riten, you are absolutely right. and the "ke garne" and, even more so the "haamro nepal yastai ho" mentalities drive me nuts! i once told an alcoholic bahun man in my village, in response to that comment, "tapaiko nepal yastai hunupardaina. 'nepal yastai ho' bhanera matra nepal yastai hune ho..." i really appreciate your observation. while americans certainly have a way of working hard and improving their situations, nepalis have a way (like i mentioned earlier) of handling dukha with grace and dignity. perhaps the best answer comes with finding a balance, as it usually does. americans are perhaps too far in one extreme and nepalis too far in the other. to combine the light-hearted dignity of nepalis with the american drive to improve situations would be ideal. but is it possible?