Because I have such a wide range of hobbies and interests, I am the type of person who needs a 30-hour day! I’m meant to be retired, but I manage to fill EVERY minute. The phrase, ‘I’m bored,’ does not form part of my vocabulary. I’ve only listed my top five, so I will also give an honourary mention to cooking, reading, dining out, going to the beach and more … and I don’t even watch TV!
Writing
Whether blogging, writing poetry, short stories or books, writing is my #1 hobby. I started blogging in May 2010, and since then, I have covered numerous topics and participated in several blogging challenges, including the WordPress daily, weekly, and monthly prompts to name a few.
I’ve completed two National Novel Writing Month Challenges (NaNoWriMo), which is held every year in November, where you are challenged to write 50,000 words in 30 days. It’s tough!
I have also co-authored two books, and we are currently writing the third in the series. The story centres around a Brit, Sophia Morgan-Smythe, a world-class figure skater, and Aaron Jackon, an American cowboy. Both are complex characters, so not your typical light and fluffy romance. This is a love story between oil and water.
While I’ve listed writing under ‘Fun Hobbies’, it has become more of a passion as the books and characters take on a life of their own. Writing is addictive!
Gardening
I’m addicted to gardening and trawling garden centres, supermarkets, and markets for new plants. My philosophy is that there’s always room for one more plant. I also enjoy the challenge of growing my own salad crops.
I have a small urban garden, so I prefer to grow most of my plants in pots or containers
many of which I paint or decorate with mosaics. The last time I counted, I had over fifty plants, all different shapes and sizes, growing in containers.
Mosaics, Painting and Crafting
Sadly, the American lady who used to run the stained glass and mosaic group closed the class, and I’ve been unable to locate another group. The painting class I attended with a friend I can no longer face since she passed away. Thank goodness for YouTube tutorials; however, it will never replace the interaction I enjoyed working in a group environment.
These are just a few of my completed projects. I really must start again. Maybe watch some YouTube tutorials for inspiration.
Line Dancing
When I joined a local line dancing group in June 2022, I could hardly walk, let alone dance. I hobbled through the class, and over time, my balance improved. Despite the pain in my knee, I progressed from participating in only half of a dance to completing not only one dance but the full-hour class while taking only minimal rest. Dancing, in my opinion, is a great way to improve mobility, probably because it is fun and you are concentrating on the music and steps.
Upcycling
What exactly is upcycling?
Upcycling is a creative way of taking something that would normally be discarded and repurposing or improving it so it can be reused.
For example: the table below. I found an old white plastic garden table at our local trash bin, and on another occasion, I found lots of discarded swimming pool tiles. The two were a match made in Heaven, and I created this!
Crates I reuse as planters for lettuce/strawberries etc., to protect newly planted veg plugs from enthusiastic blackbirds or as a deterrent to cats who sometimes use my raised veg patch with its soft soil as a litter tray.
What are your hobbies and interests?
Piglet in Portugal 
Such delightful hobbies and wonderful results! Spectacular mosaics and the Aslan t-shirt!
LikeLike
Ah, that’s not me in the video. That’s one of the dances we have in class and my favourite.
LikeLiked by 1 person