When I was a boy I played in the high school band (oboe - believe it or not) and then I wanted to play in the "Pep" band at basketball games etc. and the oboe was simply too quiet to be heard so I picked up the trombone, euphonium and several of the saxophones (they all play essentially the same and have the same fingering patterns - all that varies is the size and weight).
In university I picked up the sousaphone (the huge wrap-around marching tuba) because the Queen's Band wore full-dress Scottish regalia and that was an unbelievably effective chick magnet. In fact, I marched in the 1982 Grey Cup parade in Toronto playing the sousaphone while wearing a kilt and a hip-to-ankle leg cast due to one of my endless bouts with knee issues.