every old person's life story is like, ya I was a hitchiker and a boxer and a solider and a hippie and then I chanced into becoming a math prof. consequences of living in a high-growth economy I suppose.

nowadays kids (have to?) minmax their whole life just to get into undergrad/grad school! I truly think this is a big driver of the anxiety and resentment that young people have towards the economy, the political system, etc.