In my early twenties, after dropping out of faculty but before I started working, I was often literally hungry while my parents were not really millionaires, more like quite well-off. I guess they thought keeping fridge constantly empty will make me go out and look for work (I did not until 26, just traveled, couchsurfed and partied around). Ironically, I often ate at my best friend's whose parents were on the edge of poverty, but supported him (and me) with all of little they had.

I wouldn’t share that with people. It just makes you sound like you were a privileged entitled bum that took advantage of your less privileged friends hospitality.

Because that’s essentially what you were. Hopefully no longer.

Perhaps. I see it differnetly. I am privileged now with my nice job, back in the day I was just a kid who was trying to become independent adult without proper guidance and support from parents. What I wanted to say is that young adults, regardless of their parent's social and financial status, need guidance and support in order to become independent and productive members of society. I got an impression that some people think that kids whose parents are well-off or rich always get it from their parents, so they are not entitled to get it from other sources (like scholarship, discounted housing, public transit, food, cultural institutions tickets for students etc.). That is not the case.

I hope you give back or at least have done something nice for those folks who fed you so much

The fact that you felt the freedom to part and fuck off until 26 speaks to a degree of privilege and freedom that your safety net of parental wealth provided you that you don’t even seem aware of.

It’s also how middle-class kids whose parents don’t support them in any way get financial aid.

I understand why the system is the way that it is — it covers probably 95% of cases correctly — but for those of us who were essentially on our own after 18, it’s terribly unjust.