Everyone who has any free time has hobbies. Some of us crochet or knit, some play video or tabletop games, and some of us take day-long naps when we can. There are any number of things that we humans can do to take up our free time, but all hobbies are definitely not looked upon the same by society.
Reddit user GwenButNotReally asked:
What's your weird hobby?
All hobbies are definitely not created equally.
You made our day.
I like to compliment strangers- elderly individuals with brightly colored hair, kids that obviously dressed themselves or have unique style, anyone that catches my eye really... It takes zero effort to make someone feel good about themselves for even a moment.
It's only interesting if you're interested.
Trainspotting. The kind where you watch and film trains, not the heroin kind. It may seem boring but let me tell you when an SD80MAC goes by, it's...still boring if you're not into it.
I painted graffiti for quite a while and grew to really like and appreciate trains. I have now gotten into weathering and painting model railroad cars and usually go by the tracks in my town every weekend to see what's there. But yes, unless someone has an interest in them it's pretty boring. I get excited seeing cars that have been painted by people I know or seeing especially old and weathered cars, or just stuff that's neat and different.
I'm not condoning graffiti but railside you'll see some really neat stuff. A lot of is junk but once in awhile I see one so good the railroad paint shop probably says "I ain't even mad".
It's for the birds.
Bird photography. First got into it when I was 23. Just saw some cool birds outside so I took some pictures. Then I started wanting to do it more, so I left my house for the sole purpose of finding birds to take pictures of. Started looking up nature trails with a good birding reputation. Bought a birdwatchers field guide, splurged for a better camera. Started waking up at dawn on weekends to drive to better bird trails. Started volunteering at a rehab shelter for injured birds so I could get better pictures of rare birds
Yeah it's birds.
Rules are important!
Giphy
I collect rubber ducks. I have weird rules for the weird hobby. I'm not allowed to order them online or anything. They have to all either be given to me or physically bought in shops. I recently went to Vegas and bought 3-4 new ones.
It's elementary!
I collect element samples. My goal is to have one of each element up to Americium.
If you have a smoke detector, you've got your americium sample.
Spellbindingly unique.
I make little voodoo dolls, but like, the trendy kind you can buy at the store or are sometimes in vending machines. I saw one and was like "I could do that." And now I do.
Anytime there is a franchise or character that I can't find or afford merch for I just make myself a voodoo keychain. I've even sold them.
I've done:
Darth Vader Elsa (Frozen) Sherlock Holmes (Sherlock) Nathan Drake (uncharted) Joel Miller (the last of us) Danny Phantom Chris (until dawn) Lightning Farron (FFxiii) Hope Esthiem (FFxiii) Cloud Strife (FFVII) Jack Frost (Rise of the Guardians) Mal (Firefly) complete with tiny guns! Garrus Vakarian (Mass Effect) Kaidan Alenko (Mass Effect)
Grisly work!
I'm a Ripperologist. I research crimes of the era, workhouse records, infirmary records, newspapers of the era, and other government records during the time period in an attempt to find plausible suspects that could have been the serial killer known as Jack the Ripper. The British Empire during the Victorian Era were meticulous record keepers and I could spend a lifetime combing through them ! While I don't expect to ever solve the case (that is a 1 in a million shot) I believe I can produce better suspects then those that have been put forward who until now have all been pretty poor in my opinion.
Glad I'm not the only one.
Collecting spoons. Not even the ones with fancy, decorative handles. Screw those. Just regular, run-of-the-mill spoons. Only teaspoons though.
So ends the mystery of all my missing silverware.
Username checks out.
I love collecting rocks and sticks I find. It can't be just any old rock or stick, it has to have personality and be particularly eye catching.
Also I don't think many would consider this weird but I like to find plants and take clipping or some roots and pot them at home. I've grown quite the collection over the years.
Humans are fascinating, after all.
People watching in a non-creepy way. I really dislike most people because people are selfish and rude for the most part, but I love studying the way that people interact. Learning body language and reading an entire conversation or situation just by seeing reactions and body language. It has always been a fascinating part of psychology for me. If you really pay attention to people and their interactions, you see so much more.