Thanks again for the kind thoughts, everyone. Craig, I do believe that this was a sincere attempt by my supervisor to be helpful: things have been slipping steadily downhill at this company for quite a while now (layoffs, forced retirements, wage freezes, several other workers leaving for other jobs, company meetings held by red-faced president and vice-president), so it looks as if there ain't much more "down" to this "downhill"! Either that or there's nowhere to go but "up"... depends on how you look at it, I suppose.

Harpgirl: Yeah, I'm still thinking about Florida, although I don't know whether my physical limitations will withstand the summer climate; I hear it's pretty brutal. Also, I'm hoping that the colleague who offered help there will still have help to give, in this economy. Are you asking what I like to do for a living, or in my off-time?