Peaceful Co-Existence

I give up. No matter how many times I change the padding and margins, and....upon "preview", my banner, center column and hacked sidebars (gracias hectro!) are lined up....lo and behold, i will log on a day later to see that it is all out of whack. And not only does this template torment me with with its moving... it's never consistent in its relocation processes! It's like trying to catch a hat in a strong wind...everytime you think you grasped it....whoosh! One day it's moved so far to the left the left sidebar is sulking at the bottom. Dejected. What about me? Don't I matter? The next day...left sidebar has regained composure...but the center and right columns have such a wide chasm between them they're like two ex-es of a recent bad breakup running into each other at a nightclub trying to share the same fun place with as much distance and interaction as noticeably possible. But of course everyone notices. What's the deal? How do I get these things to work together and realize they can all share the same space, have some boundaries, and work towards a shared goal....while still looking cool and collected? Any advice appreciated.