I like to think I have a wide selection of hobbies and interests outside my computer. The problem is, I don't have enough time for them. However, here are some links to various things I enjoy so that while I might not enjoy them as much as I like, you can...
Gaming |
Cooking |
The 80's |
Music |
Movies |
Humor |
Model Railroading |
Things to do in New York |
Reading & Literature |
Strategy board games such as Axis & Allies and Diplomacy are another passion, along with role-playing games such as Amber and ShadowRun.
I also love traditional games like Hearts, Spades, Monopoly and Clue.
While I play a few computer games, I'm not a big fan. I really prefer the social interaction of having a group of friends over.
I just recently started cooking to relieve stress -- it works great and is very relaxing for me. What do I like to cook? I always seem to have a loaf of Banana Bread in the oven, and I love to cook good, wholesome Texas foods like BBQ. Other favorites include chicken cordon bleu, meatloaf, and a nice juicy steak.
Some day I'll put my recipies online, but for now you'll have to go to the Recipe Archive or this collection of Innkeeper's recipes.
I love 80's memoribilia, mostly because I am a Child of the 80's. I have tons of 80's collection CDs, and most every best of album from any decent artist who recorded in the 80's. How many people out there have a copy of the Best of A Flock of Seagulls?
You can find most everything cool about the 80's at the 80's Server which has links to most everything you can remember from that glorious decade.
I still play my Atari and watch VH1 Classic regularly, and as a kid I was hooked on The Dukes of Hazzard and The A-Team. I was never that big of a Pro Wrestling fan, but boy was my brother.
What do I like to listen to? I'm heavily into New Wave -- 80's alternative music, before grunge came along. My absolute favorite band is The Cure. I've seen their last two tours and been listening to them forever. Their last tour was increadible.
I've been a long-time fan of Tori Amos and Live.
I'm also a fan of music from lots of other genres. I love Metallica, Madonna, and I've been listening to country music quite a bit lately. (Kinda hard not to when you grow up in rural Texas.) I also don't mind listening to jazz and Big Band music. I saw a great concert of Gershwin music a few summers ago that I really enjoyed.
Star Wars. What more needs to be said?
Ok, so I can't watch Star Wars all the time. What else? I'm a huge James Bond fan -- I have all the movies in letterbox format. My personal favorite? Goldfinger.
Others that I love to watch are Heathers, Pulp Fiction, The Usual Suspects, The Matrix, the Breakfast Club, Die Hard, Resevior Dogs, and Spaceballs.
I've also been a big animie fan since I first saw Akira at a comic book convention in Houston in 1990. I watched the Japanese version with someone translating the basic gist of the movie. Not fully understanding the movie didn't make a difference. The artwork and story are phenominal.
One of the funniest things out there is Suck, where the totally rip on someone or something everyday. Normally hilarious. Unfortunately, they went bust like many other dot.coms.
A great place for satire is The Onion, a parody paper that runs some great stuff. For dirty jokes, try the rec.humor.funny best tasteless joke page. Cleaner humor can be found at Laugh Web.
I love watching standup humor. My favorites -- Dennis Miller and Steve Wright.
I used to build all the models for by brother's train set and always enjoyed it. So, I've recently gotten into model railroading. I'm really excited about the idea of building a detailed layout with scenery and lots of models.
For comprehensive information on stores and clubs, there's a great Train page out there. The FAQ is also very helpful.
Unfortunately, my apartment in NYC is way too small for my stuff, let alone setting up my trains.
There is a lot to do in New York, but finding exactly what you want to do is hard. For movies, I normally check schedules and buy tickets at MovieLink. Playbill has a listing of what's on Broadway, although there's no way to get 1/2 price tickets on the web yet.
For more general information on what's happening there is City Search, which has all kinds of useful stuff. Also, there's the Urban Access site that while full of fluff, does have some useful info on places to go. And of course, there's always the Village Voice and Time Out New York.
I love to read. Besides the hordes of computer books I read (I'm currently plowing through most of the Nutshell series), I love to read non-fiction (politics/history/media) and science fiction/fantasy. My favorite authors are Robert Heinlein, David Eddings, and William Gibson.
I also like to read Tom Clancy and John Grisham when I'm in the mood for bestseller fiction.
My favorite classical authors include Thomas Hardy, Kate Chopin, and Edgar Allen Poe.