By the way, on dreams: Doesn't the existence of dreams mean that consciousness is like a subprogram in the brain that is usually "plugged in" to reality (or rather some rendering of reality done by the rest of the brain) but the rest of the brain can in fact simulate other scenarios for the consciousness to plug into?
Also I think split brain experiments basically support that you can split a consciousness into two tbh...
Anyways obviously above is speculation
You know how a loud sound or a flash of light can alter your dream ... For example you hear your alarm clock and all of a sudden you are dreaming you are in an ambulance?
My theory is that we are always in a "dream" state. Stimuli that manage to reach our conscious attention will alter this dream.
When a asleep only very strong stimuli will reach us so for the most part our "dream" is in a feedback loop mostly doing its own thing. When awake though we have a much more weaker filter for stimuli . The direction that our "dream" takes is fully controlled by it.
I’ve been living in an apartment for the past 18 months while saving to build a house and I’ll be here until the home is completed in October.
It has been very alarming watching how my neighbors behave and spend money.
I myself come from an impoverished background. Single mom, multiple violent stepfathers, no money, left home at 16 to escape the abuse, etc.
I slept hard for many months and I’ve been without a home on three different occasions.
However, I firmly believe that poverty is a choice for a lot of people and it’s never been more evident until I lived in an apartment complex.
My across-the-hall neighbors order food delivery 10+ times per week. Last weekend, from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning, they had food delivered 5 times.
I’ve only paid for food delivery once and that was when my son and I were stuck at home with Covid.
Many of my neighbors drive new $50k+ automobiles.
Then I hear the same across the hall neighbors arguing about money. She’s a teacher (I see her ID card hanging from the rearview of her CR-V. The husband works in a kitchen.
I’m guessing their combined gross income is maybe $100k and that’s being generous.
Yet they spend money on food delivery like they were making twice that amount.
My base salary is only $130k which is decent for Alabama, but I wouldn’t dare waste money on something like that.
I drive a 25 year old Land Cruiser that I maintain myself. Growing up poor, we didn’t pay anyone to do anything. I had to learn to repair things myself. I kept that habit through adulthood.
Sorry for the rant. It’s just wild seeing how some people live while also having to hear them complain about having no money.