Forwards

Well I made it folks - 8 months AF today!

I must admit I was feeling quite nervous yesterday. We visited a local sailing festival and ended up sitting at the harbourside barbeque bar where everyone else seemed to be drinking. No tea served unfortunately but I was quite happy with a coke...

So how am I doing? This thread has come at just the right time to reflect...

Physically I'm healthier and fitter, financially I'm wealthier, career and study wise I'm advancing well. This has only been possible by following my recovery plan daily even when I didn't want to. I have received a tremendous amount of support from my mental health team, my alcohol counsellors and of course SR - thank you all.

I'm still trying to learn what recovery really means - I think it is only possible to discover this by practising it over time. What I'm now looking to discover are the further 'emergent results' of all this work. What might I hope these to be? Rock solid sobriety for a start, maybe a little more contentment in everyday life, perhaps a clearer path and vision for the future, the list goes on...

Of course there is still the not so great stuff to consider. I'm still sticking my head in the sand over past obligations, contacts and friends that have fallen away over the last twenty years. Addressing them seems a bit overwhelming but I need to start chipping away at making amends and righting wrongs somehow. I'm still looking to get my own way too often with less than due regard for others feelings. I'm still lacking humility. There are still resentments that need work.

Tonight though, I'm finding numerous things to be grateful for. 18 months ago I was on the point of dying from alcoholism. Now, though still not at my full strength, I can work on my future and aim to protect and nurture my sobriety and recovery at all costs.

Thank you all again. Forwards.

MesaMan

.
Sober Saturday Sunrise below...

WHICH, led to a hot one today. 98 F [37 C] down on the Highway in that Valley. So, me and MesaDog and the A/C are all chillin' at Home now while MesaMate hit an Arts & Agriculture Fair with a Gal Pal. I prepped all the fixins for Shrimp Tacos to whip up before the Resident Jockette watches Michigan University Football on the Tube later.

It was All Chores All The Time this Morning. I swapped a Motion-sensing Light from a back Door to the Porch. Nice to be all Sober up on a Ladder these Days. Un-stopped the Master Bath Sink. Hauled in some stuff from the Freezer in an Outbuilding. Put License Plates got yesterday on my new Truck WHICH are priced by weight [heavy] and age [new]. A stunning $985-! Yowzah Bowzah. Fun costs Money. I hung around to get assigned Plates with memorable Letters/Numbers, so my Inner OCD is all happy. I wanted some Plates easy to remember when checking in at RV Parks or - more likely - while wandering aimlessly around huge Store Parking Lots.

I got a good chuckle out of the Caravan adjacent to VMan, and searched for an assortment of Homemade RVs to provide Folks here distraction. Distraction rocks it in Early Sobriety, and I'm still into it. Stay with us, New Kids. SR's full of *Givers* help clean your Livers! By providing Week-long Support, that is.

EDIT: I just saw the Post from Forwards. Now, THAT'S what I'm talkin' about! Congrats...

~ Homemade RV Pictures ~

Pouncer

Checking in this weekend. Hoping to get right back on the sober train and move forward after a relapse.

mariposa

Trojanhorse

Congratulations Forwards, great stuff. You are an inspiration to us all.

Thanks for posting.

theVman31

Morning all.

Congratulations Forwards

Nice to see you Trach

Howdy to all the weekenders

One last day of the Atlantic before heading back inland and home.

theVman31

Welcome back to the sober life Pouncer and welcome to the weekender thread.
Good to have you aboard.

Mags1

Hiya Weekenders

Congratulations Forwards 8 months that’s brilliant!

MesaMan great photo and post.

Welcome Pouncer

Sunday morning with a thick head, just grateful it isn’t through booze.!

A lot colder this morning 9C (48.2F) but the sun is shining!

Have a good sober Sunday folks.

saoutchik

53 weeks, methinks that's a year. (see how on the ball I am without a hangover) Congratulations on one year sober Trach, that's fantastic. I know just how hard you have worked to get there, very well done. I doth my cowl at thee.

Congratulations to you too on 8 months Forwards! I wouldn't sweat it yet about contacting old friends or acquaintances, my experience was that in some cases the timing suggested itself.

Welcome to Weekenders Pouncer! Great to have you back.

saoutchik

Those are neat RV pics MesaMan. Nerdster here noticed that the front end of the one below is an Oldsmobile Toronado which in a way is a shame as they are something of a classic these days. The reason I noticed it is that back in the early 1980s myself and a friend flew to Florida on what was then the first budget transatlantic airline. Prior to then America had been out of reach to ordinary Brits. At my insistance we hired a Toronado which back then was just an old (therefore cheap) hire - in a sort of yellow/gold colour, I have some photos in storage somewhere. What I did not know was that unusually they are front wheel drive. I found this out when the wheels sunk into a soft verge in an unmade lot outside a bar after a downpour. I discovered just how friendly Americans can be when 7 or 8 of them helped pull it out in the rain (it is a two tonner)

saoutchik

Here is aToronado in the same colour as the one we hired - though not the actual one we hired - this one is in much better condition. Cool or what?

Kaily

Congratulations!

And to you forwards.

Hi everyone

Rose335

Congratulations to Forward and trachemys. Definitely the way to do it! I love that photo, MesaMan. Imagine having that view to look out on each morning. Quite something.

codingsober

Tetrax

Well done everyone staying sober through this weekend. For me it's been one of the toughest mental battles I've yet faced on my sober journey, but today my resolve is even stronger. I awoke with some low-level anxiety which just served to help me think how much worse the sheer, terrifying panic of the drinking life would be, were I ever to open that door again.

I went to an AA meeting last night and it was good to hear so many people doing well. Today I look forward to a stress-relieving run after taking two days off.

Happy Sunday.

STDragon

Congrats Trach! Whatcha been up to? how about an update?

ManInTheArena

This weekender thread is really great - I'll have to stop by more often

I'll second the congrats to Trach and Forwards - awesome accomplishments!!

Welcome to Sunday - soon we will have professional football

Trojanhorse

Wishing everyone a clean Sunday. ManInTheArena I love the NFL as well, but we have CFL up here which is a great game too. Going to watch a game today, going to get myself a nasty hotdog and a whole jug of diet pepsi.

Tkr

biminiblue

Sao, my mom had a 1969 (I think) green Toronado. I thought it was ugly. It was big, though! I liked the front grill. I thought it had pop up headlights, but I can't find an image of one so maybe they were behind that grill. Power steering. She went from a VW Beetle to that thing, I liked the Beetle. That was a huge difference.

saoutchik

You have a good memory bim, early Toronado's had pop up headlights, ours did and if you look closely so does the one in that photo. They also had front wheel drive which was almost unheard of for 1960s Detroit which is how I managed to lose traction in that car park. (that's my story and i'm sticking to it) You're also correct in saying they are big, they are 'YUGE! You could land a helicopter on the hood. Unusually though for such a collosaI land yacht the first generation models look really good - all the lines and proportions seem to work just right, unlike many similar sized cars. As a twenty something who was only used to driving small European and Japanese cars, climbing into a car with a V8 engine of 7.5litres (455cu if you prefer) was a blast.