Fail

Plan to wander aimlessly and not stress out today? Huge, enormous, massive fail. My day was best described by the paperwork and telephone equivalent of a bear biting your ankle and dragging you around. Any attempt on your part to change the situation is essentially fruitless and just causes pain, the bear has to decide to let you go on its own.
I do have an interview for a much better job lined up on the 30th but it's with a guy who once gave me a good reference then followed it with a poor one according to the next recruiter I used. And I know he's kind of dumb and they just keep him there for his pretty face, but he actually seemed not to remember me on the phone today, with my resume' right there in front of him. With the dates on it reminding him of when we worked together.  So that lacks promise.
Waiting to see how that plays out will make this one travel job in my field go away of its own. I don't want-want to take a job across the country at Christmastime, again, for three months; California isn't really pretty in the winter. But if another one comes up after Christmas, I will make a beeline for the Golden West, crowds of fruits and nuts and all.