Do you get a chance to talk about your special interests?

Thank you xxx

I saw your pictures in your profile of your art creations before - they're amazing you're really talented :-) 

I'm not creative or artistic sadly but I'd love to be. I've just never been able to get the hang of it sadly.

I'm sorry about your mum.

Edit to add also sorry about your throat, that sounds horribly difficult. Glad you do have people who love you.

I am fortunate enough that I do have people in my life whom I can talk about my special interests with. My special interests fall into the category of Arts & Crafts, and I have found that people with interests that fall into that category seem to have a mutual appreciation and understanding of each other's creative talents, even if they don't necessarily share that same interest.

For example, one of my special interests is diamond painting (not that I've done any for a while), and my closest friend is an artist. We both take an interest in each other's interests and will often talk about them. We are both aware that because we don't share the exact same interest, there may be some things that are likely to go over the tops of each other's heads, so we tend not to go into too much detail. It's not a problem for either of us though and doesn't make the conversations we have any less enjoyable.

I am very sorry for your losses AuTriker and Hack∈r. I lost my mum a few years, and still have that empty feeling like a huge part of my heart is missing xxx

I’ve got a lot of special interests – Lego, Titanic, female professional swimmers, history and Ty Beanie Babies, to name a few ^^ I’ve always been interested in talking about my special interests.

My birth mum was one of the few people who never seemed tired of hearing about the different sets of Lego or every fact under the sun about the Titanic. In fact, she often read about the things I was interested in and would surprise me with her own facts and info on them. We used to have such long conversations on them, but took breaks as talking is something I struggled with. I miss that – I miss mum. She was a bright star in my life, and now, there’s one less shining over me. My dad was lovely but not very interested in my interests lol he mostly sat in his chair and drank whiskey, pretending to listen :D 

My throat is going through issues at the moment and I’m unable to talk. This is actually really horrible because I love the freedom of being able to talk about my special interests. My step mum and sister like to hear about some of my interests, as does my Nan, but at the moment I can’t talk to about it and after surgery, if that happens, I might not be able to talk at all! It’s taking a lot of adjusting to and getting used to.

Up until now though I was able to talk about my special interests. Not all of them, but most.

Shardovan said:

what I inflict on others

I think you greatly, vastly, underrate yourself. 

I know that feeling. I'm the only one that can't escape the 'small doses' rule I normally try to observe with what I inflict on others, just generally (not even 'interests' chat) as I can sense I'm definitely one of *those* people so the least I can do is demosnstrate self-awreness via rationing. But I'm stuck with me 24/7, how do you think I feel? (as Larry David once said)

Thank you. Small words still show you care.

Sorry for your loss, Triker - such small words for such a big thing I know. 

Thank you, I'm sorry for your loss too, that must have been so hard, especially so young.

I've always found it hard to see where the line is. It's one of those things I try not to cross but inevitably, I must cross it a lot. I wish people would say if I do. I feel I probably get a little carried away with my facts and figures on health and diseases.

AuTriker said:

My Mum was really good at being interested in anything and would enjoy listening to me tell her about my special interests, and she was like that with other people too. I miss her a lot, she died a few years ago.

I am sorry for your loss. She sounded wonderful. I lost my sister when I was 9, she was 16 at the time but we were extremely close. Even now I still miss her and can remember her voice and picture her sat in her room listening to her music. Death is so hard to understand and get used to.

Health and diseases can affect everyone so more people ought to be interested in those. But many people prefer to not think about icky things. There are limits to how much detail is socially acceptable on those! I sometimes don't want to hear about really scary things, but also sometimes it is better to know. I don't always find it easy to judge what level is OK, many people are squeamish about vomit or other such things and I can cross their line without realising it, sometimes even with my Dad.

My Mum was really good at being interested in anything and would enjoy listening to me tell her about my special interests, and she was like that with other people too. I miss her a lot, she died a few years ago.

Not as much as I used to when doing a PhD in my then special interest, but I had to drop out due to health and stress issues.

I am currently most into languages especially Biblical ones, so I get my weekly lessons in those, though there has been a pause over the holiday. Also in a couple of fb groups for them. But I am having to pause modern Greek due to life stress at the mo which is not ideal as there is more stress and less outlet as not enough time and mental energy for both. Most of my family let me say a little bit about it, maybe if I have come across an interesting word, and sometimes our friends show an interest, also theology, but I do have to be gently taken off my hobby horse after a while or I will ride it for hours.

I have in the past found groups which share my interests, whether medieval re-enactors or fibre arts or writing group. Not going to anything since covid though.

Your wood interests might work well in a re-enactment group, have you looked into those? Usually they are full of odd people, most likely ND in various ways. But you might not like history or dressing up in historical costume. I'd have thought there were groups for woodwork, certainly I have seen youtube videos on related subject. I love watching wood turners make stuff on youtube! Also people build or renovate old cabins or little houses by hand in remote places. Some of those video channels have a bit of community going in the comments section.

I think your interests sound interesting. I used to collect rocks and minerals as a kid and tried doing geology as my degree, but there was too much maths in it. And I like trees, it is fun to identify them out on a cycle ride. Wood working is very useful as well. I am not as interested in strength sports as such, but I have recently started watching climbing videos and find it interesting when they do strength tests. Not sure why I watch those as I am too physically disabled to ever climb - I struggle with the stairs!

I find some subjects too dull to want to listen to people talk about them (ball sports or certain popular TV shows for example) but there are things I am not myself interested in a lot but still enjoy listening to someone passionate talk about. I would listen to you talk about your interests if we ever met.

Even my inner monologue got bored with me.

I don't really interact with people in real life besides my immediate family, and unfortunately none of them are interested in the stuff I'm obsessed with so no, I don't get to talk about my special interests irl.

I was really into A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones a few years ago and I used to interact with people online and talk a lot about theories and stuff like that which was really nice, but now since the show ended and there's no guarantee when the next book will come out I've fallen out of contact with the people I used to talk about it with. And I haven't found people yet to talk about my current obsessions with either, so now I don't even get the chance to talk about my special interests online these days

It can feel lonely that most people I know in 'real life' will humour Who chat for only a very short time (understandably!), so I'm grateful for the above offset.   

It depends what you mean by 'talk'. If being part of an online Doctor Who community counts, then yes. And I occasionally get to talk to them over voice chat as well. I also have one Who-obsessed friend who I only get catching up with occasionally. And recently I got chatting about some Who audio stuff on a podcast after picking up the courage to occasionally join in (it's run by the same wee online community), which took a lot but I'm glad I made myself do it as I'd have regretted it otherwise. 

For other adjacent fandoms, it's a little lonelier. A steady flow of Blake's 7, Sapphire and Steel, and Star Cops chat is harder to come by even among the niche quarters of the internet! 

Oakling said:

Outside of this space, do you ever get the chance to have a conversation about the things you find interesting?

Literally, ummm never. 

The sad reality is I'm a massive bore and my family are tired of hearing about programming, computers, books, Doctor Who and astronomy. It surprises, no. It bewilders me that people aren't interested in hearing about these things. Especially health and diseases. When I talk about everything people leave the room. Ha, ouch. So I've come to the quite obvious conclusion that I am Miss Boring of 1997, crowned since I was able to talk.