I left AD to go to the Guard about 6.5 years ago and I have no reservations telling you that my quality of life is immeasurably better on this side of the fence, and I would make the same decision all over again. That said, there are a couple things to think about before you choose one over the other:

1) Guard bumming is becoming much more difficult, if not impossible, and that situation will continue to deteriorate as budgets shrink further. Trips are how you earn a living, and those are becoming scarcer.

2) If you join a unit today, there is no guarantee that unit will continue to exist tomorrow, much less 20 years from now. You might be able to find another one to hire you, but that's no guarantee either.