Introduction
This page contains a rundown of my interests. If it seems to you like I'm less than "focused", you're right... I really do have too many hobbies.
The List
Amateur Radio: Also known as "Ham Radio". I've been a licensed "ham" since 1975, and continue to enjoy this hobby. You can find more details about my involvement in ham radio -- including my call sign change in 2012 to N6OI -- on the Home Page of this site.
Playing Music: I love to play music. This is, without reservation, my favorite hobby. I started playing clarinet in grammar school, and ended up majoring in Music Education in college. (I taught only briefly, however. Suffice it to say that being a public school teacher was not my calling, but I have the utmost respect for those that dedicate their lives to the education of our youth.). My major instrument in college was indeed the clarinet, but I also play sax, guitar, and whatever else I feel brave enough to fool with at the time. My only claim to fame is being a (nearly) original member of The Chico Bavarian Band, which in 1997, became the first American band ever to play in the Munich Oktoberfest.
I don't play as often as I would like, in part because (and I'll undoubtedly come back to this) I have too many hobbies! But I do enjoy getting together with friends and playing whatever type of music seems to grab us at the moment. My forte is definitely around the formal aspects of playing - I can sight read just about any music handed to me on clarinet and sax - but I also really enjoy sitting in with friends that play entirely by ear. I'm not generally in their league, but I love to try. And I have some life-long friends that are kind enough to let me sit in now and again despite my "ad-lib challenged" playing. I do find, in my own defense, that the more I try the better I get. I wish someone had made that clear 60+ years ago when I started playing; I would have spent more time noodling around and less time with my nose buried in my Klosé book (inside joke for clarinetists).
Of late, I'm continuing to play guitar as well. I stopped playing for more than two decades at one point, but decided to get back into it in recent years. I'm still enjoying it very much. I mostly play to accompany myself when I sing, but that too is something I haven't done much of for a while and really enjoy.
My only "regular gig" at the moment is playing with the Saratoga Community Band. It's a great organization, and there are some very talented members. The band is all volunteer (in fact, we pay a little each semester to cover costs), and generally varies between 70 and 80 musicians each semester. (The number of members dropped to around 40 after COVID, but it's gradually coming back up.) We play a lot of the same music that high school and college bands play, and it's a great way for all of us to play music that most of us grew up playing in school. Come out to one of our concerts sometime and check us out!
Golf: I absolutely stink at this game, but enjoy it nonetheless. Go figure. As I update this page (August 2023), I have played only once or twice a year in recent years, but I keep telling myself I'll play more regularly again. We'll see.
Motorcycling: I rode motorcycles for 40+ years, but this now falls into the category of a "former hobby". I sold my most recent ride, a 2003 Honda ST1300 sport touring model, less than a year ago. I still love to ride, but simply ran out of friends to ride with: all those I used to ride with have also moved on to other hobbies. Once I retired, I didn't even need the bike for commuting, and it got to the point where the ST1300 sat in the garage for more than two years without being ridden at all, so it was time to let it go.
Photography: Taking photos is something that I more or less got away from for a while after college, but eventually picked it up again. In my college days, I was immersed in this art form pretty deeply for a while. I had my own dark room, and even did the occasional wedding photo album for a friend or acquaintance (with the help of fellow-ham Alan, W6AKB (formerly WB6ZQZ)). But I recently sold my DSLR (Canon 6D) and am down to just my iPhone 13 Pro. It does a surprisingly good job, so I'm not sure if I'll replace the Canon or not.
Travel: Traveling is something I've always been interested in, but wasn't able to afford until I was an adult. I traveled less than some but more than most in my early adulthood, visiting most of the 48 states and parts of Europe (several times) by the age of 35. And then I met my wife Carol, who worked for American Airlines when I met her (no, not as a flight attendant -- she worked at the airport). Carol also likes to travel, so we will undoubtedly do so whenever possible. Which (like the time spent on the rest of my hobbies) will most certainly be less often than we would like.
Webmaster: Many years ago now, I decided that the band I've played in since college -- The Chico Bavarian Band -- needed a web site. I've done some programming in my earlier professional days, so I decided to teach myself HTML and become the band's self-proclaimed webmaster. It proved simple enough, and over time the whole webmaster thing has, well, basically gotten out of hand. I now host web sites for several friends, and manage a few more.
Summary
Well, I think that may be it... until I decide to take up a new hobby, of course. I haven't added a new one in some time now, so I'm due!