What other obsessions do you have?


It's obvious that many of the people here have gone off the deep end (yes I include myself) with equipment and music purchases.

The question is what other obsessions do you have, or what else are you really into?

I was getting carried away with Martial Arts before an injury sidelined me, I would rather ride my motorcycle than drive, and I spend way too much time on the computer (most of it on AudiogoN). If I had the money I would have a bigger and better collection of wine. Other than that I'm perfectly sane! NO really!!!
uppermidfi
AMC Musclecars. (click on "system" under my username) check out "Pride and Joy". If you are over 40, you'll appreciate them. I've started a tradition of buying and selling one a year.

"Ain't no replacement for displacement".
Photography & Wine, but not both at the same time. By the way, need a 540 bottle wine cooler? :-)
I am a recreational aircraft pilot. And you thought that High End Audio was expensive!
I would have to say my Saab takes up the other half of my obsessive side. In the winter when it's snowy outside I tend to focus on audio and in the summer it's the car. I have sunk thousands into tuning my 1994 Saab 9000 Aero, which now puts out 280 hp at the wheels and 320 pounds of torque. Not bad for a four banger.

Cheers,
Bill
I'm with Steelhead (I could tell from yer user name):
Flyfishing
The culinary arts
Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture
Good wines & microbrews
The Grateful Dead
Powerboating- just ordered the 36 foot fast trawler from Rockport Yachts (www.rockportyachts.com). Anyone want to buy a Robinhood 33 downeast poweryacht? Also, any suggestion for a name? I can't use Eidolon anymore- my wife won't let me name the boat after stereo equipment!
Newbee - I share the wine obsession, and I am looking for a cooler of about that size. Maybe we could start a spinoff - Wineogon?
Linkster, Re naming your boat - My first wood cruiser was named the adhominum - it appealed to my emotions as opposed to reason! My next boat, not wood(!), was named the Molly B for my brown Newfoundland - great boat & great dog.
Hey Themadmilkman, finally a fellow video game player!
I thought for sure there would be a bunch of us videogamers on this site.

My other interests/obsessions include:

Wine (Seems a common thread, and it goes nicely with listening to music!)

Pretty much any type of gaming, including not only videogames (both console and PC), but board games (Chess, Backgammon, Diplomacy, Wargames, etc..), card games, table tennis, etc.. (My collection of games is second only to my music collection. However, unlike my music collection, I have the largest game collection of anyone I know. That may not be a good thing according to my wife!)
Weimeraners, fishing, gardening, building small houses, home brewing, WVU football and reading.
Bicycling (am having a Seven Cycles titanium bicycle built to order w/Campy Chorus groupo-$5000).

Collecting Swiss Army knives.

Buying the latest high-end outerwear from the likes of Arc'Teryx, The North Face, Marmot, Patagonia, etc.
When not here looking at this site, other interests are gardening and bowling.
Timo:

It's Eider or nothing for me. I've stopped wearing any other brand. Their stuff is just that good.

I do still climb in Prana, Sickle, etc. but for outerwear nothing can compete.
I play hockey every week, golf as much as I can in the summer, and swim when it occurs to me. I too indulge in wine and have a 270 bottle cellar (can't seem to keep it full, the stuff evaporates!). I also have an interest in cars although not to the extent some of the other folks do, I drive a 2001 Acura 3.2 Type S and a 1989 Toyota Supra Turbo.

I travel frequently on business and when I'm home spend time chauffering my three kids (9, 12, 13) to their sports and whatnot. Just need to find some time to sleep and I'll be all set. Jeff
Three horses, four dogs, two children under 7 and a barn cat; I'm afraid I just don't have time.......
I collect postcards, concert posters (60s, 70s, 80s, etc), LPs, movie posters, ephermera of all sorts, antique glass, have one appearance on 'The Antiques Roadshow', but it's the music that keeps me together.
spending time with my wife; watching my kids play sports: football, soccer, wrestling, track; mountain biking (for my zen moments), surfing the web, renting dvd's, and of course, that never ending 'honey do' list of home improvement projects like new windows, finish the basement, finish the attic, landscape, and on, and on...
Bicycling - Timo, I own an earlier Tom Kellogg masterpiece - Merlin Extralight built up with Dura-Ace, FSA Pro Team Carbon cranks, Velomax wheelset, etc - just under 16lbs for 54cm, it is a climbing terror (when the motor's in shape, of course), yet still comfortable and stable enough for centuries. Also love mountain biking (Santa Cruz Superlight), ESPECIALLY wooded singletrack.

Surfing - ocean, not web; short- and longboard, but much prefer the GLIDE of a good 9'0" - 9'6". Anyone who's had the pleasure of dancing on this liquid stage understands this OBSESSION
(1) Developing abrasions, stress fractures, and tweaked tendons while rock climbing.
(2) Smashing fingers, achieving hypothermia and getting hit on the head with large blocks of ice while ice climbing.
(3) Developing foot cramps and soft tissue injuries while downhill skiing.
(4) Eating mud, impaling myself on sharp branches, and bouncing off rocks while endoing on my mountain bike.
(5) Getting slapped while chasing women.
(6) Getting happy on single malt scotch after (5).
Back country jaunts in the LR with my wife and two Goldens; acquiring and sampling single malts (Irish as well as Scotch); rowing my shell, and attending live music performances...and work...
Building or creating ANYTHING.

I finally got a decent woodshop going, I love working with wood. Carpenty, Carving, Chipping etc I will probably never buy another piece of furniture again, i would much rather built it myself. It might not have a name on it that makes it worth 3k, but i know the build quality is sound, It will be one-of-a-kind, and it will hold my distinctive style.

Art as well.
Im quit an artist if i may say so myself. I dont paint, i draw. Also enjoy metal sculpting, wood carving, casting, whatever.

I work in a cubicle. My job is an endless analysis and diagnosis of theory, numbers, testing, and remote access. At the end of the day, there is no finished product, nothing to see progress on.
That is why i love building/creating stuff, it keeps that need in me fulfilled.

If i diddnt have to worry about money, that would be my full-time hobby. As much as i love audio gear and music, there is nothing quite like finally finishing a project. I put everything i am into my creations, and each one is unique.

Had about a 4 year pause on this hobby. THen recently i had the option of upgrading my gear or buying tools for a workshop. My rig has not changed. :)
Yet.
Wife, Motorcycles, Photography, Film, Dogs and Sex. Not necessarily in that order. I never mix Sex with the canine obsession, though have combined it with the others with some degree of success at times. It goes real well with my wife, but I wouldn't recommend it to any of you less'en you be liken' me to open up a big ol' industrial-sized can-O'-WhoopAss all over your sorry self.

Marco
Rediculously fast street cars.
I'm building a car around a 521ci engine which happens to be a 1965 Mustang. Building a reliable 700hp+ engine with no nitrous oxide, turbos, or supercharger is a challenge, but building a car to accept and withstand it is nuts. It seems like every single part has to be hand fabricated. Front suspension, rear suspension, chassis, headers, exhaust system, rear axle, rack and pinion, brakes, electrical system, fuel system, and on and on.

I really have no business being into such an expensive hobby. Audio can be very expensive, too, but the car is where I sink more cash.
motorcyling (BMW R850R: go on long runs - nyc to quebec city, maine, upstate ny, all point in new england as well as various points in southern europe). however a bit overdone on the biking at the moment, focusing more on martinis, cooking and culinary arts...
DannyLW,

Once I got my Seven (Alaris with Chorus/FSA carbon cranks/Eurus wheels) My custom Serrotta Csi became one more thing to dust!!! I haven't riden it since the Seven arrived. BTW Seven got me the bike 14 days after I was measured for it!!! Thanks guys!!!

Other interests..

Single cask scotch, wine, cars, Cuban cigars....usually with scotch, traveling, pets (we have a Great Dane, Golden Retreiver and three cats), photography (both digital and 35mm) to name a few.
Mountain biking, for about 10 years now.
I bought a Seven Sola last year and I just love the titanium ride.
Slipknot1 my wife and I took the kids (along with our exchange student) to Taliesin last year. It was amazing, but the buildings are getting quite run-down. I used to live on Oak Park Il and would wander around looking at FLW's homes and studio. Wow!

I have a mountain bike that collects a lot us dust since I bought my Victory motorcycle. This time of year they both collect dust. When it's nice out the truck just gets shuttled in and out of the garage so I can ride the bike.

I enjoy reading, it's a hobby that goes very well with listening to music. I'm not catholic but I gave up TV for lent and have been enjoying music and reading a lot more the last couple of weeks.

I like collecting wine but not on the scale that others here have. I have about 50 bottles. I have recently enjoyed Spanish Sherry quite a bit. My wife and son went to Italy a couple of weeks ago. She brought back some Wine and Brandy!!!

I used to sell mens clothes, and the habit has stuck. I dress up to go to church, but I still have dozens of ties and shirts, and probably 15 suits and sport coats. I need to take my wife out to eat more often. Then I could get more wear from that stuff.

There must be more, but I'm at a loss...
I can't AFFORD another obsession after all this audio stuff I own! I always have this creeping feeling that I'm the poorest SOB on this entire site...
This is a great thread uppermidfi!

For me, it's fast motorcycles - I just returned my R1 to the street after unsuccessful and expensive foray into racing...

Rock climbing too.

I have a cat. He believes the whole world should be obsessed with him...

And my family has just released our first wine vintage - a lovely rich shiraz. We're from the south west corner of Western Australia, email me if you're interested anyone and I could probably get a bottle to you...

I also like sleep. And yes, that is an "L", not an "H"!
I lik reading on ancient cultures mainly( Native American ) mostly the Mayan Cosmology and calendar. I enjoy camping and outdoor activites. Avid Qi Gong practionier. I also enjoy dank, dried flowers as my name implies.
My family and my religion are much more an influence in my life and they dominate my time. This hobby does give me a time alone occasionally to lose myself and relax. When permitted I prefer to listen to music rather than watch TV. When I go on walks or exercize I bring music. Driving alone to work is a great time to turn it up and enjoy. I guess we are alike in that when ever possible and not too intrusive on the big picture we all enjoy this hobby.
Xnyne I have enjoyed several different Australian Shiraz's. My brother brought them to my attention a number of years ago. He lives is Sydney. Just a hop, skip and a jump from you! ; ^) That was probably before they got such a good name for themselves and began exporting all over the world.

How would one go about procurring some of this first vintage??? As you can see from these responses you could build a strong following just from AudiogoN!
Photography - I'm a devotee of Leica rangefinders. Single malt whiskies - especially older Islays. Good red wines - the girlfriend and I are about to spend a week in Santiago, Chile tasting Cabs. Mircrobrewed beers - hmm, three out of four obsessions so far are alcoholic...

Then there's my main passion - which is, of course, passion itself. The girlfriend and I won't be spending all our time in Chile touring wineries...
Cars, digital manipulation, Quake 3, art & design, mixed martial arts competitions, history, and Latin women.

Ahh, it's nice to be back, if only for a moment. Work has been crazy.

One of my passions other than audio is computers. I make my living as a digital retoucher and am grateful I get paid to do what I love. As Marco knows, this is the reason I haven't been in the A'Gon forums for a couple months. I am just plain swamped right now!

Another computer related diversion I enjoy is playing Quake 3 Arena online. It's a first person shooter game and I play against people from all over the US and around the world. It's nice to know that I can frag with the best of those high school and college kids.

I've also been having fun lately with Apple's $49 iLife suite of consumer apps for making movies and DVDs. I've been digitzing and editing a lot of programs I recorded on Tivo.

I love world history, especially pertaining to ancient Greece, the Mongols, Egypt, and the Middle East. I just purchased some neat books about the Mongol invasions of Europe and the Middle East from England.

As a whole, I also enjoy learning about things sometimes foreign or counter to the American perspective. Either in history or modern politics.

Although I've been in the graphic design field for over 20 years, I also love interior space and furniture design.

Maria Grazia Cucinotta. Sophia Loren. Roselyn Sanchez. Need I say more?

Dean
Needless to say, my family is the most rewarding obsession to me and everything else takes a back seat to it.

With that out of the way, I always need to be involved with art and design in some form. Whether it is contemplating/sketching ideas for an art piece or drawing views when space planning to add a piece of furniture to the home. One obsession in particular that has come out of this predisposition is my attraction to lighting fixtures, mostly floorstanders. The fixtures of interest to me have been designed by architects dabbling in industrial product development. These styles are certainly not for everyone, but I feel their sculptural qualities are entertaining.

My young family demands most of my time and energy. The art projects and my industrial design interests can wait, while the music plays.
Fine Wine - 100 cases in long term storage.

Cuban Cigars, fine dining, gourmet experiments.

Raising kids - 2 little girls under 3 yr. Takes all the time away from any other obesession for the moment.

Xnyne, hmmn, south west corner of Western Australia. Any where near Margaret River ? Any chance of getting it outside OZ ?