Grass is always greener on the other side. I love computers and is my main hobby so when I got an I.T. Job I thought cool my dream job to play with computers all day. Well long story short, its not as fun as it might sound and after 10 years of it I had enough of the b.s. and so I switched careers. Now I program Industrial Robots for the Automotive Industry, its physically harder than sitting in my I.T. Cubicle, but I'm not bitter anymore. But enough with my stuff. As I said at the start of this thread, the grass always looks greener on the other side but its not. You've been working where you are for 10 years so you are pretty much settled with the routine, I bet you know all the peoples personalities and how to deal with them. Going to a new job would just mean you have to re-learn new personalities who stabs who's back etc.. And I know exactly what you mean about feast / famine, we are project based here as well, the last stretch with had 6 months of no projects people were being laid off and yet they expect you to look busy doing some sort of work. Now here is what I recommend for you to write to you're boss's as a request to install your Licenced copy of Bryce 5. "Dear Sir Madam, I would like to install a single license of Bryce 5 - Graphics Design software on my workstation to rejuvinate creativty, improve my skill set as graphic designer and remain on cutting edge of current technology, this will benefit our company XYZ. as an industry leader." If this letter works you ow me $5 ;)