The author has been programming for 18 years. Of course he doesn't share the same passion for programming as his younger self. Passion is a necessity in this field unless you have decades of experience to lean on.
Good point. You're right that passion helped me to gain the experience I have now. But at this point I can't lean on that same passion, I had to find another motivation. I wonder how many people hit this same point and just let themselves fully burn-out instead.