I've been programming for 25+ years. I still love programming. Never wanted to be a manager. The challenge of coding, solving problems, and being well-paid for it make me very happy. I'm currently sitting in my kitchen, working from home, looking out my deck onto SF Bay. This is not a lifestyle I would have been able to accomplish being a chemical or mechanical engineer, a biologist, an accountant, etc. I truly feel blessed that I love programming, that I'm good at it, and that I am living in a place that rewards good programmers consistently for the past 2 decades. Who knows when this well will dry so I'm taking it as far as I can.
Programming is an art, and you, and me too, we are like artists in the meaning we juts don't want to give up being creative, and solving challenges is a large portion of the reward we get. Besides of the money of course, we all need that.
