Qualifying Events

There are two kinds of breaking news in this episode:* Michigan wins the national championship.* My husband gets laid off.So naturally, we process it the only way we know how:By singing a 19th-century fight song, letting the cat in, and unpacking a corporate layoff that affected roughly 30,000 people. Ya know… like… normal podcast stuff.This episode has everything:* A passionate defense of The Victors as the greatest fight song of all time* A surprisingly upbeat take on getting laid off (baby bird… pushed from nest… etc.)* A marriage recalibrating in real time as one deeply troubled spouse becomes the “primary breadwinner” (pray for us)* A deeply honest—and slightly concerning—amount of time spent with an AI named ClaudeAlso, if you’ve ever:* Stayed too long at a job because it felt safe* Been really good at interviewing but suspiciously bad at getting hired* Or watched someone you love slowly become eight employees in one increasingly stressed-out body…this one might hit.It’s about burnout.It’s about identity.It’s about what happens when the thing you couldn’t leave… leaves you.🎧 Listen if you like:existential career pivots, long marriages with strong opinions, and light emotional chaos set to a college fight songVanellope Von Schweetz, our emotional support catnow with laser eyes Get full access to Try-Hard Valley at carriegilbert3.substack.com/subscribe