<HTML>Dave, I am one of those younger energetic techs who currently puts the long hours= in and can crank up the annual income into respectable figures. I have just= put 1 child through college, one more graduating in the fall, and 2 younger= ones in private school (5th and 7th grade).  When I add up all the per= ks I have to provide for myself (health insurance, schooling,nice neighborho= ods to live in, vacations, etc) there's price that comes with the territory.= At the end, there's obviously a net gain in the form of lifestyle I have be= come quite accustomed to. But on the other end of the argument comes having some true time off without= the worry of "I need to be working".  Plus having the collective benef= it of provided health insurance. Plus the added benefit of tuition tradeoff = if you are a state university employee. Those come a very steep price and I'= m trying equate how much is that worth.  And then there are the music school politics which can be an issue within th= emselves. Just ask any tech who has a disgruntled faculty member always seco= nd-guessing them. And then there is the obvious gross reduction in net pay one has to learn to= live within. I assume that those who do work in the university sector also = subsidize their income with outside work. So it with this I find myself doing some very deep soul-searching and wonder= if I could (in fact) , make a major change and find solace in that sector.<= BR> Yes, the grass does look green on the other side. Red-rose glasses are off a= nd I'm trying to see the true colors. Tom Servinsky, RPT</HTML>