Patting myself on the back here. After MANY attempts in the last 25 years I am achieving something I thought I could never do. As of today, I am celebrating my 1 month anniversary of being "Smoke Free". For non-smokers this may not sound like much, but all smokers know how hard it is to quit. 4 more weeks in the program and hopefully I will be totally cured!!

BTW.......I need one BAD!!!!!!




[This message has been edited by Gravedigger (edited 02-26-2002).]

Keep up the Great Work, Digger... It will get easier down the road.

It has been over 10 years since I gave up smoking. That was after 42 years of smoking a least two packs a day and then the last 8 years of that 42 smoking a pipe and an ocassional cigarette.

We're proud of you, Digger. Keep those 'coffin nails' away from your mouth!

You da' Man!
- Bob

And tomorrow will be one month and 1 Day, and so on! Just look in the mirror and remind yourself what the little engine said..."I think I can, I think I can, I know I can, and I did" !!!!!!!

Congratulations! And now you can go for a walk, without puffing.....
Wanna run?????

That is just so great Digger...You can do it...Terry did it after 40+ years with the help of a heart transplant. You don't want that to be your reason for quiting now do you.

Ruthie

Great going Digger my son in law did it once for a year started again on the job but now has to quit.Bill O'Brien

Way to go Digger!!! Now you can save your cigarette money to spend on HL's.

All Right Digger!!!!

Way to go. That is a big milestone in kicking the habit. My dad was a three packs a day smoker aince he was a kid. He quit cold turkey. It was tough. Especially after 50+ years of smoking. Unfortunately he quit to late and died fo esophagial Cancer. The last 6 years of his life were smoke free. He couldn't believe how good food tasted after about a month.
Every time you get the urge, just think how many Harbour lights you could have bought over the years. And how many you can buy now.

Good luck, I'll be praying for you.

Dale

"Congratulations Steve" and keep up the good work.

I also used to smoke. One night I felt that if I could go for the entire night (while asleep) without smoking then why couldn't I go the entire day. I put my pack of Newport Lights (had to have the menthol) up in an old sugar bowl on the top shelf of the kitchen cabinets, along with my lighter.

That was April 1, 1980 and I haven't smoked since. I still have the pack with the three remaining cigarettes still in it. They are dry, yellow, brittle and nasty. I often tell this story to friends, and show them the old butts, when they are trying to quit. I usually end my story by telling them that "when" I go back to smoking these will be the first cigarettes I smoke.

Notice that I said "when" I go back to smoking. I don't plan on it but it is always better to know that the choice is with the individual. Sometimes it makes it alittle easier then saying I will "never" go back. I still have the choice, but choose NOT TO SMOKE.

Remember, you don't have to give up "all" cigarettes, you just have to give up the "next" cigarette.

I wish you continued success and as others have said, it gets easier with time.

Ron
(CT Keeper)

More Power to you! You've got more willpower then I do! I only wish I could do the same. But I can't, so I guess I'll smoke one for you. LOL

Good Luck at staying a non-smoker !!!

Stephanie

Congrats, Steve! You have gone 30 days, and now with all of us pulling for you, I know you will still be going stong when we next meet. And since you will have so much extra money, I'm going to let you buy.

Dave

Congrats Steve. January was two years for me. I still consider myself a smoker. I just haven't had one for two years. They never stop smelling good to me.

Hang in there and you'll make it.

Rich

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Digger,
My oldest daughter was 3 years old when I stopped smoking. She is now 36. Can't imagine ever going back to those Winston's. We are all pulling for your continued success.
Nana

[This message has been edited by Nana (edited 02-27-2002).]

Good boy, Digger!!!

I'm a non-smoker and never was one to begin with. My wife and kids are all non-smokers. My Dad quit smoking in 1960. He turned 85 on 2/2/02. My Mom was a heavy smoker and she died in 1980 at the age of 59. My grandfather on my mother's side smoked a pipe and cigars his whole life and he died at age 65. My grandmother on my mother's side didn't smoke. She lived to be 95. My grandmother on my Dad's side didn't smoke and she lived to be 78. I didn't know my Dad's father because he died when my Dad was in his early twenties. My mother's sister was a heavy smoker and she died when she was 60. My mother's other sister was a non-smoker and she is still kicking at age 82. And so on, and so on, and so on...

Sorry to be morbid but it's obvious that non-smokers, or those who successfully quit smoking, live longer than smokers. It's a personal choice only you can make. Take a look at your loved ones and ask yourself if you would like to be around for them for a very long time.

I'm proud of you Digger, and I know it isn't easy. I've watched several friends battle smoking addiction and some beat it, and then again, some didn't.

As that actor kept saying in the movie "The Waterboy", ...YOU CAN DO IT!!!

Bob

Hang in there Digger! I wanted to add my words of encouragement. I have always been a non-smoker but I know first hand the damage cigarettes do to your health. I've been a Respiratory Therapist for the past 33 years specializing in doing Pulmonary Function testing. So I can attest to the ravages of cigarettes on your health based on the thousands of tests that I have done over those years.

It isn't just the old people, there isn't a day that goes by that I don't come home & tell my husband about the 40 or 50 year old person with poor health, cardiac or respiratory that I saw that day.

Now I know the smokers love to say that non-smokers develop COPD & Lung cancer. I will tell you that out of every 100 people that develop those health problems, 99 were smokers.

I also learned over the years that the patient has to want to stop, all the lectures, nagging etc. don't work. I just present my facts & suggest that their health would be better in the long run if they tried to quit. But you have already made that important decision and I commend you for that. We all want you around fo a very long time creating your beautiful paintings!

Donna

Way to go Digger! Hang in there! Being a non-smoker, I don't know what you are going through, but it must be tough! Just like others are saying, take it one day at a time! Just think about painting instead! I'm still looking for that Split Rock!!! Rosemont!!! (HINT!) (LOL)

Way to go Digger! I stopped 12 years ago as a deal with my wife for our second child. My son will be 13 in Oct. and gets his Cub Scout Arrow of Light tomorrow. It is the best deal I ever made. The bad part is I still want one and I gained 100 lbs. I am working on losing the added weight, 20 lbs gone since Christmas and take each day as a winner that I don't smoke and a promise kept. I found JuJuBee's and gum drops helped when I wanted to smoke. Now you know where the 100lbs came from, I smoke a lot.

Chuck

Good luck it is worth the fight!

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bigdragon

Still going strong!! Haven't cheated once and really haven't missed smoking...yet. I get the occasional urges but they pass quickly. The real test will be when I muster up the courage to do my next painting. That is when I smoked the most.

I have to do it though. When my dog got hit I made a deal with him that if he walked again I would quit. Well, he did his part so I have to do mine.

Keep it up Digger! We wish you and your dog well!

I bet Becky likes it too!

Did any of you read "Dear Abby" in yesterday's paper? They had a couple of non-smokers/former smokers' letters and one comment made me laugh. The lady wrote about anti-smoking posters and thought they should show a cemetery with a large arch at the entrance. On the arch she thought they should put "Welcome to Marlboro Country".

I thought that was a great idea!

Bob

Keep it up Digger. The next time you want to climb to the top of a lighthouse it will be easier to do. Glad to hear about the update on your four footed son also.

I am sure Becky will love it in the future when you are painting. The smells of the paints will be a whole different experience.

2beacons

Congratulations, Digger. I know you can do it! You will feel even greater when you get the smell of stale smoke out of your house and out of your clothes and can smell really fresh air again.
You have a lot of friends rooting for you.
Hang in there !!!!!
JoanieO

Digger,

Today on the way back from Louisville, Heather had a really good laugh at an anti-smoking billboard that incorporated your occupation. It said something about "You think it is cool to smoke? Well, six feet below ground its always a cool 53 degrees ."

Hang in there!

Dave
[This message has been edited by Dave H (edited 03-03-2002).]

Congratulations Digger! Keep up the great work as it will pay off down the road.

Tim - Keeping the flame lit...

OK, Digger. We need a daily affirmation that you are still 'smoke free'.

Still smoke free. No cheating!! I have a habit of holding the paintbrush in my mouth to keep the paint fresh between strokes. Becky saw me and asked me since I quit smoking if the paint tasted better now. LOL

Steve - I noticed you were soliciting a cigar from new Grandfather JJ up in his thread. I know that you meant to ask for a bubble gum cigar, didn't you?????

Dave
[This message has been edited by Dave H (edited 03-04-2002).]

Uh, right. I must have forgotten to specify that didn't I. I guess I could give it to Becky. Don't tell her I said that!

So does that make you one of those mouth and foot artists Digger? Some of their stuff is pretty good also. Just don't forget and put a match to that brush!

Still here and going strong John. Had a terrible, I mean TERRIBLE weekend at work and for the first time I plopped down on the sofa and wished I had a stick. Settled for a beer instead!! Dave, your buying the first round if I beat this thing, Paul your next, then John, then......!

Congratulations Digger!! Everytime you put one six feet under at work, just keep telling yourself, "They must have been a smoker." Being a non-smoker I have no idea how hard it is to quit. To all those who have quit smoking, congratulations. And to all those trying to quit, I wish you the best of luck.

Cheryl

Hang in there Digger!!!! August 12, 1975 was my last butt, a day I remember well!!

Congratulations and Good luck on staying smoke free!

Suzanne

"Dave, your buying the first round if I beat this thing, Paul your next, then John, then......!"

Digger, I'll buy the round after John. You are doing fine and I wanted to congratulate you again.

I do believe you meant "when" I beat this thing in your statement above. As far as I'm concerned you beat it when you decided not to pick up the next cigarette.

Stay strong.

Ron
(CT Keeper)

Okay, we will celebrate at Rosemont!!!and I will buy the pretzels, horns and party hats to go along!!!
Derith

Keep it going, Dig - you can put me down for a brew!

Another party in the making. Rosemont, look out! Free beer, now if that's not incentive!! 45 days and still not 1 cigarette! The cravings are still there but they are getting much easier to ignore. Still a long way to go but I think I can, I think I can!!!

Digger,
Having grown-up with,though never picking up the habit, and losing both parents to the stuff I really think it's great that you are sticking with it.
With all the connected collector's support and your determination you will see yourself through this.
At least your grandkids will get to know you. Unfortunately, my girls never met their grandma and grandpa.
My prayers are with you friend.
Dave

Hang in there Digger!!!

We're all pulling for you! What's Becky say?

Becky's pretty excited about it. She has been trying to get me to quit for years. She complains that the patches really seem to give me lots of GAS!!! The dog has left the bedroom and now sleeps with Ryan. I have found Becky asleep downstairs when I go to work in the morning. Ryan seems amazed at what I can do in my sleep. Maybe they're right...... cool.......I am the master!

You have to have fun with the patch program. We have made a game of finding where or who the patch will be stuck to when we wake up. It's never where it was when you went to sleep. I even found the dog wearing it one morning. Must be working, he hasn't had a cigarette all day!

Great going Digger... Count us in for buying you a beer...now you will be a smoke free drunk...

I'll buy you one in Rosemont also Digger!

AA meeting to follow after all the drinking!

Then you can start counting the days without a drink of alcohol!