Career change after a layoff, where to begin? - 8 months and counting

After 18 years as a store manager I am thinking about moving into a different field. I am in Buffalo, in case local advice matters. I have a little time and a small budget for training. Did you take a pay cut?

Thanks for writing this out. I went through something close to it 8 months ago, and it settled down once I kept a simple log of every call and form.