Do you have a “Granny Hobby”?

A secret hack to feeling better, or at least being present.

This post has open comments: feel free to respond if you have a “granny hobby.” 
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I first heard of granny hobbies in a post by Anu. When I reshared it last week, I heard from lots of other people who liked the idea:

As Anu puts it:

I’m convinced that granny hobbies are a big unlock for day-to-day happiness and hence your overall mental health. From personal experience, I also think they’re one of few accessible and active antidotes to digital overload (the new-gen mental health monster).

Anu also notes that some people might not like the term granny hobby. But to her, the term is charming. 

Clearly, I feel the same way: both of my grandmas were very influential to me when I was growing up. I enjoyed working in their gardens and going on trips.

I couldn’t find a photo of Nana (I seem to recall she didn’t like having her picture taken) but this is one of my dad and Grandma Una at the beach. I am apparently along for the ride?

I also played a lot of card and board games with one of my grandmas, the one I called Nana. Nana and I spent countless hours playing Monopoly, Sorry!, Parcheesi, and Mille Bornes, to name a few.  

She also wasn’t opposed to digital endeavors: when I got my first NES at age 7, she played Super Mario Bros. (the original!), Excitebike, and Ice Climber with me. 

In The Money Tree, I wrote about something I called “the grandmother test,” where if your high-tech business idea is too complicated to explain to your grandmother, it’s probably not a great idea. 

All that to say, I’m all about honoring the idea of granny-approved activities. 

Some Examples of Granny Hobbies

Pulling from Ann’s original list, some responses I received in a social post I made, and my own ideas, here’s an extended list of granny hobbies: 

quilting, birdwatching, puzzling, candle making, gardening, genealogy, cooking, calligraphy, knitting or crocheting, photography, woodworking, pottery or ceramics, drawing, flower art, board or card games, scrapbooking, sewing, reading, journaling collecting, needlepoint, baking, crafting, and painting

To quote from Anu again: 

Most granny hobbies are what I call hands-on, thumbs-off. Hands-on because, well, you’re doing things with your hands. Maybe it’s just wielding physical objects (e.g. while reading or writing) or maybe it’s actively manipulating and creating with your hands (e.g. cooking or crafting). Thumbs-off is a metaphor for being offline and definitely not on social media, swiping or scrolling with little aim.

I will admit that by this definition, I don’t really have a granny hobby. Maybe I need one! 

But enough about me. How about you—do you have a granny hobby? Feel free to share. 

Bonus: share a memory about one of your grandparents. I don’t mean to leave out the grandpas. 👴 🙂