I'm sure there's something you haven't figured out.
Try not to read "Tone" into my response.
There's no anger there.
Back to the point though. Why do folk singers quit.
Many of us switch over to the Hospitality Industry, simply because the Folk Circuit cannot support us.
I could play every single week-end at one or two different folk clubs who would gladly welcome me back in 18 months. I'd be working for what they can afford, living in some of the saddest excuses for billets (on occasion) and be constantly on the road. CD sales would amount to 10% of the audience, on the west coast and rising to about 20% the farther east I go. I'd be a household name among folkies, broke and alone.
The Hotel, pub, restaurant industry pays more and regularly without the need for so much travel. Outdoor markets are also extremely lucrative and in most cases I sell more than the vendors do as well as getting paid for it.
Not a difficult decision for me at all.