I used to enjoy drive-in movies. You don't see them like in the olden days. I hear there are a few still out there, but none around where I live...or at least I haven't seen any. They sure beat the Cineplex's of today. You could sit in the privacy of your own car and light the little swirly mosquito repellant on your dash and choke on the smoke while trying to kiss your girl without someone tapping you on the shoulder and telling you to get a room.
I used to enjoy Saturday morning cartoons. Foghorn Leghorn, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Roadrunner, and Johnny Quest. Funny how the old 'violent' cartoons didn't turn me into a psychopathic killer.
I used to enjoy going to Houston Oiler football games. My dad had season tickets when they were created and we watched them at Jeppeson Stadium, Rice Stadium and then the Astrodome. Eventually, the tickets got too pricey and dad couldn't afford them anymore.
I used to enjoy hiking, camping and hunting on my uncles' 4000 acre lease in the Big Thicket. Many great memories were created there. It's a wonder I was never snakebitten or ravaged by poison ivy or killed by a wild boar. One night I was camping out by myself and put my pack where I could rest my head up against an old, dead tree. Around midnight, a screech owl perched on it and let out its hideous sound right above me. I never knew I could run so fast. It took me over half an hour to find my campsite again. I couldn't go back to sleep once I did.
I used to enjoy being involved in tournament chess. I was a member of the United States Chess Federation for twelve years and played in many tournaments. The best I ever did was place second at the Fifth Houston Classic Tournament. I think it was in '81. I finally got burned out on competitive play and now rarely set up a board.
I used to enjoy playing football in High School. I wasn't very good at it, but I loved suiting up on Friday nights and getting out on the field. I didn't enjoy practice, but I enjoyed playing the game.
I used to enjoy going to Menard Creek on the hottest of summer days and splashing in its ice cold water. There were no cares or real responsibilities back in those days.
I used to enjoy sitting out on my parents' front porch swing. You could be out there at night and hear the frogs and the crickets and the occasional hoot owl. It was a peaceful time.
I used to enjoy the friendships I had with my college friends. They all enriched me in ways they will never know. Now, all grown up with families and lives of their own, we live hundreds of miles apart; only rarely touching base.
I used to enjoy marijuana. Boy...did I EVER enjoy marijuana. Whether rolled up, bonged, shotgunned, sneaky toked, nose hit, or in brownies...I enjoyed it to the extreme. Drug testing at the work place stopped all that. When I retire, I think the first thing I'm going to do is build a greenhouse. You know...for vegetables and flowers.
I used to enjoy riding motorcycles. My first was a Suzuki 500 two stroke. Then I had a Suzuki 800 that was supercharged and had a drive shaft. It was awesome. Honda, Kawasaki, and Yamaha rounded out my experience with them. My old bones are too brittle for those things now. I would rather be surrounded by armor these days.
I used to enjoy riding in the back of pick-ups, helping pull corn, taking my horse Peanut out for some exercise, driving my first car, rabbit hunting in the old oil field, playing pool at the Oiler Cafe', hearing Smokey Robinson's 'Tears of a Clown' on the juke box, and dating my way through the high school cheerleaders.
I used to enjoy a lot of things.
Some I have mentioned, others I never will.