Honestly, Brian, if you said you did know what you were doing and had it all figured out, I (and probably a chorus of other “old folks”) would advise you to have a Plan B. Also C, D, and (just to be safe) E through J.

By 11th grade, I knew what I was doing for my next ten years. The Plan was good for about six of those; then I was on a plane flight that was 99.9% successful (crashed just before landing) and I found myself working on a new plan. Then I got into computers and a Great New Plan; it was wonderful, until my employer informed me my services were no longer required. But! I married my best friend and had a Newer New Plan; it was awesome, until my wife decided she was gay, not bi, and she loved me dearly but… And then for a long time my plan didn’t go much beyond What’s For Dinner Tonight.

Then I met this nice woman at a company I switched to and we started planning things together. Current Big Plan under development is What Are We Doing For Our 20th Anniversary Next Year. 😉

ANYway! My point (and I have one, if you’re still reading) is that you’re doing fine. Pretty damn well, IMHO, based on the mountains of crap you’ve been through. Hang in there!