When I was studying math, it was a bunch of rote exercises with no real practical application to the things I love. Now with quilting, it has very real applications to my very real world, because it gives me information that I want and need to know. It now has real world application. For me, that's enough to take it out of the "hate" category and put it into the "not so bad" category, because I need it for something I love doing, and not just managing my check book (boring!)
As for ironing, I used to face the same darn basket of clothes week in and week out. Wash them, iron them, put them in the closets, let them get worn and dirty and back in the laundry. Then start all over again. Boring!! -- to keep ironing the same clothes over and over and over again. But quilting is so different! Each new piece is a creation, and I rarely have to iron the same pieces twice, unless I have to make several of the same blocks. But even then, when that project is done, I'm on to a new project with it's own colors, designs, intricacies, drama, challenges. Never the same old thing week after week. That is what keep ironing fresh and interesting for me. It's just a different perspective on the kinds of tasks we used to do. And I like the new perspective!
Thank heavens for permanent press!
Cheers!