I think the problem with most software jobs is that's where you spend all your mental resources. I tend to think about work projects a lot outside of business hours, and it takes a lot of work to stay on top of your game in the industry. This is fine and well unless you want to do real research in your spare time. Especially when you get older and have other responsibilities, it gets very difficult to find contiguous blocks of time when you are fresh.
Spending the rest of life as a bartender or receptionist doesn't seem like a good prospect, regardless of pay.
And if I ever have the chance to go back to work as a software engineer, the years working as a bartender or receptionist won't help.
Or maybe I just don't like money that much.