I think the core of the problem that the OP is experiencing is that most API's are really bad. By bad, I mean the API gets in your face and becomes more hindran

I think the core of the problem that the OP is experiencing is that most API's are really bad. By bad, I mean the API gets in your face and becomes more hindrance than help. I say, choose your API's wisely, find what helps you and discard the rest.