Why Hobbies Matter: Creativity, Confidence and Having Fun

In today’s episode, we explore hobbies, creativity, and the little things that make life interesting. From arts and crafts, gaming, and poetry to baking, bird-watching, and even quirky guilty pleasures, we share the passions that recharge us, make us laugh, and reveal a bit about who we are.

00:00:00 - Start
00:01:12 - Intro
00:02:11 - The Good News
00:06:40 - Pavement Guest by Alistair Scriven
00:09:12 - Discussion: What is a hobby?
00:22:13 - What do you do to recharge your batteries?
00:23:12 - Pointless discussion
00:26:41 - Final Thoughts

Project Managers: Andrea Rai & Phil Powell.

Editor: Phil Powell

Huge thanks to the National Lottery Reaching Communities Fund for supporting our Dis-labled podcast. Learn more about their amazing work: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk

All enquiries: podcast@communityfocus.co.uk
Website: https://www.communityfocus.co.uk/

Theme Music: Rastko Rasic & the students of Community FocusOther Music: Jazzy Frenchy by ⁠⁠⁠Benjamin Tissot

Transcript

Start

SPEAKER_02 0:05

Communicate focus. Communicate focus We're here for you.

SPEAKER_12 0:12

Our view at five dog. You're both done.

SPEAKER_08 0:22

A weekend with you. We're here for you! Yay! Hooray! Hooray!

unknown 0:32

Hooray!

Jonathan 0:40

Community Focus is an art centre for children and adults with disabilities. We are based in the borough of Barnett, North London and offer a selection of creative and well-being activities for all ages.

SPEAKER_13 0:54

In the room we have Amia Carol Jonathan Hava Gila and Filip.

Intro

Gila 1:12

In today's episode we explore hobbies, creativity and the little things that make life interesting. From art and craft, gaming and poetry to baking, budwalking and even quirky, guilty pleasures. We share the passion that we charge us, make us laugh and we feel a bit about who we are. Hobbits can inspire, connect and brighten our everyday life.

Carol 1:56

The good news my good news is I've started a new project based on Noir and we get to select our own theme of what we want to do. So I'm doing

The Good News

Carol 2:11

like um creepy um detective like shadows and and like based in the 1940s and 1950s and I'm like designing my own project for it and hopefully it'll be presented in the college as an art piece. It's like film, but you can do different like uh themes on it. There's like movies, fashion, uh creepy stuff, like uh liminal spaces, um shadows, like there's different themes based on that that you can do.

Gila 2:53

Can we see your final creation when it is all done?

Carol 2:58

Uh I I don't think you can because it's gonna be based in the college, but I could maybe show you some pictures because we have to like take pictures and like of the progress of our work and because that's how we get like a past merit distinction based on the project.

Gila 3:17

Um I've got some good news. So one good news, CJ's, which is a bakery in Finland Central, and we create bakes to sell and people can order and we fine we finally got out for video um that says what CJ does and what CJ's wants in the future. So for video is out, it is on our website and on social media. Um it's really good video. Um who's in the video? Um Seth James himself, his mum, me, um for people um it's very good video.

Havva 4:30

My hair is red and I dyed it and it comes like a ginger uh ginger um fruit like uh what you call it a c like um a grapefru a grapefruit or something, peach or something. My hair's like a peach. It gun it went red and it's very good. I buy it in in the shop in Morrison's.

Carol 4:57

How long did it take for you to like dye your hair?

Havva 5:00

Oh how many minutes? I don't know how many maybe f maybe ten or maybe nine, me maybe eleven eleven or ten or something. I done up her six.

Phillip R 5:12

What does your what does your fan it? What does your mum think about it?

Havva 5:16

She likes it, she liked it, I got brown hair for her. She doesn't like it, she wants me to change it, I can't change it. Or together now.

Carol 5:30

What what what inspired you to get is it ginger hair? What inspired you to get the colour?

Havva 5:37

I should get brown, black, or brown, red. I have to buy myself red like my mummy's nice brown, darker brown, light light brown. And she was like she wants it red like mine.

Gila 5:55

Heifer, why do you dye your hair?

Havva 5:57

I have to dye my hair because it goes grey.

Carol 6:04

I heard that last week you couldn't come because your your whole face is covered in like red. Yeah, red.

Havva 6:12

And then my face my face got cheeked like a red, like a like a pantarine. Not like a pantomime, like a strawberry. I'm like a strawberry. Do you like a strawberry fan? Like in the in the packet, hundreds of them, the my little family.

Pavement Guest by Alistair Scriven

SPEAKER_00 6:40

Pavement guests by Alistair Scriven. Part one Elaborations Made Simple Broadcasting self exposure is not always recommendable. Apart from being watered under a bridge, I hope it's acceptable. If it isn't, to hell with it you did your best regardless of it being acceptable. Having it over a bridge is more comprehensible and does not being in conjunction with acceptability. Being comprehensible is not everybody's cup of tea, obviously, over or under the bridge. Missing out excusable and being comprehensible and acceptable all at the same time over or under a bridge is a matter of some delicacy. Having a mistake thrown in at the same time with regard to it being acceptable, excusable and comprehensible over and under the bridge, including being understandable apart from being some delicacy, it's not an easier occupation. Self-exposure thrown in with above is trough concerning. Having reassurance requests at the same time is obviously favourable, even though it can't be understandable over and under the bridge with acceptable, comprehensible and exclusibility. Being understandable as well as a bonus package, naturally having a mistake being human or non-human can rise off a cage. Interacting both at the same time can upset the balance. Being favourable and concerning interacting all the above should be easily distinguishable. If they're not, then some delicacies need to be exercised. Being over or under a bridge with regard to all of these factors is a delicate matter. Find such delicacies is a difficult business but well of intention. If it can be found unintentionally it's more recommendable, obviously. Being sympathetic and concerning with all the above is travel troublesome. Being a troubleshooter doesn't go amiss. If they're missed, they may not be everybody's cup of tea. Somebody's cup of tea when they're sadly missed is trifle concerning to put it blunt. Being blunt apart at all makes sense. If not missed when they're not everybody's cup of tea, drastic measures need to be adopted naturally or otherwise. If they're everybody's cup of tea, the reverse applies. This piece of work is about elaborations made simple. And I hope I've conveyed it to you honestly and effectively, of course. Thank you.

Discussion: What is a hobby?

Phillip R 9:12

Today we're looking at we're look talking about hobbies. But what is a hobby?

Havva 9:20

Hobby is do um like you doing singing, I do singing, that's my hobby and and I do s and I do my hobby is singing and I do crochet sometimes and I dance sometimes I stop and I do the hobby for my cat for my black for a princess. Gila, what's your hobby?

Gila 9:46

A hobby is something you do for a pleasure or if you are bored and you're thinking what do I do then you could do a mixture of hobbies. Phil, what is a hobby to you?

Phillip R 10:06

A hobby is something that occupies your mind. You know, it just and makes you feel stronger, you know? Carol, what is your what is your hobby? What is a hobby?

Carol 10:20

Um, a hobby is something that you enjoy doing and something that like kinda boosts your confidence in a way. Because the more you become good at it, the more you enjoy doing it, and the more you want to do it more. And yeah, it's like it's something like something that you that has like c comes from like inspiration from you as a person. Um Amia, what are your hobbies?

SPEAKER_07 10:56

My hobbies I I watch a champion's football. What what are your hobbies?

Phillip R 11:07

My hobbies are going to com comedy evenings um uh singing as well and I play g load of iPad I play on my iPad at home playing games, you know. And my favourite game is Candy Crush.

Carol 11:28

What level are you on Candy Crush?

Phillip R 11:32

Oh about um about the card of my girl too much Um about one one four seven oh that's a really big level, congratulations Philip. I play I play every da every night. I once I start on yet I can't stop. Um Jonathan, what are your hobbies?

Jonathan 12:05

Uh well I like to watch YouTube videos a lot of the time. Uh gaming is okay. It's not as big a hobby as it used to be for me, but every now and then I can, you know, think of some sort of game to play. And uh my hobbies have been a bit sparse as of late, but I'm trying to sort of find some more hobbies. I've been doing a bit more woodworking recently, so that's been kind of fun. So yeah. You would, wouldn't you? I would indeed. Yes, you can hear from the timber of my voice.

Gila 12:42

John Infram, what have you been making in Rude Rock?

Jonathan 12:48

I was deciding to make things difficult for myself, as uh some would probably put it, by basically making a uh frame on a stand that I would then put some fabric on so I could cover up one of my doors because I had I had blinds that were covering my doors, but they kept falling down, and eventually I just thought I'm done with this, I'm just gonna just gonna do it myself. So I've been just making some stuff to make sure that I have some privacy for my room and blocking out the light and stuff. So yeah.

Phillip R 13:21

So Jonathan, you've been framed, have you?

Jonathan 13:24

Yes, I certainly have.

Carol 13:28

I'm not gonna lie, that was a good one.

Gila 13:36

I have a lot of hobbies. My hobbies are TikTok, autographs, making things with our hands.

SPEAKER_01 13:45

With my hands the things we wrote last week eating out and baking.

Carol 14:04

What videos do you watch on TikTok?

Gila 14:08

I that is really hard to question because I normally look at l who is live on TikTok. That's a box that says life and I watch a lot of live percenters or not percenters, a lot of life people. Thank you. That is what I've watched I've watched lots of life influences that I like watching. So in normally I watch um people making cups with like wrestling, wrestling, and then they put a plastic wrap around the cup. So people ordered order for carps and then they put for what they for solution, what they want in the carp and then do for make for plastic wrap. Um, it's pretty cool how it turns out. Um and I watch enough of family in the morning that I love watching. It's my it's my routine now.

Carol 15:40

Um just getting ready for school and uh so you like do you like watching like like family like family videos? Because you mentioned that you like to watch family videos or something.

Gila 15:56

I could yeah, but for cup for cups making for cups is not a family, I've don't think. Maybe it's a family business, but I don't think it is a family making for cups. Carol, what is what are your hobbies?

Carol 16:26

Um I like to write, I like to uh write poems, uh I like to sing, I like to read, I like theatre, I like to uh draw outside with chalk. Um I think it's very inspirational for people to see my work when I draw outside. Um and I like I I think I I kinda gained some new hobbies. I think I like style, like fashion and stuff. Like I like to combine clothes together and then wear them and it makes me look like it makes me look ecstatic, so yeah.

Phillip R 17:10

How long have you been doing this sort of w um drawing different things?

Carol 17:14

Uh yeah so like drawing on the path, I've actually I did actually start like uh in 2024. Um I wanted to be like be creative and you know how like normally people are too scared to do things? I wanted to have the encouragement to uh go and draw and show people my artwork and and it's like a fun little hobby that I just like to do.

Phillip R 17:46

Do you show the people your put your drawings in the pu to the public?

Carol 17:51

That's the whole point of it, to like draw on the pavement and everyone to see it and compliment it and everyone to feel uh an emotion of like happiness towards it, I guess.

Phillip R 18:04

How do people how people how do pe what does pi do people think about your drawings?

Carol 18:10

When people see my drawings in public, they're normally like they normally give me comp compliments on them and they're normally like surprised that I drew that.

Gila 18:19

What is your most recent drawing graffiti that you did off a path?

Carol 18:28

My most recent um chalk drawing that I did. Is it graffiti? Uh my most recent chalk graffiti drawing I did was probably um it was like a snail with long legs. I think I can I say I think Andrea saw it and I think you saw it. And I got it actually from from a drawing that I did in Penn, so I decided to like do it on chalk all. Um yeah.

Jonathan 19:00

What kind of legs did the snail have?

Carol 19:06

I think it was just like it was they so the snail had like long legs.

SPEAKER_10 19:17

I don't know how to Carol, is there anybody else that you draw apart from in the park?

Carol 19:23

Um sometimes I draw like in other areas, my local area, like um near near my home, or like when I'm walking back from somewhere, I'd I normally draw.

Gila 19:42

And now it's time for Po Little Recorder.

Carol 19:46

Hi, my name is Carol and today I wrote a poem called Mind. The clothes that we wear is a comfort sign of the secrets and thoughts we hide within. Hiding our skin is a way of covering up our sins. The shame should I eat this or not? Our bodies carry the truth of the liars we bury in our minds to get away from the hate that consumes our soulless lives. The guilt that controls our sanitized minds builds in with the liars from deep inside. A thought so small it lingers in our weak, chaotic mind. Don't lie to me, mind. I'm trying to keep myself together in my own silent mind.

Phillip R 20:32

Very good, Carol. Very good.

Gila 20:34

Carol That was very powerful. I had my eyes closed for a whole time you read that and honestly that will that was very powerful. Thank you. Why did you have your eyes closed? Why I had my eyes closed was because I laugh a bit about um about eating. Should I eat this or should I what was it Carol?

Carol 21:03

For eating for should I eat this or not? Yeah.

Gila 21:07

Um I always all the time thought think to myself I want this yogurt, should I open it or should I leave it and it just resonates with me trying not to snack all the time. So thank you so much.

Carol 21:30

I think that's a question people get a lot. Like people question themselves, should I eat this or not? I think that's a very like overrated response people respond to themselves with. So yeah, I kinda put that in the poem because I thought like that's probably like a question we ask ourselves the most.

SPEAKER_10 21:50

And I think that's true because I think when Phil eats three chocolate um orange chocolate oranges at Christmas, he's on his third one and he's thinking, shall I eat it orange?

Carol 22:00

not no comment

What do you do to recharge your batteries?

Carol 22:13

What hobbies do you do to recharge your battery?

Havva 22:16

Well because I pay I pay I pay I see all the films on the on the my YouTube on my phone and he runs that and I I'll and I tell my black go and charge it my new cat Mabley Princess she wanna charge it I'll go go and charge it I'm too lazy to do it I don't night time and daytime so Hather literally uses her hobby to recharge her batteries on her phone um where do I have my batteries in I ran out of that thing or games on it.

Carol 22:54

Why why do you like doing that?

Havva 22:57

I like doing it because I like to charge it because I run out batteries sometimes that's I left it too long because I'm too late to walk up and then work and go to in the passage I got to sleep sometimes and to bed.

Pointless discussion

Phillip R 23:12

Phil would you like to charge your batteries I'm a quiz man I like watching quizzes like deal or no deal and the week is linked pointless I like watching as well and ex and House of games I watch on I'm BBC too Yeah I'm a quiz I'm a quiz man I use my brain actually you said you like to watch pointless I don't see any like I don't see any point in watching it. I I don't really like pointless I think it's boring in my opinion like I beg your pardon it's pointless to watch I'm sorry it's my opinion Okay I like watching it Carol because it can it helps me with my brain I like I like everything you know I like everything about it you know it's very good.

Carol 24:08

I love it you know yes Car yes Carol But like why why do you why do you what's what makes it so interesting? It's like they talk about like questions and it's just like Yeah it's it's to get your brain working Carol Carol.

Jonathan 24:29

I ag I agree with Carol on this so it's two versus one you're outvoted You can't stop me for watching it I love it watch what it's boring I done watch it I done see it it's very boring I mean Phil that's fair it it does help you with your knowledge but like for me personally I I don't really see it that way Yeah I mean it's not it's not super exciting in a lot very stimulating. Can I just say something to you there?

Phillip R 25:09

It it get it it gives you money as well you know it's yeah you start with three four groups then to then three then two and then then then one and numbers yeah yeah yes Jonathan what what do you do to relax?

Jonathan 25:26

Not watch pointless I what I mean I watch I watch YouTube but like that's that's a whole sort of thing in and of itself you know when you're watching YouTube videos you know you're not going to be necessarily watching the same thing each time so you know I'll sometimes have something on that would be nice to have in the background while I'm playing a game that could be something it might be something that's uh something that's funny to make me laugh or it might be a particular scene from a film that I'm just in the mood to see at that moment in time or something like that.

Carol 26:09

I do agree with you Jonathan because like YouTube it can be like a platform where you can watch anything and you can like except for the ads they're a bit annoying but like you can like watch a video of like of whatever you want and also with movies they're a bit free like like movies on YouTube are free to watch.

Final Thoughts

Jonathan 26:41

The final thoughts are the final thoughts about hobbies hobbies are interesting i interesting things to do whether you like it or not Hobbies have hobbies is uh for for us to get for your future hobbies are something that we enjoy that makes us who we are hobbits hob hobbies hobbies hobbits hobbies hobbies hobbies hobbies hobbies hobbies are ways where we can help ourselves feel more fulfilled in our lives and we should try not to look at them too much as killing time as much as cherish it's hobbies is very fun yes if you haven't got a hobby I actually want to date if you if you haven't got a hobby go and play top I had to go to date but I don't got a hobby tough tough luck I can cook it to eat it nice coffee goodbye community focus community focus we're here for you our point of view at five o'clock you're booked London A week in review we're here for you hooray hooray hooray