More Then Just A Hobby?

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Is it normal to have hobbies which are more then just a hobby. To me my two main hobbies which I have had from quite an early age... The one I seem to have always had ever since I was in my pram... My hobbies to me are more then just hobbies. They are a way of life. Is that how others see their hobbies?
about a year ago further down this mountain had caught fire. As there was danger that fire could spread to here, we made emergency plans just incase. Mum and I took my tent and one or two other personal possessions in the car just incase... It surprized us what we rought. There wasn't room for my bikes so I had to leave them, but I certainly had my narrow gauge trains in the car with me! It made us realize what was the most important things to us. Some of the things one would have assumed we would take we didn't bring! And there's me in survival mode bringing my trains! Haha! (My Mum was the same!) But to be honest, I need my trains. I can't think of life without trains. Strange eh?

My arts & crafts are more than just hobbies to me. My art, especially. I take my art with me almost everywhere I go. It's a special interest that I've had since I've found two felt pens nearly two months before my 5th birthday. It's also a stim for me as well. When I start to feel social anxiety, I'll start working on my art. I'll get my pens, felts and coloured pencils out of my art bag and go to town on my art.

Another special interest that I had since since the age of 5 has been those iconic vintage London buses known as Routemasters. That interest started when my preschool went on a trip to Victoria, British Columbia. We kids got to go inside of one of those buses and we were running up and down the stair spiral and all over the place. I have about 50 Corgi Routemasters in a wooden cabinet in my apartment.

A special interest that I had since I was 8 is Germany. I liked the music, the little green hats that the men wear, mountains and all that green that Germans wear once a year during what I later learned was Oktoberfest.

I've been enthralled by computers, The Olympics both summer and winter and The Kinks since I was 9.

I was obsessed with the United States when I was 10.

I became obsessed with London at the age of 11. That obsession served three purposes. It was a way of rebelling against all the times that I was yelled at for talking about the US or taking a very keen interest in anything that was red, white and blue. It brought a lot of joy to me. It was also used as a way for me to hide Germany from everyone in my life until I burned out in Early 2016 and couldn't mask, anymore.

my hobby of audio restoration is more than just a hobby, i rescue old musics from dusty musty obscurity, giving them a live freshness that is appealing to today's generations.

The strange thing is that out of all the jobs that I've done, only one which was for about 8 months, had nothing to do with any of my two main special interests other then in a very indirect form. I call them special interests as they are more then a hobby to me, though the dominant one I use to relax with... The world of Model Railways. I was thinking. Even though I may not do anything with the hobby for a week or three on occasions, my thoughts seem to be centred round it. Thinking about the hobby relaxes me. What I could do next... Designs... All sorts of ideas and plans. It it often thinking of model railways which I can relax in. It is strange that if I am wound up and then think of another subject, I have to switch off to it to prevent being more wound up, but with model railways... I calm down? It is familiar.
My other hobby is the one which someone in here said that they think they had discovered one of my special interests! Haha. But this other hobby by its nature, is a combined form of pleasure, transportation and employment for me in that for years it was a means of transport to get to work... It was then my form of employment... And then on my days off, it was a means to get me to somewhere scenic.
Now as well as this, I have always liked cars, but with cars, as I could not drive them until I was of a suitable age, and also, until I had enough income to hope to afford to run a car as the insurance cost used to be high when I was younger... I didn't pass my test until I was about 21 to 23 years old? I would have to look it up. I think I started lessons at 21 and passed my test on the third attempt. I later found out the mistakes I had done on the first two tests were not failures, but the examiner was known for not letting young men pass straight away. It was funny. My third test I thought I had really messed it up. I had to drive a brand new car as my instructor had just changed cars. Then I had a different examiner who was a weighty guy at 18 stone. (My instructor was thin and so was my last examiner so I wasn't used to the difference in a small car), and there was another guy who was 24 stone examining my examiner who had to sit across both back seats. In those days rear seatbelts were not manditary and only newer cars had them. My instructor whos car it was had to check there was enough room under the car for it to be driven, as the whole car was down on the suspension.. Worse still, I turned out of the test centre and they wanted me to drive up the steep hill. I stalled it. The last examiner would have failed me. I thought "Oh well. I may as well treat it as a driving lesson and enjoy it, as they have not told me to return to the test centre", and I just thought it would be good experience to carry on anyway. While I was about to pull off on the hill I said "Can I do the hill start now?" (As I knew through the other tests there was a hill start. "All in good time" my examiner said which meant "Not yet!"
I just drove around enjoying the drive from then on as I was certain I had failed.
It puzzled me that when we returned to thw test centre, they then started going through a few highway code questions. The man said "Just before we finish..." and he then started asking me the questions on road signs etc... I thought it was odd as the last examiner said I had failed when we had returned from the test and had not asked these questions.
The examiner then said "I am pleased to tell you you have passed". I was so shocked I started to argue with him! I wasn't unpleasant. I said "But whatabout the hill start, and this and that (Things the last examiner would have failed me on) and he said "It was a faultless test" and the examiner examining him then spoke up and agreed. I was soo unexpecting that! The very test I thought I had made a right mess of it where I was expecting to be called straight back to the test centre at any moment was a faultless test? I actually did much better in the two tests I'd failed with the other guy!
But if I had to have a third hobby it would be cars and things like that. I have driven quite a few different vehicles on my car licence since. Vans of various sized, a double decker bus with most of the seats removed to allow it to be driven on a car licence... I've towed trailors, caravans both large and small etc, etc... I've made good use of my car licence! And I think I must have owned around 20 cars by now in my lifetime! (Though some were my Dads as either he had me as a second driver on his insurance, or my insurance allowed me to drive his cars).
I currently have two vehicles. One is not on the road. I rescued it, but it needs work, so I may find it an enthusiastic owner. It is a rare version of a Japanese imported Toyota people carrier (7 seat) and it has a Mitsubishi 4WD system fitted to it, which some of the Japanese imports had (The British versions were all two wheel drive), and why it is rare, nearly all the imported cars were automatics, but this is a manual (Stick shift). My brother had it and was going to scrap it as he had bought a different vehicle. The bodywork is far too good to scrap it! The diesel engine is strong. Far too good to scrap.

The vehicle I have on the road is my lovely little Mitsubishi. Oh I love this car! I am a huge fan of old Volvos, and never had a Mitsubishi, and this car was the only half decent car I could afford as I had bought a little Citroen C2 GT which was very quick but just not suitable and would need some money put into it to get it right even though it had an MOT. So I sold some of my trains and raised some cash and the only car that looked in decent condition at my price range was this Mitsubishi. Wow. I love it!

Around grade 4, our class read a story about an old man who said he had never worked. He did have children visiting him and playing with his stuff all the time, but he was always busy making model ships, which he sold. Eventually, the clever boy realized that the man didn't work because building models was his hobby.
Out of my general interests, I chose the projects that might be good for people to concentrate on. They never paid at all well, but it sure beat boring jobs.

I have been taking tennis lessons for four years now and really enjoy them. As my skills and endurance improve, I enjoy it more and more.

Of course, animals aren't just a hobby. They are a lifeline in bad times and a source of endless fun and enjoyment in good times. Cats have been a constant in my life.

That's one of the hallmarks of Aspergers:

"Having special interests that are more than hobbies."

MountainGoat,

I love those videos of cats looking back and forth watching tennis matches. I saw a Calico cat watching Rafael Nadal. Apparently, he's popular with the female cat demographic, too! Why not? He's CUTE!

People I know tell me when I mention it that they know people with autism and they say I am not like them so I don't have it.
Yet, i have had (In recent years) a few people who say I have. One had found that he had been diagnosed and he was sure that I have it.
Another said he was a health professional and he told my brother I had it. So I just don't know... I do know all about my two hobbies... Well, not quite all... All I need to know regarding the aspects that I like about the hobbies and a lot more again. There are many things I don't know, even though I have been in both hobbies for nearly all my life, especially the main hobby. I use it to relax in. The secondary hobby is different in that I prefer it in primarily a mechanical and functional way.
But my main hobby... Ooh... Yes. That is far more then a hobby! It plays such a part of my life that I can't imagine how people can't like trains...
What about you Kraftiekortie?


Ooh. Not seen those videos of cats IstominFan.

We didn't actually plan to have the same make and model of cars. It just happened. Also, rather surprizingly, my other brother who has lots of children has a Mitsubishi as well, but a much larger vehicle.

My art is a hobby that's more than a hobby. It occupies my thoughts when I'm not painting or creating and it's like a powerful magnet that draws me back to it.