Hiking

I live about 20 miles from the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Norn Iron. For years I looked at these as a lovely feature of my local area but never really gave much thought about exploring them. Then about 5 years ago I felt an itch that I should really get into them more, unfortunately it took another 3 years or so and some suggestions from a friend for me to actually get off my ass and do it. Since then myself and a few others have went on walks ranging from 3-6 hours in the Mournes on average once every 2 weeks.

Its the kind of activity that a lot of people think is beyond them physically but it really takes very little physical preparation. I was of very average fitness when I started, and most of the people who started with me were the same. You quite often see pensioners up there too and I have even encountered a 4 year old boy on top of Slieve Donard, who got there under his own steam. Mentally it can be tough though as it is a lot of time but the rewards both physically and mentally are well worth it.

If you find yourself up there alone its a great time to do some thinking, but on most occasions I prefer to be there with people I'm very comfortable around. There is a nice feel-good factor when finished, and the views while on the walks are spectacular. I've met people from all round Ireland who would not argue that the Mournes are the most spectacular mountains on the small Island. The mountains of Kerry and Wicklow may be higher in feet but they do not sweep down to the sea like the Mournes and do not have the same impact, so I'm told.

Physically it tends to be 90% a steady low intensity workout and about 10% hard stuff. But you can change these numbers by taking it very easy on the steep climbs, or running on the descents or gentle climbs. Running in the mountains is known as fell-running and is something I've only recently started showing an interest in. I did one run last Autumn and it was by far the most enjoyable 90mins tough exercise I've ever done. I lucked out on a beautiful day though.

World of Warcraft

Most people who use the internet know what World of Warcraft is. Strangely, before its release in February 2005 (Europe) there would have been very few people who used the internet in general and knew what a MMORPG was (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game). Before WoW such games were hardcore and nerdy to the extreme, often requiring months and months of 'grinding' (repetitive and boring killing) to even reach the maximum levels. WoW changed all that by making it very accessible to any gamer and adopting a philosophy where the game really only began at the level cap (Level 60 then). To say it worked is an understatement, latest figures show WoW having around 11 million subscribes whereas all of its Western competitors are under 1 million. There maybe free-to-play games with more than that, or obscure Asian games, but I am not aware of those.

I have played WoW for around 3 years, since the original 'vanilla' release. I did take a break for over a year in March 2007 shortly after the games first expansion pack "The Burning Crusade" due to raiding burnout (and I was the most casual of raiders). My second child was born November 2006 and I decided I couldn't play WoW to the extent that I wanted. When I started playing again in April 2008 I came back with a different view of the game, to stop 'racing' or trying to compete against people who have much more free time than me. This has led to me enjoying the game more, but I still find its borderline too addictive.

I also have a strong case of 'alt-itus', that is playing a character to a certain extent then getting bored and wanting to try another. WoW is probably the easiest such game to do this in and no doubt it has been encouraged by Blizzard (the creators) as it certainly adds to longevity in interest. Currently I am interested in 2 characters, a Druid (level 65) and a Paladin (level 70 but sitting idle since before the latest expansion 'Wrath of the Lich King'). I also have a level 80 Warrior that is basically geared well enough for most of the current end-game content. I play on the Eu server Terenas on Horde side and am in a guild that was initially created for people like myself making a return to WoW after an absence. Since then the guild has become a general raiding guild much like any other with more emphasis on the casual side of gaming ie our members have a life outside the game.