do this
{hobbies}
When I'm not enriching the lives of others, I'm wasting my own with the following:
dancing
decorating
design
hanging
reading
shopping
singing
sleeping
surfing
swimming
watching basketball
writing
dancing
I'm not saying I do it well, just that I like to, preferably to something like this. (How 'bout you dance back up to the top of the list, hmm?)
decorating
For a period of time, I thought about becoming an interior decorator. Not everyone prefers my style of decorating, though, and I'd itch to tell a snooty client that I hate the Chippendale chair she covets. So I resigned myself to decorating my own space, a project which is in a perpetual state of "almost finished". I'm big on modern with a touch of quirk, lots of white and bare floors with kitschy accessories. My bedroom is the farthest from being complete...it goes beyond "minimalist" straight to "barren void", which sadly echoes my love life therein. I keep thinking that if I just gave it some sort of Feng Shui Bordello makeover, the place would be a Booty Wonderland. The real problem, though, is location, location, location. I live on the ground floor, and neighbors seem compelled to stop and chat for what always seems like hours right in front of my bedroom window. It's hard enough to sleep, let alone get that lovin' feelin', when you're listening to the landlord discuss plumbing with the guy from 2B and wondering just how much privacy your Levelors really afford. (I'd decorate this topic in a list motif, kind of like this one.)
design
This is a pretty broad topic, encompassing anything from designing a web site to designing a mock album cover for my fictional band to designing a plot to take over the world. For now, you'll have to content yourself with just the web site. (I simply MUST revisit the stunning design of this list!)
hanging
I'm not talking about hanging upside down, which proved less entertaining than I thought it would be, or committing homicidal/suicidal acts, which to me would be more of a career than a hobby. I'm talking about hanging out with my friends, which usually involves drinking beer and making fun of each other. I also further my aspirations of becoming a burden on society by hanging out alone, doing nothing. Doing nothing is harder than it looks, and that's why I have to do it A LOT, just so I can get it right. (A hanging's probably in order, but first let's see the rest of the list.)
reading
I spent much of my youth with nose firmly pressed to book. Now I loiter at Borders. Sometime during high school, I started to regard books like a leprotic handshake. Personally I think it was being forced to read The Left Hand of Darkness that turned my heart. Now I'm coming around. I seem to be overly attracted to novels with storylines echoing my own life. (Apparently I don't read for escape.) I like to think of this as research...for life, I guess. Living through it myself isn't enough, evidently. (Reading is fundamental, and so is returning to the list.)
shopping
This is such a cliche, girly pasttime that I hesitate to list it here, but I suppose I could have mentioned a really embarassing hobby, like masturbation. Granted, both are things that I generally prefer to do alone, are momentarily gratifying yet essentially meaningless, and provide stress relief, sometimes followed by guilt and shame. Admittedly, no one has ever been arrested for shopping in public. But then masturbation has the advantage of being free. (Too much information? Never!)
singing
Before I was old enough to be self-conscious, I used to go around singing into hairbrushes. Years later, I joined the high school choir and later still, I started writing songs. I was actually getting pretty good at both these endeavors when I fell madly in love. After that, I was too damn happy to write bitter songs about heartbreak, too busy kissing for crooning. Two years later I had all kinds of material for bitter songs about heartbreak, but I'd lost my momentum by then, and sadly, much of my voice. Apartment life is a little too unwittingly intimate for me, so now I save my seranades for the car, which usually dissolve into The Ballad of Road Rage (an operetta in the key of F-word). But someday I'll have my own home, dust off my guitar, and work unhindered at becoming the next Sheryl Crow. (Don't quit your day job - go back to the list instead.)
sleeping
If you had dreams like I do, you'd count sleeping as a hobby, too. It's better than going to the movies, the plots are bizarre and riveting and they all star ME. Rest AND free entertainment, top that! (I dreamt I was returned to the list by clicking this link!)
surfing
Surfing the web, I mean, not the waves. Gotta have some sort of inspiration for this site, ya know. (You could list the reasons to leave, OR you could leave and return to the list.)
swimming
I hate having my head underwater. Can't relax enough to float. But I love to swim. Go figure. (The list is like a life-preserver...better grab it before you drown in this sea of trivia.)
watching basketball
Only NBA will do -- I prefer the men with experience (take that as you will). I pick my favorite teams for completely arbitrary reasons, like the players look like nice people or because they walloped a team that I hate because the players seem like jerks (and where I draw the distinction between naughty and nice is equally random). Currently I love the Kings best. I'm a sucker for an underdog, and any team that can keep the Lakers on their toes is ok by me. I loved Jordan (for his skill), and I worshipped Barkley (for his wit). I get more excited by some basketball games than I do some sexual encounters, which probably says more about the latter than the partners in question might want to know. (She catches the rebound back to the list, and the crowd goes wild!)
writing
Obviously I love to write. I was born to do it. I was spinning tales before I could print my own name. In high school, my notes to friends were illustrated sagas casted with our crushes of the moment. Today, my emails are mini-novellas. I can easily spend 45 minutes trying to find just the right words to inform my coworkers that the copier is out of toner. It's a lot of pressure, being known for your wit. Even I'm a little disappointed when I'm feeling dull (which is often). (And perhaps if we go back to the top of the list, this writing will seem better than it really is.)