Home, guitar playing and travel

[deacon Mark]

Odd question but my guess is most of the regulars here are at least semi-retired and older. I find that I am a homebody at heart. I really don't like to travel anywhere these days except day trips so I can return to the home. I thought maybe it was a bit much almost like a phobia to travel. Of course, it is not but wonder if others here have similar thoughts.

I am spiritual director, and I have a few retirees for Spiritual Direction. They are always out doing things and even work some part-time jobs to stay busy. Others have told me they just don't know what they would do with the time. To me I have the opposite thoughts.............I have my guitars to play and a few other hobbies and no need to go find things to do. That seems to work with staying home because traveling around makes guitar playing and playing much more difficult. I did travel around US a lot as a teenager and up till I was 35 but since then no desire.

[nyc chaz]

The people that retire and say they don't know what they will do to fill their time are just sad in my opinion.Hate to sound harsh but it's 2024,never have people had so many hobbies and activities available to them.I'm retired 15 years and there is not enough time in the day to do all the things i'm interested in doing.

[Skip Ellis]

I'm retired and not enjoying it much because I've never had a hobby - always been work whether music or art - could never separate them from the search for money. When the gigs quit after Covid, I, sadly, quit playing and have barely touched a guitar for 6 months even though I bought a very nice GB10 which didn't even kick me into playing again. Art and music have always been there but only pursued because there was reason - gig or commission; absolutely no desire unless there was an end result - I find it impossible to play or draw for myself. I worked with a therapist for years trying to straighten it out but it never happened before he retired. Gun range is too far away and ammo too expensive; don't like model trains; woodworking too noisy and messy with no real shop; working on ham radio but not sure I have the passion for it that others have; can't read except at bedtime for a few minutes because I think it takes time away from doing something productive during the day. Just a sittin and rockin....

[frabarmus]

Odd question but my guess is most of the regulars here are at least semi-retired and older. I find that I am a homebody at heart. I really don't like to travel anywhere these days except day trips so I can return to the home. I thought maybe it was a bit much almost like a phobia to travel. Of course, it is not but wonder if others here have similar thoughts.

I am spiritual director, and I have a few retirees for Spiritual Direction. They are always out doing things and even work some part-time jobs to stay busy. Others have told me they just don't know what they would do with the time. To me I have the opposite thoughts.............I have my guitars to play and a few other hobbies and no need to go find things to do. That seems to work with staying home because traveling around makes guitar playing and playing much more difficult. I did travel around US a lot as a teenager and up till I was 35 but since then no desire.

I can relate, totally!

[SierraTango]

I enjoy traveling very much. A few years ago my spouse and I decided to get a camper and do some touring. I like to play outside and get a new twist of inspiration that is not in the practice room. Since most of my gigs are on weekends, we do Sunday-Thurs outings unless I have a free weekend. We've found many new friends, people are generally really nice and pleasant mostly around our age late 60's.
I usually bring my Dupont GJG, but occasionally take my Eastman JP 880 and a little Fender Champion 20. Sometimes I'll be concentrating on a tune, look up and folks are standing around enjoying the music.
I do, however look forward to getting back to our house and sleeping in our own bed!

[Doctor Jeff]

I am not quite retired, but I do like to travel. We recently got a Class C RV for longer travels. We took it out to the East coast last week for a family get together and music festival.



I do have a lot of hobbies, too many in fact. I am going to get back into woodworking when the weather turns colder.

And of course putting together my Strat (which I hope won’t take long at all).

[Mick-7]

When the gigs quit after Covid, I, sadly, quit playing and have barely touched a guitar for 6 months even though I bought a very nice GB10 which didn't even kick me into playing again.

Gee Skip, I am not a mental health professional but that sounds suspiciously like a form of depression to me, specifically what is clinically called anhedonia, which incidentally was Woody Allen's working title for his film "Annie Hall," as mentioned in the following quote:

“The key to the problem, I would come to understand, was this: I lacked both spiritual guidelines, and an ability to enjoy anything. But at the same time, I was also an excitement addict. This is such a toxic combination I can't even.

I didn't know this at the time, of course, but if I was not in the act of searching for excitement, being excited, or drunk, I was incapable of enjoying anything. The fancy word for that is "anhedonia," a word and feeling I would spend millions in therapy and treatment centers to discover and understand. Maybe that's why I won tennis matches only when I was a set down and within points of losing. Maybe that's why I did everything I did. "Anhedonia," by the way, was the original working title of my favorite movie, the one my mother and I had enjoyed together, "Annie Hall". Woody gets it. Woody gets me.” -- Matthew Perry, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing