The bike you have is of decent enough quality that you should be fine. What prevents "failures" is periodic maintenance and tune-ups (preventative maintenance). If you bought the bike at a LBS, you should get a free tune-up period. Use it. You had a run of bad luck with your old bike, but as you are discovering, there is a difference between your old K-mart special and your new bike.

In the mean time, I'd highly recommend getting to know your bike by learning some bicycle mechanics. If I recall correctly, you are mechanically adept, so this should come easily. Invest in some basic tools (if you don't already have them) and work on your old Denali or more recent mountain bike (if you still have either) - give that sucker a re-build and learn in the process.

When maintaining your bike, one of the first things I'd recommend upgrading when doing a maintenance interval would be the cables and housings. The stock cables are fine for now, but are of "basic" quality - stock on any bike under $1500 - and are not the same quality as aftermarket housings. I like Jagwire, but others are out there. (Gore, Delta).

You did a great job in choosing that bike, IMO. It is a really good platform for upgrading here and there to suit your needs.