I was in the same boat when I was about 24. The boat kept sinking until I was almost 28, when I decided to kill myself. Upon failing, I realized that I didn't want to try killing myself again, but I needed that to be more than a whim. I needed a reason to live.
When you have a purpose in life, your actions, your values, everything just lines up around it.
But, here's the secret. You understand the absurdity of life. Making your purpose somehow less-than-absurd is going to feel like bull-droppings, and you'll know it. Make your "highest good" in life something totally absurd, but something that really does resonate with you.
One thing that helped when I was about 25 was going back to school. Although I never did complete my associate's degree, it helped me until the dot-com-crash of 00 took away my job. However, by that time, I had enough skills to get a higher-paying job in a month's time.
Girlfriend's are a two-edged swords. On one hand, they can offer inspiration, support and encouragement. On the other, they can cause "life-freeze" because you're afraid that any personal growth you make will cause you to "grow appart." I perfer to stay single, but I was approached and I find it hard to say no to someone willing to buy me burritoes.
One weird reframe... get a book on child-raising and extend your childhood. Look at it this way: you are where you are because of what happened in your childhood. By giving yourself the experiences every child should have before they reach 18, you at least get to have them. It's never too late to have a happy childhood.
