Over the past few weeks, I have confronted some terrible truths about my technical associate in my independent career, essentially that he has wrecked two outside accounts in so far as income for me is concerned and is an idiot savant.  This weekend I had a major financial blow as an ebay sale went sour and a pension I was due became an argument.  After a night of total stress, I am abandoning the outside consulting career in a discreet manner and returning to corp support if possible.  My disengagement is being done smart but with an eye on not taking on new tasks.  I have a financial plan inplace and while not fun, and some of it painful, I have made moves to bring in income at a cost to me.  My hope is that it works and that I can assemble enough cash to get through 2 months of job hunt.  Or temporary job to extend the time limit. I now trust no one at all, save one friend and my wife.  But that is all.