Golf, yeah, right.
This is Nate's thread, and he's made very valid points. What we do here is grotesquely selfish (in consideration of money and time)--there are not many arguments against this, although there are a few guys out there who work on cars with their kids, which I do hope is a peaceful and growth-filled endeavor. Such was not the case when I was around (as a child) during one of my father's attempts at mechanical fixitude.
To get what you want out of this hobby (at best, an adrenaline fix or laborer's satisfaction), you need at least one of two things: time or money. Ideally, you have both, but that's just not what life has in store for most of us, so you get one, most of the time. I have time. I've had tons of time over the past decade+, because I learned how to do my job via telecommute before most others. Too much time has actually become a negative for me, but that's another story for another place . . .
Many of us have an insurmountable attraction to things mechanical and horsepower-related. Some of us also have a bit of creativity, which usually means a need to labor upon a specific, physical target. When this is the case, you will get frustrated, maybe quit for a while, but then come back to conquer the demon, so to speak. Sometimes, you just move away from the demon forever (this angle requires a replacement demon, of course).
What may help is defining your attraction to the car thing. Is it a toy that you buy, or is it a product of soul-sucking labor? If it's the former, you may need to flush it down the toilet, as you're probably only counting money. If it's the latter, you might just need another break, and things will come back to you. I gave up old cars between my late 20s and 35 or so, then got back in with my Falcon (because writing books became a non-motivator).
My Falcon has nothing to do with what anyone else thinks or does. It's just an outlet for me to exercise creative and labor-related tangents. For this, I need it. I test only what
I did (occasionally against what others have bought or built). If there is a failure, it's only on me. I pathologically avoid the possibility of blaming others for this stupid hobby, unless of course someone gets me the wrong way on a track or the road (hasn't happened yet).
Define what it means to you. Define your angle of approach. Why are you doing it? It's fine to recalibrate.
Blah, blah, blah.
