Nick -
I'll try to offer a silver lining to the cloudy situation.
I saw in your resume that you've been working on your MBA. Two years ago, I was laid off from my job for the first time in my life (and only thus far, but I'm not holding my breath). At first, it was definitely a bit of a blow to the ego, but it seems like you're past that point already and realize some things are completely out of your control.
In any case, when I lost my job, I decided to go back to school full time for ~6 months and finish my MBA in an accelerated fashion. Before that I was on a 3-year track with a little over a year to go. For me, this turned out to be a huge blessing as I was job hunting the entire time and by the time I graduated I had a couple of opportunities lined up. On top of that, because I now had those three fancy letters on my resume, I managed to score a decent pay increase and a job that I enjoyed (and still do) far more than the one from which I was let go. Not to mention that once I accepted the fact that I was not going back to work and dedicating myself to school, I really was able to enjoy the time away from work. It was a rare opportunity to take some time away.
Obviously it's not easy taking yourself out of the workforce for that long and not easy financially, but it may be a way for you to make something of the bad situation, especially if the prospects of landing another job in the near-term don't look good.
Best of luck whatever you decide.
Jason
