You thought you had it bad! - try the USA

[ross_k]

"And don't forget the US is cheaper to live in than the UK"

UK and US citizen just moved back to Blighty after 6 years living the States. One major reason I came back here is that it is, believe it or not, cheaper to live in the UK than in the US. The NHS may be falling apart, but it's cheaper than $400/month (for two people, admittedly) in health insurance, which is pretty much a necessity considering the price of everything medical over there(and becoming increasingly hard to get through your employer, especially as a shovelbum). Luxuries are generally more expensive in the UK, as is eating out, but groceries are cheaper.

I lived up near Seattle and the wages for an archy in the Northwest aren't too horrendous - I was getting $14/hour (with next to no field experience), which is pretty similar to a trainee wage here. However, I certainly don't remember getting 20 days off per year!!
So, overall, I found that it's cheaper to live here than in the US, plus we get more paid days off. And the archaeology's generally more interesting (to me, at least). Love both the US and the UK equally, but I prefer to be an archy here