Good on you. In my experience no matter how much you’re there for bros, as soon as shit hits the fan for you it’s “sorry, I’m not really good with that stuff lol” and then they just kind of disappear until you’re magically better.

It’s also not easy to just write people off from your life for being shitty when you’re down and then be left with nobody. People act like “find better friends” is easy. Finding friends at all is hard for most people.

It’s starchy chunks in a dairy based broth, so chowder.

Could be rust or some minerals that ended up on the bottom. Try boiling a mix of vinegar and water and see if it wipes off after. I’d keep using it anyways though, nothing to worry about.