Look up weekender thread October 2
Giving up is NOT an option.
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 7,808
Still find it a challenge to look up and look people in the eye. Years and years of habit to break. Like most of my life! Even as a child I was self-conscious and so shy. I guess a big reason I drank was in order to come out of my shell a bit. I'm less shy and self-conscious now, but it's a work in progress.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 9,029
Congratulations on one year Mark! That's great!
I'm in for another sober weekend. Thanks Ken for all you do.
Congrats, Olive, on shotgun. That's great and you must have pulled an all nighter.
Bernie I hate small talk too. I always feel so awkward and look at my friends who handle it with ease with admiration. If you remember one thing about the person, start out with that. Kids and pets are always good starters.
I have 22 months today. I feel like I've been stumbling lately and not on as firm a footing as I was six months ago but I'm still here. Thanks to you all. I'll be around.
I'm in for another sober weekend. Thanks Ken for all you do.
Congrats, Olive, on shotgun. That's great and you must have pulled an all nighter.
Bernie I hate small talk too. I always feel so awkward and look at my friends who handle it with ease with admiration. If you remember one thing about the person, start out with that. Kids and pets are always good starters.
I have 22 months today. I feel like I've been stumbling lately and not on as firm a footing as I was six months ago but I'm still here. Thanks to you all. I'll be around.
Member
Join Date: May 2014
Location: usa
Posts: 3,938
I'm in for another sober weekend.
Congratulations mark on one year-
Congratulations Ruby on 22 months-
big accomplishments-lots of hard work there-
I'm sitting here drinking my coffee-hopefully the caffeine will kick in soon and I can get on with this day. Happy October.
see you all later -
Congratulations mark on one year-
Congratulations Ruby on 22 months-
big accomplishments-lots of hard work there-
I'm sitting here drinking my coffee-hopefully the caffeine will kick in soon and I can get on with this day. Happy October.
see you all later -
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 25,373
Congrats to Mark on one year. That's outstanding!
Looking up.
Things are looking up for me. We were dismissed from jury duty today. I didn't even have to get dressed, just called in.
I may be the opposite of not able to do small talk. But when I was drinking there was a lot of shame, secret shame, which is the worst because the only person who I was hurting was myself. Well, I guess that's true of all shame. It's an inside job.
Funny thing. I stopped to talk to one of the HOA Board Members on the way out to my walk yesterday. He's a drinker and a smoker and we don't allow smoking on the patios or lawn so he walks to the edge of the property with a beer and a smoke every afternoon. I was talking about HOA stuff, and I was trying to look him in the eye but he had a booger hanging from his nose, and I just couldn't look at him for more than two or three seconds. I had to walk away quickly, because I felt weird for not talking to him. I was talking to the trees.
Looking up.
Things are looking up for me. We were dismissed from jury duty today. I didn't even have to get dressed, just called in.
I may be the opposite of not able to do small talk. But when I was drinking there was a lot of shame, secret shame, which is the worst because the only person who I was hurting was myself. Well, I guess that's true of all shame. It's an inside job.
Funny thing. I stopped to talk to one of the HOA Board Members on the way out to my walk yesterday. He's a drinker and a smoker and we don't allow smoking on the patios or lawn so he walks to the edge of the property with a beer and a smoke every afternoon. I was talking about HOA stuff, and I was trying to look him in the eye but he had a booger hanging from his nose, and I just couldn't look at him for more than two or three seconds. I had to walk away quickly, because I felt weird for not talking to him. I was talking to the trees.
Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 3,010
I meant to say thank you for another thought provoking thread.
Nope, I never looked people in the eye. I despised myself. And it is very hard to live any kind of normal life when you hated myself as much as I did.
But I've changed. I didn't realise that people had picked up on that until I went to an aftercare meeting a few months ago. After I spoke, one of the regulars came over to me and said "you've changed. You are now looking at people in the eyes when you're speaking to them, and I'm so proud of you". My new life feels amazing!
On a different topic, this lemon and ginger tea I bought yesterday is delicious, and good for my cold as well. I've been enjoying trying out different teas.
Nope, I never looked people in the eye. I despised myself. And it is very hard to live any kind of normal life when you hated myself as much as I did.
But I've changed. I didn't realise that people had picked up on that until I went to an aftercare meeting a few months ago. After I spoke, one of the regulars came over to me and said "you've changed. You are now looking at people in the eyes when you're speaking to them, and I'm so proud of you". My new life feels amazing!
On a different topic, this lemon and ginger tea I bought yesterday is delicious, and good for my cold as well. I've been enjoying trying out different teas.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 6,831
My SR class is keen on teas....lots of sophisticated varieties. Here in the South 'tea' generally means iced sweet tea ( which I've never liked ). The lemon ginger sounds pretty good to me, especially as the weather finally and mercifully begins to cool.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Colorado
Posts: 3,474
Yowzah ~
Congrats to Ruby, Mark & Olive!
All I've done thus far is roll over, and read LBrain's Dream of playing Polynesian Pearl Diver, Caucasian-style. Who needs Adulterants when you're already having Dreams like that one? Funny stuff! For us Fisherpersons, diving under a Boat to ensure snagging a Trout is no great sacrifice.
After brewing up my usual Industrial Strength Coffee, I could see a good Sunrise in the making; given the Cloud cover. See it below.
Yesterday was a partial cleaning out of the jammed Garage so that Da Wife's lil SUV could fit in. Mission Accomplished. This determined today's activities, which will be running plenty of flattened Cardboard Boxes to Recycling a few Towns over. Then, Himalayan Lunch Buffet at our fav Family-run Joint. The very beefy Ramp I designed/built to bridge the ~1.5' elevation differential from Gravel/Dirt to the Garage Door held just fine, fortunately. There was no way to level this Modular Building, and install it down to Grade at installation a few years ago. So, a Ramp it was; modeled after your typical massive Wooden Country Bridge.
She's working up her Shopping List for Target. I got mine for Home Despot. I'm gonna use Chain Link Fence Poles & Clamps for the Gate-end of my Internet Antenna Link Project; a trick I learned from the Solar Panel Guys. Adjustable, stout, Galvanized Hardware. Then, snag a new Battery for the Uninterruptible Power Supply I'm recycling to ensure the House-side Antenna and Wireless Router never go down in a Power glitch. No Power Outage = no Router Reset. Happy Wife is the result.
She got her glitchy iPhone updated yesterday at the Verizon Store, and is now a Happier Camper. 24/7 InterWeb connectivity will be peak for her once this Wireless Link Project from House to Gate/DSL Phone Box is done.
This ongoing Sunrise reminded me of the U.S. version of the Rhyme discussed here recently:
Red Sky in Morning
Sailors take warning
Red Sky at Night
Sailor's delight
.
Congrats to Ruby, Mark & Olive!
All I've done thus far is roll over, and read LBrain's Dream of playing Polynesian Pearl Diver, Caucasian-style. Who needs Adulterants when you're already having Dreams like that one? Funny stuff! For us Fisherpersons, diving under a Boat to ensure snagging a Trout is no great sacrifice.
After brewing up my usual Industrial Strength Coffee, I could see a good Sunrise in the making; given the Cloud cover. See it below.
Yesterday was a partial cleaning out of the jammed Garage so that Da Wife's lil SUV could fit in. Mission Accomplished. This determined today's activities, which will be running plenty of flattened Cardboard Boxes to Recycling a few Towns over. Then, Himalayan Lunch Buffet at our fav Family-run Joint. The very beefy Ramp I designed/built to bridge the ~1.5' elevation differential from Gravel/Dirt to the Garage Door held just fine, fortunately. There was no way to level this Modular Building, and install it down to Grade at installation a few years ago. So, a Ramp it was; modeled after your typical massive Wooden Country Bridge.
She's working up her Shopping List for Target. I got mine for Home Despot. I'm gonna use Chain Link Fence Poles & Clamps for the Gate-end of my Internet Antenna Link Project; a trick I learned from the Solar Panel Guys. Adjustable, stout, Galvanized Hardware. Then, snag a new Battery for the Uninterruptible Power Supply I'm recycling to ensure the House-side Antenna and Wireless Router never go down in a Power glitch. No Power Outage = no Router Reset. Happy Wife is the result.
She got her glitchy iPhone updated yesterday at the Verizon Store, and is now a Happier Camper. 24/7 InterWeb connectivity will be peak for her once this Wireless Link Project from House to Gate/DSL Phone Box is done.
This ongoing Sunrise reminded me of the U.S. version of the Rhyme discussed here recently:
Red Sky in Morning
Sailors take warning
Red Sky at Night
Sailor's delight
.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 9,029
Lemon and ginger tea does sound good, Tetra. I hope you feel better soon.
Today is beautiful! I love October too. The clouds look like big puffy cotton balls. Like clouds that kids draw.
There's a house I see when I drive to work. It sits isolated on a corner on a block where most of the houses have been torn down. It was a quiet faded blue and I posted a pic on here a while back. I guess I am a looker. I see things so I do look around. Well about a month ago I drove by that house and it had been transformed over the weekend to a screaming jolting purple. What the EFF?! I just read an article in the paper about the woman responsible for the purple. She's doing it as a project. She's an architect and artist and is doing it to draw attention to the blighted neighborhood by painting some vacant houses in colors associated with things she recalls from growing up like aqua for Newport menthol cigarette boxes, yellow for currency exchanges and purple for Crown Royal packaging. I don't like the jarring purple any better but I'm understanding more the thought behind it.
Anyway, at work. Talk to you later.
Today is beautiful! I love October too. The clouds look like big puffy cotton balls. Like clouds that kids draw.
There's a house I see when I drive to work. It sits isolated on a corner on a block where most of the houses have been torn down. It was a quiet faded blue and I posted a pic on here a while back. I guess I am a looker. I see things so I do look around. Well about a month ago I drove by that house and it had been transformed over the weekend to a screaming jolting purple. What the EFF?! I just read an article in the paper about the woman responsible for the purple. She's doing it as a project. She's an architect and artist and is doing it to draw attention to the blighted neighborhood by painting some vacant houses in colors associated with things she recalls from growing up like aqua for Newport menthol cigarette boxes, yellow for currency exchanges and purple for Crown Royal packaging. I don't like the jarring purple any better but I'm understanding more the thought behind it.
Anyway, at work. Talk to you later.
saoutchik
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: London
Posts: 16,199
Congratulations on 2 months Ruby!
Congratulations on a year Mark!
Congratulations Olive!
Thanks for the thoughtful thread Ken
Every October in th UK there is a charity push called Stoptober whereby people are encouraged to stop drinking for a month and donate money to charity I signed up hoping it would give me the extra incentive to quit for good. I only made 17 days before boozing again. On top of this I lied (or at least didn't own up) to daughters, friends and people at work. I definitely had problems looking people in the eye for a long time afterwards. I went out with friends on 1st Nov to "celebrate" our month. What a hypocrite
This year I haven't volunteered venue though I will not be drinking under any circumstances - these events are a really good idea but not for alcoholics. I gave the charity their money so it was only myself I was cheating
Cheating death in a slightly different way by standing in the road to photograph St Olaf's
I suspect this may come out sideways, let's see...
Congratulations on a year Mark!
Congratulations Olive!
Thanks for the thoughtful thread Ken
Every October in th UK there is a charity push called Stoptober whereby people are encouraged to stop drinking for a month and donate money to charity I signed up hoping it would give me the extra incentive to quit for good. I only made 17 days before boozing again. On top of this I lied (or at least didn't own up) to daughters, friends and people at work. I definitely had problems looking people in the eye for a long time afterwards. I went out with friends on 1st Nov to "celebrate" our month. What a hypocrite
This year I haven't volunteered venue though I will not be drinking under any circumstances - these events are a really good idea but not for alcoholics. I gave the charity their money so it was only myself I was cheating
Cheating death in a slightly different way by standing in the road to photograph St Olaf's
I suspect this may come out sideways, let's see...
Member
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Athens, GA
Posts: 737
I'm on! Probably riding quietly in the back as usual as I can't keep up with group conversations. I do drop in between daydreams once in a while to listen and y'all always crack me up!
Great topic Ken, I do find it getting a little easier to make that initial connection with people now.
I used to be so ashamed of myself. The worst was trying to speak without exhaling a cloud of beer breath...to the clerk at the grocery store...in the middle of the day.
Thank God that's over!!
Happy weekend everyone!
Great topic Ken, I do find it getting a little easier to make that initial connection with people now.
I used to be so ashamed of myself. The worst was trying to speak without exhaling a cloud of beer breath...to the clerk at the grocery store...in the middle of the day.
Thank God that's over!!
Happy weekend everyone!
Giving up is NOT an option.
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 7,808
I can definitely relate to the embarrassment of smelling like booze or at least the fear of it. I'd do my business quickly, trying to say nothing and make no eye contact. I remember drinking in the afternoon/early evening, then stopping at the store on the way home, terrified I'd be perceived as drunk and having someone call the cops to catch me getting into my car. I got DUI's anyway, with no help from anyone. Thank goodness those days are over.
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