"The truth is you're applying to YC just to be in YC, part of the club."
This line resonates with me. I come from a place where there are not many people to relate to on a technical level and sometimes it's lonely here. I love this city and will not move away because I value the friendships and family that I have here. It seems kind of silly now, but I wanted to bring some of that SF money here. I wanted to make a place for me to belong here. I wanted to bring some of that overflowing wealth into my border city. I'm still trying, just in a different way now.
"You need to have a great idea and show you can execute and make a return for investors who believed in you and took your bet."
This is probably where I have failed. I have built a few "prototypes" on github and deployed a few instances for local companies but besides a modest return, I haven't been able to convince anyone to "bet" on me. At this point, I've pretty much given up. I work full time to support my family and find little time to dream these dreams anymore.