Yeah, Celtic. Everybody has a different situation. I used to work a low wage job and my playing supplemented my income. After getting divorced and starting over on square one, my playing started paying my bills and child support and I worked for my dad for my house payment (which was only $225 a month) mainly just watching the shop and doing what I wanted. It was a woodworking shop and I started building up a PA, the speakers, monitors, equipment racks and home made lights. Started playing even more and was making quite well. Then the bottom fell out of the music biz around here and I started working a regular job again. I kept playing and working and used the money to pay off everything and buying more equipment. Also had a 20 X 40 metal building put on my land for a future studio. I started remodeling it a few months ago, but I had to quit my job due to a knee re-injury. So now, I'm 54 and will have to rely on music to get me by. It's taking longer to finish my studio as I'm still limping around and have very little funds coming in. Luckily, I have a good name around here and do live sound at about 7 or 8 local festivals a year. I just got hired to play Sunday mornings in a Church Worship band for $100 per Sunday, filled in for some friend's band and got asked to replace the lead guitarist (it was his idea, he didn't want to play much and suggested that I take his place and he fill in when I have a sound gig), still have people calling for my old band Rat Sass which I can throw together anytime as we don't need practice after all the years, and have quite a few people who want to start taking guitar and bass lessons from me (which I couldn't do before because of my job schedule). Also, the band I just joined will be paying me $200 to $300 or more extra to bring the PA and run it (they all have professional jobs, banker, dentist, teacher etc.) So, in a poor man's way, I've got it made in the shade, BUT, if I had a chance to make $32 an hour, I would put all of the other stuff on hold and jump on it so that I could buy better equipment which would make retirement even better and easier.
So, to answer the thread question, MH10, go for the job and if you really want to play for a living, devote all the money that you can towards that goal and you'll know when the time is right to make the big switch. Think about it this way, with the economy getting worse right now and you making that good money, you'll be able to get great deals on equipment and really build up your arsenal.