despite somewhat limited experience, ive been reading quite a bit on the forums and, added to what i do know and have experienced, i wud advise u strengthen ur fallback position with some sort of formal education/degree...it doesnt seem absolutely necessary for hiring with the airlines but it does supplement what you may have in terms of hours when the time comes for hiring, and the discipline involved in getting to that higher state of education may also help you further down when you're ready to apply yourself to pilot training...
my major reason for recommending you go that route is the current financial climate where there is a great deal of uncertainty, particularly in the industry....and it seems very costly to maintain liscence "currency" on your own post-aviation studies while you try to get hired and paid for your passion..
ure pretty young so i'd say that time is definitely on ur side, and as difficult as deferment proabably will be (trust me i'm experiencing that difficulty myself at this point), from one rookie to another, i think it's something you should consider...
hope this makes sense...