Got Hobbies?

[Recidiva]

Thank you

I build jewelry boxes, keepsake boxes, my own dining room table, all the coffee and end tables in my house, lots of wine racks, cabinets in James Krenov style, muck is from my own designs, some from plans.

I use a fair bit of exotic and figured wood.

My for sale work goes in a gallery, up to #350.00 for a box, 4 to 500 for a table or wine rack sort of thing

It helps keep me out of bars and from chasing women too much but I don't let it interfere with my fishing or snowmobiling time

Learned a new name:

James Krenov

http://jameskrenov.com/images/furniture.jpg

Those are beautiful. So from an untrained eye, it's matched wood with insets, symmetrical and spare.

What is your favorite choice of wood to work with? I know nothing about relative merits.

 

[Recidiva]

I'm involved with a project for the local community to run our local museum. I'm their constitutional/council bumpf expert, writing applications for funding and compliance documentation.

I've also had that role in four other local organisations and have successfully bid for funding from the local council, local businesses, Arts funds, and Europe.

I run a mini-museum in my garden during the local festival, letting people, particularly children, handle and use old artefacts such as a wind-up gramophone, a manual typewriter, and tinplate clockwork trains.

I'm still, although I am trying to shed some of the roles:

Chairman of the Residents' Association
Vice-President of the local Chamber of Commerce (and have a nice chain to hang around my neck for official functions)

[I was accused of taking my Vice-Presidential role a step too far when I recruited one of our local prostitutes. Why not? Her clientele were older gentlemen and her services were legal. She offered 10% discount to Chamber Members, and had discounts from them on electrical work etc... She lasted as a paying Member for about five years before she moved to another town.]

Secretary of the Association of local Chambers of Commerce in our county
Chairman of the Friends of the Park
Chairman of the Police/Community Consultation Group
and other roles...

What's in your local museum? Is there a link?

I would love to see pictures of your garden if you have any.

Good for you, good for her.

What does a friend of a park do?

What does a consultation group do?

 

[Magnetron]

I draw stuff whenever I find the free time.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/558376053775291018/

 

[TitfuckerMike]

I write feature film screenplays. Over the last few years I've sold two scripts to an independent production company and had four optioned by studios, but nothing has been filmed so far.

Otherwise, eh, the usual reading and such. Also I'm a huge fan of orchestral film scores, stuff by Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, James Horner and so on.

 

[Recidiva]

I draw stuff whenever I find the free time.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/558376053775291018/

That is really good. Art always looks like magic to me. Just humans or other stuff?

 

[Colonel Hogan]

I play golf. And yesterday I had a GREAT practice session, which given my chronic back problem of the last nine years, was a dramatically inspiring event.

Until my recent fitness campaign, I haven't been able to practice. I could play golf because I was sitting in the cart between shots. But practicing means you are standing the whole time, and I couldn't stand for more than 15 minutes straight without nagging pain.

And golf is a game at which you can't achieve much success unless you play and practice it often, and my game seriously sucked.

But now I'm comin' back. Strong.

 

[Recidiva]

I write feature film screenplays. Over the last few years I've sold two scripts to an independent production company and had four optioned by studios, but nothing has been filmed so far.

Otherwise, eh, the usual reading and such. Also I'm a huge fan of orchestral film scores, stuff by Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, James Horner and so on.

Very cool, congratulations!

I know John Williams and James Horner, I looked up Jerry Goldsmith...he did a LOT.

My favorite modern composers so far are Sondheim and Elfman.

Not much modern classical I've remembered, but I do like John Rutter.

 

[chillywilly2]

Learned a new name:

James Krenov

http://jameskrenov.com/images/furniture.jpg

Those are beautiful. So from an untrained eye, it's matched wood with insets, symmetrical and spare.

What is your favorite choice of wood to work with? I know nothing about relative merits.

I love his work, clean lines, hand tools, very fine work.

His cabinets go for $10k or more. I have made 2 so far and am working on a 3rd...he is dead now

My favorite wood is what comes from trees, period...but I'm not a real big fan of pine because it gets gum all over the tools

 

[Liar]

What do you play as an instrument, or do you sing, and what kind of music do you play?

Drums and various things with pedals and buttons, from (half assed) piano to syhths, sequencers and loopers. And if you need someone to yell in the background, I'm your guy.

The genre is hipster hodgepodge pop.

 

[Recidiva]

I play golf. And yesterday I had a GREAT practice session, which given my chronic back problem of the last nine years, was a dramatically inspiring event.

Until my recent fitness campaign, I haven't been able to practice. I could play golf because I was sitting in the cart between shots. But practicing means you are standing the whole time, and I couldn't stand for more than 15 minutes straight without nagging pain.

And golf is a game at which you can't achieve much success unless you play and practice it often, and my game seriously sucked.

But now I'm comin' back. Strong.

Were you injured?

How long have you been playing?

 

[Recidiva]

I love his work, clean lines, hand tools, very fine work.

His cabinets go for $10k or more. I have made 2 so far and am working on a 3rd...he is dead now

My favorite wood is what comes from trees, period...but I'm not a real big fan of pine because it gets gum all over the tools

I can see it. Japanese shaker kind of vibe.

I'm always amazed to see what people can make with things I take for granted.

 

[Recidiva]

Drums and various things with pedals and buttons, from (half assed) piano to syhths, sequencers and loopers. And if you need someone to yell in the background, I'm your guy.

The genre is hipster hodgepodge pop.

Yell or sing? Or is that how you sing?

Do you have any recordings?

 

[TitfuckerMike]

Very cool, congratulations!

I know John Williams and James Horner, I looked up Jerry Goldsmith...he did a LOT.

My favorite modern composers so far are Sondheim and Elfman.

Not much modern classical I've remembered, but I do like John Rutter.

I like Elfman but NOT when he's doing the fantasy/superhero/ Tim Burton thing.

Kudos on knowing Williams and Horner. Brush up on Goldsmith, he was and is my all time favorite.

And of course, the best scoring for television in the last 20 years has been by Michael Giacchino, his marvelous music from LOST :


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnBIDr9e44I

 

[Recidiva]

I like Elfman but NOT when he's doing the fantasy/superhero/ Tim Burton thing.

Kudos on knowing Williams and Horner. Brush up on Goldsmith, he was and is my all time favorite.

And of course, the best scoring for television in the last 20 years has been by Michael Giacchino, his marvelous music from LOST :


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnBIDr9e44I

He's done a lot of the Tim Burton thing, but I know what you mean. I'm biased 'cause the guy can compose and then sing some incredibly difficult stuff. So that's why Sondheim also, though he doesn't sing it himself, it is a challenge to sing and it's wonderful to hear someone be able to do it. Acrobatic.

I sing and I played French Horn in school, so I played a bit of their composition too. Whether it was in the orchestra or in the marching band, little bit of everything.

I did watch Lost, and I am more impressed by TV as time goes by, how much work goes into the aspects of it.

Badly done music can really make me hate a piece, and there are lots of times when I'll stop and say "I don't really like this film...but whoever did the sound direction...I love that person."

Speaking of horns:

Fanfare for the Common Man, Aaron Copland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NjssV8UuVA

 

[TitfuckerMike]

He's done a lot of the Tim Burton thing, but I know what you mean. I'm biased 'cause the guy can compose and then sing some incredibly difficult stuff. So that's why Sondheim also, though he doesn't sing it himself, it is a challenge to sing and it's wonderful to hear someone be able to do it. Acrobatic.

I sing and I played French Horn in school, so I played a bit of their composition too. Whether it was in the orchestra or in the marching band, little bit of everything.

I did watch Lost, and I am more impressed by TV as time goes by, how much work goes into the aspects of it.

Badly done music can really make me hate a piece, and there are lots of times when I'll stop and say "I don't really like this film...but whoever did the sound direction...I love that person."

Speaking of horns:

Fanfare for the Common Man, Aaron Copland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NjssV8UuVA

An ex of mine was a huge Sondheim fan and although I never became a big fan, he sure as hell has some complex and witty writing. I admire it even though I never started listening to a lot of his work.

My favorite Elfman is Midnight Run, which is an R&B/Stax style score, full of horns, a great fun album. The end titles song on the CD, Try To Believe, is a fantastic song, which he also recorded for Oingo Boingo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL-h01kbeG0

In the film, the track is instrumental over the end credits.

And though I refuse to see the movie, his score for Fifty Shades Of Gray is excellent.

And Copland is great anytime.

 

[Recidiva]

An ex of mine was a huge Sondheim fan and although I never became a big fan, he sure as hell has some complex and witty writing. I admire it even though I never started listening to a lot of his work.

My favorite Elfman is Midnight Run, which is an R&B/Stax style score, full of horns, a great fun album. The end titles song on the CD, Try To Believe, is a fantastic song, which he also recorded for Oingo Boingo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL-h01kbeG0

In the film, the track is instrumental over the end credits.

And though I refuse to see the movie, his score for Fifty Shades Of Gray is excellent.

And Copland is great anytime.

That is one of my favorite Elfman songs. It's one of the only ones he wrote that is about emerging from darkness, not just reveling in it. Saw them years ago in LA, he was something to watch live.

I also refuse to see the movie but now I might just have to listen to it. I did actually read the books. I had to. There were things I had to make fun of while educated.

 

[Pervy_dad]

I draw stuff whenever I find the free time.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/558376053775291018/

Nice!!

 

[oggbashan]

1. What's in your local museum? Is there a link?

2. I would love to see pictures of your garden if you have any.

Good for you, good for her.

3. What does a friend of a park do?

4. What does a consultation group do?

I can't answer 1 or 2 without identifying the real me. As for what is in the local museum? That is part of the problem we are trying to address. The main displays haven't changed for many years although we have many items in store that could replace them, and be different every month. The issue is complex.

The local council own the building and about a quarter of the museum stock. Three-quarters of the items and almost all the paper records belong to a local Historical Society, now a Charitable Trust, but until recently they couldn't get access to their own stuff.

We have set up another Charitable Trust to run the Museum but the local council are treating that Trust as if it was a commercial organisation submitting a tender to deliver services, despite all of us being unpaid volunteers. The legal documentation - they say - has to comply with European Regulations on competitive tendering with hundreds of provisions and required indemnities. But the Trust is the only tenderer AND the only one possible because the other Trust wouldn't lend their exhibits to anyone else.

It's been a nightmare for months and has delayed the transfer (and re-opening of the Museum) for six months past the original date already. Yesterday the new Trust was seriously considering saying "Fuck it!" and walking away. We hope the newly elected Councillors, most of whom we know personally, will knock some sense of proportion into the Council Officers.

3. A group called Friends of a Park can do things that the local Council, the landowner, can't do particularly bid for Lottery Funding. They can also provide volunteers to help look after the Park alongside the paid council employees. We have set up a Community Garden tended by a local Mental Health charity. We have school bulb planting days, and we organise some events. But the Park is heavily used by many organisations including Youth Football clubs, the local Rotary club who run a Boot Fair every Sunday morning, and we have many events during the town's Summer Festival.

Part of the Park is used by visiting fun fairs and we help them with access and with damage limitation to the grassed areas.

The Friends have helped raise funds for the Children's Play Area to be re-equipped, including items chosen (within the available finance) by local school children and teenagers. It was interesting to see them discussing "Can we afford that big item, or would it be better to have three smaller and cheaper items?".

We have persuaded the Council to devote some of their budget and money from Sport England to putting public toilets back into the Park (the original 1920s ones were closed 15 years ago). The new toilets are next to the children's play area and the building is also used for sports changing facilities, replacing the ancient, rotten and draughty wooden huts.

From Spring to Autumn there is now an open-air coffee shop in the centre of the Park.

Our failure? The Council decided to charge for use of the tennis courts but pitched the fee far too high for those who aren't serious tennis players (and those that are use the better and cheaper facilities at the local tennis club). Our tennis courts are now empty most of the time.

Some of the trees in the Park are diseased. We, and the Council, are gradually replacing the worst affected ones with large new trees - expensive.

4. Police/Community Consulation Group discusses policing issues such as siting of CCTV cameras including temporary ones at nuisance hot-spots; identifies graffitti tagging incidents by time, location and tag; the civilian members keep an eye on known offenders; we coordinate and share information with all the Neighbourhood Watch schemes, most of which are in the residential areas that have little crime; and we give general information to the Police such as suspected drug-dealing locations. If any of us see drug-dealing in progress obviously that is reported instantly, but if we hear unverified rumours that "they've moved to under the railway bridge", we'll pass that on.

The Police discuss local Crime Statistics, share information such as which of our bad lads are in or out of jail, and if in when coming out.

But we are a low crime area, a low priority for the Police. We recognise that. Most of our activity is about managing the irrational fears of local crime - "It's too dangerous for an old person to be out in the town centre after dark" - no it isn't. Late on Friday and Saturday nights the people most likely to be assualted are drunken teenagers and the people most likely to commit the assualts are drunken teenagers. "There are rowdy teenagers causing a nuisance" - no they're not. They're just hanging around as you used to do when you were their age....

 

[Eyereadtoo]

Did you start to collect again? I mostly collected books until it took up too much space.

My dad used to do that. He helped a local church with their outreach. It always seemed like such a good way to unambiguously help someone.

No, I haven't started back collecting yet; not sure if I will but I still have a couple of items I haven't sold, I may keep them. What type of comic books did you collect?

It really is a great way to help some who are really down and out and feel like there is no one who cares, hopefully I've let them see that maybe ere are some good people in this world. My favorite interactions are with the children who come though with their parents or grandparents, kids can tell if you're genuine or not.

 

[Recidiva]

I can't answer 1 or 2 without identifying the real me. As for what is in the local museum? That is part of the problem we are trying to address. The main displays haven't changed for many years although we have many items in store that could replace them, and be different every month. The issue is complex.

The local council own the building and about a quarter of the museum stock. Three-quarters of the items and almost all the paper records belong to a local Historical Society, now a Charitable Trust, but until recently they couldn't get access to their own stuff.

We have set up another Charitable Trust to run the Museum but the local council are treating that Trust as if it was a commercial organisation submitting a tender to deliver services, despite all of us being unpaid volunteers. The legal documentation - they say - has to comply with European Regulations on competitive tendering with hundreds of provisions and required indemnities. But the Trust is the only tenderer AND the only one possible because the other Trust wouldn't lend their exhibits to anyone else.

It's been a nightmare for months and has delayed the transfer (and re-opening of the Museum) for six months past the original date already. Yesterday the new Trust was seriously considering saying "Fuck it!" and walking away. We hope the newly elected Councillors, most of whom we know personally, will knock some sense of proportion into the Council Officers.

3. A group called Friends of a Park can do things that the local Council, the landowner, can't do particularly bid for Lottery Funding. They can also provide volunteers to help look after the Park alongside the paid council employees. We have set up a Community Garden tended by a local Mental Health charity. We have school bulb planting days, and we organise some events. But the Park is heavily used by many organisations including Youth Football clubs, the local Rotary club who run a Boot Fair every Sunday morning, and we have many events during the town's Summer Festival.

Part of the Park is used by visiting fun fairs and we help them with access and with damage limitation to the grassed areas.

The Friends have helped raise funds for the Children's Play Area to be re-equipped, including items chosen (within the available finance) by local school children and teenagers. It was interesting to see them discussing "Can we afford that big item, or would it be better to have three smaller and cheaper items?".

We have persuaded the Council to devote some of their budget and money from Sport England to putting public toilets back into the Park (the original 1920s ones were closed 15 years ago). The new toilets are next to the children's play area and the building is also used for sports changing facilities, replacing the ancient, rotten and draughty wooden huts.

From Spring to Autumn there is now an open-air coffee shop in the centre of the Park.

Our failure? The Council decided to charge for use of the tennis courts but pitched the fee far too high for those who aren't serious tennis players (and those that are use the better and cheaper facilities at the local tennis club). Our tennis courts are now empty most of the time.

Some of the trees in the Park are diseased. We, and the Council, are gradually replacing the worst affected ones with large new trees - expensive.

4. Police/Community Consulation Group discusses policing issues such as siting of CCTV cameras including temporary ones at nuisance hot-spots; identifies graffitti tagging incidents by time, location and tag; the civilian members keep an eye on known offenders; we coordinate and share information with all the Neighbourhood Watch schemes, most of which are in the residential areas that have little crime; and we give general information to the Police such as suspected drug-dealing locations. If any of us see drug-dealing in progress obviously that is reported instantly, but if we hear unverified rumours that "they've moved to under the railway bridge", we'll pass that one.

The Police discuss local Crime Statistics, share information such as which of our bad lads are in or out of jail, and if in when coming out.

But we are a low crime area, a low priority for the Police. We recognise that. Most of our activity is about managing the irrational fears of local crime - "It's too dangerous for an old person to be out in the town centre after dark" - no it isn't. Late on Friday and Saturday nights the people most likely to be assualted are drunken teenagers and the people most likely to commit the assualts are drunken teenagers. "There are rowdy teenagers causing a nuisance" - no they're not. They're just hanging around as you used to do when you were their age....

Definitely preserve anonymity. Thank you for answering!

For an American, a Boot Fair sounds funny. I assume it's not boots, is it supposed to be the trunks of cars, that sort of informal? We have Flea Markets...no fleas.

 

[Recidiva]

No, I haven't started back collecting yet; not sure if I will but I still have a couple of items I haven't sold, I may keep them. What type of comic books did you collect?

It really is a great way to help some who are really down and out and feel like there is no one who cares, hopefully I've let them see that maybe ere are some good people in this world. My favorite interactions are with the children who come though with their parents or grandparents, kids can tell if you're genuine or not.

I've inherited a house with loads of historical books. My brother also collected art books and illuminated manuscripts so I have a lot I need to organize and get good bookcases to display.

I never had a ton of comic books but my husband did, and I had a friend who did, so I read his. Mostly mainstream Marvel and DC. I got back into it recently now that I can get the virtual ones.

I think you're right. Effort and presence does more than money, any day.

 

[remy_lebeau8]

Besides the pipes I love to fish and garden. I plan on doing a big landscaping project in the next week or two.

 

[Recidiva]

Besides the pipes I love to fish and garden. I plan on doing a big landscaping project in the next week or two.

What kind of fishing and what are you growing?

 

[chillywilly2]

Besides the pipes I love to fish and garden. I plan on doing a big landscaping project in the next week or two.

I plan on going walleye fishing Saturday


and Reci, walnut, cherry and birdseye maple are currently being used.

 

[remy_lebeau8]

Bass mostly. I don't have a boat so whatever I can get from shore. As far as the garden I'm growing lots of veggies and trying out a hops plant this year. I have a wheelchair ramp from the previous owner I plan to tear out this weekend and turn the new space into a flower bed.