Ask HN: What non-computer activities do you do?

[usefulservices]

For the past 2 years, I've been working quite a lot and didn't had time or mood for other activities. Even when doing something else, was often thinking about work. I realize that life goes by and more and more often I ask myself what's the purpose, why keep working?

Looking for inspiration: what non-computer activities do you do that captivate and fulfill you? Preferably with other people, as I already work alone. For example, from my experience: * walking in the park while listening to good sci-fi audiobooks * running * wall climbing (I gave up after a month, didn't like it that much) * hiking (harder to find partners, plus I need to solve some emails even during weekend) * tennis * piano lessons

One thing that often turns me off is seeing others which do that activity for quite some time and are already good at it (I'm 35 years old), while I'm just starting and seem incapable in comparison.

Thanks so much.

[csnewb]

Running, and lately I became more dedicated to powerlifting. Running is great because it gives you a chance to disconnect from all electronics and clear your mind. You can run alone or as part of a running group, so it can't be an extremely social or individual activity. If you go to a gym dedicated specifically to strength building and not just a commercial gym, you can meet great people who are willing to help you with some lifts.

[freshrap6]

Cooking. You can cook for yourself or others. You can make simple or complex things. You can change recipes to fit your liking and get creative and come up with new things. And at the end, you get to eat it.

[caw]

Along a similar vein - baking. I consider it different than cooking because you're not getting a meal out of it, but rather a dessert or snack. Work and friends are good ways of not having to eat all of it yourself. Free cookies in the breakroom tend to vanish quickly.

Lots of options here too, even healthy ones.

If you're more of a science-y type, once you get familiar with one recipe, you can modify just that recipe. I've modified a banana bread recipe to have less butter and sugar because I make it once or twice a month and play with it every time. You get a feel for what the consistency should be like to make a good finished product, and then bake it.

[cakes]

Same - though in some of the earlier stages and/or during experimentation I would say "And at the end, you can try and eat it."

[eecks]

I want to learn to cook more. Do you have any recommendations on something to cook tomorrow for lunch?

[MrApathy]

I prepare most of the meals that my wife and I eat. I find that having a routine is highly beneficial and keeps me on track. Here's what works well for me:

* Each week I make one meal from each of the following three categories: soup (or chili), meat oriented (usually chicken, sometimes beef), and pasta (or risotto). I make four servings, so we'll have the same meal for two consecutive nights. Each category has four to six different dishes, so even though we eat the same dish two nights in a row we're not making it too often. The limited number of dishes means I don't have a lot of ingredients in my kitchen that I'm using infrequently. On the seventh night we'll eat out or order in.

* A significant number of recipes come from a few different(don't laugh) Real Simple books that we own. The recipes are typically, well, simple to prepare, relatively healthy, and don't require a lot of time. They call for ingredients I can find without having to go to a specialty grocery store. I also have a few recipes from blogs and NY Times Cooking, which has a back-catalog of thousands of recipes.

* Lunches are usually sandwich based, though sometimes extra leftovers. Sandwiches can get boring quickly, so I find adding a lot of ingredients helps. A typically sandwich may be two slices of low sodium turkey, bacon, cheese, broccoli sprouts, and a slice of tomato. For a side I may add in a piece of fruit or a handful of almonds (sometimes plain, sometimes chocolate covered). Usually twice a week I'll go out for lunch. Makes it a little more special when it doesn't happen every day.

* I live in a smaller apartment with limited kitchen space, so I try to use recipes that don't require specialty equipment.

* I make a list of food I'll need for the week on Sunday mornings and make one trip to the store. No going back until next Sunday.

* I try to find recipes that will last for a few days in the refrigerator. Most Sundays I'll make two recipes, providing us with food for four nights. This means I'm usually cooking only one night during the work week. Start at around 4:30pm on Sunday, done eating and cleaning up by 7pm.

Tonight we're having broccoli soup, one of the more "challenging" dishes on my list:

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017010-seared-broccoli-a...

[eecks]

Cool, thanks for the response. I won't start with a broccoli soup haha. I'll try make enchiladas tomorrow

[MrApathy]

I have made the below recipe before and it came out very well. With a cup (uncooked) of rice it makes five servings. Two possible shortcuts: (1) use a store bought rotisserie chicken and (2) leave out the cilantro, so that instead of having to blend the sauce you can simply stir it in a bowl.

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/ch...

Good luck!

[japhyr]

I live in southeast Alaska, so I run in the woods with bears. I run two or three times a week, and I usually don't see any animals. But once in a while, probably 20 or 30 times in the last ten years, I run into a bear on the trail. The possibility of that kind of encounter makes every run a chance to disconnect from day-to-day concerns in a meaningful way. I also volunteer with a local mountain rescue group, which is interesting and extremely fulfilling.

But most of the time I'm either at work or at home with my family. If you're looking for something to do I'd encourage you to find some kind of exercise that you truly enjoy no matter what other people think, and try to find some volunteer project you can give yourself to on a regular basis.

[bliti]

That sounds awesome. Do you have any picture albums online?

[japhyr]

Here's a facebook album of a fun trip in our backyard: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150281130499708....

And here's my flickr set, which I haven't added to for a while: https://www.flickr.com/photos/misteralpenglow

[olegious]

Jiu Jitsu (aka Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) is a great physical activity with a very strong community, all the BJJ gyms I've ever trained at had a very supportive structure where the coaches and advanced students really helped out the beginners.

[thenipper]

My friends and I play a lot of boardgames/role playing games. I know it's playing to a stereotype but it's a fun way to get together.

Sometimes I've done homebrewing. It's something that is reasonable affordable to do at home. There is a strong community aspect to it and at the end you get beer! Plus you can fiddle a lot with different variables.

[patrickfl]

I do a lot of casual hybrid biking (road / light trails) we have a lot of farms around my house so thats a lot of fun.

Also some light woodworking which is always fun. Building a lot of stuff out of re-claimed wood, pallets etc its a lot of fun.

Mostly computers are my job and my hobby. When I'm not working on mar-tech stuff I like to build PCs, electronics, etc. Right now I'm testing all the USB cables in my house to see which ones are crap.

But most of all when I'm not working I like to hang out with my 4 year old son :) I'm teaching him computers, programming, handyman stuff, riding his bike (just took off training wheels).

[kat]

Knitting? It can be cheap (as opposed to stained glass which I didn't know was expensive?!) and knitting groups are very friendly, social, helpful, and encouraging. I think you will always find people doing activities better than you, but all the knitters/crocheters I've ever met are willing to stop and explain things to beginners, or at the very least commiserate over mistakes. Despite the old-lady stereotype, all the knitting groups in different cities I've attended have been all ages and all abilities.

[theWold]

Stained Glass Making (if you find a good shop) can be a close knit group of people and help you get good. I found it very easy to pick up it just requires a steady hand, and a good eye to figure out what piece to cut form where in the glass.

Gardening is also something I enjoy. Learning about plants and keeping them healthy year round. It is very satisfying to have a harvest of your own plant (I grow a decent sized Tabasco pepper plant.) Though this turns into a more solo task unless you do it in a community garden or something like that.

[sjs382]

Stained glass is something I've really been considering getting into lately. My mother used to do it when I was young and it seems fairly relaxing. As with most crafts though, it can get a little expensive quick.

[theWold]

Yes it can, If you are thinking about getting into it, go around to different shops if you have some local and see if they have a stained glass class or something where they provide the tools, glass, and (most likely) copper foil / (least likely) lead for all one price.

That way you aren't stuck with specialty tools if you don't like it. Also stay away from nicer glass. Don't get kokomo glass if you don't need/want it. I always just see what's in the scrap bin and then design based from what's in there.

[sjs382]

Yeah, there's a store near our house. We've been making regular visits there since my wife started doing mosiacs. :)

[usefulservices]

Thanks!

[yolesaber]

Bookmaking. I run a small independent press that publishes art and writing. I make a lot of the books by hand but I also do it for my own pleasure. It is INCREDIBLY satisfying to bind books, especially personal journals. I'm a huge bibliophile and for a while books were just like magic grimoires to me but once I learned a few of the techniques, you can make some really innovative designs and then the real magic begins.

Writing. Working on a novel right now (written out in longhand), but before that I've written a few collections of poetry and even had some work published here and there. I think my most successful piece is an OKCupid bot that creates poems from people's profile text and then sends them the generated poetry. People really liked that - even got to speak about it at Brown University and it was heavily used in an academic paper someone wrote about conceptual poetry and technology (okay so technically that last one is a computer activity haha).

Have been debating getting back into astronomy, but I live in a very light-polluted area so probably wouldn't be worth getting a telescope. Occasionally I will take the rail upstate with a good pair of binoculars and a starmap (and maybe some weed).

The other activities I engage in have pretty much been covered in the thread. +1 to hiking, cooking, and biking.

[avitzurel]

I always say I am an aspiring endurance athlete.

I swim-bike-run (not often in the same order except in events).

Strava is the athletes Github :)

https://www.strava.com/athletes/828591

[quickpost]

Seconded on Strava. Having such a nice tool to record my cycling makes me want to go cycling more often.

[kohanz]

I enjoy sports as a great simultaneous physical and social outlet. Team sports like soccer and basketball and also individual sports like squash. When I don't play them, I miss the feeling of competitiveness and camaraderie that sports brings. It can be a great emotional sandbox, to experience the highs of winning and the lows of losing without actually having to win or lose anything of value. I find it to be a good emotional calibrator and I'm a better husband, father, and everything else when I'm regularly participating in sports.

[andrewstuart]

>>One thing that often turns me off is seeing others which do that activity for quite some time and are already good at it (I'm 35 years old), while I'm just starting and seem incapable in comparison.

Be the best person you can be and try (it's very hard) to stop comparing yourself. How can you be anything more than your best? Do it because its good for you or you enjoy it, not because you are awesome or not awesome at it.

[i336_]

"Failure has no meaning, as I am not attempting to succeed."

-> https://www.reddit.com/r/depression/comments/rtaiu/being_for...

[usefulservices]

Good advice

[andrewstuart]

I'm 48 and just took up kickboxing. Of course I am the least fit and the least capable fighter compared to everyone else in the gym but that is of no interest to me. I love kickboxing.

[atmosx]

The sports that excite me more than anything else I do are:

- Snowboarding (adrenaline rush)

- Racing[1] (again adrenaline rush)

That said, in order perform in both sports, you have to be fit, which means running/gym on a regular basis.

[1] My car is a Lotus S2, 175 bhp. with various additions (exhaust, quickshift, etc.). I wouldn't change that car for anything.

[bliti]

Pics of the car? :)

[atmosx]

There are a few online, but can't find any right now :-)

It's a white S2, a real beauty!

[cdnsteve]

Squash is my new favorite thing. It's a fantastic high energy workout for the mind and body. You can do an hour session and that's all you need. Perfect partner game.

Snowboarding, although I've been doing it for so long I'm bored of it.

Backcountry camping and canoeing is fun, whitewater kayaking and fishing.

[i336_]

> Snowboarding, although I've been doing it for so long I'm bored of it.

When you've

1. been doing it that long

2. are bored of it

that screams to me "become an instructor" :P

[hmahonen]

Skydiving. I was 32 few years ago when I started and I found out that not only I get to to do fun stuff in the sky, but I get to hang with great people. I can barely fly on my belly, but it's fun too :)

That's the summer. In winter I read books, fly in a wind tunnel and ski.

[jlengrand]

I'm suprised it's not there already, given the amount of computer science related people I meet everywhere I have been : Bouldering/Climbing!

3 times a week, roughly. I love it because whatever their level is, everybody can have the same fun all together.

[ryanfitz]

I do a good bit of weight lifting, typically 4 or 5 times a week. I find it a great way to disconnect and focus on something very simple / straightforward for an hour. Its also a great way to relieve stress.

[gadders]

+1 for weight lifting/training. I'm more on the powerlifting style than Olympic Weightlifting.I go four times a weel and I've been following variations of 5/3/1 for about 5 years now. If anyone wants level up their strength and health I heartily recommend it.

[eecks]

Do you have a good physique?

[gadders]

I don't primarily train for my physique. When people lift weights, people can have different aims in mind. Olympic Weightlifters become more explosive and better at the Olympic lifts. Body builders train for muscle size and definition. My primary aim is to see the weights I lift get heavier and heavier from week to week and month to month. As a result of that, my physique is better than it was before, but I would never be mistaken for a mens fitness cover model.

Properly strong people look more like this: http://lilsgym.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/BillKazmaier.j...

and less like this: http://www.alux.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/James-Ellis2....

That's not to say that you won't get stronger doing any of the three types of weight training, but the primary focus differs.

[eecks]

I lift as well. It gives you a great feeling but also can be very humbling.

What routine do you follow?

[noir-york]

Airsoft - its a team sport, physical, and others who have been at it for longer won't have that great an advantage over you even if you're still staring out.

Also, I find it massive fun!

[Toobam]

Oh that stuck when I aint be in computing workd. I think I can cook it better when its meal. Yeah I'm mr chef.

[arnold_palmur]

Playing music (mostly guitar) and exercise are my primary activities.

I've also become a bit of a tea aficionado recently.

[jimmahoney]

Argentine tango. At its best, a powerful, intimate connection between you, your partner, and the music.

[madengr]

Fencing. Besides the fact that sword fighting is fun, it should help my brain and reflex as I age; 44 now.

[cweagans]

What's a non-computer activity? :P

I cook, I exercise, I play video games (PS4. That's not a computer, right? :P )

[brudgers]

Parenting and refereeing soccer.

[khein11]

Running, and working out at home with some dumbbells and bodyweight exercises.

[tmaly]

I installed hardwood floors at my place. It was easier than I thought.

[galfarragem]

non-computer activities I like: snorkeling, hiking, travelling, cooking, DIY, boardgames, gardening, reading.

most useful: cooking

most relaxing: snorkeling

[urxvt]

Spinning fishing

[innertracks]

Argentine Tango!

[crispytx]

Wingsuit!

[i336_]

Wait, really? That sounds awesome!

[Lordarminius]

Chess Reading Running

[eecks]

Do you play Chess online?

I liked Chess and was good compared to my peers when I was younger. When I play it now, the game feels very limited and not that interesting. I wonder if this is because I am no longer any good at it compared to my peers or if I am overstimulated from other games.

[pshyco]

Playing Cricket !

[eecks]

Travel