>Do you ever wonder we do any of this? It’s all just for money to support our lives. Almost everyone everywhere is simply doing crap they don’t like, don’t care about, and doesn’t do a damn thing for anyone. We work simply because we have to. From the largest companies, to the lowest paid individual, we are all just part of a big, rolling machine that slowly moves on, inch-by-inch, penny-by-penny. There’s one guy in India who doesn’t have to work and has everything he needs or desires. His name’s Fred, I think.

If you really feel that way, you're in the wrong job. One of the best pieces of advice my father has ever given me was to find a job where I get up in the morning and say "Oh, good, I get to do <> today." I still feel that way almost every day about both programming and writing after many years. The day it stops being fun is the day I find something else to do.

(And yeah, I recognize that I'm lucky to have the brains and skills to make that choice.)

Tamar