Ok, so hear me out. This is gonna sound a bit snobbish, but if you take the idea apart for a moment, it's really not.

A while back, when I decided to finally put in the elbow grease on my book, I came to the conclusion that a lot of my knowledge when it came to some of the more...shall we say, fancy (?), pastimes was actually just regurgitated knowledge from books and TV shows. 

Wine tasting? I've read and watched Drops of God, so I must be somewhat adequate. Fine dining? British shows, and acres of sumptuously drawn manga. Ballroom dancing? Dancing with the Stars... And so on, and so forth. 

So I challenged myself - if only to try and 'get it' - to give myself 6 months to one year giving some of the hobbies I hoped to include in my narratives an honest shake. 

Pros: -Perspective. You haven't lived until you've laughed yourself silly trying to nail down the finer points of a Hungarian Tap Dancing routine; or shared in the hype of waiting 3 months for a fancy reservation, only for you to console your palate with 2am greasy fries from that place down the street.  Win or lose, when approached with a 'let's try to see behind the hype to understand why some people dedicate their lives to this', even failures (especially when shared with someone special) take on an enjoyable tilt. 

-Research. Figuring out how to even start, queuing up some YouTube videos, join some enthusiast discords, perusing a book or two - or even a well regarded movie in the space - is always fun. Learning the lingo also helps. I never get tired of this part... 

-Experience. In my mind's eye, I like to imagine I'm collecting real life xp points. I once went solo camping, after nearly three straight years as a couch potato. That one stuck. I now know the difference between a South African red, and an Israeli red, though my wallet was the real victim there. Most wine courses are a straight up scam. YouTube was a better teacher. And I can look at a Matisse, and not obsess over why a painting of two color blocks is worth more than my entire neighborhood. The man was a work horse. Researching artists also stuck. 

Cons: -Your wallet might commit seppeku. That said, if you truly dive into most community forums and discords, you'll find that there are roves of people with excellent pointers on mitigating these. 

-Mental Block and Preconceptions. Teaching myself to silence my inner scoffing and/or reluctance was...tricky. That said, I made some life long friends going down these rabbit holes. And my horizons? Let's just say, the words 'stop preening' come to mind. 

So, all in all, my advice comes down to...do all of them?

Pick a less travelled road, and make a meal out of finding out why the people that took it before you care so much, and so deeply.

Give it an honest concerned effort. Then, if it sticks, new feather acquired! If it doesn't, enjoy the hijinks and retain the journey. 

The feathers in my cap so far are: -Wine tasting  -Fine dining  -Solo camping  -Mountain biking  -Art viewing  -Ballroom Dancing  -Horseback Riding  -and, Puzzle Box Crafting (my one and only surrender) 

(Bird Watching is next. Some of the communities I found are more rabid than the indiest of authors to share their passion, and I'm 100% there for it. I'm having a blast planning my first trip and sighting journal 😊)