They sucked you in deeper by giving you more money hoping you would get a bigger house etc and therefore become more financially indebted and therefore more dependant upon them and so the screw turned.
Yes, I find it quite sad how so many people are sucked into the Happiness=Standard of Living. illusion, instead of Happiness=Quality of Life. We've never pursued the obvious trappings of wealth but instead went as fast as we possibly could for financial independence and security. You don't need a lot of money to be rich, you just need to want less than you are able to afford. I reckon it's because I'm fundamentally lazy. Who wants to work harder than they need to? Much easier to rein in ambition than bust a gut working for someone else. Work to live, don't live to work.
Still, each to their own. We all have to steer our own path through life.
