Do any of you have hobbies that you bring to help with down time?

I've posted this before but it's worth another look. This guy builds these IN HIS TRUCK. I'm still amazed.

https://www.truckersnews.com/home/article/15058992/trucker-makes-wooden-model-boats-from-scratch

 

Not a whole lot of downtime since I'm running drop and hooks between the same dairy farm and one of two processing plants. But on ten hours breaks I'll spend a few hours reading some various books, or even put together models myself. Here's a 1/537 scale Enterprise-A I've been working on since April. Engineering hull and warp nacelles. Then on to the saucer section. Lights and Sounds.

 

Since I was essentially a professional tourist from 2003-2020, power only, many times bobtail, lots of time sensitive show loads with plenty of waiting time, I used 2 main ways to kill the downtime:
1. Always carried a bicycle, always ready to go within 10 minutes (unstrapping it from the headache rack etc)
2. Since I am a musician, carried a portable keyboard. Same would work even better with a guitar or even an accordion( that would be strange wafting out of the windows in a truck stop huh? Think Weird Al)

Point is, DO SOMETHING. Don't just climb in the sleeper and engage in a passive activity like watch TV or computer games.
Do something that exercises your mind and your body if possible.

 

We used to keep folding bikes in the truck, and the first time we used them was in Salt Lake City. We got about 2 miles from the truck and all of our tires were flat. We ran over some thorny twigs that were like eagle talons. Anyway, that's my luck with that stuff.

But yeah, we at least try to go for a walk when we have the chance. It seems like everyone sits in their truck and stares at people while they are at the truck stop.

 

I threw some Schwalbe Marathon+ tires on to my Dahon and the only flats that occur is when I run over some roofing nail!! Got to armor those wheels up!!

 

Look at www.fanhome.com...... they have the Starship Enterprise from TNG....

 

As luck would have it, it looks like I'll have some extra time on this load I'm picking up.... I COULD almost make delivery today, so I can be half lazy and deliver tomorrow, but since they don't want their crap bad enough to be there until Monday, I get to be lazy.... unless my office can figure out a swap somehow....

Man, I HATE the word LAZY!

 

My kid and I are avid golfers, and I run a territory close to the house. Occasionally I get a little extra time, and he’ll bring our gear to wherever I am. We get to play a wide variety of courses that way. I’ve considered throwing my extra clubs in the truck for times he can’t make it, but I don’t want to sacrifice the room.

 

no thanks...i like my gun collection.

but then too, i am retired, so i got all the time in the world to enjoy each and every one of them, as well as reloading my own ammo.


i just also priced out the Eleanor Ford Mustang subscription, at 33 packages, at $55.96 per package for a near total of nearly $1900.00....???

nope, then what..??

i can't drive that, i can't shoot that.......(well i CAN shoot that)......


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The 1967 Eleanor Mustang is complete in 33 packages (130 assembly stages and magazines).



The first package contains 2 assembly stages. Thereafter, you will receive a package each month containing 4 assembly stages and a magazine featuring your build instructions.



Each package is $55.96. The 1st package is now at the special price of $8.00, and the 2nd at $41.97. Don't miss the chance to enjoy this special offer!



Shipping & Handling on your 1st package is completely free! From the second package onwards, the S&H cost is £9.60 per package.



You will also receive fantastic gifts throughout the duration of your subscription.

 

For the record, I never asked for 'affordable' hobbies.... I admit that what I'm doing is bottom line pricey, but these aren't the plastic kits we did as kids, and certainly not the same scale....

Growing up, our hobbies just kept increasing in costs.... my dad and I went from:

R/C model airplanes (mostly WW2 Era 1/4 scale, but we did do a more modern model once or twice)
Model railroads
Photography
Computers
Motorcycle touring

A friend of ours had most of the same ones at the same time, but when we went into motorcycles, he went into gun collecting. Once his kids moved out, he had to get a variance from the city to convert one of the bedrooms into an armory..... he never did anything half *ssed, he usually went DOUBLE!