I've known RPGs for a fairly long while now, maybe a decade and a half. They've been an interest for me for a long time, and that's the key word, 'interest', not 'lifestyle'. I've got other interests; going out with mates, swimming, reading; and I'm sure everyone else does, too.
With regards to the reaching of your potential. When I was thirteen I decided that I wanted a job involving writing. When I was fifteen I realised that novel writing wouldn't be stable enough, and started to look into journalism. Now I'm a journalist working for a fairly large newspaper, i.e. I'm living normally and have reached the goals I set for myself. I might not have had much of an impact on the world, but I've always held the opinion that that goal's a bit too grandiose.
My point is that I don't think there's really such a thing as escaping reality. Every moment you spend trying to ignore it you're pulling back a rubber band. You're reading a book and the phone rings. You're writing a letter and there's a knock on the door. There might be a game on the screen in front of you, but reality's everywhere, and no game or book or television show will ever get ahead of it. And right now there's a bay and a group of mates drinking all my beer who are rapidly getting ahead of me, so I'll take my leave.
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