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Unusual Hobbies & Obsessions

rynner2

rynner2

Gone But Not Forgotten
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This is not quite into Weird Folk territory, and I can't find another suitable thread, so let's see if this one will fly:

A celebration of the humble village hall

For two years, cartoonist Tony Husband has been touring England's village halls putting on a two-man show with a comedian. Here he explains why these humble institutions should be cherished.

Tony Husband has a confession to make. He has an obsession.

"When I pass a sign pointing to a village hall, I'll divert and have a look. I've turned into a village hall spotter." 8)

After performing in more than 100 such venues in two years, he is something of an expert. And the experience of taking his two-handed show with comedian Ian McMillan around England has sparked an unlikely love affair.

"The village hall is the centre of the community, from what I've seen," says Husband. "I live in Manchester and it's hard to imagine sometimes that there are these villages miles from anywhere, where a pub and a post office might have closed down, leaving just a hall and a church."

From bee-keeping to Shakespeare, flower shows to tap dancing, aerobics to comedy, these hubs of rural life provide a vital lifeline in a peculiarly English way, he says.

"They are all different and they're well off the beaten track. I would advise anyone who finds themselves driving down the A6 and seeing the signs for these little villages, to turn off and explore this lost England.

"You go back in time to an England that doesn't exist for many of us. You can find the leafy lane and village green and church bells ringing."

etc...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7992469.stm

Of course, if we get more replies about Village Halls, we'll have to change the title! ;)
 
A friend of mine collects bricks. In many other ways he is.... an interesting chap. His 'brick thing' started, I believe, in '81 when he bought a house which dates back around 200 years. There was a pile of old bricks in the yard. Many had makers marks on them, of long gone brickworks, mostly associated with pits in West Yorks. He eventually made a garden path out of them - very nice it is too. He was chuffed recently to find the web site of another chap who like bricks.

The interneat is awash with odd hobbies - 2 that spring to mind are the electric pylon appreciation pages (I found those back in 2001), and the man who photographs Co-op stores throughout the UK.
 
I've recently started hunting out and photographing milestones, which my friends find a rather odd hobby. It started about 6 months ago when I was looking for pictures of milestones to use as inspiration (I needed to make one for use in our village panto).

When I find one (and can stop nearby) I take a photo using my mobile phone, as it geotags them. That way when the pictures are put on Picasa or Flickr, they show up on maps so other people know exactly where they are.

There's a Milestone Society, and a group on Flickr, and everything :D
 
myf13 said:
I've recently started hunting out and photographing milestones, which my friends find a rather odd hobby. It started about 6 months ago when I was looking for pictures of milestones to use as inspiration (I needed to make one for use in our village panto).
Click to expand...
I have a few milestone pics (as well as pics of signposts). Here's one:

IMG_0396.jpg


Can you guess where it is?! 8)
 
My father lives in Stithians (village near Truro).

I realize that is neither relevant to the topic nor fortean, oh well there's a standing stone in a field there.
 
Huh! I think I may well have gone through there when I was on my hols back in February (when there was snow and rain aplenty - great timing :roll: )
 
How Neil Abbott's curiosity about the humble matchstick took over his home

Source: ABC News Australia
Date: 26 January, 2020

Neil Abbott is happily married, but he is still on the hunt for his perfect match — such is the life of a phillumenist, or match collector.

The former public servant's interest in the humble matchstick has grown into one of the largest collections of match-related goods in the world.

"It started when my mother used to bring them home from work," he said.

"I thought 'they look interesting and you could get them free from hotels and restaurants'.

"I like matches."

Neil has amassed what is believed to be Australia's largest collection of match paraphernalia over the past 50 years.

The majority of his collection of matches, match boxes, match books and labels are safely stored in large plastic crates, stacked floor to ceiling in one room of his Canberra home.

But he has also built a staggering collection of match-branded items including coasters, places mats, clothing, aprons, towels, bedding, gas lighters, fire starters, BBQ cleaner, fabric cleaner, dominoes, playing cards, a jigsaw and art work.

https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2020...rra-largest-in-the-world/11803760?pfmredir=sm
 
They have a good butchers and chippy in Threemilestone. Reccomended.

Now that stamp collecting is on the wane I guess all collecting is unusual?

I have my Hornware but that was started to educate me about the material for my Dissertation.

I branched out into Horn themed postcards.

Postcards are particularly engaging because of their many subjects, some engaging, some baffling.
 
Kondoru said:
Now that stamp collecting is on the wane I guess all collecting is unusual?
Click to expand...
No, people are just collecting different things; Funko Pops are all the rage with my son and his peer group right now. I have to admire Funko Pops a bit; they've managed to cover just about every fanbase going; Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Star Wars, Star Trek, LotR, GoT, WoW; they've even done Bob Ross and the Queen!
 
Railways offer LOADS of collecting opportunities, with the added bonus of not having to take any clutter home!
 
Me and a relative once gave ourselves a challenge - collect as many UK published Agatha Christie novels and collections of short stories as we could and read them all!

We both did it over a couple of years - courtesy of charity shops, jumble sales and car boot sales. I got the 76 (I think) main titles, re-read several and then they all went back to a charity shop a few years ago when downsizing my book shelves.
 
Fluttermoth said:
No, people are just collecting different things; Funko Pops are all the rage with my son and his peer group right now. I have to admire Funko Pops a bit; they've managed to cover just about every fanbase going; Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Star Wars, Star Trek, LotR, GoT, WoW; they've even done Bob Ross and the Queen!
Click to expand...

and a Green Man!
 
He should just put "Return to Sender" and post the lot :)

Timaru man selling off massive junk mail collection​

Keiller MacDuff16:30, Jul 09 2021


JOHN BISSET/STUFF
Jimmy McGuinness has collected thousands of pieces of junk mail over the last 10 years.
One man’s junk mail, may well be another man’s treasure, Jimmy McGuinness hopes.
The Timaru man, a regular accordionist on the streets around town, is attempting to sell a massive collection of junk mail.

Timaru man Jimmy McGuinness is an accordion player, raconteur, and collector of tens of thousands of pieces of junk mail.
McGuinness, who has gathered the marketing material from his letterbox over the past decade, thinks the collection now numbers about 10,000 pieces, and includes thick rectangular coupon books, political fliers, endless advertising and samples of an array of products such as pet-food, hair-dye and face cream.
’’The collection is entirely unused and tied in neat bundles of 150 pieces each,’’ McGuinness said.


So far his Trade Me listing for the junk mail has had about 300 views.
The listing has no reserve, with a $50 starting price and a ‘Buy Now’ of $60, but as of Friday afternoon the auction had not had any bids.
In the past people had been keen to purchase similar, though far smaller, collections from McGuinness.

A Trade Me listing for a decade's worth of junk mail, as a Timaru man tries to offload his collection.
Following multiple offers, a Wellington restaurateur bought one of his collections several years ago for a new venture called Circular Bar.
McGuinness said the bar didn’t succeed, and the year’s worth of circulars collected from his Lower Hutt address ended up in the landfill.
He said there has been little interest in the collection this time around, but he wondered if it might have historical value to researchers or museums.
At one stage, McGuinness used the bundles to make a full size junk mail ‘throne’ that sat in his front garden.
Asked why he collected the towers of glossy paper in the first place, he said it was to “see how many I could collect’’.
McGuinness said he has seen the quantity of pamphlets edge up over the years, and muses on the waste involved.
Click to expand...
https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-hera...ChjauIW_D36yZW8YUMqPKbrEWC57gr4ClLg_eivQdMOE0
 
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