People think this is crazy (a
People think this is crazy (and sometimes I do as well), but when we left Calgary (where at the time getting a job was like falling off a log) to move to Vancouver Island (where sometimes even a PhD won't guarantee you can get a job flipping burgers) one of my motivations was to go to a place peopled with folks who often end up having to be very resourceful when it comes to livelihood.

Maybe it's becoming the same all over, but my impression of living on the islands (which has since only been reinforced) is that you have to be inventive and resourceful if you want to stay, because in the end there just aren't that many plum 9-5 lifelong career jobs to begin with. And sure enough, when my plum 'full time' job ended and I headed towards consultancy, it seemed like a step in the right direction, towards increasing resourcefulness and inventiveness. Ask me again when the consulting jobs dry up and maybe I'll feel different, but any expectation of the job just 'being there' has vanished for me, and this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Cheers, Scott Leslie.