Crochet. Pokemon. Bonsai.

I have had trouble developing hobbies over the years, but recently I have been working to develop things that interest me into hobbies. I know how to crochet & did some recent work on a project but haven't done so in a few weeks. I've been collecting Pokemon Cards, and been organizing them as I wish. And then something else I have been watching and thinking about trying my hand at, is the art of growing Bonsai Trees.

So with crochet, I originally became interested and learned how to after seeing my grandma Kathy working on some pieces which became blankets/scarves for me and my cousins. I have never finished any project I began, but I plan to keep my current project ready for work until completed. This art is something I enjoy quite a bit, and I hope to have some pieces to show to my future children and/or future grandchildren. And my crochet knowledge did help me last night (Nov 27 to Nov 28, 2022) as I used a sewing kit to repair holes in a pair of jeans I own. Now sewing is very different from crocheting, but it definitely helped being comfortable with crochet techniques. 

Pokemon cards are interesting, because before now I never wanted them necessarily. My younger cousin Phillip is who got me interested in Pokemon, when he finally made me watch a Pokemon movie. From there I began to watch the Sinnoh era of the anime, and play Pokemon games with him. Eventually I would receive Pokemon Black version, and play Unova as my first ever region. For Christmas around this time, my parents would purchase many Pokemon card products, something I liked but didn't even know existed. I played with them a few times, before selling or trashing them in early high school. Recently I have began to collect them, and appreciate them more. I have a few rare cards that I have sleeved and like to look at frequently. 

The art of Bonsai, keeping a tree species of plant small while giving the appearance of a mature tree in a pot. I have been watching many, many videos of experts growing these various tree species in the bonsai style over the course of many years (I have only been watching recently; the videos document years of progress). This is a slow process, but I find the design and beauty of these plants worth that effort. I am strongly considering getting a starter kit, or otherwise growing a plant for bonsai soon. This is definitely more of what I want from gardening, a long lived plant, kept in a pot, that is mine. When my Dad would garden, when I was younger, or I saw others caring for plants it was always something I liked; but felt that the style or methods weren't quite for me.

Now the issue of course is that hobbies cost money. While I have a job, I have university expenses, I need to help my Mom with bills, and I have plans to run for political office soon-ish and so am trying to keep some money set aside for that as well. Pokemon cards, is something I can budget easily in, Mom is moving back into nursing (a higher paying job), I'm eligible for student loans (which due to my shallow credit history have actually raised my credit score), I have my grandma's unused yarn and crochet supplies, and I have been using cashback apps and surveys that pay money to save up for cash or amazon cards which could fund the purchase of bonsai supplies and tree seeds.

I am happy to finally put care towards my hobbies of relaxation, and to better explore what I find interesting. And while they are difficult now, as I grow old and get more money over the years I hope to craft great collections to share with family and friends. It's interesting I don't think of myself as a creative type, yet these are my hobbies of choice.

Thank you for reading. Please follow me @Lopez4Change.