Do You Hide Your Hobby?

CodeZTM · Post by **CodeZTM** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 2:54 pm

Yes, I consider anime and anime music video making a hobby in general.

Now, the question. Do you hide your hobby? I mean, do you put away the anime collection or the plushies or the desktop wallpaper when people/family come over?

Personally, I have a dual philosophy on this one. It's generall not in the best interests of me as a college student to have tohru honda on my desktop, holding a cat and a rat on display in the library. So I usually have a separate account for college/home. I definitly haul all my anime stuff locked up in my closet whenever relatives come over. This is for two reasons. For one, I get laughed at for like "Pokemon" when the poster is obviously Kino's Journey. For two, my cousin got out my DVD collection, looked at the "pretty pictures" and then got up, but accidentally stepped on my Ah! My Godess discs. Thus, it's not only just for the desire to not have an akward conversation, but also to protect them as well.

It's also because of the fact that I HATE the stupid questoins. "Why are you watching cartoons? You're 18!" "Do you have to "catch em all" in this one too?"

I'm having a lot of pokemon references if you haven't noticed. That's because everybody in my poe-dunk little town in arkansas only know Pokemon as a Japanese anime, and some really intelligent people know about Naruto. Believe it?

So I now ask you!

Do you hide your hobby? If so, explain why.

Vivaldi · Post by **Vivaldi** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 2:56 pm

AaronAMV · Post by **AaronAMV** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:07 pm

I hide my youtube name because it sucks, but I like to show off to my friends. I mean really, the stuff that we can do is amazing! My friends have been to me, "dude that's so cool!" I like getting praised. If we enjoy something why should we hide it? Who cares what people think, unless like you CC, they step on your DVDs. ;_;

Chrono63 · Post by **Chrono63** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:12 pm

No.
I don't go around shouting "I watch anime, look at me", but it's not like I hide it if a conversation leads in that direction.

Oh, and when my friends say how I watch pokemon and such, I joke along with them. ;)

Vivaldi · Post by **Vivaldi** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:19 pm

Oh wait, why?

Well, first of all let me say that I don't really "hide" it per-say, it's way to much for me to put in a closet when someone comes over. And I don't have as much obvious stuff like posters except for a small portrait of Ed and Al Elric (though the kino poster sounds totally awesome.)

I don't really have any excedingly younger relitives that'd I'd have to worry about the safty of my collection, but most of the time when I show somebody the "videos" I'm making or the show I just bought, I get a odd looks and kinda a "um.. yeah.. that's cool...: and they change the subject. At least they're polite I suppose (except for one time I mentioned miyazaki, and someone mutter under his breath "I dispise anime"). Same reason I don't really like to direct people I know to my youtube account.

Also, my cousins have the notion that anime is "like, you know, like, like, really, like, bad and stuff." At the time I thought they ment in a quality sense, so quoting sturgeons law I told them yeah, alot of it is, but there's alot of standouts. They gave me a queer look, and I later found out they ment bad as in the "mind in the gutter" sense.

This was at a family reunion, and we're christens too, so it was extra awkward.

As for older (or younger) people who give the "do you gotta catch them all in this one too?" line for something like kino or GITs, I just give them a real short spiel on how they were made for an older audience, and probably have higher philosophical and story quality then any TV show they've ever seen.

Malificus · Post by **Malificus** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:21 pm

no. I don't.

I'd go as far as to say I advertise it.

8bit_samurai · Post by **8bit_samurai** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:28 pm

For me it's more of a "don't ask don't tell" thing. Nobody really asks, so I don't really tell.

Immorrel · Post by **Immorrel** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:38 pm

I'm with 8-bit on this one. While I'll never hide my stuff, I don't bring attention to the fact that I collect anime, make AMVs, or play video games. If it comes up in conversation, I'm more than happy to share my experience in the matter, but it isn't something that I would start a conversation with a random person about.

wurpess · Post by **wurpess** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:43 pm

No, I don't hide it. At all. I don't advertise majorly or start talking to a random person about it (Not that I talk to random people IRL anyway.), but if it comes up, I will join in the conversation and I do not shy from wearing my anime related shirts. None of the anime stuff goes in the closet when people visit. With both my bf and I into anime, people kinda expect the apt to be a gallery of Otaku-ness. (Between all the wallscrolls, figures, anime, random manga thrown around, computer wallpapers, plushies, etc.) And my family thinks the whole AMV thing is kinda cool. *^_^*

AaronAMV · Post by **AaronAMV** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 3:47 pm

Immorrel wrote:I'm with 8-bit on this one. While I'll never hide my stuff, I don't bring attention to the fact that I collect anime, make AMVs, or play video games. If it comes up in conversation, I'm more than happy to share my experience in the matter, but it isn't something that I would start a conversation with a random person about.

Exactly