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January Writing Challenge | Day 15 | Hobbies | Life Story
Is There Still a Hobby That Best Defines Me?
Can you still love something you hardly ever spend time doing?
During my teenage years, I got the impression that hobbies were something to be ashamed of. I suppose it was part of the high school culture.
When someone talked about a hobby, they would get laughed at, especially if it was something perceived as being for older people.
I think the word hobby has recovered in recent years — or maybe it’s just that I’m older and don’t care what people think anymore.
Early years
When I was about 5–10 years old, my main hobby was electrical experiments. My mum used to describe what I did as “messing with wires”.
It cost my parents a fortune as I went through countless batteries to power torch bulbs, electromagnets, and small motors.
I also remember trying to melt wires by passing too much current through them, and I would dismantle old heaters and light bulbs for materials.
Music has been part of my life ever since I can remember.
I loved playing my sisters’ old vinyl records and listening to the radio. I also enjoyed playing my small reed organ, and although I could never read music, I managed to memorise several simple songs.
Later years
Just before I started high school, I began experimenting with electronic circuits and building audio amplifiers.
For making music, my reed organ was replaced by an electronic keyboard, and I made some sound effects circuits for it.
Then something happened to “ruin” my old hobbies for a while.
The home computer became affordable, thanks to the likes of Sinclair’s ZX Spectrum.
Learning to program and playing games were big distractions. Before long, I managed to combine my hobbies.
I made my own add-ons for my ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64, and made music with them.
