I just got home from this stupid interview, right? For the assistant manager gig at the store. And like, I know I’m good at my job, I can run a register blindfolded, I know where everything is, I’ve dealt with every kind of Karen you can imagine, you know? But walking in there in this suit… this SUIT that I had to borrow from my cousin because I don’t own anything that isn’t a uniform or a band t-shirt… it just felt WRONG. Like a costume. And I kept catching my reflection in the glass of the office door, and all I could see were my teeth, you know, they’re not straight, never were, and then these stupid breakouts I’m having, like I’m a teenager again, and suddenly it’s like *who* do I think I am? Applying for a management role? Looking like *this*? And the guy, Mr. Henderson, he’s like super put-together, slicked-back hair, probably shops at those fancy places, and he’s asking me about "strategic initiatives" and "inventory optimization," and I’m just trying not to pick at a zit on my chin, feeling my crooked smile whenever I tried to answer. Like, I know the answers! I *do* optimize inventory every single shift, I just don’t call it that, I call it making sure we have enough milk. But in that moment, in that stupid suit that felt too tight in the shoulders, all I could hear was my own voice sounding… I don't know… small? Like a kid playing dress-up. I just kept thinking he was looking at my skin, or my teeth, or just… through me, like I wasn't serious enough to even be there. It's ridiculous, I know. It's a GROCERY STORE, not some high-powered corporate job. But it’s a STEP UP, you know? And I want it, I really do. I want to not have to wear that stupid apron all the time. But now I’m just sitting here, suit still on because I’m too bummed to take it off, replaying every mumbled answer and every time I probably looked like I was having an allergic reaction. I just don’t think they’re gonna take someone seriously who looks like they just rolled out of bed, even if I was wearing a tie. My brain is telling me I screwed it up just by… existing. What if this is just how it is? You hit a certain level and suddenly your face has to match your resume? Like, *really*?