[CodeMage]

First of all, it is not his positive tale that annoyed me, it's the implication that things are equally easy for everyone and that if you don't accomplish them, it's your own fault. Your last paragraph is the perfect example of that kind of attitude and I get annoyed with it for a very good reason.

I live and work in a developing country, where those 10 grand are rather hard to come by and even when you have them aren't enough to make a family of 4 live like kings. I came to this developing country from an even worse country (economically speaking) where I grew up knowing what poverty really is. Please excuse me if I'm "too in love" with my "precious little middle class lifestyle", because that lifestyle means that I can buy a book AND take my kid to the doctor in the same month.

I hope I made it easier to see why assumptions like yours are particularly infuriating to some people. At least the author didn't make the same assumption, as I can see from his comment, for which I am deeply grateful.

[lief79]

Thank you for your reality check. Many people I know keep friends in the same social circles, and have little to no direct exposure to this perspective.

Not everyone has the strong safety net to fall back on, so not everyone can risk the long break; due to a variety of reasons.

He's right in that some people are afraid of risk and don't have much to lose. You're right that some have done a realistic risk analysis and decided that other things, especially children, are more important than optimizing their immediate happiness.

Appreciate all that you have already accomplished, and take advantage of the opportunities presented to you.

[sho]

There's always someone poorer, and richer, than you. The poorer will be angry because he can't see your problems from your perspective. Nonetheless, people have problems at all levels, and we can't not talk about them, just because we might offend someone.

I erroneously assumed you were coming from a comparable socioeconomic background to that I'm used to. I assure you, the phenomenon I'm talking about is endemic to that context. I apologise for making you feel angry. But you're obviously a smart guy. One day, you'll be a lot better off than you are now. Who knows, maybe then you'll be saying things that your current self would find just as "infuriating".