originally intended for the scale they were working on.
That’s where I’ve been getting a lot of my artistic inspiration these days, and as long as I keep watching these amazing people work, I believe I’ll always be able to find inspiration.
What is one thing you can do to step outside of your comfort zone today/this week/month/year?
I don’t know about today specifically, but I could tell you that there are a few things I can do to step out of my comfort zone in the future that are highly likely to actually happen, or did already.
Tomorrow (rather than today): go to the gym during a busier time of the day instead of the later part of evenings when there aren’t other people around.
This week: I could go to a local game store event for a card game I play. It’s a public event, and I always feel out of place going to these kinds of events by myself to play against strangers.
This month: I don’t know if I’ll have something good for this one. It’s October and we’re already 2/3rds through the month.
This year: I’ll be flying by myself to an unfamiliar state to meet online friends for the first time in person! I’m actually excited for this one, so even though it’s outside of my comfort zone in multiple ways, it shouldn’t be too difficult.
I’m sure there are other things I could come up with, and maybe I will after I post this, but I’ll keep those for future writing.
Yet another day where I have to come up with my own writing prompt because I’ve already answered the one provided! That’s okay, though, because that means I have to challenge myself with a little extra thinking about what I want to talk about.
As I was googling for writing prompts I stumbled on an image list with examples that gave me an idea. There were two in particular, not next to each other in the list but still related, that I thought might be fun to combine.
“What are five things you would like to do before you are 20 years old?” combined with “What do you think your life will be like when you are 30 years old?“
I’ve answered similar prompts before but I think I’ll twist it up a bit.
Did you get to do the things you wanted to do by the time you were 20? 25? 30? Etc.
The simple answer is no. There are tons of things that I wished I had done by various points in my life, but also so many of those things I feel like I learned about at the wrong time.
By the time I was 20 I was hoping to have moved out and started what used to be the stereotypical “college experience” of living on campus, meeting people and making friends that might become roommates when you’re no longer living in the dorms. Things like that.
I was still living and working at home (on the farm) until I was about 24. I moved out that year, living with friends for about five or six months, but was still working at home briefly until I finally landed an office job through my brothers. Ultimately, this period of my life, up through 25, felt like I was behind to a certain degree. I watched friends from college doing, more or less, the things I had hoped to be doing. Living in an apartment, working, doing fun things once in a while like occasionally going to the bars (drinking out is expensive, so not too often) or traveling for a short vacation. I did one thing, sort of, before 26, that was something I had hoped to do and that was go back to my home state (Colorado) of my own accord and on my own dollar. It was a short weekend vacation that I took to visit a friend (who moved there from South Dakota, where I met them and we went to college together) for their birthday. So, not all was “lost” in that regard.
Age 26 through 30 went much better, all things considered. I hadn’t expected to start this period of my life needing a major surgery and not having health insurance, followed by losing my job because the company didn’t renew our contracts, but that all happened, and helped spring me towards the direction of accomplishing some of those earlier things out of order.
Somewhere between 24 and 25 I had moved into my own apartment, by myself, but because of the cost of the surgery and insurance complications I had soon opted to move in with a friend from college that I had reconnected with the prior year. So, surgical debt, lost a job and started new one shortly after, which led to moving in with friends to help cut costs all around. Some of this happened only five years out of order from expectations, but hey, it happened eventually!
More things happened in that time before 30 that were closer to when I had hoped to experience them. Temporary gig work which helped get me into my current job, which is stable and has been a very good place to be long term. Making enough money to fund hobbies and enjoy new things, make new friends (which gets harder the older you get) and take brief staycations to play games or spend time with family. Still, all that aside, I didn’t meet anyone that I vibed with enough to start a solid romantic relationship with and explore the idea of starting a family. Another missed target.
From 31 until now, since I’m not sure what “accomplishments or experiences” I should be cutting off at 35, I have had some nice things happen. Still working the same job, still living with the same friend, learning new skills, making plenty of money for those hobbies AND I actually took a real vacation. Unfortunately, still no romantic prospects for me, but glad I’ve been able to watch other friends grow closer together and get married or start families.
So, while I’m not living the original stereotypical “American Dream”, I’m still slowly experiencing things that I hope for, just not always in the expected order. Looking at things from that angle, and then comparing my life to others, I am seeing the same thing for many others and accepting that my lived experience will be my own and shouldn’t be held to the same standards as others.
I want to throw out some clarifying information before diving into why I love video games. There’s a lot to be said about video games, and there’s always some kind of negative social commentary surrounding them, but those detractors are either isolated incidents with little supporting evidence or the issue is actually a symptom of something deeper.
What am I talking about? Well, lately, on social media (particularly Threads, for some reason) there’s this weird attention grabbing push from people who are asking questions like “Ladies, what’s a red flag/deal breaker for guys?” A lot of people are throwing video games under the bus here, and they’re saying things like “they’re a waste of time” or “they’re spending more time with games than with me/helping around the home” and things of that nature. (Ladies, I hate to break it to you, that’s an issue with the guy and his priorities, not the games.)
Video games have come so far from just being shapes on a screen. The stories and narratives. The interactivity and puzzles. It’s absolutely incredible! In many ways it’s better than just reading a book (I do love books, don’t come at me) or watching a TV show. There’s even a potential social aspect of them. Conventions, for in person stuff, or just online gaming in general. I know several people who met their spouses through online gaming.
The reason I love video games as a hobby is because in the same way I can get lost in a good book, I can get into the deep lore and narrative of a game. I can see someone else’s vision made manifest in a way that would be otherwise impossible, and further still I can take creative inspiration from them through this medium. (I know some people say video games aren’t art, and to you I say fuck off. The defining characteristics of “art” have changed over the centuries.)
So, excuse my rambling, but that’s I’ll leave you all with for today’s prompt. I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday!
Everyone has their own ways of doing things, but there are only so many options. This means that there is very likely to be a way to unwind that I mention below that resonates with someone.
I guess for me it all depends on what kind of demanding day I had that determines what I feel I need to do to properly unwind. Was the day emotionally/mentally demanding, or physically demanding? What level did it get to, somewhere between fairly and extremely demanding, or maybe less?
I’m not the type to go grab a drink at the end of a tough day, but it’s not completely off the table. It just depends on the circumstances. Otherwise, the vast majority of the time I’ve spent unwinding over the years has been the same.
The days that are mentally draining are the days I choose to check out from reality to some degree. Read a book, binge a few episodes of a show, play some chill farming sim games or something of the like. I’ll probably be laying in bed already for some of these just because then if I start to doze off I’m already where I want to be for the inevitable energy crash.
If the day was physically demanding then I probably am doing two things immediately upon getting home. Eating and showering, but not necessarily in that order. Typically on these days I still have plenty of energy somehow, so I’m able to enjoy more of my hobbies. I know it might sound strange, but physically taxing activities don’t drain me the way mentally taxing activities can. Unless it was a REALLY physically demanding day like the first couple weeks of when I worked the overnight shift at Big Red Circles. Then it’s eat, shower, and pass out in bed. No energy crash like the mentally draining days, my body is just ready for sleep.
Fairly straightforward approach to unwinding, I think.
Describe a random encounter with a stranger that stuck out positively to you.
A few months back my Dad decided to tag along with my sister to one of the game stores in town where she could pick up some Lorcana cards. During that trip is when my Dad learned about a tabletop game you might have heard of called Necromunda (part of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.) He watched a couple of guys at the store playing and was instantly drawn in.
Now, that encounter was solely for my Dad as I obviously was not there, but it is the precursor to the events of this past Saturday.
My Dad was welcomed in and the guys explaining the rules along with everything he needed to play. Then the store owner helped him pick out the things he needed to play but he didn’t buy anything on that particular trip. He waited until the next time, when he could ask me to come with, to buy the things he needed. You see, one of the most important things about any of the Warhammer kits you buy is that they aren’t pre-assembled and painted. My Dad knew that I had been dabbling in painting miniatures, and that if he asked I would handle all of that for him. Which I did end up doing.
I had never worked on any Warhammer stuff before, so it was a new experience for me. My Dad wanted me to bring my painting stuff to his house so he could spend time chatting with me while watching me work. I only ever came over on the weekends for a couple hours or so at a time, so it took a while to get things done. (In retrospect, I now know a few things I could have done differently to expedite the process.) It took a few months to get done because there were multiple weekends where we didn’t get together for our usual family gatherings. Sick kids, sick parents, bad timing all around for various reasons.
Anyways, I got all ten of the little guys assembled and painted, and my Dad brought them to the Warhammer store here in town (rather than the original game store we went to) so he could talk to some guys there about playing.
If you’re still with me, this is where MY encounter with a stranger was positive.
My Dad asked me to meet him at the store, so I obliged and headed over. When I got there the store owner was walking my Dad through how to play, and a couple of other guys were assembling and painting their own minis. The topic of painting came up, obviously, when my Dad mentioned I had painted his for him, and we all got to talking and sharing. The guys showed me what they were working on as well as a finished piece (some really cool mech thing with long skinny legs and a rail gun or something hanging from underneath) and I shared some of the things I had painted for Black Rose Wars and the Totally-Not-Atraxa that I had printed and painted.
We had a good conversation all around, and seeing other people work on (and struggle with) painting minis really helped me realize that, even with imperfections in my painting techniques, they were more or less like me in that area. That even if I keep to myself most of the time with this hobby, I am not alone, and not everyone will be as good as the people I see on Instagram.
What are 5 everyday things that bring you happiness?
It’s unfortunate that happiness can’t be a steady state of mind or being and that we have to constantly chase it, but that at least gives most of us the drive to live.
That drive to chase our dreams and trying to attain happiness can sometimes overshadow the simpler things in life that can bring us happiness. That’s where my mind goes when I think about the “everyday things” in the prompt. Not to overlook simple things that bring happiness when life is hectic.
The first everyday thing that came to mind that brings me happiness is one of my roommates cats. When they first moved in a couple years ago the cats were very shy and avoided me. One of them is very sweet and warmed up to me very quickly while it took months to get to the point where the other would even approach me to sniff my hand. That second one, named Boogie, is incredibly vocal and with the loudest purring I’ve experienced in a cat. What brings me happiness (to get back to the prompt) is the way Boogie will talk back at you, loudly, from time to time. It’s definitely one of those “you have to be there to experience it” kind of things, but that’s one that brings me happiness.
The other four everyday things that bring me happiness are all relatively the same or interconnected.
I love solving puzzles and problems. That burst of joy when something clicks and I make progress is what keeps me coming back. Solving puzzles in games, figuring out a solution for problems with crafting and hobbies, making connections for potential synergy with mechanics in Magic: The Gathering when building new decks, and (on a work related note) solving a problem at work that involves scripting or formulas. All of these are interconnected because of the way my mind works and processes information, and each one can bring me happiness in their own ways.
I’m sure I could come up with more “everyday things” to throw out that bring me happiness but then nobody would want to finish reading this post so I’ll end it here
Happy Friday, and I hope you all have or find those “everyday things” that bring you happiness!
Hobbies are a great way to pass the time. Unfortunately, we live in an age where work is a necessity and it can take up a lot of time. Not just with the actual work, but also getting ready for and traveling to work. Oh, and responsibilities like taking care of your home, cleaning, feeding yourself and/or your family. All those “pesky little activities” that suck up your time.
Truthfully, I don’t mind all those “extra” responsibilities outside of my desire to spend oodles upon oodles of time on hobbies. I often enjoy most of those things well enough as it is anyway.
The problem is that I have a bunch of hobbies that I bounce around from one to another. Reading, playing video games, writing, Magic: The Gathering, painting miniatures, putting together those wooden constructions that come with instructions as if they were like LEGO’s. I just want to do all these things all the time! Sadly, I have to pick and choose, day by day, which ones I do.
Oh well, maybe if I get to retire someday, then I’ll get to do more of each.
Thankfully the prompt is automatically at the top of the post or else I would feel the need to start with “Nobody panic, I’m not losing interest in a CURRENT hobby.”
Now, to be honest, I don’t have an exact answer because I’m sure I’ve forgotten some things, but yes there are definitely activities I’ve grown out of over the years. As a kid, I used to love riding my bike all over the place, playing with LEGOs for hours, probably some other things that kids typically lose interest in as they get older. Moving the clock forward to college, there used to be more alcohol in my life. More parties with friends. Not anymore, though, because I had a great (negative) role model about alcohol and I came to realize that I didn’t like the way it made me feel. All of those things are activities or hobbies I outgrew or lost interest in, although I really should consider getting a bicycle again and just riding the bike trail that loops around my city.
Funny enough, there is one hobby that I “outgrew” that ended up coming back. Pokémon cards. Unfortunately, when you’re a kid you don’t have a disposable income, so I couldn’t feed that cardboard crack addiction of buying booster packs. I didn’t come back to the game until more than 20 years later when my niece and nephews started to get into it. I don’t actively buy packs for that game these days, so I guess I still sort of outgrew it, however I do collect and play Magic: The Gathering instead so I would say I came back to the hobby eventually. Just in a different way.
The Dragon's Grove 