Bad I don't think anyone here is telling you to give up your hobby/dreams. It seems to pretty much boil down to priorities. If you priorities are set right the world can be pretty fullfilling.

The main question is what do you want to do in life, and what do you need to do to get there. I built my first hotrod when I was 17, but used "spare" money to do it. The majority of the money I made working at a car dealership (COOP program, school 1/2 day, job the second half) was put away for school. For the year it took to get through trade school (8 hours a day 5 days a week) hotrods were put on hold, there was not enough hours in the day (or money in the buildfold) the go to school (and learn something), work a part time job, have a social life (aahhhh remember when we were young) and build a car.

The plus was the day that I graduated I was able to walk into a skilled job that payed a lot better than some of my friends made without any skills. That first diploma, along with the others I acquired over the years has made a lot of difference getting jobs over other applicants. Even after 30 years it hangs on the wall of my shop and it is part of the first impression prospective customers have of me.

That little peice of paper has allowed me put a roof over my head, food on the table, raise kids own my own buisness AND build my own cars for 30 years.

In this area, I look at a lot of guys my who age (50+) with a high school education that are still working for just above minimum wage... when they can find a job, and will have to until they can no longer work or can draw Social Security. The people with skills (and the paper to prove it) are the ones that are building/buying the neat cars.