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The degree obviously gives you more options and generally starts you out at higher pay.  Employers will prefer someone with the degree, even if it isn't directly related to the job for which you might be applying.  I was about 30 before I really got the opportunity to show off my computer skills to a manager who appreciated it, which led to a promotion.  A few years later, I was offered the promotion by another department to my current position.  I honestly think I was lucky, because I didn't really have a plan.   But, I was always good with computer stuff and a lot of office people are not, so I became a resource for them, either asking me for help with something or asking me to do something for them.  That's when the light came on about making this type of work my career.  Oh, and another thing was that I struggled with depression in my late teens and 20s.  I would not have had the emotional energy to sell myself for the promotion without getting on antidepressants.  Fortunately, I only needed them for a couple of years.  Getting into a better job that paid more eliminated the stress of living paycheck to paycheck, which was part of the problem.  Money doesn't buy happiness, but it can buy peace of mind.

Immediately though of you when this appeared in the Portland Business Journal today:  http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/news-wire/2015/11/19/heres-how-much-extra-income-your-college-degree-is.html  Glad it's your decision and not mine.  I know it's tough.