Do I bitch too much?

I have had a tough time lately. Bitching about this or that has become sort of a past-time for me, to the point where I am bitching about the meat to the butcher and expecting them to agree...or at least the analogy gives you an idea! It is all a part of the assimilation process...or so I keep telling myself. But the endless bitching about shitty food, about the attitude of people here, about the availability of quality goods...is it really going to go away? Is it that I just need to get used to things? Or is it that I am living higher than I belong in this country?



What I mean by that is that I seem to get pissed off that certain things that I am used to - quality meat, a good selection of fresh herbs and spices, and higher quality products - are not available here. The fact is I am wrong. They are available here. They are just a lot more expensive. In fact they are priced beyond what I am willing to pay for them, based on my current salary. I am considered above average in the Czech Republic, as far as salary goes. However, this amount still leaves me below average in quality of life when I compare a person with even worse "status" in their position back in Canada. In fact, I believe that when I worked in restaurants, which has taken up 7 years of my Canada Pension Plan calculation, I think I had a higher quality of life than I have now. Should I be expecting this? Or was I just spoilt? It would obviously take some time to adjust life down a few notches to the level that suits me economically, but is that what I have to do? Am I doomed to consuming cheap oily cheese and meat in a tube for the rest of my life?



Or is there something that I should give up? When I examine things, I see that we pay a very average rent for an average flat in an average neighbourhood. It is not riddled with delights on every block, it is not poor (possibly even rich...but not our building), but, at the same time, it is not the projects. I also see that we have yet to purchase a car, we have standard tv/internet service under a great price considering the market, and really no other expenses except utilities. Should we not be able to afford quality food? I play hockey, which costs about 350 Czech koruna per week. Should I give that up so that I can buy better meat and vegetables? Or is there something wrong here?


Assimilation is a bitch!