This is by far the most common question I get asked regarding why am I leaving my nice cushy office job and going back to crappy hours, job stress, and low pay.

The answer is a complicated one, the biggest reason I am doing this is that I have gone off plan.  I love front end design work, but User Experience has changed greatly in the last few years, no longer is it aimed at creating usable interfaces and ensuring the broadest possible range of users can use a product, now it is aimed at what can we do to not get sued while still keeping our costs down.

I have always seen myself as a Paramedic before anything else work related, and that knowledge has actually held me back as a UX designer.  by sitting in a desk all day I have become slow and fat, and I know my health is suffering, I work down town and see the effects of the office life on folks, and for me having weekends free is not worth it. I have bounced between several jobs over the years, and have found that I am happiest at the jobs that fuel my creativity, and miserable at those that basically force me to be just another cog.  Also I hate wearing dress pants, and I really hate cubicles.

So why am I going back to EMS?

I need to go back and get my health back up to speed, my cellulitis is still acting up and the best way to deal with that is walking, the movement will push all that crap around and help clear up the stagnant shit (its biological wage in the cells, so yes it is shit)
I need to go back for my psyche to help re-ballence myself
This will give me some time to get projects accomplished around the house and get my front end web skills back up to par, thus allowing me to do more freelance work and make me in demand.
Also it will get me out of a cubicle