I've had it

[floating dutchman]

Son's, I've just done a "career change" as you well know.
The way I saw it I had three choices:
1, work my guts out doing hard work I didn't enjoy much. (domestic sparky)
2, Go on-call, I have BIG issues with that, I put big value on the fact that MY time is MY time.
3, shift work, Shift work is tiring on me and disrupts family life a whole lot.
None of the above choices had much going for me, Working to pay bills, wanting to do a career change but with being the bread-winner at home, mortgage, wife and kids to feed. not easy.
Got kind of depressed, frustrated.
I'm out of my comfort zone with my new job, I've fu**ed up a tad, Like quitting my job before getting my medical, I've just done my STCW course, including some full on fire-fighting (real fires and equipment in that), life-raft survival (in the pool (kind of fun)), and first aid (I reckon they should call it 1st and 2nd aid in that, oh well)
Fail the medical or course, no job! but I Have passed.
Lee, my better looking 1/2 was not keen in me taking this job, She did not get married to be at home with the kids for 1/2 her life.
I get that, I fully get that.
But what she is seeing is me being happier with my life and actually being a dad better, She realizes I'm happier and is not living with my former grumpier self.

Took me 3 to 5 years to realize how unhappy I was in my former employment. Funny thing now, I really appreciate my former employers, Taken me a month to realize it but they are really good employers, It was the industry that had F***ed me off!

Long story short, can you use your skills in a different field? (hint, you can)

Jeroen

[Jamie]

I firmly believe in, "not by bread alone". I'm not one of those people where work is an end in and of itself. There has to be something bigger, other than just the work. Some days work is great, some days it's frustrating; but everyday, I'm working towards some bigger goal. As long as I'm making progress towards that goal, I'm good.

[Olaf Hart]

That works until you get there.
Then you end up looking for another goal just to stay sane.
I reckon life is like sailing upwind, I need to know where the mark is or I just sail around in circles, but when I pass it I need to know where the next one is.

[BeauV]

Once we have enough money for food, shelter and safety my view is everything else is just about more "stuff" and "satisfaction". All the additional money, for more "stuff" and "satisfaction" is really worth very little intrinsically, but the money is chips in a game and it's nice to win the game. The challenge for me has always been to avoid having the game own me and remembering that it's just a game.