But I don't know if I have the right mentality to deal with service workers. I like them. I want to hang out with them. I have trouble asking for stuff. So in my day to day life, even if I could afford it, I think I'd rather handle most of the gruntwork myself.

There is a leak in our fridge that my housemate has never dealt with, and the bottom of the fridge under the drawers was nast. Even though we have (relatively expensive) cleaning people that come twice a month, I couldn't ask someone else to clean that, I had to do it myself.

Bon, do you see yourself as just like him? Similar drive on this particular topic? Who are your Joneses?

Well, we can only tell the following things about him from the article-- (1) he's rich (2) he's living in a place where his income is not remarkable and (3) he is working a lot in order to make more money. I identify with 2 and 3. I think people are assuming (4) he wants to make more money to make his income remarkable for his area. To my reading he doesn't say that at all, but it's why people think his priorities are out of whack.

Salt Lake City, Utah, metro, 2.95-3.06. And we have refineries nearby.

Also, okay, what are people's gas prices right now?

In Chicago proper, it's around $3.49. Probably lower in the suburbs. I'm pretty the average price of gas in Chicago is still the highest in the nation unless something's changed in the last week or so.

I think people are assuming (4) he wants to make more money to make his income remarkable for his area.

What I got from that quote, and I did go back and read the whole article for context, is not that he's unhappy with the money, he's unhappy with the social status. That's what "nobody" means to me. Obviously, the one is tied to the other, but I don't see him complaining about costs.

Oh, and I don't mean to say that I think people here actually think I'm an asshole. I mean, maybe you do, but I don't mean to say that it's apparent. Just that what we know about Kremen is also true about me. Except for the $10MM.

ETA: as in, I don't mean to make this a whole negative thing where people are insulted or anything. I think the discussion of class and wealth here is interesting.

Gas prices here (North Florida) have come down recently. The cheap place by my work was $2.65 for regular unleaded yesterday, the most expensive (according to Gas Buddy) is $2.91 for regular unleaded.

Yeah, still not getting it. So it's a bad thing to work hard to become rich now?

Did I say that? (No, I didn't!) Pound yourself into the ground to become richer all you want. Just don't come crying to me if becoming richer makes you paranoid about not being rich enough. Guy being rich does not making him an asshole. Guy being rich and complaining about it is what makes him an asshole.

Also, okay, what are people's gas prices right now?

I filled up for $2.71/gal at an independent place in the Boston area the other day. I know Connecticut puts something like $0.30 state taxes on top of whatever a gallon costs, or they used to. (I don't actually know what Mass state tax is built in per gallon, but it's less than CT.)

I was able to fill up on Regular for $2.69 yesterday at the known cheap gas place in Cambridge, but on the ride down through CT and NY, we saw prices as high as $3.29 for Regular!

What I got from that quote, and I did go back and read the whole article for context, is not that he's unhappy with the money, he's unhappy with the social status. That's what "nobody" means to me. Obviously, the one is tied to the other, but I don't see him complaining about costs.

I am assuming that the guy has some perspective-- after all, as we talk here, we don't have to keep referring to the fact that in the third world we are very, very rich. So as I read it when he says he's a nobody in Silicon Valley, it doesn't mean he doesn't know that that's a lot of money anywhere else. It's just not a lot where he lives.