Bonsai off season / side hobbies ?

I grow things in a way that doesn’t involve seasons, looks a bit unkempt now coz I just dumped stuff in there from the office aquarium
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I’ve also taken up reading recently
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It seems like the gaming part of me lies dormant for a bit, let’s hope it doesn’t die completely

I’ve also newly serviced my camera and my good lens, gotta get back into real photography
Would love to try photography atleast to take professional pictures of my bonsai lol
 
I’ve had loads of hobbies over the years, but bonsai is the one that has stuck the hardest and the longest. I’ve always loved gardening, and refuse to not have a yard to putter around in… and my wife’s perfect world, we would live in a townhouse or condo, but I say never! Growing vegetables has been with me since I was a youngster working with my dad. Being a collector at heart, I’ve strived to add less common varieties of everything from dwarf conifers, to Japanese maples, to hostas of all shapes and sizes, to any yard I’ve owned. I’ve been an avid coin collector in the past, and still have the collection I built when I was a teenager, though I truthfully haven’t added to it in many years. I started collecting bonsai pots close to two decades ago. My acquisitions have definitely slowed down over the last few years, but I’m still on the lookout for yet another pot I can’t live without. I also dabble in swing trading stocks… and that’s why I still have to have a paying job most likely way beyond retirement age 😬.
 
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My “side hobbies” are bull terriers and trying to keep them from killing themselves eating stupid stuff and doin acrobatics that breaks things (including themselves) it’s not so much a hobby as a vocation 😁🙄
 
Ok I’m really meaning other hobbies outside of bonsai ..

Ah. Between working full time for the railroad, being a union rep, President of a bonsai club, and spending every spare second at Bonsai Jidai, I don’t have the time for anything else.

Does drinking count as a hobby?
 
I play RPGs. Lately, it's been the Burning Wheel, but we tend to choose a system to suit the style of game we're in the mood for.

I used to have more varied interests, but I've had to narrow it down since I started working full time a few years ago. Plus, I married recently, and we had our first child six months ago, so free time is increasingly scarce.
 
I prepared some substrate mixes for next growing season, made 3 concrete freeform pots, found few new trees in the forest for spring yamadori collection and became dungeon master for my 11yrs old twins to play DnD with 😅
One of my Christmas gifts to my two sons (7 and 9) was to be a dungeon master for them 2 times a month for this year. The 7 year old is a little young but we make it work.
 
Oh, lighten up. 🙂
I knit. Just finished a pair of spider socks.
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I do a bit of woodcarving. Here's the magic wand I carved for my son who grew up on Harry Potter books
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And a kuksa I made out of red maple burl
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I should try a daiza, but haven't found a nice enough stone yet. And a stand...
I felt. Here is a pair of felted slippers I made for my daughter in law
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I make concrete sculptures... papercrete gargoyle I made for my husband
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And on and on...
Basically I'll do anything not to clean the house...
Ummm - not trying to be weird here but there is a possibility we are soul mates. I also do anything I can not to clean the house!
 
I am a big fan of crochet, and I am trying to teach myself wood carving but I am not very good at it. I love to do photography, but the main thing I notice is that I do a lot more drawing in the winter when I have a bit more free time
 
The winter season is good for two things for me here in Abq. I play lots of basketball year round, but am lucky enough to live in a state with majority days of sunlight that winter makes for an excellent year to do so. This also means that it’s college basketball season, and here in northern New Mexico there is no bigger draw than University of New Mexico Lobo basketball. I LOVE watching college basketball and especially the Lobos in the Historic Pit basketball arena. I ski some, hike lots and decompress from another growing year.
 
I've had many hobbies, from skateboarding to brewing beer. But bonsai is really sinking it's roots into me.

I have always enjoyed drawing and painting, so I still do that from time to time.

Lately, I've been enjoying some video games of the survival RPG genre with a small, close group of people. I also enjoy flight sims, military strategy, and military simulation games.

I'm also an avid Chiefs fan, so they keep me busy at certain times of the year.

When I can, I love hiking, going to the beach, and camping, although I don't go as often as I would like.
 
I had to stop martial arts training, my main alternate hobby, about ten years ago due to heart issues. They've finally been properly diagnosed and treated, so my cardiologist gave me the OK to train again. I've been working on a gentle revival of my kempo training. The heart is good. The rest of the body needs to get with the program again.
 
winter means a lot of preparation for me... soils, fertilizers, finding and buying pots, taking photos, strategizing on next steps... but it's all bonsai anyway.

I terms of other hobbies I have couple of fish tanks that I tend to spend more time with, learning languages (Chinese currently)... not really much time for more...
 

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3D printing with the 7 and 4 year old.
 

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The off season happens during the summer for me. Growing season is the slowest part of my Bonsai year. Only daily care of the nursery and pruning of developing deciduous trees. With a predominately conifer collection this is the busy season with pruning, thinning and wiring. As long as winter protection is available Bonsai is year round in a more temperate climate such as Vancouver Island.
For many with a heated workshop or greenhouse Bonsai can be year round!
 
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