@7Figures2Commas sorry to say this but "45 minute drive to SF" would have been less boring that the 10 reasons you gave. Seriously, I think I would do the same if I were in Ben's shoes. If you're in your twenties and can't be in an exciting city (San Jose is large but I don't think it's comparable to SF), it's much wiser to work hard and improve skills than wasting time engaging in a mediocre entertainment like hanging out at a Sunnyvale museum. Maybe after 2 years when he's free to go, then he'll move to SF (and probably start another startup), and that's when he should enjoy his life.
1. Most of the people I know who complain about boredom are not bored because of their location. Some of them have moved to "exciting" cities and they are just as unhappy. Location is just a convenient excuse.
2. Trying to compare cities on a relative basis is a pointless exercise. You could easily find people living in major cities outside of the Bay Area who would suggest that San Francisco is boring. That doesn't mean that if you live in San Francisco, you should lock yourself in your room and wait until you can move to Miami or Las Vegas to have fun.
3. The idea is that you can't have a life and work hard and improve your skills is asinine.
4. The sad truth is that "I'll do x when y" is usually just an intellectually dishonest rationale for convincing oneself not to do y.
