That's a Hobby with Ash Zade

This week I get meta, check my mic, and tell you how the sausage is made: why I started this podcast, how I structure them, how I publish and promote it, and hopefully rekindle something to keep going.

I dive into the world of witches and witchcraft, which has seen a resurgence in the last decade. What does it mean to be a witch? What does practicing witchcraft look like? Is it harmful?

Show Notes: https://www.thatsahobby.com/witchcraft-history-modern-witches-and-crafting/

Videos:

I try to figure out what really happened and what's really going on by learning about conspiracy theories, why they're so prevalent right now, and the type of people who rarely believe what they're told, and how often they end up being true.

Show notes: https://www.thatsahobby.com/conspiracy-theories-psychology-types-and-real-conspiracy-theories/

Videos:

I pin up pictures and articles on my wall, attach strings to pins to connect the dots, and try to solve some unsolved mysteries. People can't get enough of true crime and with the Internet and the speed of social media, it's not a surprise that people are taking it upon themselves to crack open cold cases and find clues that detectives have missed.

Show note: https://www.thatsahobby.com/unsolved-mysteries-true-crime-and-internet-vigilantism/

Videos: 

It's October so this month Im going to focus on more morbid hobbies.

I light some candles, turn on a fog machine, and try to channel the other side. I learn all about ghosts across time and cultures, study common ghost hunting techniques, and try to detect paranormal activity in my house.

Show notes: https://www.thatsahobby.com/ghost-hunting-history-techniques-and-cleansing/

Videos:

I squeeze every mile out of gallon of gas in my cars to save some money and just because I can. I try some safe and somewhat unsafe ways of making my gas guzzling cars more efficient while trying not to be a victim of road rage.

Show notes: https://www.thatsahobby.com/hypermiling-techniques-for-efficient-driving/

I get the best seat on the sofa, a bowl of salty snacks, and dive in the world of super powers and cliff hangers with a stack of comic books. I explore the different eras of comic books, talk about discovering graphic novels, and how digital comic books changed everything.

Show notes: https://www.thatsahobby.com/comic-books-eras-graphic-novels-and-going-digital/

Videos:

I grab some milkbone treats, tell my dog he's a good boy, and give him a makeover. Through necessity, I learn how to groom my cockapoo, Waffle, and learn to respect groomers. I learn about the controversial world of creative dog grooming and its competitions. And finally, I try to figure out what dogs think about all of this.

I scroll endlessly through Reddit, the so called "front-page of the Internet", and go down rabbit hole after rabbit hole in an effort to learn something useful to justify the time I spend on the largest community-based site on the Internet. I talk about how I curb bad habits, including focusing and system thinking.

This episode is a bit different. When I learn about a hobby, I set out to actually try it. Obviously, it's not going to happen with climbing Everest, but after reading Into Thin Air, probably the most popular account of climbing it, I had to learn more about it and the people who do it. Think of this as a book report.

This episode I give my senses a break to have a mental and spiritual breakthrough, or at least I try to, by giving isolation tanks a try.  I'm not a spiritual person but I don't like the feeling of missing out so I try to take a shortcut to a meditate state by getting in an isolation tank. 

This episode I get behind the wheel, go to a park lot and floor it through cones trying to not spin out. I talk about my history with used, German cars, learning to repair them on a shoestring budget. Then I take you along around the track where I spin, I forget to breathe, and I get a shot of adrenaline.