Class of October 2013 - Part 7
JL... You're not a whiner. You are a husband and father doing what you need to do for your family. Sometimes the problems can feel overwhelming and, like you stated, alcohol is an all too convenient escape. But as you mentioned, the problems are still there, so what was accomplished by drinking?
You have my respect. Keep posting and sharing. Don't feel like you have to do this alone.
You have my respect. Keep posting and sharing. Don't feel like you have to do this alone.
Sorry for being out of pocket most of this weekend. I have been following most of the posts, however, but I have missed a few. I'll need to go back and catch up!
All this talk about dismal warm Chirstmas's needs to stop. It's snowing AGAIN! I grew up in Arizona and have had a warm Christmas many times. I'll switch with anyone. Anyone? Any takers?
When living alone, I would travel home (approx. 2000 miles) for the holidays and things were always a little drab in my home prior to leaving. I finally learned to do a little decorating and put on some Christmas music to get me in the mood. Not wanting to purchase a tree, I had a cactus that I would decorate. Odd, but it worked every time ... although you had to be careful when removing the garland ... ouch. If you're in a Holiday Funk ... start acting like you're in the spirit ... decorate, sing, bake cookies ... whatever it takes.
I'm looking forward to catching up on everyone's posts. Let's rock this week!
Question of the Day: What is your favorite holiday cookie or other baked treat?
Mine ... I like what I think are called Magic Bars ... nothing but chocolate/coconut/and a bunch-of-other-stuff goodness.
All this talk about dismal warm Chirstmas's needs to stop. It's snowing AGAIN! I grew up in Arizona and have had a warm Christmas many times. I'll switch with anyone. Anyone? Any takers?
When living alone, I would travel home (approx. 2000 miles) for the holidays and things were always a little drab in my home prior to leaving. I finally learned to do a little decorating and put on some Christmas music to get me in the mood. Not wanting to purchase a tree, I had a cactus that I would decorate. Odd, but it worked every time ... although you had to be careful when removing the garland ... ouch. If you're in a Holiday Funk ... start acting like you're in the spirit ... decorate, sing, bake cookies ... whatever it takes.
I'm looking forward to catching up on everyone's posts. Let's rock this week!
Question of the Day: What is your favorite holiday cookie or other baked treat?
Mine ... I like what I think are called Magic Bars ... nothing but chocolate/coconut/and a bunch-of-other-stuff goodness.
Here's the skinny on Toll House chocolate chip cookies:
Creator of the Chocolate Chip Cookie
Ruth Graves Wakefield invented the Toll House brand of chocolate chip cookies.
She graduated from the Framingham State Normal School Department of Household Arts in 1924. She worked as a dietitian and lectured on food until 1930 when she and her husband bought a tourist lodge in Whitman, Massachusetts. The tourist lodge was named the Toll House Inn.
Ruth cooked and served all the food for the meals served to the guests at the Inn and gained local notoriety for her deserts. One day while making cookies, she realized she was out of an ingredient for the recipe she was using. She had run out of baker's chocolate, so she substituted it with a semisweet chocolate bar from Nestle. However, unlike the baker's chocolate, the chopped up chocolate bar did not melt and mix into the batter like Ruth thought it would. The small pieces of chocolate only softened and the chocolate chip cookie was born.
It turned out that the chocolate bar Ruth used in her cookie mix had been a gift from Andrew Nestle of the Nestle Chocolate Company. As the Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe became popular, sales of Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate bar increased. Ruth sold the chocolate chip cookie recipe to Andrew Nestle, who then provided her with a lifetime supply of Nestle chocolate.
Ruth Graves Wakefield invented the Toll House brand of chocolate chip cookies.
She graduated from the Framingham State Normal School Department of Household Arts in 1924. She worked as a dietitian and lectured on food until 1930 when she and her husband bought a tourist lodge in Whitman, Massachusetts. The tourist lodge was named the Toll House Inn.
Ruth cooked and served all the food for the meals served to the guests at the Inn and gained local notoriety for her deserts. One day while making cookies, she realized she was out of an ingredient for the recipe she was using. She had run out of baker's chocolate, so she substituted it with a semisweet chocolate bar from Nestle. However, unlike the baker's chocolate, the chopped up chocolate bar did not melt and mix into the batter like Ruth thought it would. The small pieces of chocolate only softened and the chocolate chip cookie was born.
It turned out that the chocolate bar Ruth used in her cookie mix had been a gift from Andrew Nestle of the Nestle Chocolate Company. As the Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe became popular, sales of Nestle's semi-sweet chocolate bar increased. Ruth sold the chocolate chip cookie recipe to Andrew Nestle, who then provided her with a lifetime supply of Nestle chocolate.
Good job, CD!! I remember many times having to physically recover from my trips and vacations. Oh, the irony!
Whodey, I love anything with peppermint (bark, cookies, cake pops, hot chocolate). I also love peanut butter pie (all year round)!
Whodey, I love anything with peppermint (bark, cookies, cake pops, hot chocolate). I also love peanut butter pie (all year round)!
Congrats to the parents (and offspring) who got the early acceptance letters. I work at a university, and know that they all needed to have that decision made last week.
Hoping that y'all will continue to hear good news!
Fishy
Hoping that y'all will continue to hear good news!
Fishy
Fishy's back. 'Tis been an up and down few weeks . . . lots of pressures/stresses. Not necessarily holidays-related, more a function of various academic calendars. Anyway, I need to reconnect with y'all! BTW, I heard last week that the first Christmas card (from sometime back in the 1800's) was criticized because it seemed to link Christmas with drinking! If true (and I've no reason to doubt it), then there are decades of inertia to overcome! Glad I'm back, Fishy
It's a shame we don't hear from Driver anymore. He was such an insightful and enthusiastic member of our group - I miss his encouragement at times! I hope he's just too busy with work and life.
After all of my 'screw-ups' this year I have realized that no matter how busy I am or how good I feel, I need this group to help keep me honest. Even if it's just a few minutes here and there, reading a few posts, and not posting much myself, the practice of taking time out to connect on some level with my alcoholism is essential for me to maintain sobriety. If you don't hear from me for an extended period, please track me down!
After all of my 'screw-ups' this year I have realized that no matter how busy I am or how good I feel, I need this group to help keep me honest. Even if it's just a few minutes here and there, reading a few posts, and not posting much myself, the practice of taking time out to connect on some level with my alcoholism is essential for me to maintain sobriety. If you don't hear from me for an extended period, please track me down!
After all of my 'screw-ups' this year I have realized that no matter how busy I am or how good I feel, I need this group to help keep me honest. Even if it's just a few minutes here and there, reading a few posts, and not posting much myself, the practice of taking time out to connect on some level with my alcoholism is essential for me to maintain sobriety. If you don't hear from me for an extended period, please track me down!
Recovering from trips is what literally did me in this year, DD. I had a 30hr trek back from Australia early in the year, completely hungover and withdrawing, sweating excessively in business class but still drinking to try and minimize the pain, arriving home essentially non-functional for another 24hrs or more, trying to pass it off as jet lag to my wife. All while trying to downplay the gash I incurred on my forehead after falling down stairs at 3am. It's a wonder I'm still around to talk about this crap I have put myself through.
It's a shame we don't hear from Driver anymore. He was such an insightful and enthusiastic member of our group - I miss his encouragement at times! I hope he's just too busy with work and life.
After all of my 'screw-ups' this year I have realized that no matter how busy I am or how good I feel, I need this group to help keep me honest. Even if it's just a few minutes here and there, reading a few posts, and not posting much myself, the practice of taking time out to connect on some level with my alcoholism is essential for me to maintain sobriety. If you don't hear from me for an extended period, please track me down!
After all of my 'screw-ups' this year I have realized that no matter how busy I am or how good I feel, I need this group to help keep me honest. Even if it's just a few minutes here and there, reading a few posts, and not posting much myself, the practice of taking time out to connect on some level with my alcoholism is essential for me to maintain sobriety. If you don't hear from me for an extended period, please track me down!
I haven't seen anything since around thanksgiving from folks like Driver, CTRL, Snipe, Insane Heart, etc. I hope they are all okay and just not needing SR any more.
Better than alcohol related!
DD - happy birthday. I've got 20 years on you. Wish I had come to sobriety that long ago. But it's never too late to start.
I've been keeping myself busy lately converting my parents old family slides to JPEG the last few days. It is weird seeing my young, innocent self : ) This will be time consuming but worth it, and not something I would have been into doing during my drinking days. I think I will be roped into doing my in laws slides, who we are visiting in West Palm Beach tomorrow.
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)