I have always compared life to a highway. When you are born, your journey down your own personal highway begins. And as life goes on, there are times when your ride is smooth sailing, with clear, blue skies over head and the wind in your face as you move steadfast down the road of life. And then there are times when you accidentally run over a pothole, skid on unforgiving black ice ­ or get unexpectedly sideswiped by a drunk driver. This can cause your seamless trip to suddenly leave you stranded on the side of the road unable to continue your journey while everyone else continues theirs ­ passing you by at high speed.

I am sorry to say that I have spent the last fourteen months on the side of the highway with my hood up and my engine smoking ­ and the sorriest part is that I have no one to blame but myself. Through bad decisions, poor judgements ­ and associations with negative and lecherous people ­ I wound up losing almost everything and everyone that meant anything to me ­ along with a year-and-a-half of my life.

As for what happened, I placed my trust, goals, hopes and dreams in the hands of people whose only priority was to use both myself and my resources to better themselves and their agendas ­ while forcing me into an emotional, physical, spiritual ­ and financial strain that snowballed until I was buried far too deep. From friends that wouldnąt go home, to roommates that didnąt clean up, to "girlfriends" that couldnąt live without negativity and drama ­ I surrounded myself with so much darkness that the light that fueled my life was almost completely extinguished.

This horribly negative situation was a daily event that began from the moment my eyes opened, and didnąt even stop when I would try and attempt to get some sort of sleep. Basically, my home life was such a complete horror that I found myself happier at work. And when I did go home, all I would do is watch bills pile up, clean up after others whose only job was to make a mess for me to clean up ­ and get fed so many mouthfuls of drama that I wouldnąt have any room left for food ­ leaving me to go without eating for sometimes days at a time. This ordeal took so much out of me that I stopped eating, sleeping, writing, spending time with friends, filming my television show, doing the South Park Digest, maintaining my website ­ and I even lost as much as fifty pounds. And as each terrible day would pass, it would only get worse ­ it even got to the point where I began to think there was no way out.

But thanks to the love and help of my mother, my own inner strength ­ and a lot of Divine intervention, I began to realize that staying in the destructive situation I was in would only lead to a complete loss of everything I have worked so hard to build ­ and that end was coming fast. So I realized that the only way to return to the life I once had was to cut my losses and get out.

And get out I did.

In one month, I said goodbye to the selfless friends, so long to the disgusting roommates ­ and good riddance to the destructive "girlfriend." And in the one month that has passed since that enlightening day ­ I have begun to rebuild my credit, found a new home that is mine and mine alone, planned a weekend trip to Chicago, rekindled some old friendships with positive people rather than negative ones ­ and most importantly ­ rediscovered Paul Wein ­ someone who I truly missed very much.

They say that everything happens for a reason and I agree. Despite the fact that I almost lost everything I have worked so hard for, and despite the fact that rebuilding and reestablishing everything I once had will take some time, effort and money ­ it will be worth it. These last fourteen months were pure Hell on Earth ­ but they were also a lesson. The lesson was to be careful of who you let into your inner circle, to be weary of those people you let share your goals, hopes and dreams ­ and most importantly ­ be aware of the person you choose to let into your heart ­ because if at least one of those aspects contains any negativity or drama ­ your trip down the road of life will be a very slow one ­ with a lot of pit stops along the way.

But now that all of that is gone for good ­ itąs gonna be a nice, cozy ride.