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Throughout my life, I have largely maintained the same interests.  It takes a lot for me to get tired of a hobby or passion, and as a highly competitive person who takes great pride in my accomplishments, continuing with activities and building my skills is something I naturally do.  Though I believe in the importance of trying new things and changing focuses given good reason, I really don’t see much point in changing simply for change’s sake.  Transitioning from high school to college, I told myself I would join organizations that I would find fun, interesting, and meaningful, regardless of my past relation to such activities, but in the end I ended up gravitating towards many of the same groups that I had throughout high school – academic trivia teams, religious organizations, musical groups, and leadership organizations.  Even further, my free time consists of many of the same activities – playing music with others, holding ping-pong tournaments, entering in trivia games and competitions, enjoying history and arts, and biking or otherwise enjoying time outside.  For many of these activities, more experience significantly leads to better results, so I naturally continue to enjoy them more with time as I improve.

This week, I visited the Boston Table Tennis Center.  I made sure to come on the night of ‘Amateur League Play’, and the website said people of all skill levels were welcome, so I thought it was worth a try on a rainy night.  I generally consider my ping-pong ability average among people who play often, so that I usually win fairly convincingly if my opponent just plays occasionally for fun, but will come in the middle of the pack against anyone actually dedicated enough to try a tournament.  As it turns out, the Boston Table Tennis Center and I have vastly different definitions of ‘amateur’.  I lost all 18 matches I played, and though I had a few close games, 11-1 was the most frequent score.  I can officially say I now have a ranking in US Table Tennis Association League Play, but I probably shouldn’t mention what that ranking is.

As much as I love to think I’m good at my hobbies, I’ve also had to recognize that there will always be someone better.  Listening to piano majors or just the other musicians I play with, getting crushed by most other college quiz bowl players, outbiked by any athlete who actually trains, or annihilated at a ping-pong amateur night, I really have to consider why I do the activities I love.  Is it because I like winning and being good at them? Or is it because I actually enjoy doing the activities?  Being exposed to people much more talented than I has really shown to me that I love the things I love because they actually bring me enjoyment and not just the excitement of winning.  I still plan to keep playing ping-pong for fun, I just need to stay humble, because even though I can win a few games against other interns by no means means I’m anywhere near a seasoned player.

As I mentioned earlier, I tend to stick with my hobbies, and certainly planned on doing so this summer, bringing a keyboard and lots of quiz bowl study material to occupy my summer free time in Boston.  However, I’ve used these fairly sparingly throughout the summer.  This somewhat concerns me, as I should be using the summer to hone my skills and prepare for tournaments and concerts throughout the year, and I have significantly more free time in a week in the summer than during an entire month during the school year.  However, I’ve realized that exploring Boston, its history, landmarks, culture, and nearby attractions, has been my hobby for the summer.  Eating, exploring, and connecting with my new friends has been the focal point for the past two months, and even though this may not be in line with my traditional hobbies, I have been having a great time and wouldn’t trade these last two months for anything.