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Comment by hycaria | Hacker News Reader

Have a hobby that is notoriously a money sinkhole, so that there's no excuse for not making money, and no one will ever ask about it.

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Having a wife or girlfriend that is into horses takes care of that.

You know you can have a crazy wife/girlfriend without the horses?

You can also be crazy into horses without being someone's wife or girlfriend. I know a guy like that, though he's married.

Horses are an excellent way to get rid of extra money and time!

Owning a Jeep can also do it!

I am indeed a horse owner myself, though my partner does not suffer from its financial effects. It's even the opposite since we leave only once a year, so much saving !

Can I make a guess that your hobby is car related?

And if not, do you mind sharing what you do?

Could be boats. There are a lot of jokes about that too. But there are a lot of hobbies that can just suck in crazy amounts of money. MTG cards, Warhammer figurines, model train sets, boats, consoles and games, anime/movies/series/manga (I have a friend who has entire walls filled with this stuff). Anything were you end up collecting stuff, especially things which has gained value over time because of rarity and interest from collectors.

As a boat owner, here are my two favorites:

"BOAT: acronym for 'Break Out Another Thousand'"

"A boat is a hole in the water into which one throws money."

Sadly, it's true. Worth it to me -- for the sublime life experiences I think my family and I wouldn't have had any other way -- but it makes no fiscal sense.

I recall reading this one somewhere:

"There were two happiest days in my life. First one, the day I bought a boat. Second one, the day I sold that boat."

Is it too bad if you do your own repairs?

My father has a sailing boat which needs maintenance like a house and a car, since you can live on it and it has motors, except you're fighting against corrosion and water all the time. He does a fair share himself but crucial stuff (hull, sealings, ...) is safer when done by pros. And equipment is outrageously expensive : Sails ? 10k. Desalination machine ? 15k and so on...

> Anything were you end up collecting stuff, especially things which has gained value over time because of rarity and interest from collectors.

At this point questions might start coming back. Just hope your hobby won't be destroyed by speculators who don't care about it, but see an opportunity to see it like a different stock market.

If you're DIYing boats are cheaper than cars. You'll never be tempted to buy chromo axle shafts and coilovers for your boat and a hull is a hull you either work with it or get a different one. The expenses of setting yourself up to DIY everything are also much less since you won't be temped to build out a fairly well equipped fabrication shop. One of my best friends does boats. He spends way less money on it than me.

Isn't Magic the Gathering the money sinkhole hobby?

Traditionally it was owning a boat.

aircraft ownership and marriage are also pretty well known money sinkholes.

Calling marriage a money sinkhole is a bit harsh don't you think?

they must be sad

I have a sport horse, hopefully I'll have more later.

My father has a sailing boat, which I can attest first hand is another great sinkhole.

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