Miscellaneous Monday: What's Your Newest Hobby? 🤓

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Good morning Atlassian Community, and happy Monday!!

Bringing you a MM q that's near and dear to my heart: what's your newest hobby?

Here's the thing: I am bad at being bad at things. As in, if I don't "click" with something quickly, I am very likely to quit. As an adult, it can be really easy to play it safe and stick with what you know or what you grew up doing—but that also gets boring.

So, one of my favorite things to learn about people is where they're trying something new, embracing being a novice, or giving it 100% without getting an "A" quite yet.

My new thing of the year is gardening. Bought a house in February, built a raised garden bed, and enthusiastically planted herbs, tomatoes, and peppers. 

Bonus points: tell us how you are enthusiastically struggling or failing with your hobby. 🥲

I am currently fighting a war on aphids, and maybe irreparably damaged a pepper plant after incorrectly diluting neem oil in the process... but that's why we test it on just one plant first, right?

My tomato plants are looking happy, though! 

All that said, what's new on your hobby list—and how is being a newbie going for you? 

[Jimmy Seddon]

Awesome topic @Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy!

I'm going to call it a hobby (for now).  As I get closer to moving day.  My wife and I are getting really good a playing Tetris with packed boxes making sure we still have room to move around the house while packing up as much as we can.

I'm looking forward to being on the other side of things and giving this "hobby" up for good!

Happy Monday!

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Jimmy Seddon moving is an endeavor and absolutely requires learning some new skills. :) Love this angle, and I'm excited to hear more about your new home!!

[Amanda Barber]

Great topic! I haven't really tried anything new lately, but have revived a few old hobbies - I've been running more regularly again after a hiatus, as well as volunteering as part of a few new groups! I'm on a committee for an upcoming run/walk/relax event called Miles for Migraine. I also walked yesterday in the Pride Parade with a group called Free Mom Hugs. Volunteering always fills my bucket and I'm grateful for the opportunities!

[Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM]

My newest hobby?  I have started restoring old cars.  I was a gearhead in highschool, and then for about 40 years, I focused on family and career, cars were just a means of transportation.  Now I have several project cars, in various states of disrepair. It is a bit of an expensive hobby.

I am using a trello board to keep track of the projects.

[Stephen_Lugton]

Violin.

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My daughter was given the chance last term to try out an instrument and she chose to try the cello.  She then came home and said "Daddy can you buy me a cello?"  Cellos are expensive, but luckily you can hire cellos and we can move up to the next size as she grows.  The result of which is she now plays cello.

So to motivate her, and give her someone to play with, I now have a violin; I have mastered the typical violin shriek and I'm now secretly learning so I can surprise her one day.

Current level: Beginner

Current Aptitude: "No, please stop, my ears hurt!"

[Randy O_Neal]

So... a "hobby" that's been thrust on me this year is... walking.  This spring, I unexpectedly wound up having to undergo open heart bypass surgery.  The result of that is a LOT of walking for physical therapy.  I'm currently walking 6,000 to 8,000 steps per day (roughly 3-4 miles).  I find myself wearing out tennis shoes, and I'm having to vary my walking route through our neighborhood so as to not fall into a predictable rut.

So far, I've walked close to 110 miles, with many, many more to go.  I guess this qualifies as a hobby of sorts.

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

Ok @Amanda Barber great response because you're tapping into another thing I'm awful at... getting back into things I was once good at.😁 I am allegedly a runner, but man... it's hard to feel proud of myself when I'm SO much slower than I used to be! 

It sounds like you're doing a lot of moving AND doing good work for your community. Cheers to that!!!👏

[Ciara TN]

My latest hobby is golf. Trying to get out there and practice, practice practice. :)

The side hobby from that is searching FB marketplace for the best deals on golf equipment but not buying anything. 

[Kelly Stocker]

For someone who hasn't loved any fitness effort before, I've been getting into VR Fitness! Supernatural, FitXR, FunFitLand, etc. 

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM HUGE props for this hobby! Thanks for sharing the pics, too! 

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Stephen_Lugton being a newbie on something SO LOUD would be very intimidating to me. Props to you!! I hope you get to duet with your daughter soon ☺️

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Randy O_Neal My friends and I recently joked on a hike that walking was a gateway to another hobby... birdwatching. I'm glad to hear you're getting a ton of movement in post-op! This definitely counts. :) 

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Ciara TN Golf is one of those things that I have declared myself thoroughly "not good at" and resigned from any effort to get better. It is, as you noted, also a potentially expensive hobby. 😉 I will continue to applaud both your resilience and restraint!!

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Kelly Stocker LOVE this answer — I haven't tried any of the VR fitness games or programs but they look really fun!

[Monique vdB]

Hmm I think speed puzzling! (Jigsaw puzzles; I got into it via Karen Puzzles.)  I am not very serious about it but I did compete at California Nationals last year, and I enjoy following speed puzzlers online! 

[LoRi]

I am the proud new owner of a SUP. Stand Up Paddle Board. I took it to the river so far and now I am scouting local lakes. Seems like a healthy hobby! So far I love it! 

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@Monique vdB so cool!! I've always wanted to try a local competition with a few friends. Now BRB, falling down the rabbit hole that is puzzle influencers...

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

@LoRi enjoy!!! Any time I can get out on the water, I'm a happy camper!

[Rebekka Heilmann _viadee_]

I very much feel the "I am bad at being bad at things."

I did start to do some watercolors for christmas cards and one or two things afterwards. Also did some fly fishing a couple of years ago and was good at it - i only struggled with the logistic side of things as there are no fly fishing waters near by ;) 

Not so new but newer than others: I am learning Scottish Gaelic through Duolingo and still haven't quite grasped all the concepts, certainly suck at pronounciation. It's been 3+ years now :D

[carolyn french]

Gardening is so rewarding, except for when the garden is destroyed by insects/critters, I mean friends looking for a free salad bar. The change of mindset to be at peace with it can help too.

My newest hobby is working my way through sampling all the AOP cheeses from France. It's been really fun and each is different in its own way.

[Teodora V]

I also jumped on the gardening train this year, particularly on the "I am committed to growing some REAL FOOD" out there. I can't live without having plants in my space, but that's my first attempt at having an edible garden on my balcony. It's a pleasant and rewarding challenge (despite the insects who killed my dill) and I was happy to harvest a couple of salads out of it.

I also found myself in another curious new hobby - working at companies that get acquired soon after I join them 😆

[Daria Kulikova]

Great topic @Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy ! My newest hobby (probably it's possible to call it like that for now) is walking my dog :) Two months ago I took a 2 month old puppy, who loves playing outdoors. So, now I've added 2 more walks to my everyday chores :)

[Summer Hogan]

My newest hobby is doing puzzles. I just took on a 2500 piece and it is a beast and so hard, but I wanted to challenge myself as the 500 piece and 1000 piece ones are too easy. For those that love puzzles, Galison has the best ones! Just my opinion! Great topic @Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy!

[Dave Liao]

Is reading a hobby? 🤔

If so, I'm trying to restart my reading habit, and failing.

• I have an e-reader, and half the time I don't pack it when I leave my home.
• I put an e-reader widget on my phone's home screen to remind me about the book I'm not reading.

[Barbara Szczesniak]

My newest hobby seems to be going through my daily digest email, learning new things about Confluence, (hopefully) helping others, and socializing with all of you. I sometimes feel like I spend too much of my day doing this (don't tell my boss), but many of the things I learn save me time in my work overall, so…