Instrument techie, eh? That's a pretty good gig, rick. Don't sell yourself short about becoming a 'consultant' either. I have a good buddy in your line. He has parlayed his trade and his 30 years of experience into a juicy 'consultancy', specializing in maintenance shut-downs, plant certifications and start-ups. He is currently working at the North West Refinery(upgrader) north of Fort Saskatchewan. I suspect he is billing his hours at something like $150 or $200 per.

As you can guess from my screen name I started out as a jug hustler on a seismic crew. That is so low on the oil patch pecking order that I didn't even see the first rung of the career ladder for 2 years........did better for myself in subsequent years.

Feel free to steal any lines from my posts that you care to. It is an honour for me just to have a sharp guy like you even read the drivel that I post here from time to time.