Adult hobbies

My all-time favourite hobby @Erin Deborah Waks

By Erin Deborah Waks

I’m watching the astonished faces of my friends as they bask in the sheer delight of laughing at my most recent ‘project’ – finding new hobbies. As my travels end and I’m faced with the prospect of three weeks of absolutely nothing to do, instead of the usual desire to be productive, I’m filled with a different want: to find a new hobby.

Let me clarify – I’m not a person who lacks hobbies. Far from it. If you want an insight into how my mind works, that much is clear in the way I approached the task of find a new pastime – lists. I already love to read, love to write (newsflash?), love to drink coffee. No surprise there. But I also enjoy chatting with friends, going to the gym, watching old movies and romcoms, reading and collaging with fashion magazines and going to art galleries.

I wanted, however, something new, something different. Something to change up my routine. So I listed things I thought I’d enjoy, then went through it realistically to see what was feasible and fun. I’m a week in. So far, I’ve hated playing chess (although at least now I know how to play, which is a win in and of itself), despised yoga even more, found meditating hard but nonetheless essential, enjoyed cooking and baking and maintained the same approach to running I held three years ago when it was all I did.

I’ve discovered I quite like walking, especially if it’s done intentionally, with powerful music or a podcast somewhere beautiful. I adore spin classes at the gym. Tennis is fun when it’s with other people, swimming is great when I go but not worth the constant hair washing, singing is great for about 20 minutes at a time, and I still haven’t got around to volunteering.

But it’s not in the discovery of new hobbies that I found the reason to write about them. It’s in the discovery of adulthood. As children, we’re encouraged to find things we enjoy, we’re driven to swimming lessons and thrown onto bicycles. The hassle of hobbies is taken care of for us, all you must do is accept it. As adults, though, you have to bear the burden of the act itself, as well as the necessary admin and chores that accompany it.

Much of the same can be said for adulting in general. Some of us love our jobs, sure, but it’s often commutes, office politics, admin tasks, that cause the most disgruntlement. 

In short, you have to be intentional, purposeful, and dedicated to your hobbies, and thus to living as an adult in general. It’s doubly hard: not only do you need to do the workout class yourself, but you also have to drive there, pay for parking, drive home (legs shaking, I might add, if exercise bikes are involved in the matter), wash your hair, dry your hair – and all after a day’s work. The ease of life is gone – but with it comes the newfound space for actually finding joy and meaning in the work, and life, you strive so hard to build.