I'd like to offer an alternative view of contract work. I've been doing it for years (including 2 years in Houston) and enjoy it because of the variety of work and straightforwardness of hourly billing. You tend to avoid office politics and some of the career-ladder vagaries of a full time position.

Of course, you have to be prepared to accept more risk. But the rewards are there for me, not the least of which is that it tends to be very lucrative if you can keep yourself reasonably busy.

Also, if you decide you don't like the stress, you can generally take a full-time position with the client. Every contract I've ever done has resulted in a job offer at some point.

I've also noticed a marked increase in work very recently. I received several phone calls this week, which hasn't happened for months. Hopefully, you won't have too much trouble finding something.

Good luck,
Mike