I feel fortunate that my entire career has been based on contract work and uncertainty. It's given me the freedom to work in different roles, different cities and different countries. In my last "real job" in govt, one of my work colleagues told me that not having a full time permanent job would be one of the most stressful things she could imagine. To me it sounded like torture - not having a fixed end date, meaning I could move on to something else.
Sure, I've had periods of unemployment, but I've always planned for them in advance so it's never been a problem. And I definitely wouldn't be living my dream right now if I didn't have years of all this behind me.
Most people have come to rely heavily on an a 'guaranteed' income even though that guarantee is becoming less and less certain.
I can imagine that you have felt a little bit like me at times though. I have been freelancing the last 15 years and sometimes fantasise about a desk job and then realise how much I actually hate them :)