I think the happiest person in the world is probably someone living in some tier 3 city, has a good relationship with his family, does not even know what startups are, has a job at some bank or something, comes back to his home on time, and gets a good night sleep. He does not care about Silicon Valley CTCs on Blind and has not even discovered Twitter yet.

When I was in my early 20s, I used to get on a sleeper bus and just travel somewhere. Anywhere. The best part of the journey was seldom the destination. It was lying on the bus bed, looking outside and passing endless small towns and villages. I used to wonder how life might be in those sleepy villages. Was it peaceful or were they also running on some hedonic treadmill? Maybe I was romanticizing the whole thing. Maybe it was just escapism. Finally, I realized I could never stay in a place without fiber optic internet and my dream of small-town Manas ended. But I still think sometimes “what if”. Not for a long time but why not try that life for a month, if not a year.

Maybe someday.

Disclaimer: This is something I have been thinking about. It does not mean I hate my life or something. I probably have 100s of thoughts every day, each contradicting the other. Like everyone else. The only difference is I chose to write this post instead of keeping my thoughts to myself or discussing with my friends. Also, while I am talking about tier 3 banking jobs, I am currently doing my 360-degree reviews and hoping to get a good pay hike. I am also planning to order an M1 tonight. I am not requesting a commentary on rural life. Take whatever you want from this post. Thank you.

This post is heavily inspired by this tweet which I read and bookmarked a few months back.