Beyond the Spiral: Hobbies

So, literally all day (and afternoon and evening) yesterday I got to have a very long date with Quickbooks.  We had some good times: we watched a few YouTube movies, had lunch and dinner together, and even got to try out a new browser-based RPG, called Shakes and Fidget, which we found as an ad on Sierra Starsong's collaborative blog.   Here's a picture of my character: 

It sort of resembles me, minus the unnecessary kiss Quickbooks decided to plant on me right before the camera went off.

The friendliness crashed towards the end though.  Through some weird twist of fate, we were bickering over who was right or wrong, looking into the past to point fingers, and even gave one another the silent treatment.  I desperately needed some distance, perhaps forever, but I knew my life wouldn't be complete without Intuit's core product.  As an accountant-in-the-making, it would be inevitable that I require this automated bookkeeping program at some major part of my career.  It is part of my identity, no matter how I feel about it.

"Identity."  It's one of the most sought-after characteristics in high school, especially with the icebreakers on the first day of class; at least it was, back when I had the right to free education.  The teachers always wanted to know what made us..."us," and wanted us to find pride in whatever those attributes may be.

During a drawn-out fight with the stubborn software, that memory sparked in my mind randomly, and I haven't been able to shake the thought since.  A lot of Wizard101 players use the game as temporary relief from stress, reality, and sometimes ourselves.  Some of us create a richer experience for ourselves and others through blogs, fan fiction, music, and movies; these projects become our little side hobbies in life, whether it's writing about the game daily or making music videos.  In other words, the documents and text and bits of data are expansions of our escapes, and, when given the time and dedication, become a part of us. 

Unfortunately, as authors and artists, we eventually run into the dilemma of lacking the will to produce; keep in mind, this is different from "lacking something to produce."  We may feel like we're missing something, like a part of us.  This may be due to our frustration with something totally unrelated to Wizard101 or to our projects, or we are just temporarily exhausted in terms of our mental state. 

In my case today, I had been planning on jumping into the world of Mistblood as soon as I finished my semester-end course assignment.  The later in the day it was, the more excited I became.  Towards the last section of my class project, however, I suddenly lost that boiling urge that captured me all day.  It's not that I didn't want to work on the comics at this point; I was looking forward to it still.  Yet, I strangely felt like entering my laptop into "studio mode" would be unsatisfying.  It was a disappointing feeling, but
as soon as I was free from my educational obligation, I went to the one activity that I love more than gaming, producing/editing, problem-solving, and writing combined.  Instead of popping out 2 or 3 pages of Mistblood, (hey, I'm not slacking!  They'll be coming out pretty soon...) I present to you a little...

Freehand Glowsticking (Minor warmup)

No matter how stressed, worried, or upset I become, for whatever reason, glowsticking has always cheered me up or cooled me down.  It's the one part of me that I'll never pass off on.  I learned it from a long lost friend while I was a freshman at my first university, and it has been my favorite skill ever since.  This is "THE" hobby of Kevin Battleblood.

What do you guys do to unwind when Wizard101 and the projects related to it just don't "jive?"  Is there something you love doing that isn't shared by many others around you?  Feel free to share your unique talents or out-of-game hobbies!

Happy Contemplating!