On Characters and Monotony?

I remember talking with the ex a few times about players and their relationships with their characters. I didn't understand why people would hold onto a single character for so long, playing the same one in different incarnations, different games, sometimes at the same time. I didn't understand how players can play the same character for YEARS, letting them gain even more experience, power...and not get:

- bored, as the challenges your character faces become less and less troublesome (this is more in the line of freeform play, but it can happen in other games too, if other players' characters are less powerful)

- confused as to which incarnation of the character knows what about who and...yeah

- BORED with playing the same personality/mentality/advantages/traits

- possessive of the character's motivations/personality/goals that any sort of questions from other players about the character is met with defensiveness because the player knows said character inside-out.

- bored

I'm sorry to say that I still don't understand it.

( In Which I Explain Further )

I guess it's a bit of a peeve, but barely so. I'm not even trying to insult players who enjoy playing the same character for the long long term. I suppose I'm just looking for insights as to why people find it appealing?

Just curious.

Crossposted to bad_rpers_suck