I always wanted to try “Not being poor” but the entry cost and starting equipment are way out of my budget.
Have you tried to be born in to a rich family? I have understood its the bare minimum to get started. Atleast everybody who is serious about the hobby does that.
I realized the mistake I made so I keep trying to find a rich family that will help me start over, but so far haven’t had a lot of success.
Karate tbh…
Pottery! I’d love to have (even just access to) a small studio where I could make things and fire the clay.
Skiing is still top of my list for this but I know I would be too clumsy to do it at a level I would be happy doing. Plus I really really hate ski lifts and cable cars, they scare me to the point I will just avoid anywhere that relies on them to get about.
Diving is something I want to do, but not yet made the time or money available to learn, I know I will at some point.
I’m single and childless, so I’ve been fortunate to do everything I’ve ever wanted to do.
The one thing that comes to mind is meditation. I can’t really get my thoughts or brain to shut off.
The one thing that comes to mind is meditation. I can’t really get my thoughts or brain to shut off.
I seriously don’t understand how people can do that
Don’t try. Start by sitting still for 5 minutes. Then try more minutes next time. It makes you want sex, so be warned.
But I already want sex
Cooking, in a serious way. I started waiting tables, then salad/prep and mid house, but I never went any further. I was a professional musician about 40 years and full time sysadmin for 21 years, but cooking was a missed opportunity I didn’t take. I was just thinking about this yesterday.
An actual regret. I would never have had enough hours leftover for the dedication required.
Julia Child didn’t start her cooking career until she was in her 40s, and didn’t start her show until she was in her 50s.
It’s never too late, and even if you can’t do it “seriously” you can do it for fun and learning. I wish I could learn/play bass “seriously” but just do it for fun. Better than nothing. Cook something youre proud of! :)
Well, you have a pretty regularly scheduled incentive to learn.
The trick I’m learning is to plan one meal. Any meal. Just pick one coming up, and plan what it will be. Nothing fancy, could be anything, like rice, or scrambled eggs, just plan ahead to add a little something extra. Like, maybe this time you sprinkle some cheese on those scrambled eggs as you cook 'em. Flip the sucker in half, boom, ya gotta an omelate.
Next time, when you feel like it, maybe toss in a few pieces of deli ham, or even better, smash some cherry tomatoes with ya frikin fist and toss those goodies in with the cheese. Maybe you’ll plan that again. But then you notice there are different kinds of cherry tomatoes at the store, so you get a few of each and try them out. Look at that, you’re becoming a chef already. You didn’t need to do anything but make a simple plan for a simple meal and get hungry.
There’s very little in life that feels more rewarding than feeding yourself something you fucking love. Therapy should start with learning the basics, like how to feed yourself (before you try to feed others).
I’m gonna bake a loaf of bread this week because I never have and I saw a stupid easy recipe on YouTube. The only thing I needed to do was remember to grab yeast while at the grocery store. Next loaf, I think I’m gonna try sticking chunks of garlic in it. Treat yourself, feed yourself.
It’s never too late to get into cooking! No need to become the world’s best chef, it’s one of the most joyful things to do!
There are things I really wanted to do but couldn’t due to a crippling fear of heights. Rock climbing, parachuting, high diving all look so fun. But I find myself crawling back, shivering in fear, trying my best to control the panic attack.
but couldn’t due to a crippling fear of heights
I grew up with a 50m cliff as a backyard.
Absolutely stunning view, the kind that super-wealthy people pay many tens of millions for these days. My parents picked it up in 1977 for practically a song because nearly all the construction companies came from the prairies and had no clue of how to develop on anything other than a pancake-flat piece of land.
But still. It installed into me a particularly overactive fear of heights. I have trouble getting onto roofs thanks to it. When putting up Christmas lights, my wife needs to hold the ladder, as I am tensed up six ways to Sunday by the time I’m at the top.
Skiing is just as bad. I can take most any slope up to and including a double black diamond. It’s only the triples I cannot handle, because that involves vertical drops.
So I understand that fear. Just not the desire to bodily leap out of a perfectly functional aircraft. That’s nuts.
Dude that’s a good thing. I’m probably going to die from my lack of fear of heights someday. You’re the normal one, not me.
Rollerblades. I’m afraid of speed. Even low speed for people is too high for me. I have no balance too. I can’t ride a bike. But how cool would it be to be able to both move in rollerblades or riding a bike.
I used to rollerblade everywhere as a kid in the 90s. It was awesome.
when i was a little girl, i wanted to be a fashion designer and make up because i was just a girl. i wanted to be like rarity lol
Reading books. I used to be so into it as a kid, but once I got to my teen years I just couldn’t anymore. Every few years I try again and manage to read a few books, but then just stop and never go back. Just last year I tried again, read 10 books, and then just stopped.
Skateboarding. I was into punk in middle/high-school, some of my friends were skateboarders, but I never bought a board. I’m pushing 40 now and it’s way too late to start, even as a midlife crisis.
LONGBOARDING MAH DUDE.
Oo yes, this is a good option. You can do tricks on a longboard but that’s not “the point.”
I’m pushing 40 now and it’s way too late to start, even as a midlife crisis.
What? “Pushing 40” is very literally PRIME mid-life crisis timing. Go buy a fuckin’ board, just take it easy on your joints.
Oh, no, I agree that I’m primed for a midlife crisis, but it’s way too late to start skateboarding. I’m in pretty good shape, eat fairly healthy, exercise regularly, etc., but I can’t shake off an a injury like I did in my teens or twenties. I’m not risking permanently messing up my knees learning how to ollie.
My husband used to skateboard 8 hours a day as a kid growing up. When our son started showing interest he got back on it… For one day.
His ankles and knees are a bit fucked from all those years boarding, and he won’t get back on it out of these same fears. There are other sports probably just as fun lol
And your husband knows what he’s doing on a skateboard. Learning at my age will destroy my knees and make me look like an idiot. Part of me will always want to know the thrill of zooming down a half-pipe, but it’s just not worth it. Someone suggested longboarding, that might be fun, or maybe surfing.
That has been one of the most eye opening things for me in my mid forty’s now. Small injuries I used to shake off same day/over night take weeks/months to fully heal up anymore. I’m significantly more careful and purposeful when using ladders or even just regular chores around the house to keep from straining a joint or ligament. I tweaked my MCL stepping on the edge of my stairs wrong shortly after having to use a cane for a couple months due to a hip injury. That was like two months ago and the ligament is mostly feeling fine now and I can do strength exercises with that leg again but holy shit, this whole thing from when I originally overworked/inflamed my hip cutting down/removing a tree would have never even impacted me five+ years ago and it’s like five months to recover. So yeah, I’m more careful and make sure I take breaks now. It’s just not worth it, slow, careful, and purposeful for me going forward.
Oof, that is my nightmare. I’m a runner, and so far I’ve never torn a ligament or anything, but as I get older I get more worried about it. I always stretch before and after each run, but I know any damage I do will take 10 times as long to heal as it did in my 20s, if it even does heal.
I wanted to be a comic book artist. I can draw, I don’t do it as often as I should, and I’m not bad at it. I wanted to make comic books, get them published at an independent level, and maybe someone would read them. I could just never finish anything I started. I’d have all these great ideas for a story but I would just end up word vomiting them on a page and didn’t know how to expand on it or draw it out. Same thing when I’d try to write a story/novel. How could I create something with several chapters when I just spew everything out within a few pages. So I gave up.
Knitting
knitting and crocheting are fucking black magic to me. I hope you decide to pursue it. I think it’s amazing.
I am thinking about starting. Only my adhd thinks of the learning courve and that takes me away from it
I joined a crafts group for crochet. I only crochet for that one hour a week in group. I too have the ADHD, but carving out the hour a week is helping, and I’m making my first scarf! If you can, my group is through therapy, but I know there are others out there too, find you a group!
Learning to play an instrument.
Reading some of these replies, it seems people are only focusing on half of the process of learning an instrument.
Its not just the instrument you need to learn, it’s how to read sheet music as well. Most likely, you’re not going to find the exact coords to play with the delay in between written as seconds for the song you want. Its going to be in the format of sheet music, with the notes and other symbols.
That takes time to learn, like learning a new language. It’s something you need to learn either before or while learning an instrument, and that is something that can put a lot of people off.
It’s never too late
It does require some time investment but it’s so rewarding.
How does one get started assuming one already has a guitar? I tried reading tabs but i’m just so slow and even when I do get it, it doesn’t sound right.
even when I do get it, it doesn’t sound right.
Are you tuning your strings before the each session?
The only way to get better is to keep trying 🤷♂️ you’ll start slow and hitting wrong notes n, eventually it’ll be slow and right, until eventually it’s almost fast enough.
Also, look for a guitar teacher 🤷♂️ lessons are generally not that expensive and just a few can really get you started
Find a music teacher in real life. There is no substitute. They will be able to see very subtle things in your technique that are hindering you. They can give you feedback in real time. Video lessons from the greatest guitarist will not come close to in-person lessons from a decent guitarist.
Also make friends with other guitarists and play music with them. Music is a social thing.
I got lessons to start off with and it helped a lot. Then years later I tried to learn jazz on my own and I was hopeless. Six months with a teacher got me to where 3 years on my own would have gotten me. The teacher identified gaps in my skills I was completely blind to - I’d have reinforced my strengths while ignoring my weaknesses.
100% this. I “played” guitar and bass for about 20 years, doing tabs and YouTube lessons. I could do plenty of stuff passably, and have been in a few bands and played a few shows in public that went fine.
I got a Rhodes piano for free, and started doing the same learning on my own. My wife signed me up for 6 months of lessons with a real teacher as a gift. I learned so much in my now 2+years with her than the 20 years on my own.
You can get any lesson you want somewhere online, but it isn’t tailored to you or what you want/need to learn.
My teacher asks me what my goals are, and she figures out how to get me there. She sees where I’m at, can pick pieces and lessons to study that aren’t too hard or too easy, and corrects me before bad habits set in. I’ve learned the benefits of reading sheet music vs tabs, I’ve learned scales and how to apply them, and everything I learn is in proper order to allow it to make sense!
As I spend more time learning with her, all the random stuff I “learned” in my own actually clicks into place because I’m getting taught it all in proper context. It’s like building a kit by having someone read you the instructions step by step as opposed to you just opening a box full of pieces and trying to figure out what it is you’re building randomly as you go.
Justonguitar.comis how I learned to play and is frequently suggested for beginners. Its a free srructured couse, that will teach you everything you need to know.
Playing guitar is incredibly difficult, and having an actual teacher would save you countless hours, but its possible to teach yourself, just keep at it.
Honestly the time investment to be able to play a few songs is actually really quick on most instruments. Like on guitar you can go from having never held one to being able to play cool rock songs in under 30 minutes. Even a newborn infant just out of the womb can play a recognizable rendition of Smoke On The Water
I mostly agree with you, but I think it takes a little time to be able to play in something resembling the right rhythm. New players often struggle with changing chords (even 2 note power chords) quickly enough to play something that sounds musical.
But yeah, people would be surprised with how quickly you can learn to be a basic-but-functional guitarist.
I guess it depends on your standards. If you’re fine taking your mangled attempt and seeing what happens after running various fx through then you’ll have a good time.
For sure, especially with today’s access to information. Dynamic tabs, endless video tutorials, gamified apps, etc. It’s the string pressure on your fingertips that you’ll have to get used to first.
Guess who some time ago grapped the entry level guitar a friend wanted to give away and already mastered his first few accords! :-)
But things are going slooow when you have reached a certain age.
I just wish I already had started when I was still younger…I started when I was in 5th grade and I still don’t feel like where I want to be. Honestly, I think dissatisfaction with your current skill level is just a part of the arts for a lot of people. :)
I just wish I already had started when I was still younger…
So do I, and I always will, but that doesn’t take away the joy it’s brought me once I got over the first few hurdles.
I picked up the guitar during Covid, in my 60s. Over 5 years later, and I’m at about an intermediate level, and very happy with my progress.
Thanks to You Tube, learning an instrument has never been easier, especially the guitar. The best guitar teachers in the world are all over YouTube, with plenty of free content. I’m sure it’s the same with any instrument.
If you want to, do it.
Piano for me.
Would be guitar for me.
You can carry it around and has a nice social aspect…and nobody EVER asks for the piano recital of Wonderwall!
jerks
If we’re counting keyboards as a type of piano, you can get some that are pretty portable too. I lucked out and got a second hand one from my ex’s sister for free (she was getting rid of it anyway), and it’d pretty light and not too big!
Working out 🏋️♀️
I find it excruciatingly boring
Id literally rather piss my own pants
Luckily i can do neither as well
I think the key to exercise is finding a recreational activity that is physically active rather than trying to make yourself go to the gym. Barring that, tying gym time with something enjoyable like listening to audio books helps make it at least a little rewarding.
I don’t particularly love brushing my teeth twice a day,but its something you’ve gotta do. I do very much dislike not brushing my teeth. It’s not worth being lazy about it. I also hate feeling unfit and stiff and weak.
Brushing your teeth takes 2 minutes. They tell you to spend a whole 30 minutes a day working out. 30 minutes of boredom, discomfort, pain and agony.
30 minutes a day for a lifetime of feeling healthy and unlocking the opportunity to live a longer life… Also endorphins are a thing.
This is a perspective that I’m likely too exercise-pilled to understand.
i absolutely do not get endorfins from it, but something quite the opposite. i feel like shit and get anxiety. and before someone asks, i have seen a doctor and nothing was found.
Don’t worry I got your back. I haaaaaate working out. Every second of it. It’s miserable, boring, tiring, and gross and sweaty.
However, since I started doing it I hate to admit that I am more energetic in everything else, I move easier, I’m not winded going up stairs, I’m happier, all the tripe they tell you is true.
It’s not 30 minutes because you have to enjoy it, it’s 30 minutes that improve the other 23.5 hours a day
I have my noise canceling headphones, so working out is quality time listening to hot tunes, sharp music, rumbling rhythms and crazy beats while pumpin iron.
Id literally rather piss my own pants
Well, you can’t spell “watersports” without “sports”.
I think that if I started working out years ago I’d have developed a love for it and would relish the gains and new challenges and shit. Its so boring and painful though. I’ll not pick it up today and curse myself in another decade.
I never got myself to go to the gym. However, having a group workout once a week with a coach does help a lot: you kind of feel like you have to go because you’re expected, exercises are challenging and they vary from one session to the other. Quite a good balance for me. I would do it twice a week if I had the time
Try a sport instead. You work out and have fun at the same time. Win win.
