Splurge and get a good knife. And a sharpener. Put you back like $200 all told, but it is so, so worth it (says the guy that got both the knife and the sharpener as gifts). Before this I had a Wusthof and it was plenty passable at a lower price point. But I'm never going back from Shun.
What sharpener do you use? Ceramic rods are nice and really easy. I'll probably just get a stone and a steel for what I've got at the moment. The knife I have isn't terrible, but it has no flex at all but I mean, it's stainless so I didn't really expect there to be any. But yes, I need a better knife and also not to live with a roommate. He's been a friend for a while, but he doesn't know how to treat a knife worth a shit. He's blunting my edges dammit!
Dude, I don't have the manual dexterity or the patience required for that. I have and electric Chef's Mate, works like a dream. "You're blunting my edges" is an incredible breakup line.