31. Oh my f*cking god. I was not ready for this. Broke as hell. Not where I wanted to be career-wise. Single as hell. And far, far away from the people I love. It’s wild how lonely it gets in a new city. You’re surrounded by lights, noise, and people— but somehow, it’s never been quieter inside. There are these intangibles no one talks about. The emptiness of not having your people nearby. The heaviness of waking up on your birthday, and realizing it doesn’t feel like home anymore. The ache of trying to hold it together while everything feels like it’s slipping away. And the amount of self-talk you need to do just to get through the damn day. And birthdays… they corner you. They force you to evaluate. Where am I? What am I doing? Why does it feel like I’m behind, like I missed something? Why does success feel so far away when I’ve worked this damn hard? People say, “But you’re in Chicago!” “You’re living your dream!” But they don’t see the therapy sessions, the days you have to co...