What do you enjoy doing most in your leisure time?

I feel like I already answered this on a recent daily writing prompt that asked us what the top five things we do for fun, are. But I will try and bend and shape this prompt so I can write something. I think I will write about activities I formally enjoyed, rather than focusing on the present. 

I don't believe that I am the same person as previously was. A new consciousness exists in this body now. My brain has been altered through life experiences, traumas, and substances. The person presently writing this goddamn daily prompt is not the same as the person doing all those fun things they did in the past. This person writing right now is probably not even the same person who was writing a different goddamn daily prompt the other day.

Anyway, this present consciousness will download memories of previous consciousnesses for your perusing enjoyment.

Back when I was a lot younger, I was always wanting to go places and do things. It's like I could not sit still for very long. I especially loved going on road trips and staying in hotels. It didn't have to be a trip full of interesting things to do. It was often just accompanying my partner on his work trips. Every trip was like an adventure. I was always needing change and got bored easily. We moved a lot because I could never sit still.

I loved visiting my hometown. When our children were small, we visited with my parents and siblings a great deal more than we currently do. My parents always had huge gatherings where longtime family friends would come from the city. It was fun seeing the people I grew up around. Everyone is older, mama is gone. A lot of the adults I saw a few times a year, can no longer travel. It is very sad for me, to realize those gatherings, with the same friends coming every time, are a thing of the past. 

Going camping and hiking, were activities we often engaged in for fun. We would go for regular walks with some friends of ours. We would talk a lot while walking. A very philosophical friend and I would have the longest conversations that were so stimulating during these weekly walks. As a child, we often went on camping trips. We would go to the ocean a lot. 

I miss my social life, now that I am a recluse. I miss people. Most friends we previously spent time with live in other cities. We don't visit people the way we used to. Socializing was a pretty regular pass time for us. We often had friends spontaneously show up at our home and regularly had friends over for dinner. Back then I enjoyed cooking for people. My philosophy friend and his partner came every Friday, and we'd drink beer and watch The Tom Green Show together. On the other hand, I have been antisocial for so long, I am not sure I can even handle having a social life anymore.

We enjoyed eating in restaurants a great deal. Weirdly, I have no desire now, to go out for dinner. I think we spent too much money just to enjoy a couple of hours out of the house. We have never been financially secure because, in the past, we blew all of our money faster than it came in. 

Before we had children, we would go to our favorite neighborhood pub a lot. Drinking was a pretty regular thing for us. When I was younger, I loved nightclubs. My friends and I had a favorite club we went to all the time. We loved to dance. 

I was obsessed with going to garage sales when our children were small. It was like being on a treasure hunt. Once I found an entire box of Doctor Suess books. I probably bought a lot of stuff we didn't need just because I loved shopping. I would feel euphoric when I bought something.

I was an avid bike rider. I was obsessed with fitness and dieting. I was into a lot of pop culture self-help fads. I have no desire whatsoever to read self-help books these days. I have changed into a completely different person, it seems. Maybe a different consciousness decided to inhabit this body while the other consciousness wasn't paying attention. 😂

It kind of feels like that tho. The people we were in different periods of our lives are not the people we are now. They are someone else, all together. The only time we get to exist, is in this one, present moment. Every other moment, our consciousness is being continually swapped out. That is a spooky thought I've had for a while now. That the present moment is all we have. I think I am the same person, and that time is linear, because of my brain. Our brains deceive all of the consciousnesses into believing they have always existed in their present body. But have they?

I miss my friend Andrew because we always had this kind of discussion. He is an amazing philosophy genius, IMO. It was because of him, that I began questioning everything that I thought was real. He made me so very angry in the beginning because he would challenge my beliefs. He made me question my religious beliefs. He was very patient, even tho I was getting increasingly angry. 

Don't get me wrong, I am not against religion. I just know that religious doctrine is not factually based. There are great lessons to be learned by religion, and some people need to follow religion, as a guide for living. I just don't approve of the bigotry, misogyny, racism, and hatred, that are often justified by religion. That is what I have a problem with.

Anyway, I've predictably gotten off the topic at hand. Oh well. It has been an adventure, has it not?

Thank you very much for reading my stuff. Today's prompt feels a little boring. But maybe it's just my writing that is boring.