Yeah, Pug pretty much nailed it. And K-man is right... I complained about my life for a long time for a lot of reasons, some of which were self-inflicted, others which were circumstantial, but ultimately I feel like now I have the opportunity to do something about it for the first time in a long time. I was never in a position to quit my job before, ever, but I've saved some money and my grandfather left me some, and that's why the plan to move to Texas and work on some writing. In California, I figure I could live comfortably for a year on my savings while I tried this experiment, then I'd be out (assuming I was at absolute zero for income). In Texas, that estimate moves to 3 years. Plus if I move into a room at Pyro's place, I'll have the added benefit of not being able to bring basically everything I own, forcing me into sort of a sensory deprivation kind of thing where I'll essentially be living in an office. This should help me to focus and spend the time I need to in trying to start a writing career. Plus I'm dating a girl who lives near there, by strange coincidence, and while she was originally thinking about moving out to California, she ultimately decided to stay in Texas because it's much easier for her to get her teaching credential and continue down the path she's going down if she's there rather than here.
So it probably wouldn't be forever, just for a while, just for a chance at something different and to throw my life out of balance a little and see what happens.
I think what I really need to figure out now is when and how. I'm thinking I'll quit my job by the end of the year, take January off to pack and get things organized here, then sometime in February Heather will probably fly out here, we'll finish getting things together, then take a road trip in my car over the course of 3 or 4 days (longer if we decide to see some things) and make our way to Fort Worth.
If nothing else, this will surely be an interesting experience.