How much money is too much to throw at our hobbies and addictions? Is a hobby any better for us than an addiction? And what it the defining distinction between the two? I know plenty of people who consider their frequent binge drinking a hobby and others who consider their time engrossed in a novel to be an addiction.
How do we pull the plug on wasteful spending for our hobbies and addictions? Perhaps it is all wasteful spending. Hobbies and addictions shouldn’t be items or activities necessary for survival, even if our cravings tell us otherwise.
This post is really about a toy. A toy some would consider a hobby, but at times, really agitates me. I’m not sure if I should continue to throw away my hard earned money to prop it up any longer.
My saxophone is broken; it quit on me in the middle of a performance this afternoon, and I absolutely cannot figure out what is wrong with it. It has needed an overhaul for some time now, so I guess today pushed it over the edge. The last overhaul was when I purchased it about five years ago. Since then, I haven’t always treated it kindly, including many months it spent on board a boat. The corks have mostly all disintegrated and fallen off. The body has an unusual patina, more commonly known as rust. I can’t judge the pads, but a repairman would probably just add them to the work order.
Granted, my sax wasn’t in particularly good condition when I bought it. It is old and lived a hard life before I got my hands on it. It has “the look” and character, and at the time, it was all I could afford, although I knew it wasn’t even worth what I forked over. A complete overhaul would cost more than I think the instrument is worth.
I should buy a new (to me) saxophone. If budget wasn’t a concern, I would probably hunt down a well-maintained, un-dented version of what I have, because I have a strange love affair with old saxes. A perfect pre-1950 King Zephyr tenor is worth $2500 to $3000. They are also hard to find; the best places to look are pawn shops in big cities with musical flavor like New York, New Orleans, and Montreal. At the other end of the spectrum, I could afford a shiny brand new student-level model (read: poorly constructed) for a few hundred dollars, but….yuck. Although I know people who’ve done it, I would never buy a used sax on Ebay, because I prefer to test them first.
Purchasing a new sax of any age or quality has not been in my foreseeable future’s budget. I bought a road bike a few months ago, and boyfriend and I are talking about a vacation this winter to somewhere without snow. I suppose I’ll call the repair shop tomorrow and see if they aren’t too busy with back-to-school issues. My band has upcoming performances on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, and Monday, so I’ll be borrowing another band member’s backup. It hasn’t been a happy afternoon.
I guess that I’m tempted to define an “addiction” as something which one might do (engage in) frequently/repetitively and still question whether or not they really want to continue to do so…….also as something which they have found they do not have the will power to cease doing. I’d question whether there is much enjoyment or personal satisfaction associated with an “addiction”.
On the other hand, I feel that a “hobby” might be differentiated from an “addiction” by the degree of pleasure one receives from engaging in it.
Go for it!!!
Something is more important than money. I Think.
I think that anything that gives you great pleasure, isn’t unhealthy, doesn’t hurt anyone is worth the money. I’ve been reading The Power of Now which was suggested by my new shrink. While reading it I realized that creative people have to be completely in the Now to create. It’s good to stay in the Now as often as possible. So your saxophone will help you keep healthy and happy!
I don’t see it as much of an addiction as it is a passion of yours, and that’s a very important thing in everyone’s life. So you have the right train of thought – get an estimate to overhaul ol’ faithful, or take your time to find another vintage ’soulful’ model that fits you & is affordable. I like Lasann’s comment about your sax helping you to keep healthy & happy, well spoken – a small investment for something so precious. Good luck trying to fix ol’ faithful…