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Monday, June 30, 2008

peace



- All is well, right here, right now.
- Peace begins with a conscious choice.
- Today I embrace simplicity, peace and solace.
- A peaceful heart makes for a peaceful life.
- I trust the universe to deliver my highest good in every situation.
- By becoming peace, I create peace in every experience.
- I am filled with the light of love, peace and joy.
- Peace comes when I let go of trying to control every tiny detail.
- Where peace dwells, fear cannot.
- Today my mission is to surrender and release.


don't fret about yesterday; learn from it.

I have a choice to be peaceful today.

try to not complicate matters.

know my inner peace will reflect outwards.

accept what life offers; given lemons, make lemonade.

love myself in order to love others.

influence what I can; never control.

let go of fear; have faith.

surrender negativity; embrace optimism.

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Sunday, June 29, 2008

philosophies



It is always the secure who are humble.

G. K. Chesterton

An attitude of superiority often conceals a feeling of inferiority.

Exaggerated sensitiveness is an expression of the feeling of inferiority.

Alfred Adler


The great consolation in life is to say what one thinks.

Voltaire

Self-expression is the dominant necessity of human nature.

Dale Carnegie

I’m exhausted from not talking.

Sam Goldwyn


I dislike arguments of any kind. They are always vulgar, and often convincing.

Oscar Wilde

Many people like their beliefs, opinions and prejudices more than they like reason.

There is a certain amount of trauma involved in changing any long-held belief.

Never try to reason the prejudice out of a man. It was not reasoned into him, and cannot be reasoned out.

Sydney Smith


A man has his beliefs: his arguments are only his excuses for them...we only see what we look at: our attention to our temperamental convictions blind us to all the facts that tell against us.

George Bernard Shaw

People only see what they are prepared to see.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

What ardently we wish, we soon believe.

Edward Young

People believe lies, not because they are plausibly presented, but because they want to believe them. So, their credulity is unshakeable.

Malcolm Muggeridge

It’s not a controversial proposition that people tend to believe what they want, and that the strength of their conviction is usually proportional to their self-interest.


Men will always be mad and those who think they can cure them are the maddest of all.

Voltaire

It is folly to expect people to do all that you would reasonably expect them to do.

Reformers have the idea that change can be achieved by brute sanity.

George Bernard Shaw


I said it years ago, I didn't get into recovery to be miserable,

be told forever what to say and do,

not be able to live a serene and responsible life.




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Saturday, June 28, 2008

drunk driving

found this picture while stumbling; thought
i would caption it on the parody motivator site.

this reminds me of the nagging thought i had
when approaching my first year.

all i kept seeing was some drunk driver
crossing over the center line and hitting
me head on.

well, thankfully that didn't happen!
the drunks are still out there, getting
tickets, crashing, injuring and killing
themselves and others.

today the only thing i am rarely guilty
of, is DWI (driving while infuriated);
stuck behind a tractor full or hay...
or worse yet...manure!




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Thursday, June 26, 2008

serenity through inspiration


It's a great advantage not to drink among hard-drinking people. You can hold your tongue and, moreover, you can time any little irregularity of your own so that everybody else is so blind that they don't see or care.
unknown

Do not be desirous of having things done quickly. Do not look at small advantages. Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done thoroughly. Looking at small advantages prevents great affairs from being accomplished.
Confucious


Life affords no higher pleasure than that of surmounting difficulties, passing from one step of success to another, forming new wishes and seeing them gratified.
Samuel Johnson


Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Life is change. Growth is optional. Choose wisely.
Kathy Clark

That's the risk you take if you change: that people you've been involved with won't like the new you. But other people who do will come along.
Lisa Alther


The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time.
Joe Girard

The secret of my success is that at an early age I discovered I was not God.
Sri da Avabhas

We are never more discontented with others than when we are discontented with ourselves.
Henri Frederick Amiel

It is only when we no longer compulsively need someone that we can have a real relationship with them.
Anthony Storr

Wisdom is knowing what to do next; virtue is doing it.
David Starr Jordan
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Sunday, June 22, 2008

just say no?



from the popular social web site "stumble-upon".
the simple way to express approval or not, of a
particular page.

wouldn't it be great if it was all that simple!
we, of course don't have it quite so easy.

dealing with difficult people or situations
takes some getting used to in recovery.
the tendency to lash out or over-react
was common in early sobriety.

looking back, i guess there was that
mild paranoia and lack of patience
always lurking in my mind.

since life really doesn't imitate stumble upon,
there won't be any short cuts or magic buttons.




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Friday, June 20, 2008

kudos to Mike N.



quite a feat for sure.
very impressive to me since I never
faithfully did 90 in 90.

mike set a goal 1 year ago and never wavered.

meetings were not the only thing done during
that time. he worked, weight lifted, jogged,
fished and did service.

it wasn't always easy, but he managed to
balance it all and retain his friendly, optimistic
outlook.

so here's to you Mike, congratulations on
completing an outstanding challenge!



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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

the war on drugs?

research has shown that programs like DARE,
are largely ineffective. it is a waste of police
resources using time and officers to talk to
groups of kids.

all the warnings, slide shows and pamphlets
are mostly ignored, even laughed at, by most teens.

as with the U.S. ineffective "war on drugs", these
sappy, feel good measures make poor use of
taxpayer money.

there will never be an effective method of
keeping kids protected from exposure to drugs
and alcohol.

our focus should be on changing the focus from
interdiction, enforcement and incarceration, to
treatment.

the only effective way to begin addressing the
huge drug problem is to reduce the demand.
that is not accomplished by arrest and punishment.

while treatment will not help all; at least make
funds available for those who seek it.




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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

honesty



Humble
Open minded
Nurturing
Eager
Sincere
Teachable

how I view honesty

humility can be an elusive quality.
it goes contrary to our former ways
of being impatient, selfish and egocentric.
the humble person doesn't have to boast
about their achievements, their progress
is evident in their actions.

an open mind is necessary to maintain the
ability to learn, identify and improve poor habits.
many of us were skeptical and unwilling to
accept the possibilities of a better way.

without drive and enthusiasm, recovery can
become tedious and unwelcome. those flat
spots are inevitable, but if we remain eager
to persevere, we can overcome them and grow.

sincerity is an essential element of sobriety.
it is gaining that comfort level with the truth;
and giving it your all.
losing that uneasy feeling when being totally
honest may take some time, but the rewards
make it worthwhile.

the willingness to learn something new about
ourselves and the complexities of addiction
are beneficial because they explain the reasons
why we do the things we do.



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Monday, June 16, 2008

alcoholic and talented


I believe, if we take habitual drunkards as a class, their heads and their hearts will bear an advantageous comparison with those of any other class. There seems ever to have been a proneness in the brilliant and warm-blooded to fall into this vice.
Abraham Lincoln


just a reminder that we can be talented,
caring and intelligent folks drawn to a life
of excess.

i'm sure none of us ever intended or wanted
to become addicted, but the fact remains
that at some point we did.

for those who make that admission and
seek recovery, it's not always easy to
come to terms with the permanence and
irreversibility of alcoholism.

for me it was very difficult to make that
admission, being certain i could somehow
control or moderate my use.

it took numerous attempts and failures
to finally realize there was no going back.

sure i still miss what drinking once was;
but i don't miss what it became.







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Sunday, June 15, 2008

father's day


couldn't resist this one!
reminds me of father's day 2
years ago, when we took my
dad to dinner at zia marias.

along with steph & keith, deb,
and erin, it cost me over $100
to celebrate father's day!
lucky me.

no word from my son, who left
here after a year stay.
some friction developed between
him & deb, and my guess is, a
resentment started against me.

happy father's day to all the dads!


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Friday, June 13, 2008

words of wisdom


Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.

- Robert Louis Stevenson


'Character'
is doing the right thing when nobody's looking.

- J.C. Watts


Humility
does not mean you think less of yourself. It means you think of yourself
less.

- Ken Blanchard


All receive advice. Only the wise profit from it.

- Syrus


We either
make ourselves happy or miserable. The amount of work is the same.

- Carlos Castaneda


A sorrow
shared is half a sorrow, a joy shared is twice a joy.

- Unknown


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Thursday, June 12, 2008

a friend

some words to share,
thoughts to ponder.

knowing there's always
someone who will listen

having one is a gift
that always gives

they ask for nothing
in return

a reminder that,
the best things in life,
aren't things







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Tuesday, June 10, 2008

women and addiction



According to the book "Women Under the Influence,"
which is an exhaustive 10-year analysis of substance abuse among girls
and women, girls and young women are likelier than boys and young men
to abuse substances in order to lose weight, relieve stress or boredom,
improve their mood, reduce sexual inhibitions, self-medicate
depression, and increase confidence.


Women in substance abuse treatment are more than five times likelier
than men (69 percent vs. 12 percent) to have been sexually abused as
children and girls and women are likelier than men to suffer eating
disorders, both of which are major risk factors for substance abuse,
CASA reports.


Women studied by CASA were more likely than men to say their heavy
drinking followed a crisis, such as miscarriage, divorce, unemployment
or recent departure of a child from the home.


Older women are likelier than older men to self-medicate with alcohol
and prescription drugs in order to deal with loneliness, financial
insecurity or loss of a spouse.

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Monday, June 9, 2008

no excuses



never an excuse,
a reason,
or season.

to pick up a drink or drug.

has anyone else blamed some bad news, or a fight
with spouse or co-worker, and used it as an excuse to drink?
you know the mindset; i'll show you, and hurt me!

it is fairly common to rationalize and feel almost
"entitled" to relapse, after being wronged.
looking at it now, I can see the warped logic,
and "king baby" attitude that surfaced when
things didn't go my way.

sure there was always an initial respite provided
by intoxication, but the ultimate price was never
worth it.

dealing with life in recovery is challenging, even
frustrating at times, but considering the alternative
method of escape and stifling of emotions, the rewards
far outweigh the quick-fix.




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Saturday, June 7, 2008

speaker commitment



while not one of my favorite formats,
I committed myself to speaking at a meeting
this past week.

I tend to think outside the box, and cause some
old timers to wince and whisper.

viewing addiction as a complex issue, I urge
people to address every aspect of their lives.
when i state that AA might not be the only
solution for all, there seems to be as many
folks nodding in agreement, as there are frowning.

the message I'm trying to convey, is that addiction
is a powerful force, resistant to treatment and
difficult to control.

sure meetings, sponsors, a higher power and step
work are valuable, continued sobriety many
times requires additional mental or emotional help.

an item I tend to stress is patience;
so often I would allow my physical well being
tell me I was all better, but never gave my mind
enough time to really heal.

there is no quick fix or shortcut to recovery;
it's all about patience, tolerance and acceptance.







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Thursday, June 5, 2008

acceptance


“Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her:
but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide,
how to play the cards in order to win the game.”
Voltaire

there are things to accept,
and those that we shape.

while we can ask for advice,
the final choice is ours.

not that winning is always the goal;
but success is preferred over failure.

the cards today are simpler to play,
than in the time while drinking.





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Wednesday, June 4, 2008

recovery from oil dependance




The Twelve Steps:

1. Stop deluding ourselves. The era of cheap, readily-available oil
has ended. Prices may fluctuate, but the underlying trend is up, up,
up. We have to get used to using less.


2. Demand that politicians take the issue seriously. Make it an
election issue. Don’t take ‘we’ve got everything under control’ as an
answer.


3. Stop building new roads. They’re a monumental waste of money,
time and effort. They encourage, rather than ease, congestion, and
besides, the growth in car travel that’s used to justify them isn’t
going to happen anyway.


4. Divert that money and effort into measures that address the challenges of oil depletion and climate change.


5. Make a major investment in public transport. It needs to be
better, faster, more comfortable, more regular, and more predictable.
It needs to cater for everyone, not just peak-hour commuters — though
they need a better service as well.


6. Make a major investment in broadband internet to allow more
people to work from home, and change tax and business practices that
discourage working from home. The more car trips we can avoid, the
better.


7. Electrify transport where possible. New Zealand is well placed to
use renewable electricity for transport. We should be electrifying
commuter rail where it is not already electric, using light rail
(trams) in cities, and looking at electrification of the main trunk
line. On the other end of the scale, electric bikes and scooters can
make a big difference in our cities. And electric cars show promise,
though there’s a lot of questions to be answered yet.


8. Don’t use cars unless there’s no alternative. Take the bus. Take
the train. Switch to a scooter. Walk or cycle – both your wallet and
your doctor will thank you.


9. Deal with other aspects of our oil dependence. Agriculture, for
example, is highly dependent on oil. We’re going to need to change the
way we grow and distribute food. Let’s get to work on that now, not
wait until supermarket shelves start to empty.


10. Stockpile or manufacture vital products currently imported from
overseas. When oil runs short, will that still be possible? Let’s take
stock now and work out what we may need to start stockpiling or making
in New Zealand.


11. Think local. Ending our oil addiction isn’t just up to central
government, though it can play its part. Communities can work together
to make themselves more resilient. Join or start a Transition Towns
group in your local area.


12. Accept reality. The age of cheap oil is over. It’s not coming back. As individuals and as a nation, we have to adapt.




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Tuesday, June 3, 2008

news for pot smokers



Published in this month's Archives of General Psychiatry, the study found that the hippocampus and amygdala were smaller in men who were heavy marijuana users compared to non-users.

The study looked at 15 men heavy marijuana users, who had smoked at least five marijuana cigarettes daily for on average of 20 years.

Brain scans showed that on average their hippocampus volume was 12% less and amygdala volume was 7% less than in the 16 men who were not marijuana users.

The hippocampus regulates memory and emotion, while the amygdala plays a critical role in fear and aggression.

"These findings challenge the widespread perception of cannabis as having limited or no harmful effects on (the) brain and behaviour," says Dr Murat Yucel of ORYGEN Research Centre and the University of Melbourne, who led the study.


so much for the so-called harmless nature of marijuana.
not to mention the cumulative effects of the carcinogens
present in the inhaled smoke.
while still considered by many to be the least harmful
of drugs, long term use comes with consequences.


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Monday, June 2, 2008

live the day

All is well, right here, right now.
- Peace begins with a conscious choice.
- Today I embrace simplicity, peace and solace.
- A peaceful heart makes for a peaceful life.
- I trust the universe to deliver my highest good in every situation.
- By becoming peace, I create peace in every experience.
- I am filled with the light of love, peace and joy.
- Peace comes when I let go of trying to control every tiny detail.
- Where peace dwells, fear cannot.
- Today my mission is to surrender and release.

words to live by;
wisdom to ponder,
faith to cherish,
freedom to enjoy


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