I'm not far away, I can't help with the dogs (the one we have doesn't know how to play nicely with other animals), but I can meet up for a drink or to vent. I've only been working sporadically the past year, had three different contracts that didn't work out (of course, two of them had gigantic red flags before I started, but work is better than no work), so I can definitely sympathize on that angle, and my divorce a few years ago certainly ran me through the ringer emotionally then.