Welcome back, D! Glad your vax was all you hoped it would be. Great reward! I'm psyching up for a trip, myself. 5-days in Savannah, GA w/15 girl scouts. Should be nice and humid this time of year. And, looking at our itinerary, I'm not sure what I was thinking when I agreed to do this. Thank goodness I'm pretty secure in my quit at this point. Of course, there isn't a spare moment in this time-budget that I could sneak away, even if I wanted to! Anyway, wish me luck. It was great seeing your name this morning. Cold Turkeys melt in the heat. Mc [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 8/31/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 309 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 4,639 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1236 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 30 [B]Hrs:[/B] 2 [B]Mins:[/B] 12 [B]Seconds:[/B] 15

Hello all. Not much action in the Chewers and Dippers Corner :( so I thought I'd just check in. Just got back from a week off of work up in Portland, OR. I decided this trip was my 1 year reward and splurged a little more than I would've otherwise. ;) Never did go with the tent idea, the wife decided she's tired of tents and would rather we invest the money in a camper trailer. We took the kids to the zoo, and OMSI science center up there, checked out the Portland Test Rose Garden, which was absolutely beautiful and I recommend for anyone paying Portland a visit. You would never know that you were smack dab in the middle of a bustling city when you're there. We had a great time. Anyway, how's everyone else? Hope all is going well. Take care! Infinite_D [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/21/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 410 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 8,630 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $451 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 53 [B]Hrs:[/B] 3 [B]Mins:[/B] 25 [B]Seconds:[/B] 18

Shevie, Yes, I agree. I think you are right about the "your time" or, "right time" part of quitting. It sure does help to be ready. I guess he just wasn't quite ready. But, he's shown himself that he can do it. He started up again because he thinks he's under too much stress. Remember those issues I told you about with my current employer with things being up in the air? Well, the situation is still basically unchanged, although things have settled down some, the current owner sitll wants to sell. My manager plans to quit when the current owner sells, rather than trying to adjust to a new owner, or whatever happens. I will probably take that opportunity to move on as well, chances are. I've just decided, for the time being, that I will just sit tight and try to ride it out until the owner makes his decision on "when". That's probably the hardest part is just not knowing when he's going to drop the bomb. Maybe if we had a date that would make it somewhat easier. Anyway, how's the drums working out? :) Hope you're enjoying them to the max, as well as your neighbors! :eg: [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/21/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 414 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 8,707 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $455.4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 53 [B]Hrs:[/B] 14 [B]Mins:[/B] 48 [B]Seconds:[/B] 27

Hello all. Good hearing from you as well, Mc, as well as everyone else! Thanks ladybugg, your numbers are looking quite well, too! It's great to see so many success stories! ;) Mc - never been to Georgia before, but it sounds interesting! Especially with 15 girl scouts to keep track of. Here's wishing you the best on your trip. Hope you have a great time even though your itinerary is packed. I know what you mean about the heat and humidity - it really takes some getting used to. We visited Florida a few years back and that was one of the big things I remember having to adjust to. Thank you for the compliment, Josie! :) I must say, it just feels GREAT being tobacco free. I haven't had to run to the store to buy a can for myself in over a year. Hard to believe. In response to the things that helped me personally in giving up the dip, this is basically what I did: the first thing I remember doing was making a conscious effort to reduce the frequency and size of dips that I took during the day. I did this for a short period of time before my actual quit attempt. I failed a time or two before making the extended run that I'm on now. Actually, before this quit attempt, I had failed several times before that. After I made the decision to quit dipping, I used NRT gum. I started out following package directions, and ultimately got to the point where I was able to cut one piece of the nic. gum in half, and then quarters, and then give it up all together. This seemed to help me. After this, for some reason there was still the "oral fixation" where you're so used to having a wad of tobacco in between cheek and gum, that it just feels like something is missing. I solved this problem with herbal (nicotine and tobacco free) snuff, sunflower seeds and regular chewing gum, which basically helped serve as a pacifier until I no longer felt the need. I still like to munch on sunflower seeds now and then, but I rarely use the herbal snuff anymore. Other than those aids, I leaned on the support here at the SSC, and kept a strong desire to succeed and not give in to temptation. Everyone knows the first two weeks seem to be the most difficult, and that's most assuredly true, but I think it took me a good 3 months before I really started to feel better.

Hi, Infinite. Thanks for the info on the rose garden. Sounds interesting and I'm sure my wife would be interested, her being a florist at heart. Next time we're up that way we'll check it out. Sorry to hear about your manager. Guess it just isn't his time yet. From what I've learned and seen here and elswhere, it being your time is important. By that I mean you have to have the desire to quit deep inside you. The deeper it is, the easier the quit. Of course, one can get it after they actually quit, but they have a rough road until that happens. But the seed is planted and he's had a taste of being tobacco-free. Now he just needs to get to the point where he'll try again. That's a path he must travel internally, just like you (and all of us) did. Just let him know you believe he can when he wants to and you'll help as he needs when the time comes. Shevie [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/23/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 412 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 8,251 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1565.6 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 76 [B]Hrs:[/B] 21 [B]Mins:[/B] 49 [B]Seconds:[/B] 36

LOL, Infinite. :) Yes, I'm enjoying the drums and so far I guess the neighbors are, too. At least they haven't complained, but then I've complied with noise ordinances :eg:. You know, I haven't forgotten the issue with the sale of the company, but for some reason I never made the stress connection to your manager. I often miss obvious connections like that (duh). I can imagine not knowing when in a situation like that is a real killer. But then even when you do know "when", there's still the issue of stay or go, and all the related issues they each carry. Until we win the Power Ball, there will always be stress. Actually, having + $1 mil would have it's own type of stress, too. {sigh} Take care, my friend. :) Shevie [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/23/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 413 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 8,262 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1569.4 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 77 [B]Hrs:[/B] 0 [B]Mins:[/B] 19 [B]Seconds:[/B] 40

Hi, Infinite! Good to hear from you, buddy. :) Sounds like you had a great vacation. Sure wish I had know about the rose garden when I was visiting Beaverton many years ago (assuming it was there then). It would have made for a nice break from business. 410 days is looking mighty good. Sure wish we could get more activity in this group. Oh, well. At least you're here. How's your mananager coming along? Good to hear from you, Infinite. Keep up the good quit (like I need to say that ;)). Shevie [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 5/23/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 409 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 8,189 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $1554.2 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 76 [B]Hrs:[/B] 8 [B]Mins:[/B] 2 [B]Seconds:[/B] 2

Hey Infinite! Looking good there with your 410 days! Very nice reward! :) [color=Purple]~lbugg~[/color] [B]My Milage:[/B] [B]My Quit Date: [/B] 3/17/2005 [B]Smoke-Free Days:[/B] 476 [B]Cigarettes Not Smoked:[/B] 25,235 [B]Amount Saved:[/B] $3141.6 [B]Life Gained:[/B] [B]Days:[/B] 46 [B]Hrs:[/B] 9 [B]Mins:[/B] 7 [B]Seconds:[/B] 42

Infinite, Thanks for checking in! Your stats are looking amazing :) Congratulations on such great success and please share with us some of your tips and tools that helped you get through. Your trip was a great way to validate your quit! Keep Strong, Josie _____________________ The SSC Support Team.