Flying As A Hobby

Ask a room full of people what hobby they have and you will get as many answers as there are people. Others will confess that they don't have a hobby. They probably do; but just don't label it as such. By definition, a hobby is an activity or interest pursued outside one's regular occupation and engaged in primarily for pleasure.

Whether flying, stamp collecting, chat rooms, trains, softball,scrapbooking, golf, reading, painting, tap dancing, yard work, crafts, auto mechanics, music, hunting down garage sales, sewing, fishing, cooking, boating, furniture refinishing, javelin tossing or a plethora of other activities or interests the key element is balance. You must find balance between your family life and your extracurricular activities.

Too much of a good thing turns bad. Everyone should have an outlet and a special interest that they enjoy doing for themselves. Self indulgence, to a point, is quite healthy. Escaping from day to day grinds to take some time to devote to your flying hobby or concentration is therapeutic. You've all heard, "if Mamma ain't happy, no one's happy." It doesn't matter if your role is father, mother, husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, son, daughter, brother or sister, if you're just going to work or school and have no real outside activities, you're probably not always the most friendly person to be around.

Conversely, if you bury yourself and it seems to others that all you care about or all you ever want to do is fly all day (or hang around the airport), you're setting yourself up or prolonging discontent. People deal with depression in many ways. Some sleep all the time. Others want to do nothing but read,read, read. Still others will spend hours upon hours downstairs building a bigger, faster widget, just to avoid the real cause of their frustrations. Hobbies are supposed to be a healthy outlet, not a catalyst to ignore issues that need addressing.

Likewise, hobbies can get very expensive. Sure, flying, snow mobiles, motorcycles and ski equipment are obviously expensive. But sometimes those seemingly low cost activities can add up. You start out with trying to budget for the weekly flying lessons. Then you need (or want) the unnecessary (but fun) goodies that we all "need" to pursue our passion. "Let's see, do we pay the mortgage this month, or get that (fill in the blank) that you just have to have?"

If your flying hobby is doing more harm than good, if it's dipping into the family budget and time allocation, more than you can or should be spending, it's time to reevaluate. Not stop the flying, mind you, just make sure it's appropriate for you and your family and its lifestyle.

Yvonne Volante, webmaster for http://www.fixairplanes.com, is a big fan of flying and flight travel. She operates a web site that is devoted to flying and aviation resources. Email her at yvonne@fixairplanes.com

Moneybiz
Aviation fund: FG to pay N2bn interest on N6.5bn loan.
The Punch, Nigeria - Jul 3, 2008
By Tobi Soniyi, John Alechenu and Sola Fabiyi The N6.5bn loan sourced from a new generation bank by a former Minister of Aviation, Dr. Babalola Borishade, ...
Usman, Aondoakaa Absent at Aviation Probe Panel Sitting This Day
• How N19.5 billion Aviation Intervention Fund was blown Daily Sun
Nigeria: Ex-aviation heads misused air safety fund The Associated Press
The Punch - The Punchall 209 news articles

India MCX bourse to trade aviation fuel futures July 7
Reuters UK, UK - 11 hours ago
MUMBAI, July 5 (Reuters) - India's Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX) will launch aviation turbine fuel futures from July 7, the bourse said in a press ...
MCX to launch futures on aviation turbine fuel in July Livemint
AGRI-BIZ & COMMODITIES Hindu Business Line
MCX plans to launch future trading in ATF Myiris.com
domain-Ball 50 news articles

Plane crashes at Iowa City Airport
Quad City Times, IA - Jul 3, 2008
A Federal Aviation Administration investigator is en route to investigate the crash, which occurred on Thursday evening. Police are not releasing the ...
Crash at Iowa City airport injures one DesMoinesRegister.com
all 29 news articles

Would-be aviation hub tries again
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - Jul 4, 2008
"The current inefficient distribution of aviation activity within the Sydney Basin has created capacity constraints at Sydney [Airport] which may result in ...

Plane towing ad lands in shallow water
Los Angeles Times, CA - 15 hours ago
"The guy did such a good job that I would be hesitant to call it a crash," said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, ...
Small plane makes emergency landing on Seal Beach San Francisco Chronicle
Small plane makes emergency landing on Seal Beach San Jose Mercury News
Plane makes biggest splash at OC beaches on the 4th OCRegister
Long Beach Press-Telegram - OCRegisterall 38 news articles

Indian domestic aviation sector poised for next phase of consolidation
domain-B, India - 11 hours ago
New Delhi: Given the unceasing turmoil now being faced by the Indian aviation sector it is likely that the next phase of consolidation may well roll out ...
Mallya eyes 26% stake in SpiceJet Times of India
SpiceJet Rises in Mumbai on Report of Kingfisher Deal (Update2) Bloomberg
Kingfisher Airlines to fly overseas under its own logo Economic Times
domain-B - Bloombergall 33 news articles

Daily Briefing
Atlanta Journal Constitution,  USA - Jul 3, 2008
s aviation unit is entering the market for small twin-engine turboprop aircraft, which it calls the industry's fastest-growing segment. ...
Checking out GE Aviation's Czech maneuver The Daily Deal (subscription)
GE Takes On Jet-Engine Rival Wall Street Journal
GE Aviation buys Czech turboprop engine maker San Diego Union Tribune
all 54 news articles

GE Aviation completes Walter Engines buy
Bizjournals.com, NC - Jul 3, 2008
GE Aviation this week finalized its acquisition of certain assets of Czech turboprop manufacturer Walter Engines, the company said Thursday. ...

GE Aviation buys Czech turboprop engine maker
Hartford Courant, United States - Jul 3, 2008
s aviation business is entering the fast-growing market for small twin-engine turboprop aircraft, the company announced Thursday. GE Aviation says it has ...

lOkonjo Iweala linked with N19.5b aviation scam - Why she shunned ...
Nigerian Tribune, Nigeria - 34 minutes ago
The Senate Committee probing the Aviation Sector would need to take the account of former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, on the mode of ...

Wind Chimes and more...

Windchimes for great gifts!

Boeing is Really Flying Now