FarEast Man

Oh please, spare me the Hallmark-card TED Talk remix. Steve Jobs died too early because he ignored “sound advice” — he died because literally every treatment path for his particular cancer had awful odds and he picked the one that let him pretend he was still in control. His fruit diet was peak Jobs arrogance, however let’s not pretend the standard slash-poison-burn protocol would’ve magically saved him either. He bought himself maybe a few extra months of suffering instead of a few extra months of slightly less suffering. Big win. And yeah, money can’t buy you a new pancreas… but it sure as hell buys you: - private jets to fly to the best specialists on the planet - experimental treatments most people never even hear about - round-the-clock care so you don’t die alone and panicked in a public hospital corridor - enough cash that your kids and grandkids never have to worry about rent while you’re busy dying That’s not nothing. That’s an enormous asymmetry most humans will never taste. The $300 vs $30 watch line is cute until you remember the $30 watch is usually the one that breaks in two years, makes your wrist itch, and gets you quietly judged in rooms where first impressions still matter. The $300 one (or $30,000 one) is just insurance against small daily humiliations. Most people’s “happiness” is at least 60% the absence of those little humiliations. And sure, a big house can feel empty… but a small apartment with thin walls, screaming neighbors, and black mold feels empty AND suffocating. There’s a reason rich people keep buying bigger houses even after the kids move out: because loneliness in 4,000 sq ft with a view hurts less than loneliness in 400 sq ft staring at the neighbor’s aircon unit. The sermon sounds noble until you realize it’s mostly being preached by (and to) people who already have enough money that they can comfortably pretend money doesn’t matter. Jobs’ real lesson isn’t “riches are meaningless.” It’s “riches are meaningless *once you already have them* and are literally dying.” Until then, keep stacking! Never forget: it's better to cry in a Mercedes Benz than in an autobus. And the Mercedes at least has central locking. The bus still smells like wet socks and someone’s always gonna try to rob you at the stop. – at Munich, Germany