You're facing the same problem someone just out of school often faces: Companies want someone with experience with a particular thing that they can drop into a job. They don't want to pay for training, they don't want to take a chance. They want a cog that fits perfectly.

If you want to get out of the IT area you're in, you need to find someone who will let you work on what you want to work on. Not working by yourself (even though that's important, too.) Even if that means not getting paid. (People just out of school often have to take internships that pay very little just to get some "real world" experience. These days, some kids even pay the company to get a prime internship.)

During your downtime, maybe volunteer at a non-profit, or a church, or a GPL project, or something, doing the kind of work that you want to earn a living at. You'll get some experience, maybe they'll like your work enough to pay you something, and you'll be able to network. From there, you could branch out into temp work if necessary and build a foundation in your new area.

Don't just pick a new area based on what has the *buzz*. Pick something that you're interested in. IOW, don't just chase Linux. "Do what you love, the money will follow" has a lot of truth to it.

I know it's hard. But until unemployment in your area suddenly drops below 2%, this is what you probably have to do to move into a different sub-area in IT.

My $0.02. Good luck.

Cheers,
Scott.