My wife has told me that I need a hobby before I can retire; and that golf is NOT a hobby! Since discovering peak oil I may have stumbled onto a current hobby and valuable skill for the future.
I've always been a tinkerer of sorts and like to ride my bike. In the last year I started getting into bike repair & refurbishment. I've learned to overhaul a bike completely including rebuilding the wheels. I also built a recumbent bike from junker bikes I purchased at police auction. It ain't pretty, but it works!
It's not really blacksmithing that I'm doing, but I did learn how to braze, and quite a bit about metals and alloys.
Is anyone else doing things like this? Any ideas to share?
welding
Wow, that's a great hobby! I've been meaning to take a welding course for some time now, but I haven't yet made the effort. I think building (and rebuilding) bikes will become a very valuable skill as time goes on -- good luck with it!