Trust me, as a guy who was in the same situation as yourself, once you get into a house things will suddenly seem a lot brighter. Never in a million years did I think I would have the house that I have now by the time I was 26. Then I realized that I have been working 7 days a week for nearly 5 years, so I guess I sorta deserve it. My wife and I have change dthe way we live since the mortgage came along. We don't eat out anymore, we have basic cable, we drive older cars, we see maybe one movie a month, we go camping instead of going to Europe or Hawaii, we buy things on the clearance rack, I trade frags instead of buying, etc...etc...and we couldn;t be happier. And at the end of the day, I have a few bucks to throw at my tank, and my wife has a few dollars to spend on her obsession, scrapbooking. Yeah, it may seem boring to most, but we also have a 3 year old son, and just found out we have another one on the way! So i guess we had time to do "something else" as well.
Bottom line, good luck with your goal and let me know when your future tank needs some stocking, no charge, beacuse house payment sucks.