PS

Just a postscript as to my previous job....
Yes, I was fired. To this day, I've not been given a reason other than 'It was time for us to part ways', which I readily accepted, since the following week I had planned on giving my two week notice anyway. However, speaking with former coworkers, friends, and the like, for some reason that I'd not been able to figure out until yesterday, it just stuck in my craw, and irritated me.
Yesterday, while talking to Double-J, I finally figured it out.
Most guys will understand, and some ladies as well:

I'm sure that most of you have been involved in a relationship that was great at the beginning, but as it went on, it became more and more lame. Perhaps she packed on some pounds, wasn't that great in the sack, wasn't overly attractive anyway, but you'd overlooked that initially because of other things that attracted you. Every once in a while, she'd try something cool to spice things up, but it always would go back to where it was. And as you go forward, you find yourself disliking her more and more as days go by. Then you meet someone else who is interesting, challenging, attractive, and you think will be a definite connection. So you get ready to break up with the beast that you've been dragging along for all this time, and before you can do it, she says "I think we need to stop seeing each other, it's just not working out".

That, in a nutshell, is pretty much how I felt when my former co-worker told me that he was going to pay me six weeks severance to go away. Heck I was grateful for the severance, since it gave me the ability to be a complete and utter slack-ass the entire month of December, but it gnawed at me. And I finally figured out what it was.....
Had to share here, since I still have a lot of friends from my old company that read this, and that I've discussed this with. Hope they get out while they can, and if they don't, they learn to play the system so that they don't get screwed.
Speaking of playing the system:
Bearded wonder: Eventually someone will realize that you don't really accomplish as much as others due to your anal retentiveness, you bitch too much, and that you actually are much more of a negative influence on the team than the value you bring. You also aren't respected by ANYONE technical(lucky for you, that works for you where you are currently) You'll eventually run out of people to tattle on, or you'll run into a boss that really dislikes that sort of character trait. At that point, you better be in the same situation as I was, otherwise you'll be singing the "I got shitcanned blues" as well.
Flamerboy: Sucking up, pretending you're technical, and spouting buzzwords will only carry you so far. Concentrate on your strength, sales. Stick with that, and you'll do ok. Trying to speak technical jargon that you only recently read in E-Week will just make you look like an idiot
Mojo: Get that porn off your PGP drive. That shit will make you go blind..and grow hair on your palms.
JacksGirl: Ditto on the Flamerboy rant. Although you're not even good at sales, or project management....heck, I'm not sure what exactly you're good at, other than getting promoted because you're female.