Is this a Sign to Quit Trucking?

I posted a few months ago that I had gotten back into trucking to pay my way through graduate school. Honestly, the job sucks, with irregular dry van loads and pay that was only 75% of what my employer told me I'd be making, not to mention being gone for two weeks at a time instead of home virtually every weekend like I was promised in the job interview. Fast forward to recent weeks, and I've been looking for a better job, or something that I enjoy. I'm set up to take a two week farrier course next month, and was planning to shoe horses on the side (it's in high demand here in the Dakotas and Minnesota).
My truck has been falling apart from day one. My first day on the job was spent taking it to Freightliner in Fargo, ND for some repairs before heading out on the road for a few hours, making it to Wisconsin late that night. I spent the first few months of summer weather without AC, which was finally fixed last week. Now this week, I haven't picked up a single load (they pay me 25% of the load) but dropped one off on Monday. On Tuesday, I sat at the Petro in Fargo getting the oil pan replaced, without pay, along with most of Wednesday, then began my 34 hour reset at home in South Dakota. I stopped at the local gun store on the way home, talked about pronghorn hunting with a guy, and ended up getting a job with his son driving truck--seasonal, but good pay, and he'd help me learn the farrier craft on the side. The plan was to start the new job in late September or early October.
Then I texted my boss to see if I was headed back out tomorrow. I fell asleep waiting for an answer, and woke up a couple hours later. He'd originally replied yes, if I was done with the reset and ready to go, then gave an ominous text saying that he wanted to talk to me tomorrow afternoon with the HR lady (very small company, so I know her personally). After seeing these texts, I replied with an "okay." A few minutes later, she called me, and said that I was probably getting laid off tomorrow along with two other guys (so three out of seven company drivers), and offered herself as a reference for another local trucking company. I told her that I was actually taking a new job anyway. My new employer knows her too, as he used to be her farrier, so she was happy for me. Turns out the layoff wasn't personal. The owner was in financial straits and had to return the Penske rentals; us newer guys were understandably laid off before the more senior drivers. I'm a bit sore that I would've given them at least two weeks notice but they give me zero heads up. I cleaned out my truck tonight. I should add, while the departure was amiable, HR told me the owner was going to give bogus performance analyses as the reason for getting rid of me, but finances were the real problem. He was too prideful to admit he failed in business. I heard her husband in the background calling my (now previous) boss nasty names, so I feel certain that my performance was safe and productive.
My question is, every time I've gotten into trucking, I've left with a vow to never return, but the road has called me back every time. It seems this time the road has rejected me, affirming my previous vows to never return. Should I pursue a better career, even for the short term, or should I find another trucking job that pays well with decent home time until I've finished grad school? Being without income for a couple of months has thrown a wrench in my plans, so the farrier school may be out of the plans now. I'm unsure which steps I should take next. Any advice is greatly appreciated.