Ask HN: What's your greatest enjoyment in life?

Quite simple. US became a nightmare towards the end.

As an immigrant grad student without much means, I couldn't support myself long. After my advisor cut off funding, I tried finding a job. I didn't have money to pay the bills soon after & US job process was getting long & convoluted with internal referrals, pointless rounds of interviews, HR meetings. I needed money to feed myself - I was skipping some meals to save money.

I had self respect not to work at a gas-station illegally or at one of the asian IT sweatshops by falsifying my CV. Japan government offered me funding at University of Tokyo & I grabbed the offer. Finished my PhD in CS with that opportunity. It has been 6 years and counting.

Here is one thing though: I earn comfortable now. But the trauma of poverty never leaves you. Even though I work in CS/ML, my life is pretty austere. I stick to the 'needs', and avoid the 'wants' as much as possible. Maybe it will take some years - or maybe these habits won't go. The one thing I never wish for anyone is hunger. Once you have lived through it, you won't want to be in that position ever again.

- If I were to travel back in time and convey that information to my past self, it would make him want a child more, not less.

- If you were to travel back in time and tell my past self "I talked to your future self, he said he'd probably be happier without a kid," and he believed you, then he might choose the opposite path. But that's because you didn't give him all the information.

In other words, given full and accurate knowledge of this future, I would not choose the other future. Once you're a parent you can never not be a parent again, not even in a hypothetical multiple-worlds time-travel scenario.

This is not true at all. It's not a logical answer. Based of what you just said above, I believe you are being honest but I believe your biases are creeping into the answer and therefore cannot trust it. I'm sorry.

The reason is because if you erased your memory of being a parent with time travel, you actually CAN not be a parent. This is a very legitimate possibility for anyone. You are letting your emotions interfere with logic.

That being said, I am interested in this:

>If I were to travel back in time and convey that information to my past self, it would make him want a child more, not less.

You would tell your past self that you would be less happy, but you would be able to convince him to have a kid regardless as if he could understand your reasoning through you simply communicating vocally to him. My question to you is why didn't you try communicating this knowledge to me? Why do say vague things like "Once you're a parent you can never not be a parent again" without clearly elucidating the logic behind it? I am very much interested in this logic and would like to hear it despite the fact that I think you're answer has the possibility of being biased.

If your logic is convincing then of course you're not biased and I am wrong. But honestly right now because of what you said, it just appears you're biased, but I would very much like to be proven wrong.

I'm lucky to be living in S. California where yes we have traffic but gosh if you love nature and just enjoying scenery its amazing. Even if I'm stuck in traffic I've got views of mountains and all sorts of people watching. SO many cool spots to stop and explore.

I drive all around LA, and if I'm bored some weekend I'll get an airbnb in SF and drive up there along the coast. Put on some good music or podcast and just explore by stopping at different restaurants and pit stops.

I love driving. I can't wait for the day that people have space ships. I want to fly around canyons and then zip straight into space, warp jump to some other planet and explore it, before going home.

When I feel low, I grab my keys and wallet and head out.