Legality in the Second World // illness

Things that living in slovakia has taught me:

1. It is not always important to be legal.
After five months, i finally received my work permit today. I have been working, however, since February. Finding/keeping/ being paid for a job has not been a problem.
Getting the work permit cost me approximately 15,000 crowns (about 700 dollars) and like a million hours of my free time. It involved lots and lots and LOTS of paperwork, stamped and signed by both governments, officially translated into slovak (about 45 dollars a page for the official stamp), and of course, hand delivered to the Foreign Police Office.

Let's review the Foreign Police Office, shall we?
A. It is on a first come, first serve basis. There are invariable forty asian men standing in line in front of you, NO MATTER what time you arrive. Four in the morning? they are there. By the time the door is opened shortly after 7:30, over a hundred people are in line, pushing to get through the very small door....where everyone is assigned a ticket. I have seen fights break out. Numbers i've received have ranged from number 35 (whoo hoo!) up to 87. I usually arrive around 5:30 in the morning.
And then you wait, and wait. Somedays they fly through the numbers, sometimes the office closes before they reach number 50. After all, it is only open until 12:30, and only on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

B) there are two doors:
one for members of the EU, and one for everyone else.
so as you stand there (there isn't a waiting room), you watch as the invariably fashionable western europeans glide into the first door. And you wait, and wait, AND WAIT with the russians scowling in their leather, and ukrainians in their hookerwear, and the throngs of vietnamese blasting pop music on their cellphones. Often, the number for door number one zips past, and is on 60 or so, while door number two has been stuck on 13 for an hour and a half.
Do i think americans should get special treatment? In this circumstance, yes, i do. Slovaks have now been given the right to visit america sans visa. They should extend some privilege back to the americans living in their country, no?

What are my privileges, now that i have a work permit?
1. I get entered into the National Health Care System.
True, this is good. Free medical care for the rest of my stay. Is it worth the hassle? No, as the average doctor's visit (full price) is approx. 15 USD. Medicine, including antibiotics, has cost me (on average) 7 dollars.

2. Perks, as agreed on by my employer.
These include: reimbursement for travel expenses (around 50-60 dollars a month) and something that amounts to food stamps (about 5 dollars worth a day, the average cost of a big meal in a restaurant, beverage included), but in a country where everyone is given and everyone uses food stamps.

So Was It Worth It?
Pros: I will save some money, and if i get stricken with a horrible disease, i won't have to fear going bankrupt.
Cons: Five damn months of my life tracking down the correct paperwork, having it translated, having it stamped, buying special payment stamps from the post office, proving my innocence, standing topless in a communist-style hospital in front of three male x-ray technicians, handing over my soul on a silver platter, spending approximately 40 hours waiting at the Foreign Police.

So, my answer is no. My advice to anyone considering living in another country, specifically a second-world country, is to seriously examine the cost-benefits of becoming legal. How do you know if you are interested in a second world country?
do a sidewalk test!
I forget who noted this, but i will paraphrase.
First World: There are sidewalks in every town.
Third World: not so much with the sidewalks
Second World: sidewalks in cities and nicer towns.
...................................................................................................
moving on:
I have been sick for going on three weeks. One monday, i got a cough. The following monday, i got the flu. the following monday, i picked up a head cold.

remedies that have been suggested (forcefully) to me over the past two weeks:
1. Seven full days of complete bed rest.
2. tea with honey and lemon
3. Vinegar with honey
4. raw garlic
5. chicken soup
6. an onion, left to sit in a bowl of honey overnight, and eaten by the spoonful 3x day
7. fresh mint tea

i've tried everything but seven days in bed. seven days! ješuš maria!
so, that is my tirade.
be well, be illegal.
~kisses~
sara