What It’s Like to Maneuver Through Your 30s in Lubbock

Your 30s in Lubbock are a weird in-between stage. You’re too old to be “figuring it out,” but somehow still very much figuring it out. You own furniture now. Real furniture. Some of it might be from the dumpster, but that's beside the point. You've at least upgraded from lawn chairs. But you still don’t understand taxes, and every email from the IRS feels threatening.

Divorce is no longer shocking. It’s just something that happens. Half your friends are divorced, the other half are “basically roommates with benefits,” and everyone has a story that starts with, “We were just really young.” Which is true. We were. Lubbock ages relationships like milk in the summer sun.

Pets have replaced children in many households (mine is one), and they’re treated with the same seriousness. Dogs have anxiety. Cats have attitudes. Vet bills hit harder than student loans. You will absolutely cancel plans because your pet “seems off,” even though you don’t fully trust your own mental health either. It's a thing.

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Jobs? You have one. Maybe two. The one you love usually doesn't pay the bills. The one you hate barely does, but it sucks the life out of you. You've mastered the art of telling your parents "It's fine" when it is definitely not fine. Your career dreams have been replaced with "at least I don't cry the moment I reach my car anymore." You're making progress. It's just really hard to measure.

Your parents still don't trust you. Honestly, that's fair. They ask real questions like, "Do you have good health insurance?" and "Are you saving any money?" Meanwhile, you're digging through your couch cushions for change and ignoring that weird lump on your left butt cheek.

Homeownership? Nah. That dream died long ago. You remind yourself that your friends who own homes don't actually own them. Their parents do. You're just hoping you'll be able to cram all the stuff you have in a travel trailer one day and escape to a Mexican beach bungalow to leave it all behind. Sometimes, you scroll Zillow anyway. Just to feel something.

Your 30s in Lubbock aren't glamorous. Not by a long shot. But, they're real. They're like...survival-mode adulthood with moments of dark humor, joy, and unspoken agreements that we're all doing our best, even if our best is skipping therapy to get tacos and passing out at 7 pm.

Somehow, we're still here. Do we have this? Probably not. Are we gonna give up? Also, probably not. Here's to the next few years in your 30's. Enjoy.

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