Do you remember when you lived in RI and grew that meyer lemon? I loved that you did that! With modern technology and the know-how, we can grow anything anywhere. @fruitnut proved that growing water loving plants in West Texas. As the title says it-is-sad-but-trees-dont-always-pay-off-1500-for-figs-trees-and-not-one-fig though i could substitute the word fig for nearly any plant and it still be true. In my lifetime i bet i spent that much on tomatoes that didn’t work out. $1500 is about my yearly allowance to myself to buy novelties that never work out. I bought honeyberries again this year! That is the 7x with the same results. In the case of pawpaws, it took me several years to keep one alive. Now i can easily grow pawpaws. It takes me no extra work at all. The same can be done with figs it is a lot of work but it can be done.
I have done it. It is a matter of knowledge and sometimes initial investment.
Here is a great list @FascistNation gave us before he passed away