The irony of the thing, though. In the middle of a recession, having lost a well-paying gig with no notice, I manage to land a job (in manufacturing, no less) a mere three miles from my front door, less than a month out of work. Granted, it’s in a field about which I knew nothing at all, from a practical side (managerial theory and such like I knew and know all too well, and am bored of, and boring with, SPC, lean manufacturing, etc.).