No time for the hobby and hate it

Just wanted to see if anyone else has the same issue as me. I love building rockets and experimenting with ideas but, It seems the more of an adult I am the less time I can do this hobby. Its been pointed out that I'm only here in the winter and the really seems to be the case. I seem to be constantly bombarded with vehicle issues or house issues or trailer issues or family issues and can never sit back and enjoy my hobbies. At least in the winter, here in Canada where we turn into a frozen wasteland, I don't have to think about my trailer or sports car or yard and have time again to work on rockets.
I'm starting to realize that having money to buy more things doesn't equal happiness and maybe keeping things a bit more simple is the answer.
How do you guys manage your time and find happiness and a balance between owning stuff and enjoying stuff?

Well that's a whole lot of philosophy, but: I limit myself to only two hobbies, and I don't volunteer for -everything- at work anymore.

That has to balance vs. Scouts, kids' school, sports, church, chores, etc. I get a lot of time to read and think about rockets, but not much time to build and roughly zero to fly.

When the youngest is old enough not to steal epoxy and eat fins, I should be able to leave partially finished projects out again.

YMMV.

Five kids, motorcycles, boats, cars and trucks, House, yard, wait, five, when the hell...work, wife going back to work, crazy overtime for both of us, sick kids, scouts, dance, vacations that are more work than life..

Yea. It’s hard. I started getting really into rocketry about the time my second was born. Life kinda took on a “rolling down a hill” feeling fast. I’ve got a pile of rockets. Tons of projects. An L3 that needs 15 minutes of work to fly. A pile of EX equipment I need to just put in order. A carbon fiber rocket that just needs fillets and an av bay. Two loads of laundry and a sink of dishes.

I’ll get the kids in bed soon. finish the laundry by midnight, maybe some of the dishes, pass out.

One of the things I did was cut back on the number of flights I planned a year. Put a lot of rockets into temporary retirement. Bigger flights. Less of doing lots of little flights. Sold all unbuilt kits, cleared out a lot of gear and cases I don’t use. Im looking into selling some more stuff too, pare down to just what interests me, not what feels like a job. Despite the above mentioned “go big” im finding I enjoy smaller flights, and will likely settle into 38s for a while and work on EX and milking as much data out of flights as I can, and getting better at tracking and such. I’ll never get down to one, but it would be great if I could fly one perfect rocket. Each one I build gets closer, lol

If you want something done.....give the task to a busy man! [Old adage]

And yes too much stuff is a burden. Simplicity when ever possible.

Dedicate one task at a time for rocket building. Break down the build into subassemblies ..then assign time slots to do each task.
Much less daunting than getting whole thing done...so what if it takes weeks or months.
As long as you stay on track & get something done!

Be sure to keep it fun, when it stops being fun, it becomes work & you lose interest.

I stopped accumulating stuff 5 years ago & wish I had done so many, many years ago. Now only if it's a need..... do I buy.
I have so much [crap]it will take years just to enjoy it all.[or go through/sort it]

Currently working on MSN degree, work full time, and when I can't stand either, sit in the hobby cave and build something for a few minutes. Epoxy and walk away... Figure that 5-10 minutes sitting in the backroom either printing on the large-format printer, or working on a rocket is enough to clear my head, then back to reality...

After I got back into the hobby last summer I was exploding with enthusiasm to "Build ALL the rockets! Fly ALL the motors! Spend ALL the money!" A few months after that initial outburst of time and money I realized that turning this into a race was counter-productive...needlessly stressful and expensive.

Since then I took a deep breath and realized it's about the journey and not the destination. I've learned to just chip away at it when I can and not try to make it the focus of every day. I've learned to be pickier about what to buy. I mostly take my time now with builds (I spent maybe 3 months on my relatively simple Warlock, just dabbling at it here and there over last winter). And now I only go to a club launch every 2 or 3 months...maybe get in 3 good launches per year. Really I suspect that after a couple years of this I could be content with just 1 or 2 solid launch days per year. I think if I had unlimited time and money to dump into this hobby I would end up burned out and bored after a year.

welcome to the great balancing act of life. I have been flying rockets on and off for over 25 years. Cancer, kids, knee replacement, etc took a lot of my time, but I would still fly when I could (even if the rocket wasn't a new one - I still fly an 18 year old Quasar). I "retired" at 63, so I could spend the last two years flying and designing rocket parts. I have worked harder over the last two years, then I did in "pre-retired" life and not to compare myself with a line in CaddyShack, I would say I was no slouch (and I still am not). Hang in there and enjoy the moments you get and not let the negative side of it all get you down.

Time is precious so I do what I can, and try to go to as many events as I can find time for (consciously favoring travel over home build time). Notorious for building at events, but that's because sometimes the "rocket mini-vacations" are the only dedicated time I can muster. Not retired and have no plans to; I really like my job but it means I have nearly no rocket time during the week. But the conspiracy seems to be working; this year I'll make LDRS, NARAM, Airfest and a bunch of more local weekend events.

Just do what is fun for you and remember that not quite being able to do everything you want is maybe the best situation.

I have a table with whatever I’m working on scattered around on it. Maybe a few times a week I’ll spend half an hour on a project. I managed to get a Gyroc built in time last week to display at our County Fair. Like you may hear, it’s the journey not the destination. I enjoy the time I get to spend building. It took me about a month to finish the build, but a year from now, what I’ll take away is that I had fun building the rocket and that I have something cool to show for the effort. Have fun and don’t sweat the small stuff!

You raise a very good point about finding a balance between owning stuff and enjoying stuff, Mbecks. I too have a full time demanding career, family etc. For me in terms of the hobby I try to maintain that balance you mention by ensuring I do two things: (1) challenge myself to work with/ adapt what I've already got wherever possible.. So, for example, by making provision for adjustable NC weight I can use the same 4" NC, AV bay on different boosters etc, flying DD or SD etc etc as I develop them over time. I also repair or reinforce or even just re-paint to give new life to stuff. For me this ensures I'm getting the most out of my investments.

(2) Dhbarr mentioned philosophy, and I think it's true rocketry has a sort of Platonic element: alot of pleasure can be found in just thinking through what is possible. If I want a new rocket, I scratch build or kit bash. Design slowly, refining it as I go. Scratch building is more expensive in total than buying a kit, but for me, spreading the cost, gradually collecting parts etc slows me down, paces me, makes me think, and stops me accruing a build pile of impulse buys which I don't have the time to get round to. Of course, I get crushes on new kits all the time. But those are the ones I look at but don't buy. I perhaps use OR to design and think through a new modular addition to what I've already built (eg a booster with that particular fin shape that would fit an existing NC and AV bay combo), but then I weigh up whether it will actually add to what I can already do in terms of the goals I have and the sites I can launch at...as we all know rocketry is ultimately about making all those thoughts work in reality.

No easy answer, but priorities and simplification help. I sold my sports car years ago, gave up golf more recently, so I could spend more time on fewer activities. Just finished selling my LP collection and turntable, just to have less stuff. Even though I enjoyed it, I do very little car maintenance any more, it's mostly done by the shop. When I switched jobs recently, I had options, and chose one that paid less with more vacation. Like others here, rocketry is a journey for me - I always have a build going, but it may take months to finish, just a few minutes here, a half hour there. If an HPR build is going to be a long one, I'll mix it up with LPR builds so I can have something new to fly. Our club LPR launches are every bit as fun as our HPR launches.

It's definitely a balancing act and figuring out priorities. I recently decided to give up football season tickets. Since we launch in the desert our season is though the winter, starting in November. Games were an all day thing, sometimes with an overnight. I'd drive 2 hours each way, tailgate, traffic after. Since my family doesn't come to launches or games, I decided to give up one so I could spend more time with them in the autumn months. It'll also give me more time for rockets.

I have a small house that's easy to keep up with. Since we have no winter here, the yard is a year-round thing. It's not too big and I do a couple hours of work on it each weekend and call it good. I'm considering paying someone to maintain it, and I've been considering redoing the landscaping with a lower maintenance yard.

The sharing economy is a big thing around here. There's ride sharing like Uber or Lyft, but it applies to a lot of other things too. The couple times a year we want to go out on a boat we just pay to go on a harbor cruise or other such tour. If we wanted, we could rent a boat with or without a captain. Camping trip? There are trailer rental companies that will drop the trailer off in your designated spot, set it up, break it down and pick it up and haul it back. If I wanted to do an RV road trip, I can rent an RV. I can rent a sports car if I felt like going zoom zoom. I pay some money, show up, use whatever it is, then walk away. Someone else takes care of the maintenance and repairs. For the one or two times I'd use it a year, it also costs way less than the payments, insurance, storage, taxes, fees, gas, oil, maintenance, repairs, etc that come with owning. Now if we were a family that used those things frequently, that wouldn't work. But we do so many other things, the toy would just sit there 360 days out of the year. And those 360 days I'd be thinking we should use whatever toy because we're paying for it.

I spend time on safety and flight worthiness of rockets, but only spend time on finish if I have it. A lot of my fleet is unpainted colored fiberglass. No sanding.

Own less, rent when you need something, give up X to spend more time on Y and keep Y relatively simple so it's not a massive time suck. It's not the complete answer, but it helps.

Sometimes my rocketry is like chipping away at debt ..sometimes I can do more, sometimes I can do less - but make the most progress doing smaller things more often.

That doesn't mean only small projects , I actually completed a UDS by doing a step in the morning, like drilling a hole or layng a fillet - and doing the next one that evening when I got home . Trying to block out hours on a Weekend I wasn't making any progress ..but spending 10 -15 mins 2 or three times a day ...knocked out the fillets in just a few days .

Am now doing the same strategy on finishing some started repaints of some rashed birds and finishing the upscale Ms Riley . Today need to sand some more on Vindicator DD, as I have already marched through nose, payload tube, and vent band - and its looking good again . Also have a almost finished quantum to wrap up and test.. then start another sled.

Kenny

I'm the opposite. During the winter (school year), I spend every Saturday from October through April running chess tournaments. In addition to teaching and being a father. Last season, I attended Midwest Power and didn't fly again until Mini Midwest Power. I missed Rocketry... Missed it tons. I hit up a launch when I can, even if I don't fly. Sometimes I go to launches just to be around friends and help prep, recover, teach, and bullshit about rockets. Those are some of my favorite launches, actually... All the fun of watching rockets, none of the stress or cost. When I flew a couple in New York this June, I caught the bug again, even though one flight was a CATO... My enthusiasm is usually directly in proportion to my time, budget, and ability to fly. When I have the time and money, I love it.
What keeps me in the hobby is the people, the friends that I see. I talk rockets with them and live vicariously through them when I can't fly. When I can fly, I'm giddy with excitement. Come for the rockets, stick around for the friends. No one judges me because I used to fly L2 motors all day while now I fly a lot of H and I motors.
My balance is always tilted towards work for 10 months a year, part of the nature of being a teacher. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, I spend as much time relaxing and hobbying as much as possible. Each person has to find their own balance. This is a conversation I've had many times with friends. I'll have it a hundred more times, I'm sure, LoL

I used to try to fly five rockets at every launch (one day). Now I do one. I prep LPR for my kids, and I spend a lot of my time just hanging out and talking at launches. When I get the urge to build something, I don't set an end date, and just do it as time permits. I find I am a lot less stressed about it this way.

Unlike you, I don’t hate the hobby. The lack of a suitable HPR flying field, reliable car, and this seven year Saiga called get a diploma has been bad, a working man is richer and has earned more. Recently I was so stressed out from day and night summer classes trying to graduate from college that they put me on medical leave for the last two classes I need. More persistent than smart. And my graduation is postponed till fall. I guess I have time to L-1 now. I really wanted that diploma this August but it’s not happening. Classes were too fast too much material. People can laugh here if they want. Don’t worry about the time. Postpone the hobby until the right time finds you.

Andrew, there is nothing wrong with persistence. It is a good trait (unless are a stalker... ). I tell my 26 year old daughter (who is juggling school, work, and life) that is is a step at a time. Eventually the goal you set will be behind you with hopefully brighter skies ahead. You certainly have the right idea about what's important. Keep it up...

Andrew_ASC said:

Unlike you, I don’t hate the hobby. The lack of a suitable HPR flying field, reliable car, and this seven year Saiga called get a diploma has been bad, a working man is richer and has earned more. Recently I was so stressed out from day and night summer classes trying to graduate from college that they put me on medical leave for the last two classes I need. More persistent than smart. And my graduation is postponed till fall. I guess I have time to L-1 now. I really wanted that diploma this August but it’s not happening. Classes were too fast too much material. People can laugh here if they want. Don’t worry about the time. Postpone the hobby until the right time finds you.

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I dont believe the OP is hating the hobby, simply he is hating the lack of time he can devote to the hobby.

I have been building and flying rockets off and on since high school, which is now over 40 years ago. It seems like it was always more 'off' then 'on'. Like others, work and family and school took priority at times, pushing the rockets to the side. During those down times I would still buy an occasional kit or two and pack it away. It was a way to keep at least a small finger in the pie.

Now I am retired and moved into a new house. Have a room off the garage set up just for model building (in addition to rockets we also do plastic models). The best part is pulling out the older models and either finishing them (one close to being finished now is the old Estes sport scale Space Shuttle booster and glider) and starting a new kit (just pulled out the old Estes Pro Terrier Sandhawk - had to find the instructions on the web as the originals were lost somewhere along the way). So we are finally back (and as long as life doesn't get in the way at this stage of the game) and looking forward to meeting 'old friends' and building 'new' ones!

I also read the title as "and I hate (the hobby)" lol

I had a grand rocketry todo list for this year, but I know I won't get through more than half of it. I learn that when life comes knocking and keeps me busy for awhile, the rockets will still be standing behind my couch, the sealed motors will be waiting in the closet, and there will be a launch someday that I will have time to go to.

mbecks said:

I'm starting to realize that having money to buy more things doesn't equal happiness and maybe keeping things a bit more simple is the answer.
How do you guys manage your time and find happiness and a balance between owning stuff and enjoying stuff?

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Truer words never spoken. It's all a trade. Yes I want to build that rocket and finish it all before the next launch, but then my self imposed deadlines make my hobby (the time I intend for re-creating myself) into a job which I don't even get paid for. Sometimes, it's good to put down the epoxy/spray paint and go do that thing. Eat that dinner, go to that dance, play that ball, see that movie, *ugh* clean that bathroom. And conversely, sometimes it's good to say "You know, that can wait till tomorrow, I'm going to work on a rocket!" (provided the thing isn't an emergency)