I've Done It! or What Have I Done!?

A bit of back story...

I have been a Corporate America IT Slave for 10 years. I dropped out of college to pursue the easy money and 'glamor' of a high paying, professional career that landed in my lap. It was the late 90's, and any warm body who could spell UNIX was getting a job offer, even an 18 year old English Literature major with only a mild interest in computers.

The last decade has no doubt been good to me. I have been fortunate to move up the ranks, and make a very comfortable salary from an early age. I bought 2 houses, got married, took a few wonderful vacations, accumulated and then paid off mountains of debt in the meantime.

I have also worked gargantuan amounts of hours, had weekend and evening plans canceled at the drop of a hat due to a work 'emergency', been woken up at any and all ungodly hours of the day and night, and oh yeah! had my job out-sourced for no rhyme or reason.

Don't get me wrong, I am good at my job and even enjoy certain aspects of it. It's just, IT is not my passion. In actuality, it ranks pretty low on my list of interests. I am by no means the traditional Geek. But, I have developed as a professional, love a job well done, and most importantly, have been extremely fortunate to work with some top notch individuals who had faith in me and took the time to show me the ropes. This experience has been absolutely invaluable.

Did I mention I was out sourced?

Its quite a nefarious tale, involving the lack of understanding that is (in my experience) rampant at the higher levels of any corporate entity. Long story short, I took my ball and went home for a few months (with a healthy severance package). This whole event has proved to be pivotal on the 'what are you really going to do with your life? ' journey. Nothing like an external upsetting of the apple cart to change your game plan.

Luckily, I had a lot of notice prior to my lay-off date. Months and months. I used that time to save my pennies, and strategize. I got a part time job at something I had always wanted to do; work at a quality pet supply store. This enabled me to dabble, support my menageries of pets, and barely affected my unemployment benefits at all.

Well, as it turns out, I really enjoy this work for a number of reasons. A few months in, I had a brief stint back in IT, only to really and truly confirm that in fact I do not enjoy it. But now, I manage the pet-store full time, for about 60% less than I was previously making. It's actually less money that I was making at 18 years old. I kinda think its awesome.

So here I am. Living differently than I ever have as an adult. A year later, I am still sitting on my severance package nest egg, wondering if my new life is sustainable, and where I want to take it.
Do I open my own business? Can this sort of position make me happy long term? Do I look for something in IT that I could enjoy? Does that kind of job exist? How does one balance work and home life outside of the corporate umbrella? What trappings of my previous lifestyle am I willing to forgo and what is truly important to me? And why the heck did I do this NOW?! when the economy is in the tank, and everyone who is anyone is struggling just to get by.

These questions and more will be flogged, erm discussed, ad nauseum here, in my own little interweb dumping ground for all these thoughts bouncing around my head. It also promises to be sprinkled with unavoidable soapbox rants and raves about life, money (saving and spending), pet-care, consumerism, the economy, eating, reading and innumerable other topics I get fired up about at a moments notice.

So, Welcome. Thanks for being part of the ride.