Rubicon's Hobbies

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Welcome to my place on the Internet which I call Rubicon's website. I have placed this page here for several reasons, first of which is my desire to learn how to create webpages using HTML, CSS, Javascript and any other techniques which will make my pages more interesting and pleasant. The other reason for having these pages is to showcase the things in life which I treasure, first on the list which is my family. I also have pages here about myself, my town, my county, my state, my hobbies, my job, my other interests and lastly my favorite sports teams, the Denver Broncos and the Colorado Rockies. I hope you enjoy your stay here and by all means, send me an e-mail to let me know what you think. Thanks for visiting!

Computers: Needless to say, I enjoy and spend a great deal of time at my computer. I use it for HTML, QBasic programming and Visual Basic programming, and almost everything else.

Pen & Ink Sketching: I have been doing pen and ink sketches semi-seriously for the past 10 years. I have given most away to friends and family or donated to charitable causes. I hope to one day sell a drawing or two, but who knows if that will ever happen. See my Art page for some examples of what I have done (wildlife mostly)

Home design & drafting: I went to college to be an architect and though I never got my degree, I am still very interested in designing and creating my own working drawings of homes. I worked as a structural draftsman for a year which very much went hand-in-hand with my academic training. In the past, I took two semesters of an AutoCAD course through the higher education center here in Rawlins and now have the capabilities of doing drafting work on my computer.

Motorcycles: I own a Yamaha 250 dirt bike that I haven't ridden a great deal recently but still plan on doing so in the future. I raced amateur motocross in my younger and more foolish days but one knee surgery and I am a lot more restrained than I used to be.

Bicycle riding: I have a 21-speed road bike that I ride for pleasure and exercise around town with a few short jaunts on a couple of the local highways. Nothing like the views and relaxation that comes from riding a bike!

Woodworking: I have been making things out of wood since I was probably 10 years old and my Grandfather let me use his power tools. My father was an excellent woodworker and I love this hobby as well. I have a business called Sawdust Unlimited which I have run for about 15 years where I design, build and sell all kinds of items in all kinds of woods, though oak, pine and cherry are 3 favorites.

Wood Carving: I started carving wood about 8 years ago after catching the bug from a former boss. I am fully self-taught and am still learning every day. As with my sketching, I do mostly wildlife and enjoy this hobby a great deal.

QBasic programming: I learned BASIC programming when I was in college years ago. Then I learned AppleSoft Basic when I owned an Apple II GS. Many years ago, I bought an IBM clone and learned QBasic and have written many programs for my own uses.

Visual Basic: I am very much a novice at this language, though I believe I will enjoy it as much if not more than any language I have learned so far. Hopefully, I will have more time to spend during the winter months on using Visual Basic
Camping: I have been an avid camper since I was a child. Some of my earliest memories are of camping with my family and I still enjoy it today.
Photography: I bought an SLR 35mm camera while in college and have been taking pictures ever since, though not nearly as many recenlty as I used to when my children were younger. I now use a digital camera almost exclusively and would love to have a high-end digital like the Canon digital Rebel but that is still a little beyond my financial abilities right now but maybe one day.

Video photography: I own a JVC VHS-C camcorder and take videos strictly for the memories they preserve. I am very much a novice but love looking at the videos years later.

Music: I really enjoy listening to music. It seems I have a stereo in every room in the house I use often. My favorite music has evolved from rock 'n roll in my 20's and 30's to modern country now. I still enjoy the old rock 'n roll but listen mostly to the new country artists. I have recently purchased an XM radio (SkyFi2) which I listen to all the time. It is a portable unit which I can plug into a home base when I am in my den or move it to my pickup or our car when we are driving and I bought a boombox which I keep in the bedroom and listen to every night when we first go to sleep. I take the boombox to work on Fridays as it is a more relaxed atmosphere then and everybody at work loves it to.

Collector comic books: I got interested in comic books again when I began carrying comics in my trading card shop I ran here in Rawlins for 3 years. I still collect a couple titles and buy older comics when I can get them at a reasonable price.

Trading cards: Like every youngster, I collected cards when I was a kid, but also like everyone my age, got rid of them at some point in time (much to my current disgust). I have been collecting for the second time in my life for about 8 years and still get a great deal of pleasure with collecting cards, especially those with autographs.

Fishing: I am truly a novice fly fisherman, but I enjoy it a great deal. This area is a fly-fisherman's paradise but I don't seem to have a lot of luck. I just have a lot of fun!

Guitar: I have been playing the guitar for probably 30 years and I hope that one day I will actually have some skill. Or maybe it's too late. No problem, I play just for my own relaxation anyway.

GPS/Geocaching: I purchased a Garmin E-Trex Vista several years ago and until last summer used to for driving where it would give driving directions to specfic location and you could watch yourself on the screen when traveling. Then last summer I learned of an activity called 'Geocaching' where one uses their GPS to locate boxes which have a log book, pencil and trinkets inside. When the box is found, you are supposed to sign the log book and exchange a trinket in the box for one you are carrying with you. You locate and download the coordinates for the caches from the internet and then you go 'log' your 'find' after finding the treasure. My wife and I are both interested in this adventure and will continue to do so for some time to come. This hobby is very addictive and give one the opportunity to get out into the outdoors, do some walking and hone your skills with the GPS. It is super fun!

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