If you had up to US$250 to get one person into a hobby you're interested in, what would you do to get them started?
Just a thought exercise to see how you'd go about getting someone started from scratch. The person could be your nephew, a spouse, a coworker, or someone on the internet who needs a new hobby. :) I'm curious how that money would get spent and how that money might spend time. How far would it go? How would you make that time and money count towards a new passion?
Would you buy someone a small motorcycle? Polaroid camera? Time at a bouldering facility? Would you make/give them a really cool sewing station with a bunch of cubbies? A shoebox full of your MtG cards (just the extras, right?) and a ticket to a convention? A custom printed set of LEGO building instructions and the bricks to go with them? Outsider art to inspire a new style of artist passion?
If this is a success, I might post again in a month or so with a lower dollar value to challenge folks.
Electronic music production
Assuming you have a decent computer (anything made after 2012 will probably work fine), then the following:
DAW - REAPER (60$)
Every musician needs a DAW, so this is a must. Ideally you play around with multiple options and figure out which one you prefer; REAPER is my pick personally, it's versatile, has a fairly conventional UI so you can easily later move to Ableton/Bitwig/FL if you feel the need, and probably is the most configurable/scriptable DAW in existence.
Synthesizers - Vital (0$)
Can't make electronic music without a synth.
It's similar to Serum (which is probably dominating the industry at this point but it's 200$) but completely free, and personally I love how it sounds. Very versatile too. With PresetShare and other preset sites you can find any sound you need, and slowly you will learn to make your own sounds.
Natural/organic instruments - Plogue Sforzando (0$)
Pianos, violins and guitars, you probably want some.
Again there are countless free options online, but I'd probably go with Plogue Sforzando (an app and plugin that can play sampled instruments, in SFZ and SF2 format).
After getting Sforzando, these guys should have everything you need to get started: https://sfzinstruments.github.io/
Samples - honestly, the internet ($0)
The internet is drowning in samples at this point, there is zero reason to spend money on them until you're more experienced and/or decide to go professional with music production.
These guys should get you started: Cymatics, MusicRadar, Hyperbits
Plugins - the internet (0$)
Here I'm still figuring out what is worth buying, and what is worth going for free alternatives.
REAPER has some included plugins (and their JSFX suite which is confusingly massive) which work fine.
It's crucial you first learn what type of plugins there are, and why you would need one.
So for now I'd say, stick with what your DAW has, search the internet for what you're missing. Or get the Melda free bundle?
Learning (or why we only spent 60$ so far)
I've been meddling with electronic music in some way for 10 years now. I've made little progress for many of those years because it's hard to get started, everyone throws around tips and tricks but I feel like nobody bothers to teach the basics well. I've eventually found my way through and I'm making my own tracks now, but an easier approach might be the following:
Watch Hyperbits' Groundwork
This is a free course that teaches you the basics of Ableton Live or Logic Pro (you pick at the start which one you want). You can download Ableton Live's demo for this, personally I just spent the time Googling how to do what the instructor does in REAPER.
Their website is frankly cancerous with all the tropes that online instructors use for their websites, but the content is worth it IMO.
Subscribe to their newsletter - horrifying, I know, but hear me out.
Go to their main page and click the Free Training button. It gives you some freebie you don't need right now (I think a video with 7 practices to make your songs sound closer to professionals, not a terrible video but a beginner might not get any value from it yet), but it also subscribes you to their newsletter.
You'll get an email daily for a while, most of them are kind of spam but kind of not, you can read them and glean some useful info but they always find a way to rope you into their Masterclass which is a couple of grand (and for intermediate producers).
Wait?
However, they often do "inner circle sales" (whatever that means) where they sell their courses at a significant discount. You want to wait for either The Hyperbits Bootcamp, or the Songwriting Matrix to be on sale. The Bootcamp is the better deal since it includes the Songwriting Matrix, but I don't know when it will be on sale again.
I got the Bootcamp for around $300 (I know, past budget) and honestly I really found it helpful, it takes you from songwriting to arrangement to mixing in a detailed way, and I feel like I learned a lot from it.
Personally my brain needs a guided course to learn something in detail, which is why I'm recommending this. Otherwise, YouTube is full of videos that can teach you the same thing and more, you just gotta find them yourself and determine what to watch in which order, and all the discipline that entails. Even the Hyperbits guys said that they recommend YouTube videos alongside their courses because there's a wealth of information there, it's just hard to reach and properly understand.
Play around in your DAW, write a piano melody, throw some samples together and make a random beat. Drown a violin in reverb and enjoy the vibes. It's important that you spend time in your DAW, always doing something you haven't tried already. Once you have a grasp of things, try writing a small song, like 30 seconds. Put some drums, piano chords, a melody and a bass. Add some FX samples and learn how they can help you transition from intro to verse to chorus.
And when you don't know something, Google it. Someone has the answer. Learn it quick, then return to your DAW and use what you learned. Avoid those "350 tips to improve your music", you won't remember 90% of it, instead search punctually for what you need at a given moment and ignore the fluff.
Eventually you will make your very first track, and it will feel amazing.
This turned out to be long, and I don't think I touched on everything I wanted to cover yet. I've always wanted to write a free, comprehensive guide on music production using everything I've learnt, to prevent other from being stuck for a decade like me. But I feel like I need to progress more with my own music before I feel like I can try and teach others. I could spin up a Github Pages domain and just throw information in there as I learn it tho, and turn it into something worthwhile later.
Fellow musicians, if you have any comments please send them over, I'm sure we can massively improve this list.
Also, if you have any question about reaper, there's an extremely high chance Kenny Gioia covers it in his Reaper tutorial series on YouTube.
Oh if only I would have read something like this post when I got into music production, the time I would have saved learning to really listen instead of fooling myself with extraneuous plugins and poor monitoring conditions.
The best and most comprehensive write-up I've ever found on the common pitfalls:
Why do your recordings sound like ass? by Reaper forum user Yep.
https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=29283
This thread is exemplary for presenting an overview, not the scattershot approach of assorted tutorial videos. There are certain high-level concepts to be established that make the details and the rest of the process much easier to learn. The forum users even turned it into an ebook.
I've read a bit and it does seem like a legendary thread, will finish it for sure.
However, I don't like the initial premise that you need studio monitors for professional-sounding mixes. Headphones definitely alter our perception of music compared to monitors, but I feel that you have so much to learn about mixing before you even reach the limits of a fairly reputable pair of headphones.
One part of my dislike for this statement is that it leans into the whole "spend your entire student loans on gear" mentality that the music community at large has, and I want to fight back - you can make good music with the most basic of gear and very little money, and I will learn how, and teach others.
Don't get me wrong, I know that the author refers to professional music, and I would obviously expect a professional to use professional gear. But the thread is addressed to the average "Joe Blow", who is expected to not be a professional with professional gear.
These average people may not have the space to install monitors, and if the acoustics are terrible, treat their room accordingly. They might live in an apartment, have thin walls and very angry neighbors who use their broom to knock on the wall everytime a slight loud noise is made (this is me, god I hate these neighbors). Or they might live with a partner/family that aren't as passionate about hearing them mix the same 8-bar loop for 3 days straight.
So yeah, use what you have, upgrade when you need to (and can do so). For bedroom musicians, a pair of decent headphones (buying guides are plenty online) should suffice for their first couple of years in their music making journey.
Should I edit my original comment to also talk about physical gear?
Just to add to this, there is a pretty large number of professional songs that use a Cassio VL-1, which is essentially a music-themed calculator.
(And on another tangent, there's a whole genre of calculator covers these days).
You make some valid points, and I believe they are more or less in line with the premise of the thread, as I hope you will see if you decide to read through the whole thing. The focal point is more or less 'all you need is ears' and a work with what you have approach, learning to trust your ears and work with the sound you can get, without actually getting bogged down with gear acquistition syndrome or thinking you need to have to extensive varied sonic palette of a pro recording studio. You're cooking for yourself here. No pressure or comparisons are required.
My personal experience with headphones (Sennheiser HD25, indestructible, somewhat linear) is that you can really do a lot with them (I would say they are essential in setting levels for reverb) but the bass drum / bass guitar levels are always off when I try to balance them on headphones only.
All you need is ears!
REAPER is offensively good for its price. I use it for podcast editing rather than music production (and used to use it for custom Rock Band songs) and it's always been more than enough for what I need.
I am also responding to this comment just to sing the praises of REAPER. A mere vote isn’t sufficient; I have literally never been more satisfied with a software purchase in my life.
It’s cheap, it’s fast, it’s powerful, it’s stable as hell, and once you configure it with the UI / skin / settings you want it’s a dream to use. The built-in plugins are also great (despite being ugly as sin). I’ve got a library of paid plugins at this point and I still reach for tried and true ReaComp sometimes.
Fun fact: Reaper is made by the company founded by the guy who wrote WinAmp.
Cooool - I love the breakdown. I bought a control surface for photo editing(XTouch by Behringer) and it inspired me to get a DAW to go along with it and try this thing out.
World you say that a control surface is an important part of your workflow?
I don't use a control surface myself, but I know there are a lot of musicians that do.
It's certainly not essential, in my opinion. While you could map your mixer to it, and you stay in arranger view so you can quickly mix elements as you add them in, I don't think it's a big boost in workflow speed.
That said, if you enjoy the tactile feel of real buttons, knobs and sliders, go for it! Everyone's workflow will be different in the end, and all that matters is that you're comfortable with it and having fun.
So i realize this is waaaaaaaaay outside the $250 spend of this topic, but since you seem to know something about this, I've always had my eye on something like the OP1, and have heard the M8 kinda fills that niche better.
I figure starting with your guide is a good way to get into this, but I've always been curious if things like the OP1/M8 can actually just output directly to headphones/whatever, or if you still need other devices for them to function?
The website for the OP-1 mentions a "4-POLE AUDIO JACK FOR HEADSET MIC SUPPORT", so you definitely can use the OP-1 alone, with just a pair of headphones.
I think they want you to use it like that in the first place, and only connect to a DAW if you want to turn your jam sessions into a full track or if you need some more advanced functionality.
First time I've heard of the M8, seems more track-oriented whereas the OP-1 is more of a jam/experimentation tool, either could be a lot of fun though.
I would also submit Renoise as a competitor to Reaper, it's even cheaper. Renoise costs 65 euro and your license is good for a full version update. I paid for 2.8 in 2012 and it's only at 3.4, with slow but steady development. It comes out a bit cheaper and is immensely powerful. It even makes it dead easy to enter notes, having a PC keyboard-based workflow, and 2.5 octaves of notes available, with easy octave changing.
I also have no problem recommending a tracker for a newbie because they don't have a workflow yet. Piano roll to tracker, or vice versa, is harder than learning one or the other in a way. I will say to any newbies: Pick one and stick with it, pick a small set of powerful synths and learn them in and out, you will thank yourself later.
I've heard lots of good things about Renoise, and yeah, it probably is a good choice for a beginner. I've been too indoctrinated by the piano roll so I find a tracker scary, but maybe I should just give it a try for that exact reason.
I came to Renoise from Buzz Tracker and OpenMPT, and have a rarely-used FL Studio and Bitwig license because of the workflow differences. I have a hard time going from Renoise to something like Furnace as well, but that's because it's a different featureset (DAW vs dedicated chip tracker).
Check out Radium, Renoise will look like a simple walk in the park. Radium is super powerful with so many options and features it is terrifying.
What an awesome answer... makes me want to give it a go!
Taking OPs question literally ("starting from scratch") would you recommend this approach for somebody who's never done any music production or composition and fancies giving it a go?
You absolutely can! While terribly difficult to master and become great at, making music at its very basics is super simple, so you can get started right away.
I'd recommend downloading REAPER (you can use it fully without paying, you'll just get a pop-up message asking you to buy it, like WinRAR) and learning the basics. You can read the manual or just watch a YouTube tutorial, quite literally any tutorial will work - someone mentioned Kenny Gioia, or REAPER Mania, you can check him out.
Then search online for sample packs for a music genre you like - for example, trap/hip-hop, or maybe pop. Google led me to Cymatics, which are very reputable, if a little overused, but for the purposes of learning they are perfect.
Download any sample pack you fancy from there. They have a Free Downloads section so you don't need to purchase anything, and you can click on the little play buttons on each sample pack to hear some sounds from it.
Once you have something, open the pack and either use REAPER's Media Explorer to go through the pack, or just drag-and-drop files inside to add them to your project.
For example I got their SOLSTICE beta pack (before releasing a big new, paid sample pack, they release the stuff that didn't make the cut as a beta pack, for free, to hype the final product up), which has like 5GB of goodies, so it's not a bad first choice.
While browsing I found this nice loop in Melodies -> Pop Collection: Cymatics - By Myself - 118 BPM B Min.wav. It's not the trap/hip-hop vibe I initially wanted but it's a chill, funky sound, and I feel like I can build on top of it.
I adjust the project BPM to 118 so the sample fits nicely and I drag it in.
I know I want some drums on top of it, so I went to Drums -> Drum Loops -> Pop. The "Revenge" drum loop sounds nice, but it's a different BPM so it won't match. No worries, REAPER can help us. Drag it in under the first loop, then double-click on it, and look for "Playback rate". It should say 1.000, but if you click on Set, and give it a Source BPM of 109, then press OK twice to close both menus, it'll adjust the sample so it fits our 118 BPM track.
Now if you play both sounds together we have a little vibe going on. Ideally drop the volume of the drums because they're really loud, about -7dB worked for me.
You can keep adding sounds, for example we could find a vocal, in the Vocal Collection folder.
The "By Myself" sound we used earlier is in the key of B Minor (notice the B Min at the end of the filename). Musical keys and music theory are something you'll need to dive into, let me know if you want some resources - but for now all we need to know is that we should only use other sounds that are also in B Minor, otherwise they will sound weird or unpleasant.
In the Vocal Collection folder we have the "Disini Vocal Loop" which is in B Minor. Let's drag it in. Since it's at 158 BPM, we'll need to apply the same trick from earlier and adjust its playback rate to match our track. (double click the sound, find Playback Rate and click Set, enter source BPM 158 and click OK)
Playing all three together sounds nice, so we'll keep this one. Now let's make the drums and vocals repeat to cover the length of the guitar sound. Just drag the right edge of each sound until they reach the end of the guitar sound.
You should now have 48 seconds of music, congrats! There's a lot to expand and improve on (for me the vocal is a little too repetitive, I'd try pitching it up or down to add some variation), and here's where the learning rabbit hole starts, and the internet is full of resources to help you out.
But for starters I'd encourage you to spend a little more time playing with the sample pack and putting sounds together, maybe trying to make different sections, just to get a feel for things.
And this is just playing with and layering existing sounds from a pack. You have synthesizers like Vital and drum one-shots (like the Drums -> Drum One Shots folder) which you can use to make your own unique sounds. You can learn composition and arrangement, and MIDI sequencing so you can write your own melodies. You can learn mixing so you can make everything sound good together, and there's so much more to discover.
Great, thank you for that will download and have a play around!
I've never composed or made any music but I did do a little piano when I was a kid so I'm familiar with musical notation etc
I'll probably ask more questions in the future as I get stuck or learn more of the rabbit hole 🤪
Feel free to ask anytime :)
Hobby: Hiking
$250 is a good budget for a pair of trail runners and socks. Now the only other thing we need is stamina, both mental and physical. Here’s a poem I wrote about that:
FIRST START WALKING
First start walking
As far as you can
Then walk a little more each day
Walk faster & farther
Find hills
Breathe more deeply
Untie all your knots
Make time to walk more
Examine your life
Dream
Start walking everywhere
Explore your neighborhood
Study the land
Learn local history
Discover when the berries ripen
and the flowers bloom
Stand in the rain
Watch the sun sail across the sky
Discover nature’s rhythms
Live in the place where time vanishes
Lose your desire for all material things
Know your place in the universe
~repeat~
I'd also throw in a pass for state parks, national too if there's one near them and enough money leftover.
Out of curiosity, what brand of shoe do you prefer? I use to buy New Balance, but the newer ones don't feel right. :/
Edit: Love the poem! It captures hiking quite well.
Yes to the glories of state and national park trail systems!
There are perhaps 8 to 10 shoe brands of comparable quality for trail runners. It all depends on what fits your particular foot. For me, it’s been Brooks Cascadia, although their quality is getting worse just like everything else. I actually call them my State Park shoes, because they are perfect on maintained trails.
For off-trail adventures I still prefer my old school heavy as hell Danner mountain light full leather boots. They have a line of trail runners that I keep meaning to try as well. Again, their foot bed just works for me really well.
Glad you liked the poem. I actually wrote it after one of my many injury/recovery cycles. My recoveries always begin again with walking.
At least if you're in the US, I know you can get the Salomon Pulsar Trail at a large discount (there are at least three different models from Salomon with Pulsar in the name, so I specifically mean the one with that precise name; not sure about the quality of the others). I wore those for my ultramarathon I "ran" earlier this year and they were very comfortable. I would rate them just as comfortable as any other shoes I've ever tried. I've also found the Brooks Divide 3 to be very comfortable and it is their least expensive trail shoe. Not sure about their newer version. They are "beginner trail runner" road-to-trail shoes, but my understanding is that they're still good for long distances. Obviously I have used my Pulsars for my longer distance excursions. I'm pretty sure I did see someone wearing them in a documentary following someone in the 2023 Barkley Marathons.
It seems you can't really go wrong with trail running shoes from Brooks, Salomon, or Saucony. Nike has definitely been making a push into trail running as well but I haven't tried any of their shoes.
Hobby: Self Hosting
Anywhere from a raspberry pi + some storage to a second hand optiplex SFF with some decent specs will be more than enough to get started.
Find some services you'd find useful, examples: jellyfin, audiobookshelf, home assistant, nextcloud, NAS services.
Pick an OS, my 1st was Ubuntu as I was a Linux noob and there are millions of resources.
Learn docker compose, portainer makes it easy.
And bam, you'll have local network services up and running in an afternoon.
I didn't know Audiobookshelf existed and it's exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks!
+1 for this! But, rather than an RPi, I had found Project TinyMiniMicro and went with an HP EliteDesk 800 G4 with an i5-8500T. I got it refurbished on Amazon for 224CAD after taxes, which is about 164USD, well within budget with room for extra storage! It was the best cost-for-CPU-performance buy I could find for the CPUs in the i5-x500T range.
In hindsight I might have gone with one of the many modern Intel N100 NUCs (due to their miniscule power consumption, (35W -> 9W)). But, I figured that the lower up-front cost and slightly better performance for the i5 balanced things out anyway. (I also love how the HP EliteDesk technically has room for 2 M.2 drives + 1 SATA drive, even within its tiny form factor.)
I also went for Ubuntu Sever and the docker-compose + Portainer route. Leaning on LinuxServer.io images has made configuration a little easier, too. But, it's still been a bit tricky learning the quirks of docker-compose, especially when you start to mix LinuxServer.io's starter configs with various tweaks from all of the "how to set up a home server" blogs out there. There's quite a bit of a learning curve to writing maintainable compose + .env files, figuring out which yaml keys are mandatory for the container to function and which are optional, organizing containers into stacks, and properly setting up your networking. (e.g. It took me ages to realize that you could map different external ports to the same internal docker port for each image, which is critical since many containers serve their pages on HTML port 80!)
Here's a screenshot of the services I'm self-hosting. :)
I bought a domain name and tried setting up a nextcloud server with docker last year to no success. Networking is already my weakest area and I think my ISP blocks the use of the ports needed (I can't remember which port now. 20? 22?). I ended up giving up unfortunately. Maybe I'll try again this year.
22 is generally the port reserved for SSH access, which really shouldn't be exposed publicly. Ports 80 and 443 are the ports you need exposed for web servers (for HTTP and HTTPS access, respectively).
In your router settings, you can generally configure port forwarding for all traffic on an incoming port to a specific IP address. If you post your model of router, I can help find some instructions on how to get it all set up!
I just spent a weekend setting up forwarding rules from my domain to an nginx reverse proxy so that different subdomains on my domain can resolve to different containers on my Proxmox instance :-)
I was using a 5G router for some time and couldn't even open ports as the firmware was locked down. So I ended up using CloudFlare encrypted tunnels for some services, they're dead easy to set up and free. Can't stream video over them but audiobookshelf and things like nextcloud had no issues.
"Real" self-hosting on your home network adds a layer of headache IMO. Rent a cheap VPS (like $5/month) and experiment on it, and then, if you want/need, do that on your home network.
Could you please explain the need for self-hosting? It feels rather cumbersome for a non-tech-savvy person.
There is no real need, it can be more costly, more risk with downtime and data loss etc.
However it's fun to tinker with hardware/ software and learn, it's worth the time to me (like all hobbies should be otherwise they're just chores).
I'm also a firm believer in privacy and love the fact that I own my data, big tech can't use it to train AI or whatever is coming up next.
Note however; If you partake in the seven seas there can be considerable cost savings vs how ever many multiple streaming services you need these days to watch media from different sources.
A home server still works when the internet is out.
I really enjoy self hosting. I try to minimize tinkering in my daily use devices but when the mood strikes I really enjoy having a server to mess around with.
I currently run a debian box running nginx to host static pages and nodejs apps. I'm considering adding jellyfin at some point and NAS at some point.
I've got a little debian NUC with a 10 core i3 (really! 10 cores!) It's nice to have for hosting Minecraft servers with my friends, plex, and operate as a NAS.
Boardgames: I would start by purchasing a handful of games in a variety of genres to start to determine what they may like and dislike in a game.
Codenames ($20) a word game
Coup ($15) a deduction and bluffing game
Carcassonne ($35) a tile placing game
Camel Cup ($35) a betting and racing game
Clank! ($50) A deck building game.
Cubitos ($50) roll a bunch of dice
Colt Express ($45) A programming game.
And that's the budget spent entirely on games that start with C! Without even including catan. We can throw in crokinole if we we want the best dexterity game around and the budget is no longer a concern.
There are probably some better choices but I got halfway through, noticed the Cs and ran with it. Some other games to consider. Pandemic, 7 wonders, Ticket to Ride, Santorini, Jaipur, Splendor, A Fake Artist Goes to New York, Dominion, Azul, Sagrada, Sushi Go, Railroad Ink, Patchwork, King of Tokyo, Takenoko. Anyway once they have played some of these games we'll hopefully have and idea of what they like and we can start to curate a collection just for them.
With all that said the real answer to this question is to buy $100 worth of snacks and drinks and invite them over for a night of games with good friends. Because when you get down to it, at least for me, the games are just an excuse to spend some time with people you love.
Don't forget the board game shelf needed for the ever growing collection!
Haha. I'm to the point where I need to either buy a third shelf or start culling some games. I have a collection of "trunk" games right now that get stored in the trunk of my car. It's totally not because I'm out of shelf space in the house, you just never know when you'll be out on the town and someone will want to play lacuna with you.
Just gonna leave this here
I finally have my computer back so I'd be down to play it online.
I haven't played Scythe yet. I added Clockwork Wars to my collection just before Scythe came out and without really looking much in to it assumed they were similar enough that I didn't need both. I'd be up for trying it online though. Give me a shout if you're getting a group together.
7 wonders was my introduction to adult board games. Never gets old.
I always recommend Carcassonne over Settlers of Catan. I think people conflate they two because they have some superficial similarities, but Carcassonne feels much easier to understand to me while retaining a lot of depth of strategy, and doesn't get nearly as bad run away effects.
I feel Carcassonne and Catan offer fairly different experiences. There are people who will prefer one and some who will prefer the other. If someone is truly coming in with zero experience with boardgames I think I agree that Carcassonne would be a better recommendation. It definitely has a simpler rule set, especially if you play a first game without farmers. There is also no hidden information so as someone draws their tile they can reveal it and if they want help you can guide them in making a decision and remind them of rules as necessary. However, if someone tells me they have played Monopoly and like making deals, trading properties, and rolling dice I might steer them toward Catan.
Omg, Codenames! I love it, the concept is so simple yet so much fun!
Hobby: birdwatching
Then just get out there and start listening out for birds and training with your binoculars. You don't have to go far either, start at your local park or even the cemetery (yes, they're a legit spot for watching birds in some urban areas). I highly recommend finding group outings or going out with seasoned birdwatchers (there are associations in some places that organise free walks). Many birdwatchers are happy to teach you tips for identification and if they trust you, some will let you know where the special spots are to see rarer birds.
If you've got a set of binoculars, check if your local library has the book Turn Left at Orion and use it to find some good binocular targets to look at at night!
do you think there's a set of binoculars that you can use for both?
A set of 8x42 binoculars will work great for both birding and astronomy. That's what I use for both! You can get more specialized astronomy binoculars with a greater aperture, but any binoculars will open up stargazing in a way that's not accessible with the naked eye.
Merlin is such an amazing app!
It really is!! It never ceases to amaze me. It's helped me spot some rarer birds that I would have missed otherwise because I couldn't identify them at first by sight alone. Even if you don't birdwatch it's just a really cool app to have.
I was thinking of starting Birdwatching and I was wondering: Why would you go for 8x42 in particular? Thanks!
Ooh I highly recommend getting into birdwatching if you can!
So, the first number refers to the magnification, and most birders will use binoculars between 7x and 10x. You might think higher is better because you can see further, but it's harder to use 10x especially for beginners because you need to have a steady hand and it's not easy to see birds moving around quickly. Unless you're planning to use binoculars to look at slow moving birds of prey high in the sky straight away, it's best to start with 7x or 8x. You can find 8.5x and 9x as well but they're not as common.
The second number refers to the size of the objective lens and it affects how much light is let in. The bigger the brighter of course, but it will also impact the size and weight of the binoculars. Anything above 50mm starts to get pretty heavy and cumbersome. Also the bigger the ratio between the two numbers the sharper the image. 8x42 will not 'zoom' as far as 10x42, but the image will be brighter and sharper, and easier to keep steady.
At the end of the day it comes down to preference. I think 8x42 provides a good compromise between magnification, brightness and price, and I'm very happy with mine. Your mileage may vary. This page gives a really good rundown of what you might want to consider for your specific situation: https://shopping.rspb.org.uk/page/how-to-choose-binoculars-for-bird-watching
If you find groups that organise walks, some of the organisers will bring binoculars for people who don't have them so you can try them out, but this is more of an exception than the rule. Check with your local birding/bird preservation group to see if that's an option for you.
I wish you many clear and amazing views of our feathered friends!
That’s great, thank you! I’ve recently been to Thailand again and really fell in love with listening to birds and watching them. I already feel like I want to get a telelense for my camera :D I’ve been thinking about them a lot.
Saw a greater racket tailed Drongo, olive backed sunbird, and some other beautiful and sometimes loud birds :D
Binoculars would probably be amazing too. Also in case I ever go on a safari.
Ooh I've used Merlin before but thanks for the Collins Bird Guide rec! Learning to better identify by sight is def something I'm curious about as someone who just likes seeing birds in the park.
A cemetery is a great idea and great starting point! Birding is a truly underrated and wholesome hobby.
Once you start looking it can be surprising what you find in the most mundane of places. I like to explain to people that for me it's like playing Pokémon - gotta watch 'em all!
Any recommendations for resources to get started with n64 homebrew? I've done a ton of gba rom hacking and would love to break into n64 stuff. Jet force gemini could use some new content.
Hobby: Crochet
Supplies: A few common hook sizes in different styles, a few balls of a nice soft, beginner friendly yarn in a few colors, some stitch markers, a few yarn needles, a good quality (sharp) pair of yarn snips, a book of stitches, a list of good YouTube tutorials, and a promise to help them with whatever they want to learn.
I know you were giving a serious answer, but when I saw the question, I thought a good way to give someone a head start on a yarn hobby would be to buy $250 worth of singles skeins of yarn to simulate all the leftover yarn from years of projects.
As someone who's recently bought this whole list except that last one, it's not even close to $250 though. The sheer amount of yarn you'd be able to get for the remaining sum seems overwhelming to me as a beginner lol!
Lol ya. It would be hard to spend the whole $250 on just beginner things. I mean you could go crazy with yarn bowls, fancy ergonomic hooks, and top tier yarn, and still not spend it all haha.
I guess I will skip commenting about my hobby of cross stitch embroidery as it's basically what you said with a few words changed around, just remove hooks and add aida. However it can be done for a lot less than 250 dollars - there are some really good, cheap beginner kits out there so that one can test the waters. I imagine there are also kits for crochet?
There are kits, but they generally come with plastic, low quality hooks, and scratchy yarn. I'd get some quality stuff. Plus a variety of hooks in different materials and head styles so that they can experiment and find what they like. But yes, it would generally be a little difficult to spend $250 on a beginner kit for crochet even with a bunch of hooks and nice yarn.
Non-cross stitch embroidery is even easier on the money end imo, since you don't need to splurge on aida and can just grab some cheap linen instead. Though I suppose you might want more different types of needles in a beginner set than for cross-stitch -- French knots are common enough and a pain in the ass without bullion needles.
I mean I bought 3m^2 of Zweigart aida for only $30 on Etsy so even that isn't too expensive at all!
I have been thinking of trying to get into regular embroidery but it seems kind of overwhelming. Is it something you do? Any pointers?
It's not much harder than cross-stitch imo! There's more different stitches but a lot of them are simpler than even a cross-stitch. I generally stick with non-counted embroidery styles so far which I find more forgiving than counted styles like cross-stitch -- you can make a lot of mistakes without most people noticing! Because you're usually trying to pierce the threads in the fabric with the needle rather than find the gaps between them, you tend to use sharps more (I'm told cross-stitch usually doesn't?) and that's why fabric like Aida isn't as useful for it.
I started out with Cutesy Crafts' How to Embroider for Beginners but honestly a lot of that will be redundant for you if you already cross-stitch. But the guide for her sampler pattern includes nice instructions on some of the most common stitches, so it's worth watching. Jessica Long has a lot of good tutorials in edition to a lot of nice patterns and kits for sale. Her Animal Embroidery Workbook is reasonably priced and has a good progression of difficulty in the patterns available.
One style I'm personally interested in learning is thread-painting/needle-painting, where you use almost exclusively long-and-short stitch to blend between colors to look like a painting. I haven't really learned that technique yet, because it's got a learning curve. Trish Burr is the queen of this technique and has some nice tutorials and the like online.
Thank you so much for all this, bookmarked!
Hobby: Electronics, programming, kinda DIY automation
If I presume they are interested in electronics and just don't know how to start:
This should get one started in soldering, electronics, programming, automation etc. It is quite a mix of things and if one wanted to narrow the path, it would cough up some cash back and let it be used on more specific thing in said path (ie. don't buy some starter kits or Arduino clones and spend the money on Raspberry Pi).
That's a nice looking portable iron - I was looking for one to take camping. Thanks!
I advise to buy their silicone USB C cable with it. It’s very flexible and more heat resistant than normal ones, which matters for this use.
Thank you!
I have to ask, why are you soldering while camping? Trail cams? Or are you part of the bird repair team?
Not OP, but I went camping (with a campervan) And we accidentally ripped a cable of our fairy lights. I then soldered it there at night (didn‘t have such a nice portable one, but one that did work off my vans battery.
I'm going to Toorcamp. There are always lots of things to solder! Last time I also learned to sew with conductive thread.
So far none of the birds have been in need of repair.
That is an excellent reason to solder at camp. Looks like it could be a lot of fun.
Does USB-C PD, runs from powerbanks (12V is enough, 20V gives you more power, as the tip is just resistive load -> more voltage, faster heating and more power), IMHO you can't get anything better for the price! It is 27$ I believe, but I had to pay VAT and shipping (so I added two soldering tips kits to my shipment for good measure).
It can run from the barrel jack too accepting up o 24V (probably not 24V lead acid batterues that will actually have more like 26-27V). But given how flexible it is, it is great to take with you literally everywhere.
It was $38 from their website after shipping within the US. It's $40 on Amazon, the ironOS GitHub says those are often either knockoffs or V1 sold as V2.
I usually take my car jumper battery with me camping for my hearing aids, I'll have to look into how much voltage it actually supplies.
I appreciate the extra info!
Car jumper battery would likely be 12V or thereabout. You could buy USB-C PD powerbak for like 10-20$ and call it a day :-) I managed to get big one (like 80Wh) that can do even USB-C PD 20V for 40$. And it's not cheap knock-off or clone or some oher crap, this one really has the capacity and output voltage. It is made for local seller though, not available worldwide (at least not under the same name).
I have also adapted LIDL supermarket power tools battery + USB accessory to run such soldering iron (here with my TS100, it would work with Pinecil too). That was before I got Pinecil.
Please include a ferrite rod for AM antenna and torroid for ~100MHz balun. Thanks.
Not my specialty :-) But yeah, making your own radio (receiver) would be fun project!
Hobby: Guitar
Spend about $200 on a used guitar, preferably an OM as that gives you a good balance between lead and rhythm playability. $50 on a few sets of strings and you're good to go for the next 5-10 years.
I've been playing guitar since 2017 and had to look up what an OM was! For anyone not in the know, it stands for "orchestra model" and is a size of acoustic guitar slightly smaller than a "dreadnought" acoustic (these are almost comically large in real life) while maintaining the full scale size. A good choice. I bought a 2nd hand Yamaha F310 starting out for far less than $200 and I still use it all the time. But being a dreadnought, it is gigantic and had I known more I would have gotten something smaller.
Magic the Gathering (commander especially):
I'm kind of cheating, as I already have a large collection I'm very generous with, and I've converted lots of friends by promising they need no money, only time.
That being said, in the spirit of the question assuming I don't share:
$40-60 for a pre constructed deck of their choice, the precons nowadays are pretty good and fun so it's a solid start.
$12 for some sleeves, maybe another $5-20 for a deckbox (depending on how fancy they wanna be).
Then since we got money to spare, let's go with $15 for a playmat, $12 for a set of dice to use as counters.
That leaves another $150! They can use this to buy more cards, either through booster pack lottery or singles online, to improve their deck. Or they can buy another precon to have some variety, depending on their tastes.
Honestly, I know Magic gets a lot of flak for being expensive, and if youre trying to play tournaments or get only the fanciest cards it definitely can be, but if youre just playing with your pals its a very cheap hobby in terms of bang for buck
After not playing since the Ice Age expansion (so, '95-ish), my son convinced me to take him to a pre-release event (Murders at Karlov Manor), and I enjoyed it way more than I expected.
It turns out that I like the draft format, and I liked that I wasn't the only one going in at least partially ignorant of the combos to look for. It was a very newbie-friendly environment that might work well to introduce someone to MtG.
Pre release is also fun, because it's so casual and you get that satisfaction of opening booster packs and finding new cards. For brand new players in my experience it has the chance to be slightly overwhelming with having to read a bunch of new cards and then put them into a cohesive deck on a timeframe. But an at-home pre release (where you can waive the time restrictions) or as a follow-up once they've learned and got used to some basic Magic gameplay prerelease is a great idea. (We can spend the $40 from our remaining $150!)
Hobby: disc golf
It's a very budget friendly sport. I would get them 5 discs to get started, and a small beginner bag (putter, 2 mid ranges, and 2 flippy fairway drivers). You don't need fancy clothes or shoes, just go out and enjoy nature and the really nice disc golf community. With the left over money there will be enough for some gas money to go to a few courses. Hell, you probably have enough left to sign up for a cheap monthly online DG school/course to learn the basics, but even that isn't necessary.
This is exactly why I play disc instead of ball golf now, which I previously played for 20 years. Miss me with $1000 clubs and $40 a round. I enjoy buying everything I need for $100 and either never paying to play or paying $5 a round at some of the nicer courses around here.
Yeah agreed. The only time I play ball golf now is when work pays for it. Disc golf is so much more relaxed and easy going.
are there any brands you would recommend for discs?
For me, the best way to get cheap disks to try them out is Innova's Factory Second. If I like the F2 disc, damage it badly, or lose it then I upgrade to the official Innova disc.
And the holy grail disc chart. It's got all the big names. If you click through each of the names you'll get a feel for which ones are ones to look for.
If you're amateur or intermediate I strongly recommend buying a 3-4 speed and a 5-6 speed on the left, middle, and right of the chart (so 6 discs total, plus a putter). This will give you a really good feel for what stability does. Maybe a 8-9 speed or two to get a feel for almost-high-ish speeds. Unless you can casually throw over 300 feet, I never recommend people to get 10 speed or higher since they won't be able to properly control it.
Like the other commenter said, get some slower discs to get your throw down. Try a couple brands, whatever is cheapest. You are going to lose discs for sure, unless you are playing in an open field all the time. And have fun!!!
Buy them a good skateboard + protective equipment. That's just about the budget to get something good that'll last a decent while (especially as a beginner), and quality equipment makes even cruising around a blast! Of course, this requires teaching them as well, but thankfully that's free and a lot of fun for everyone!
Hobby: Disc Golf or Pickleball
Both are super fun and cheap to get started with. A disc start set will run you like $20 and then it's just gas to drive to your local course. If you don't have one you can get a practice net for like $60-70 off amazon. Pickleball is just the cost of a paddle which is $40-60 (and up if you get serious) and a few balls for like $10. If your town doesn't have pickleball courts you can tape one out at a tennis court with the measurements online, or they sell nets online for like $100 for a cheap one.
Disc golf for sure. 3 discs, one of the cheap mvp bags, and a good practice basket would all fit in the 250 limit.
A Rubik's cube, a 3D printer and a raspberry pi.
With that budget I can turn any willing person into the nerdiest nerd that has ever nerded.
Perfect! Haha. Sounds like that person will be well positioned to 3D-print their own rubik's cube and it will run the internet. :D
Say I'm that person, proceed now.
Ok, let's go !
So, you'll learn the beginner method for the cube by following this really excellent video, as a professional communicator excels at transmitting the very little knowledge he has on the matter, you'll learn with him. Following actual cubers is a dead-end. : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-R0KrXvWbc
You'll want a Moyu RS3M 2021 maglev cube for around $10 (or just the magnetic one is super nice too).
First solve took me over one hour and a half. After a few weeks of practive you should be below 45 seconds. After that you have to invest 10+ algorithms to reach 30 sec, then over 80 to go below 20, diminishing returns.
For the 3D printer, a Creality Ender2 is small cheap and really good, an Ender3 is probably more common and to be found second hand for $100. You can slice using PrusaSlicer or Cura, find models on Thingiverse.com and make your own designs easily with Tinkercad with little CAD knowledge required, that's basically a kid app'.
Regarding the Raspberry Pi, I had quite a good knowledge of Linux, which helps, and went deep in because of the 3D printer and Octoprint in particular. If starting with the 3D printer and Octoprint, the latest videos of Chris Riley (Chris's basement) on the subject is the very entry. https://www.youtube.com/@ChrisRiley/videos
I've been looking into getting a 3d printer lately, so going to give my 2 cents based on the research I've done.
It really depends; do you (general you, not specific) want your hobby to be 3d printing, or 3d printers? Creality 3d printers have a notorious reputation for poor quality control, bad customer service, and generally requiring a fair bit of tinkering to work well. You can get a good printer out of them, but that will often be after a fair bit of work and some more money to upgrade shoddy parts.
As for used printers, there are 2 important factors to consider when getting anything second-hand: how capable are you at identifying issues, and how capable are you at fixing any that may arise? 3d printers have a fair bit of complexity to them, and this is further aggravated by the hobby as a whole being a fairly DIY space; many people modify their printers, so there's no guarantee you're dealing with stock parts rather than someone's botched mod project. You can get a good 3d printer used, but I'd consider it a gamble; if you're not okay with getting a dud, you probably shouldn't take the risk in the first place.
Tinkering with the printers can definitely be a fun hobby, but for anyone just interested in the 3d printing side of things with as little tinkering as possible I'd say the startup cost will generally be more like $300-500, depending on just how little tinkering you want to do and other parameters.
Thanks for this! I just solved my first ever cube (with some crappy 20 year old toy that hardly turns :P). Going to go buy a proper one tomorrow! That video is so much clearer than some guides that frontload heavily with algorithms.. Will try to get my time down until I start looking at other resources.
You're welcome. J Perm is the next channel to look into
Fishing.
Buy a cheap ugly stick pole/reel, buy a license, dig up some worms and off you go.
Excellent. I don't fish as a hobby or anything, but I got handed a bamboo pole when I was 5 and told to go for it. Sometimes that's all it takes!
And you'd still have like $200 remaining!
Specialty Coffee (Filter)
I would like to suggest one change.
I can't really do a pourover correctly without a gooseneck, and even a kettle is not guaranteed to be in every American household (since we're talking in dollars).
IMO I’d swap the v60 for an aeropress. Still plenty of things to fuss about, but you can use any kettle, and it’s more forgiving for beginners. A good grinder you can use practically forever, so it’s a worthwhile first buy. People underestimate how much it matters (second only to the beans themselves).
I like the coffee that comes out of my aeropress, but I don't like how hard to have to push down on it with the thing balanced on my favorite coffee mug that I've been using for 20 years. Maybe the seal on mine is old or worn. I guess as a hobby with an element of skill development, there are some things to experiment with using the aeropress, but I think it's more fun to play around with the pourover. The fact that it's less forgiving is a feature because you can improve over time.
You could be pressing too hard which compresses the coffee and in turn makes it even harder to press. It also increases the chance of channeling, where a lot of water passes through only a few spots of coffee leading to a bitter taste. For reference, when making an aeropress brew I'm only using the weight of my arm and aiming at a plunging time of ~1min.
I’d swap the v60 for a Hario Switch.
It’s a V60 but you can use it like the clever dripper when you want to be lazy or less fiddly with it. And then you can use it with a normal kettle until you want to upgrade to a gooseneck and do more pour-over like brews with it.
Bodum Electric Burr Coffee Grinder: $89
Chemex 6-Cup Pour-Over Coffee Maker: $47
Chemex Filters: $20
Tempurature-adjustable Electric Gooseneck Kettle: ~$50
Plus the scale and the coffee, yeah. I had a manual grinder at one point but it got annoying so I switched to the electric which does the job well. Overall I still appreciate the ritual of over-complicating a cup of Joe, so I can see the appeal of a manual grinder.
A french press would also be a good route to take considering they're more multipurpose and can be used for tea and for frothing milk if you don't have a dedicated frother.
In the end I still use an autodrip with pre-ground, store-brand flavored coffee 95% of the time though, lol. My wife drinks more coffee than I do and doesn't like how dark I brew, so when brewing for the two of us the "practical" approach wins out. I still love doing it the involved way with the Chemex when she's out of town though.
Woodworking.
For $250 I could buy them good used woodworking tools online or at any pawn shop. Ryobi has very reasonably priced 18v power tools so a drill, driver, powersaw and jigsaw would be a good start. Then a set of screwdrivers, some glue, clamps and scrap boards and we'd be off to the races.
Got any good resources to learn to use these things?
Steve Ramsey on youtube is probably the best beginner woodworker guide out there. There are tons and tons and tons of resources online, from videos to old magazines to forums to blueprints and building plans, but a lot of them assume quite a bit of prior knowledge, even basic stuff like how to use a certain tool. I think Steve is the best at being truly accessible to anyone regardless of skill or prior experience.
That's not to say that there aren't others, but seriously check him out and you'll be halfway towards a decent hobby in no time. He covers everything from basic tools you might need, to how to use them SAFELY, beginner concepts like gluing and picking wood and different types of joints, and then shows you simple projects you can build in a short amount of time that have lasting utility/appeal. And I would describe his attitude as the exact opposite of gatekeeping. Like he's very down-to-earth about what's "correct" and not and how most of it is just personal preference. Then he'll show you a project he did 20 years ago with terrible form and not at all how it "should" be done and yet here it is 20 years later still functional.
I learned most of it from my father and woodshop in school, but youtube does have a surprising number of helpful videos.
$250 USD is ~$370 AUD at the moment, which can make this pretty easy or pretty hard depending on the hobby. Note I'll be using AUD for following numbers because I don't feel like converting everything.
For film photography you can get a decent secondhand camera, some film and some developing done within that budget. I would go something like this:
Motorcycling is much harder within that budget because bikes and gear will well and truly blow through that before you even get started.
My best bet to get someone interested in road bikes at that cost would be to pay for the learner motorcycle course (currently $107 in my state). This course provides a bike and a helmet and is geared towards people who've never ridden before, and while they never let you above 20km/h or second gear it gives you a bit of a feel for whether you might like riding. If you do like it you've now got the endorsement to take to the RMS and get an R added to your licence class - after paying for that the remainder of the budget can become the start of saving towards a bike and some gear (helmet/gloves/jacket at least, pants and boots strongly recommended).
For dirt you might have a slim chance of getting something assuming you have some private property you can ride an unregistered bike on. It appears you can get a super basic dirt helmet at around $150, with that, the cheapest of dirt gloves (~$30), and your sturdiest existing clothing that leaves you almost $200 to scour Gumtree/marketplace for a cheap pit bike. It's going to be hard to find something working at that range, but it's possible with a bit of dedicated searching and as long as it keeps working for a few days running a bike around in a paddock can definitely get someone interested in the hobby. I'd definitely recommend some MX boots and armour for anything much more than playing at low speeds on grass, but again the budget really constrains one there.
Hobby: Bouldering
250 USD = 200 GBP
Take them to a bouldering place and spend an hour trying different shoes (good fitting shoes are the most important part, no one wants to climb if their feet hurt). £75 is a good entry-level pair.
Spend £15 on a nice chalk bag, £5 on chalk and a brush, and put the rest into time at the bouldering place.
£100 goes a long way in bouldering time, a membership would give you 2-3 months, but you can also pay per session which should be around 10 sessions (unlimited time per session).
Training isn't really necessary. Just start with the easiest set, learn how to fall safely, and don't worry about looking crap. Bouldering people in my experience are super friendly, so feel free to ask for help, it's a great place to meet new people.
Yoyoing is super cheap so we can really splurge. Modern yoyos are mostly what we call unresponsive, which means they don't come back up when you tug on the string. Instead, you have to perform a move called a bind to make it come back to your hand. Yoyos (or throws as they are often referred to in the hobby) that do come back with a tug are called responsive. Unresponsive throws use a wider bearing and the bind move is needed to feed extra string into the gap so that it can make contact/friction with the pads on the side. This is a great video from Yotricks that explains binds and bind theory.
It's helpful to start with a responsive yoyo to build good habits and avoid early frustrations with binds. The iYoYo Shooting Star ($30) seems to be the current hotness and includes both a responsive and unresponsive bearing so you can convert it down the line. Pair that with some sample packs of Kitty string in a few different thicknesses to figure out what you like best (~$18), then grab a box of 100 ($27) in your favorite size once you know what you like (I'm a fan of Kitty XL). That's enough gear to last ages but I'd also throw in a couple of spare bearings (~$20), a bearing removal tool ($6), and some mineral spirits ($8) to clean your bearings. The pads in a yoyo also eventually wear out and I prefer to replace them with flowable silicone. A tube of Permatex 81730 Flowable Silicone ($9) will take care of dozens of yoyos.
For learning, Yotricks is the best resource I know of. They have a free app called YoyoTricks with hundreds of tutorials that are decently scaffolded to help you work your way through the basics. Their Youtube channel playlists are sorted in the same way if the app isn't your style. Start with the first 50 tricks list and work your way up from there. There are so many wonderful Youtube tutorials out there once you get the basics down.
That's $118 spent so far and since we have quite a bit of budget left, we can jump headfirst into the different yoyoing styles. "Regular" yoyoing with a single yoyo is called 1A. Two-handed looping with responsive looping yoyos is called 2A. It's hard but fun as heck and you can do basically everything with a pair of Loop720s ($36) and some bearing lube ($5). 3A is a style that uses two unresponsive yoyos and while it impresses the heck out of me, it's not something I'd push when trying to introduce someone to the hobby. 4A is offstring throwing and is surprisingly accessible once you learn how to bind. A Yoyofactory Flight ($20) is all you really need. Finally, 5A involves attaching the yoyo to a counterweight instead of your finger. Duncan makes a 3 pack with a couple of dice and a rubber ball ($6) and the rubber ball is my favorite because hard counterweights hurt when they smack your hands.
If I did my math right that leaves us with $65, which is plenty for a nice metal yoyo. Honestly, just scroll through Yotricks or Yoyoexpert and pick the one you like best. Or grab another Shooting Star and become a 3A master :D
Running has relatively low entry point, if buy:
I would skip the backpack for any starter and first start running until you can hit your 5k, i think most people will be able to go without water or with just a small 0.5l handheld bottle.
I started running last year an I previously was someone who never could run a mile. Now I go up to 6 times a week and have done two spontaneous half marathons. one of the best things I have done was starting running. I notice how much more energy I have in a day. I can keep going for ages. The other day I did a half marathon after not having slept much (5.5 hours) and then still went sightseeing all day. 40k Steps!
i use my watch for health tracking and seeing how my VO2Max went from „low“ to „below average“ to „ above average“ was amazing. Here‘s to hitting „high“ hopefully soon.
It‘s also amazing to challenge yourself and see your progress. how much faster your slow runs get with the same effort. How much faster your 5k PB gets. - my first 5k was 37.5 minutes my last PB was under 24 minutes.
I agree on holding off for the water backpack. My opinion is that needing water during any run under an hour is a sign that you weren't hydrated before the run.
I feel like making room for a basic running watch or fitness tracker could be good. Having tangible metrics is really motivating especially at the beginning when improving is easy. On the flip side, it can be demoralizing to be shown the very slow pace that is needed at the beginning. I'm currently trying to figure out where I stand with fitness tracking, I probably put too much weight on it.
I love my data too. I agree it might be a blocker. But it’s also amazing to look back and see how much faster you get. I guess it’s also important to just trust in the process because if you stick to it, you will make small changes daily which compound to big changes in your life
You went from unable to run a mile to a 24m 5k in a year? That's seriously impressive, at least to me. I started last year too and I just killed myself for a 29:30 5k and I feel miles away (hah) from a half marathon.
Thank you! I am very proud of the achievement. I think I had a lot of lifestyle factors that changed as well. Moving from a place I didn’t like to living nomadically, watching my nutrition, etc.
I also think the most important think is just showing up as much as you can and clocking in as many miles as you can.
Also I might’ve had some heat training. I spent 4 months in Thailand where I ran at 30°C daily. My PBs were then set when I went to other, colder countries :D
That's really awesome. I've been trying to put in the miles but truth be told, while I like running, my heart is in weight training!
I spent a month in Vietnam and only ran twice because it was too hot. Well, that, and I was walking 20k+ steps a day anyway.
You’re right it’s not necessary, but personally, I love running with a water backpack even for short runs. Water bottles get in the way. Sometimes I leave the house in the morning while I’m still kinda dehydrated, sometimes the weather is hot. The storage is also clutch, it keeps my phone, ID, cash and a granola bar without getting in the way. It’s so convenient!
I also have a running belt and it just doesn’t get the same amount of use.
How did it changed your diet preferences and nutrition over this time period?
I first started looking into supplements such as fish oil, creatine, adhwagandha etc.
I then read a highly recommended book on nutrition “how not to die” by Michael greger. I’ve since started cutting animal products out of my diet and I feel much better. I’ve been like mostly plant based from September on (still ate meat until then) but I fully committed a couple months ago.
Will do a blood test soon to see how my values have changed. I used to have high cholesterol and low iron (genetic)
The energy I have now is insane compared to last year or even the year before. actually set a new PB a couple hours ago: 23:44 5k!
Wow!! Personal win, congratulations!
Did you use the fish oil and Ashwagandha? What is the preference for using those? I keep procrastinating and I hate myself for it.
Thanks for the book recommendation. It's always good to find good book.
I dont really use fish oil anymore since I think you can get your Omega 3s from plant sources as well. Ashwagandha didn’t really do much for me either. I still take creatine. And eating plant based foods just makes me feel much healthier. I can just advise you to just do it. I often just hate leaving the house to go on a run, but I just put on my shoes and ignore the negative thoughts and do it. Even if it’s just for 5 minutes.
Check out David Goggins book too. It really got me off my ass
Powerlifting: honestly a pretty cheap hobby. The easiest and most honest answer is just a gym membership. But in the spirit of the question I'll break out some costs that usually accrue over the first several months of lifting.
That brings us to $246.50. There are a couple bits and bobs I could donate their way or they could pick up later (lifting straps ~$9, wrist wraps ~$20).
Lots of good free programming available. It's the less sexy part but the most important piece.
Electronics (but twenty years ago):
Buy a breadboard, some vero board, a soldering iron, solder (with a note to try not to breath too many of the fumes), some single strand wire, some 7/02 wire, and then a 555 ic (and the discrete components to support it, including an LED to blink), a μA741 op amp (and discrete components to make a tiny not great amp or function generator), and some handtools (needle nose pliers, snips, solder wick or solder sucker if we're being fancy). And a book by Forrest M Mims
That's a really cool take on the thought experiment! Love it!
You can get a perfectly servicable FDM 3D printer these days for less than $250. Printing things can be considered a hobby by itself, but the truth is that it's just a toy to get you into the real hobby: CAD/CAM. CAD has a starting price of $0 these days. There are free options like Blender and FreeCAD, but now there are free commercial programs for hobbyists like Fusion 360 and OnShape.
Watercolor
costs (going by cheapjoes prices):
total: $220.65
the colors provided are sufficient to mix a large gamut of vibrant colors including the supposed primaries, red and blue. The paper can be painted on directly; when you're done, just peel off your painting and start another one. The heavy weight of the paper means you can be reasonably sure your paint won't bleed through. Black can be produced by layering together all the colors.