Wow, yeah. That does indeed suck. I assume you've looked around campus for job transfer options, etc.? Even if you took a pay cut doing something different, might be better than leaving altogether. Or would taking a pay cut affect your pension? I know my mom's was based on her three largest pay years, not necessarily the three most recent, but I also know plenty of places aren't like that.

Might be fun to get a job doing something you'd enjoy, anyway — I worked retail for a few years and at the time found it alternately fun and stressful, but I think if I were there because I wanted to be and not because I had to be, I'd have had a lot more fun doing it. I often think I'd like to run a seasonal business, like a drive-in movie theater, or a Christmas tree lot, or something like that. Work hard for a few months, then don't work at all for a while. But I don't exactly have a plan.

Anyway, good for you. Making tough decisions is just that, tough, but sometimes it's the only way to survive.

I have read Your Money or Your Life, quite a few years ago now, but yeah, I like the idea of being able to just work when you want to. Thanks for the other ideas, too. I think you've mentioned some of them before in your blog, so I know I've clicked over there a few times before.