What other sort of Geek are you?
There is a thread running that discusses whether we should be called geeks or nerds (geek is the correct answer). On that I claimed geekhood on other subjects. And clearly I will not be the only one. So, what other types of geek are you?
My name is Richard, and I'm a Schubertgeek.
I missed out on a classical music training education - not in the family genes. But it became obvious that I never did really get 'pop' music - most stuff that I did buy was folk rock, I guess. So I eventually migrated into classical music, mainly through Schubert.
He was, quite simply, the greatest song writer the world has ever seen. And for someone trying to understand music, rather than just listen to it, I found songs (well, Lieder to give them their proper German name) ideal. Of course, he wrote lots of other good stuff, too, including operas that are rarely staged these days (though I have seen 5 or 6 of them).
My geekhood stretched to being on the committee of The Schubert Institute UK, and running their website and being treasurer, until illness got in the way. But that didn't stop my collection. You may think you have a big games collection, but I have over 300 recordings of a single work (his song cycle Winterreise), and still maintain (sadly no longer online) a discography of recordings of his song cycles.
My name is Richard and I'm a whiskygeek.
Well, I had to be, really. Scottish, and all that. I love the stuff, and have a fair to middlin' collections of bottles in my office (I work from home) - probably 50 or 60 or so. Most are for drinking, though there are a few I bought as investments (the most expensive of which - a first edition Octomore - is now worth over £500, and I paid about £60 for it).
I also own a part share of a barrel which is maturing on the Isle of Arran. We intend to bottle it next year.
I enjoy shortwave radio. The hobby is fading (dying?) in terms of both listeners and providers, but I still find it fascinating to listen to governments (and a few other entities) broadcast their message using this medium that's changed very little in a century.
Not sure if video games count as "other" - they are still games after all - but I'm enough of a collector to be branded a Nintendo geek.
Loved Nintendo as a kid, but we didn't have the budget to own many games or consoles. It was one of those things where I'd always say "one day, when I've got enough money".
Close to the time that Nintendo Wii was released, I had finally reached the point where that could happen: single guy working a good job with no meaningful debts or expenses or commitments. Since then I've acquired a shelf of roughly 174 retail Wii games plus about 84 digital games on the console itself. We also own NES, N64, GameCube, and Wii U consoles with a few games for each. On the portable side we've got a DS Lite, DSi, 3DS, and 4 GBAs (including 2 Micros). We've also got an assortment of Nintendo knick-knacks, figures, accessories, and whatnot.
Overall, video games have been a relatively inexpensive hobby compared to board games. As long as you don't mind waiting, video games drop in price very quickly. Older stuff isn't always available but can be found cheap if you keep your eyes open.
It's nice to be at a point where I'm essentially done collecting though: with a growing family, home ownership, and the need to save and invest all looming on my mind, the amount of cash available for silly hobbies has dried up considerably. Now it's time to sit back and enjoy playing.
Motorbikes are my other geek love... I've been fascinated with them since I was a kid. I took my test in the UK a few years ago and haven't looked back. However, we moved to Vancouver at the end of last year and I haven't had the chance to get on a bike since (although I do have my BC license!).
It's sad that there aren't really any decent motorbike games... combining both of my geek passions would be great!
(I'm also a whisky geek... keen on my Islay whiskies but have surprisingly been enjoying anCnoc 12, a Highland whisky).
I am a square dance geek. There are two kinds of hobby vacations I go on: boardgaming vacations and square dancing vacations.
Car Geek. I have among my collection 2 restored 1954 Kaisers. The restorations span about 18 years. They are named Lillie (left) and Lolla (right). They were the inspiration for the game I designed and are highlighted on the board and cards.
I regularly teach classes on it, so I get the best of both worlds (at least my work is fun!).
I regularly teach classes on this, too. Plus every Halloween I turn my garage into a haunted house.
I have boxes and boxes of Lego stored in the garage, much of which dates back to my childhood. Tons more inside, as all four kids are into Lego, too.
I build models, mostly 1/48 scale aircraft. I'm not great, but I get a little better every time.
Bicycles. I love 'em. They're always swirling around my mind; pondering different head tube angles and fork offsets, tire pressures, component gruppos, and the all important bar tape color.
I have a habit of tuning the bikes parked out in front of the bar when I step out to grab some air.
On the bicycle framebuilder forum, there's a thread similar to this one, where I talk about board games.
I needed a hobby that got me outside more often. Enter disc golf, the best version of golf. Now I drive around with a disc catcher and boxes of frisbees filling the back of my station wagon.
I've always liked wine, but then I moved to California, where wine is drinking is almost a religion.
I also play bassoon and (classical style) saxophone. I don't play as often as I used to.
I'm a movie geek. I've loved movies since seeing my first one (Bambi) at a drive-in theater when I was six years old (that theater recently celebrated continuous showings for the past 63 years, and I was there the summer it opened -- you do the math).
I collect movies from the 1930's through current releases, and enjoy writing about them, creating my own film festivals, and just watching many of them repeatedly. I am not a movie critic, and I prefer light entertainment over heavy and serious films. I am a specialized movie geek.
I have seen all but a few of my 680 films and have written my thoughts about each one, plus giving each my personal rating. My ratings are based primarily on how much the film entertains me and how often I would enjoy seeing it again, not on the usual critic's criteria of film production, acting quality, and "meaning."
It has been, and continues to be, a rewarding hobby.
Big music geek here. I don't have one favourite song, band or genre but tend to find new things to add to the collection. My biggest passions are all things relating to Sonic Youth and a growing collection of Japanese psychedelic recordings. But I'm also into jazz, classical, blues, reggae or whatever else I chance upon and strikes a chord with me.
I am a fairly enthusiatic amateur photographer, and aircraft are by far my favorite target, military aircraft especially. Phantoms, IMNSHO, are the coolest looking jet fighter and twice I've driven 100+ miles to an airshow just to see a Phlying Phantom.
One of the things that KILLs me about Phantom Leader is that all the pictures in the rulebook appear to be computer generated.
I'm not a jazz "king", but I do play drums in a jazz combo. Our leader makes a living playing solo jobs and other gigs, but the band gets about one or two gigs each month. I also play a few freelance gigs each year. It's a creative, fun hobby that definitely does NOT pay the bills.