"I've got a decent paying job. I work 40 hour, indoors, paid time off, etc. And I am miserable as heck. I don't love or even like what I do. But, it pays the bills. I was happier busting my ass in a kitchen"
I hear ya brother! I'm in the same boat, decent paying job, especially for Oklahoma, but I'm sitting on my A$$ all day coaxing a computer to do my bidding. Virtually no savings... so the dream of getting back to life as a chef is still just that, a dream.
Nowadays, I don't yearn foir the hot, noisy, sometimes hostile commercial kitchen. I long for the resources to start my own food truck. The market here is just beginning to realize what a lot of the rest of the country knows... street eats is where it's at!
I jump at any opportunity these days to cater parties. I manage to snag 3 or 4 a year, but it doesn't make up for the life in an office!