Other interests outside of Teddy Ruxpin

[Sylverwolfe]

There is a question I have wanted to ask of the members here.
Since we are in the off topic discussion I wanted to hear about your hobbies besides Teddy Ruxpin.

I'll go first:

Mascots (costumes, performance, meeting, acting silly with them etc.)
Working Out,
Weight Lifting,
Computer gaming,
Numismatics (Coin, Bank note & Precious metal ingot Collecting),
Philately (Stamp collecting),
Heavy Metal Music,
Home-brewing Beer, Wine and Meade,
Target and Clay Pigeon shooting,
Hit And Miss Engines,
Steam Engines,
Calculations,
Jewelry Making,
Metal Smithing,
Renaissance Faires (I dress up as a pirate.)
and
Harry Potter Parties and gatherings.

What do you guys like to do?

[Deleted]

The beach

Comic Books

Music

hanging out with friends

mystery novels

really good tv shows

writing

[teddy4evr]

Hm, don't really have other interests/hobbies. I collect and restore ALL toys that talk, not just Teddy Ruxpin, if that counts.

[TRO Admin]

Great topic. It will lead to some additional discussions here

I work out 5 times a week with a couple of buddies. It helps me keep in shape, as my seven day a week hobby is eating really good food

Web Design. I've done the Teddy Ruxpin website in various incarnations since 1998, and have been slowly but surely working on another one devoted to other stuff I like. Somehow though whenever I get the proper time to devote to it and the itch most of my energy for web design goes to the Teddy site.

Graphics- I worked as the graphic designer for a newspaper for awhile, and have been doing amateur stuff since age 13. I wish there was more money in it.

Music - I have 1600 songs on the Itunes and it's rare when one of them isn't playing either in my car, at the gym, at home or occasionally even at work. Someday I would like to play the Bass Guitar and the Piano at least a amateur level and join a local band.

Traveling - money I should probably spend on wiser things or save I usually tend to use for spur of the moment traveling. When you live in a small town, sometimes you just gotta get away.

Writing - mostly for my own satisfaction, I don't think I have the talent to be a published writer. And reading. Stephen King's "The Stand" is my favorite fiction and I also read books on spirituality, sports and politics.

And sometimes I simply like to get a six pack of beer or a bottle of wine and slide from full reality for awhile.

[indigodragon]

Okey-dokey-lokey, here I go for what other hobbies and interests I have other than Teddy Ruxpin.

Art: I'm am an artiste, doing from canvas painting to fan-art.

Reading: From really good novels to superhero comics. Also Disney comics.

Animals: Since the day I was born, I never liked or cared for the typical girly stuff like dolls or playing house or playing dress-up. I've always loved animals, I'm really good with 'em too. To this day, I admire a dog someone's walking on the street, I end up ignoring the owner and greet the dog. Also admire a cat in someone's window.

Dragons: They've always fascinated me since I was a little kid, to this day, I eat, breathe and sleep them. Most of one of the walls in my room is covered with dragon stuff.

Movies: Mostly animated, prominently great Disney flicks and anything by Hayao Miyazaki, I'm also a sucker for films by Don Bluth, even his films that aren't technically or critically acclaimed good I still find them enjoyable to watch and enjoy the really artistic animation. I'll also go for comedy, sci-fi/fantasy, some action/adventure and a few thrillers.

My Little Pony: From the eighties TV series to the new show "Friendship is Magic", I inherited my eighties ponies from my sister and a few from her best friend. I like the new Friendship is Magic line better than the line that came out in the early-mid 2000's and way better than the Core 7 garbage.

Zhu-Zhu Pets: I'm a collector of those whacky robotic hamsters, they're so cute and so much fun. And they are pretty life-like.

Video games: Primarily Pokemon, Nintendo in general, Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly (I really need to play the other games released for Nintendo consoles), Sonic the Hedgehog the original game. A few years ago I found this website that allows you to download old Sega Genesis games onto your computer. I was able to beat some of them.

That's all I can come up with for now.

[Deleted]

Did you know that Don Bluth originally worked for Disney before leaving to start his own studio? In researching Walt Disney and his legacy, I came across that bit of information.

[indigodragon]

Yeah, that I knew. In a lot of the early Disney films, I recognize his style in some of the animation. Mr. Bluth was considered to be the director of "Ice Age" but turned down when it was decided to be in CGI.

I have to say for the last film "Titan A.E.", I thought the first two-thirds were enjoyable but I wasn't impressed with the third act with the all of a sudden plot twist and Preed becoming a bad guy. If there were a Top 11 Not-Really-Evil-Just-Misunderstood characters, I'd put Preed as number 5.

[Deleted]

That was a good movie. I've only seen it twice, but it was very well done. I know he left Disney during the making of "The Rescuers" or during the making of "The Fox and the Hound". I can't remember which.

[Sylverwolfe]

Hey all,
I am surprised to see the way this topic took off!

@monkeyboy5185:
Writing is fun. I am an amateur and I don't suspect any of my works will be worth publishing.

@josh Isaacson:
I like to work out about that often myself. I typically go by myself. My girlfriend is convinced I am "hooked" on working out, notably the release of endorphin that a workout can cause.
And like you, I am what is called a "Foodie" although I despise the term. It is a silly term. There is nothing wrong with liking very good food.

indigodragon:
Interesting about the dragons and animals. I have a question for you but I will ask it in a message.

@monkeyboy5185 and Indigo dragon:
According to a wikipedia article about Don Bluth, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Bluth)
he worked at Disney and was directing animator for The Rescuers, 101 Dalmations, The Fox and the Hound. He was assisting director for Sleeping Beauty and The Sword in the Stone and got credited for none of these movies. The Fox and the Hound he actually drew scenes. He left really early during the production and was not credited in the movie.

He really is an under appreciated artist of his time, sadly.

[Deleted]

And, in relation to Walt Disney Pictures, Don Bluth is rarely mentioned the way that Walt Disney, the Sherman Brothers, and the Nine Old Men are. Those guys (Walt especially) are, and were the face of the whole company, when it came to making animated feature films.

[Fen]

Hmmm

Besides Teddy Ruxpin...

I am an amateur artist, I prefer to work in a lot of different mediums, but right now I'm favoring markers, and digital. I would like to get into sculpture and jewelry making. I've done some beading, and made a few necklaces for Christmas presents.

I like to spend time at the beach, I am an Advanced SCUBA Diver, certified through NAUI. My favorite dives are wrecks, but I also like reef drift dives. I love exploring the beautiful underwater habitat and finding something new to see. I prefer boat diving, but will do a beach entry dive. I hope to get in a night dive as well, to see the "other" beasties that come out in the dark. There is a place called the "bone yard" that I am eager to explore!

I like to write, read, and be inspired by music!

[Sylverwolfe]

You mentioned beading as a part of your Jewelry making, do you saw, file, finish, solder etc metal to make jewelry?
That is the really fun stuff if you ask me. My favorite is lost wax casting method. I also like to roll metal out, cut it and make a piece literally from just sheet metal. There is nothing like that sense of accomplishment.

Chasing and repousseeing metal is really neat, but finding pitch (Pine based pitch, mind you, not petroleum based pitch) is really difficult. Etching is fun as well. Whether by acid or by abrasives.
I find what I enjoy better than making rings and pendants is making small containers. When I make them, I like them to be watertight. My sense of pride will not allow for them to leak water. I find that Sterling Silver is the best to work. Nickel and German Silver (An alloy of Nickel and Copper) tend to harden too much as they are worked and often the piece needs frequent annealing. There are days when I would love to be back in college working on pieces for those Jewelry and Metalsmithing classes.

Sadly, since college I haven't had the chance to do much. I don't have access to workshop equipment, torches 'n' stuff in my little apartment.

SCUBA is cool and I wouldn't mind getting into it. Perhaps when money isn't so tight for me and my girlfriend.

[tdickensheets]

I watch TV.

Watch cartoons. I miss old cartoons.

[kathyfraggle]

Hmmm, let's see. I can't believe I haven't posted here before!
I enjoy reading fanfiction from many different fandoms. I have a few started, but have never published anything myself. I've worked on several with a good friend, some of which are finished but many of which are not. All of these are in her name as she's the one who did the actual writing. In the words of some famous author, "I love everything about writing except the paperwork."
I too love all animals, and enjoy watching Animal Planet, along with other shows. A lot on Investigation Discovery, Law & Order, Bones, older shows from the 60's and 70's, but my current favorite adult-type show is Criminal Minds.
Movies, mostly animated, and cartoons. I adore Don Bluth and classic Disney films! From this era I love Lilo & Stitch, (possibly my favorite Disney movie of all time), and the Princess and the Frog. Also recently watched the Brave Little Toaster on a whim on youtube, and now with a deeper, more mature understanding of a more mature movie, fell in love with it all over again!
But the one thing that trumps all of these is Muppets. I love all the movies and just about all of the shows, but the dearest and most special one to me is Fraggle Rock. It runs deeply within me, shaping my personality, and giving me a love of music and a respect and openness towards magic.

This is only a brief overview, lol.

[retrobear]

I collect bears and dolls and I've just started making teddy bears about a year ago. I also play a whole bunch of instruments, but mainly piano. I pretty much just play at church and for my own enjoyment. I used to want to do it professionally, but I go back and forth on that because I've seen professional musicians who lose their love of music and it becomes a job and that's just sad to me.

I also love to read, mostly audiobooks. I'm very versatile on what I read. If something sounds good to me, I read it. I like watching older stuff and game shows on TV, my favorite being Jeopardy because I love trivia and I sort of have a crush on Alex Tribek. I just like his voice. I have a weird hobby of watching and analyzing old commercials, my favorite being PSA's. I run a forum about this hobby, but I won't plug it unless you guys say it's okay. I've also recently become fascinated with the histories of toys, but I guess that goes with Teddy Ruxpin.