JazzMan wrote:

wrote:

JazzMan wrote:

BTW, car gets 26-33 MPG and I do all my own maintenance,
I don't have (and can't afford) a car payment and the mandatory
full coverage insurance that goes along with it. I got my first
raise in almost three years, all thirty five cents, and I don't
expect to get any more for the foreseeable future.

OK, I'll bite. Why on earth are you staying at that job and in that location?
I'd have shown that employer my butt cheeks walking out the door about two
years ago.

Because there aren't any jobs that I can find in my field
that pay any more than what I make now, in this area. Plus,
this area has a dirth of new jobs other than low-paid service
sector jobs, and I'd have to work two or three of those to
make what I make now.

Well, I've moved at least five times when the job situation in an area was too
bleak. One of those times I was about six months into a new house. I've also
lived at least 30 miles away from work on a few jobs. Speaking from my own
experience, I think you may be over-estimating the problems involved with these
choices.

The last real estate bubble in Texas was a disaster. I have a friend that
walked away from a house there. The S&L crisis was so bad at that point that
nobody even bothered going after him. If you think the area is experiencing
another bubble, that may be one of the best reasons not to buy. The other good
reason not to buy is that a house is best purchased about a year into a good
solid job. You don't have that.

Is your current job offering you health insurance or significant seniority?
IMO, those would be about the only perks that might make it worth staying.

I have _never_ found a job through newspaper ads. Newspaper ads are acts of
desperation by companies that can't fill a position through other channels
(done that), scam jobs that involve sales and pyramid schemes (walked out on a
couple of those during the interview), and institutional ads designed to build
a backlog of applicants and keep a company's stock up (my resume may still be
on file at IBM from 1975, but I don't expect a call from them).

What I have found that works is a killer targeted resume and cover letter, plus
good references, aimed at a small company that has been researched.

The cold hard fact is that staying in a dead-end job offers ZERO chance of
advancement. NONE, NIL, NADA. Work until you die or the company dies.
Switching to a different employer _may_ result in short term losses, but
provides a glimmer of hope of advancement. If that doesn't work out, switching
again not only builds your own confidence, but informs the next employer that
you are serious about not being stuck in a dead-end job. All of this is
calculated risk taking, but you are in an ideal position to take those risks.

Forget going back to school, except as an employee if the school offers free
courses to staff. Instead, read about two feet worth of job hunting and
negotiating books, starting with the old "What Color Is Your Parachute." Start
building a network of people that might tune you on to an upcoming job opening.
Start looking at costs of living in different areas. Become so informed in
your interests and the marketplace that people look to you for advice.

If you plan on practicing welding, consider art welding. There can be good
money in that, and you can be your own boss.