“A hobby is the result of a distorted view of things. It is putting a planet in the place of a sun.”
Source: Aphorisms and Reflections (1901), p. 245
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John Lancaster Spalding 202
Catholic bishop 1840–1916Related quotes

“A hobby accompanied by more effort on your part, will result in a great career.”

An Essay on the Origin of Free-Masonry (1803-1805); found in manuscript form after Paine's death and thought to have been written for an intended part III of The Age of Reason. It was partially published in 1810 and published in its entirety in 1818.
1800s
“Gender is many things, but one thing it is surely not is a hobby.”
She's Not There (2003)

“Man is a sun and his senses are the planets.”
Blüthenstaub (1798), Unsequenced
Variant: Man is a sun and his senses are the planets.
Thus It Is, 1989, p. 6
As of a Trumpet, On Eagle's Wings, Thus It Is

“The best teacher is experience and not through someone's distorted point of view.”
Misattributed
Source: Often attributed to Kerouac's On the Road, the quote cannot be found in that book, nor in any of Kerouac's other published works.
Knowing Yourself: The True in the False (1996)