Nick:

Sorry to hear your out of work for so long.

I wouldn't look at it that way. If you want to learn new skills, why not go somewhere you will be sanctioned to do so? I know it sounds humbling, especially for someone with your level of experience, but it will be very hard to get contracts if you can't prove you have sucessfully supported such systems in a real time environment.

In my experience, reading and practicing, while extremely important, only goes so far. To get good, you have to be able to work on someone else's terms (supporting a customer).

There are always people here at UT willing to help. Your not alone!

Good luck
Charlie