Web development was gradually overcomplicated the past 15 years. There is no joy in it, yet it's where the jobs are. I envy people who are doing it in their spare time, but for me it's a special kind of hell. Low level and game dev is enjoyable but hard and demanding, not because it is bloated with shit we don't need, but due to its nature and restrictions.
I like minimalism in my own life, not the plan9 kind of autistic 'suckless' kind but the Zen Buddhist letting go variety. That's not what we have now in computer programming.
That sentiment is shared by a significant amount of people[1][2][3][4], it seems.
I am also sympathetic to minimalism in life (owning essentials only) and in many of my (programming) projects (single-header libraries[5], minimal dependencies).
I think I would be content with C, Bash, Python and SDL alone, if I wasn't so dependent on the need to "exchange my time for money". (And perhaps Rust as well.)
I like minimalism in my own life, not the plan9 kind of autistic 'suckless' kind but the Zen Buddhist letting go variety. That's not what we have now in computer programming.