Me too , thanks <| sep |> but the cost of living has changed I think this is very important to remember . I am not sure about your country , but in many the salaries have not fully kept up with the cost of living increases . There is less wiggle room there than his parents possibly had . AlsoHe did study in his late 30 ' s , but he did it in the evenings , with a full time job . I ' m not saying it wasn ' t rough , with me and brother being around 10 at the timeThe fun things you mention he does . well , you know life has its hard bits . People don ' t go through hard times like that without valuing fun more highly . You probably know from your own mental health struggles the importance of being kind to yourself , and letting off steam . What I am trying to say , the leisures you identify might mean a lot more to him , might be closer to needs than wants , than you have initially estimated .