I live alone. But I kinda don't. I'm chronically ill and mostly homebound. In my last 4 apartments (!) I didn't have neighbours who went to work for like 7-8 hours per day. They either didn't work, work extremely part time or from home.
I'm not from the USA and I can only afford old apartments in old buildings with horrible sound insulation. So, I never feel alone. I can't take a nap because they'll wake me up. And I use earplugs, brown noise, fans... I'm tired of knowing where they are, keeping my windows closed because I don't want to hear them, being woken up by them, not getting rest cause of them and some of those people are just loud AF.
Meanwhile, the cost of living is just soaring. I don't remember the last time I didn't want to flee from a rental. I want to feel like I don't have invisible roommates. That's all I want. To be alone.