The Book of Me, Written By You - Prompt 21: Hobbies

The Book of Me, Written By You
Prompt 21: Hobbies

"The Book of Me, Written By You" is a GeneaBloggers project created by Julie Goucher of the Anglers Rest blog. The concept: a series of blogging and writing prompts that help family historians capture their own memories and write about themselves.


Prompt 21: Hobbies

This week’s prompt is Hobbies

Home means different things to different people, so this week we are going to explore what it means to us:
    •    Childhood hobbies & collections
    •    Did you share a “passion” with a family member or friend?
    •    Tell us about it – How, why, where
    •    Do you still have any old hobbies – the ones that have been with you since childhood?
    •    Do you still have those childhood collections?

1. Family photography - my parents got me a Kodak Signet 35 mm camera (VERY nice one) the summer before high school. I have photographed family activities ever since - Summer of 1953 to the present, that would be.

I have thousands of slides and many thousands more of photographs since the slides days ended - poloroids, various cartridge cameras, and now digital cameras. I took few movies, as my kids were little, but little else. I like photos, not movies.

In now blog, and always include family and travel photos as I do.

Probably this led me to my other passion:

2. Genealogy and Famiiy History - began to dabble in the mid-70's when my wife and I each got some materials from parents and aunts - Serious research began in the summer of 1995, after my first year as a professor, and I had the summer off. We travelled all over eastern part of the country in search of records and to "walk in the footsteps." The search still continues… for both of us… though I tend to write now, more than research. We both continue to add to our knowledge, review our records, work at more fully understanding how remarkable our ancestors were and how we can add to that heritage.

3. Christmas 1952 I got a Lionel Train Set - Double Santa Fe Diesel set - added to it over a few years. It is still well packed in storage, and gotten out every five years or so, to show grand children, now. I've written about it here, here, and elsewhere.

4. In the 1990s, I began a "Raccoon" collection. Very active, for a few years. Still have most of it in boxes. Some still on display in my office.

 5. Books - it would probably not be appropriate to exclude books from this list, though they are much more than "hobby" - they are a critical part of life. The hobby parts were possibly some early collections, mostly gone now. Some are in our oldest daughters library in Utah. Many given away. A few hundred sold on EBay, back in the day, when that was just new, and money was actually received. I still have my extensive collection of George Washington and founding fathers/colonial era books. I use them from research for my historical fiction/non-fiction writing.

6. Travel - we've travelled all over the USA. Lived in 12 or so states (depending on how you count). Still visit Utah, Texas, Iowa, and everything in between regularly, with occasional trips to Florida, Louisianna, Illinois, etc.



Families are Forever!