i knit, read, make jewelry and change dirty diapers....

seriously my kids diapers turn me off to food some days they gross me out lol.

knitting or crochet is great for keeping hands busy. ita about the SnB books they are great for beginners they have knitting books and crochet books

I see there are lots of fellow knitters here! I knit as well, right now I'm making a granny squares afghan. It's slow, but I am so excited to finish each square and eventually put them all together!

Why not play the piano at a local retirement home or nursing home? My sister is a pianist and when I lived near her we would go to my grandma's nursing home before she died. My sister would play the piano and I would sing. They LOVED it. Plus, you can practice your playing.

I think I really need to take up knitting. I have some yarn that someone gave me and I think it would be something fun to do. I usually like to cross stitch or read, but last night I just couldn't get into cross stitching. It kinda bored me. So, I need to do something new.

yayy for knitting! its a great hobby and time consuming

I second the knitting, also sewing, which for me is so absorbing.
also, like wastedthermos, i find that cooking complicated things helps -- you get to play with food without eating it. Just make sure you cook healthy stuff!!
Sonja

Someone else recommended the Stitch & B**** book for learning to knit. I second that! I still use mine to look up how to do a specific stitch and it has proven to be an invaluable resource for me.

I like small, easy projects as a rule. I have yet to complete a sweater, although I know I could easily make one. I actually have one started, but the yarn I got was from two different dye lots, so it's kinda messed up. I think I will figure out how to fix it, eventually, by frogging the portion that is knit with the different dye lot, but I just don't have the patience for it right now.

One of my favorite things to knit are hanging kitchen towels. They are basically just a regular kitchen towel, cut in half, with a knit top and a button so you can hang them on drawer pulls or the handle to your stove. I make them for every season/holiday and give them as gifts to my mom, grandma, aunts, and whatever. They are a quick project, taking about 1.5 hours for each towel, and they are fun to make and very useful. I developed the pattern myself! That was really rewarding.

I also LOOOVE to cook. I actually have a really good recipe for vegetarian calzones, and they are super delicious, especially with marinara sauce on the side. I make up a batch and freeze them individually so I can defrost them for a meal when I need one. Come to think of it, I really need to make another batch soon!

scarves are a good way to learn knitting too. my first project was a scarf for a boyfriend back in h.s.(it sat unfinished long after the breakup lol).
i finially made and finished a scarf almost a year after my first kid was born, i didnt knit thru that pregnancy i could barely bend my fingers. once i started i didnt stop and ended up with an 8ft long scarf

ok, yep, def. gonna pick up knitting. y'all make it sound so much fun

I still have my first scarf, it is a pretty hideous affair, a variegated scratchy Red Heart deal. I don't wear it anymore but I love to look at it every winter when the winter stuff comes down from the attic.

Lissa9501, there is an old wives tail that if you knit something for your boyfriend, then you'll break up. Not that I'm saying that's why you broke up, and I have knit things for past boyfriends, but we always broke up! (Again, the knitting probably not being the reason for the break up.)

lol that wasnt why we broke up, if i hadnt cheated on him and dumped him i would have shoved it down his throat(gimmie credit i was 16 and in a emotionally abusive relationship i dumped the guy in the middle of the school.)

as for the scarf i prolly still have the yarn i used but it was unraveling over the years of practice lol.

Crafts help me off and on. They keep me busy and make me feel productive. This is everything from sewing, to learning more about knitting and crocheting. Draw? Learn! ...and then there is always interactive video games.

I'm a jeweler myself, I'm actually in art school studying that, but many art schools and local craft centers offer beginning classes and adult ed. Personally, knitting never worked for me - give me sharp objects and a blowtorch anyday. If tools aren't your thing so much, maybe start with beading, lots of bead stores have great beading classes and you can do some pretty incredible stuff. Try glass blowing. Arts and crafts doesn't have to be a sweet, girly process (although it's great that way too), personally nothing gets the stress of the day out better than beating the **** out of piece of silver with a hammer, or cackling gleefully when the last stubborn bit of solder goes liquid and slides down the seam under the heat of the torch. Mmmmm. And huge bonus, you get to wear what you make! Presents will never stress you out again.

Dancing... something that you can learn and benefit from! You'll get the opportunity to make new friends and learn to move your body with confidence in ways you only dream of. LoL. Can't you tell I fantasize about dancing?

I'd recommend scrapbooking. It takes time, and thought to plan the pages out. You also have to look for the papers, embellishments as well as pictures. You also have to be very careful and precise. Food/drink are a nono around scrapbrooking, you could ruin a page because you spill something on it. You can pick up kits at wal-mart for like $20 or so usually and then start adding to it.