You guys are right. It can become a job. My engraving started as a hobby many years ago. Then it was a hobby that made a little money. Then I quit my teaching job and found myself a full time engraver. And yes it became a job. And yes it takes an amount of discipline to make myself sit down and engrave on those day when I just don't feel like doing it. Yes all those negatives are there. The biggest one for me is just what Bruno said. I have a whole list of projects planned out in my head that I would like to do for myself and I probably won't live long enough to finish half of them.
Here is my reality check. A man has to do something for a living. Out of all the jobs I have had this one is a blessing. I was a baby photographer for Sears at one time. Boy let me tell you was that a miserable job but it paid the bills. I worked in a factory that reconditioned drill bits and milling cutters for large manufacturers like Boeing and Lockheed Martin. 8 hours a day feeding drill bits into a collet on a machine that resharpened them as fast as you could go. I ran 10,000 bits a day on average. That job down right sucked! I was a public school teacher for about 6 years. Much nicer than the other two jobs but still no picnic.
Yes, it definitely has become a job. But I wake up every morning glad that I am able to work and pay my bills doing something I actually like. It is never as sweet and fancy free as it is when its a hobby, but being able to make a living doing something you like is worlds beyond being stuck in a job you hate.
Ray