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Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette!
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Subject: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 21 Aug 02 - 11:51 PM I tend not to put much personal stuff on Mudcat these days, unless it's pretty light hearted. I used to be more open until a couple of determined flamers (one, being someone I'd thought of previously as a friend) made it less fun to BE personal. But here's an exception, 'cause I think it's important, and it may help a good friend who's embarking on a similar journey. If she OK's it I'll mention her name in subsequent posts. I've hit the sixty fifth day without a ciggy, after being an on and off smoker (aww fuckit, I smoked EVERY day) since my late twenties. (I'm fifty six now) It hasn't been easy, but I have to say that I think the struggle may have been less difficult for me than some. Don't know why....and I'm not complainin'! Quite a few of my friends think that my brush with death sixty SIX days ago (successful but dangerous kidney cancer surgery) was the reason I quit, but in fact, a couple of days after the surgery, I hobbled out of my room, IV thingy on wheels next to me, took the elevator down four floors and went outside...two ciggies in my dressing gown pocket. It was hot as hell...I appreciated the hospital air conditioning immediately, and as I blinked a bit in the bright sun I saw: At least 8 or 9 people, some even with portable OXYGEN TANKS, puffing away like mad. Now remember, this was the CANCER BUILDING.....so these folks were being treated for the same thing (with variations) that I had just been lucky enough to survive. I was literally in shock. I said to myself "Never again will I smoke a cigarette....ever". I expected the craving to be immense in the next few days, so I started telling as many folks as I could (by phone, from my hospital room) of my decision. For me...going very public (talked about it not only on Mudcat, but also on a Canadian professional Musicians' forum, and my own concert mailing list) is a big help. The thing I hate most is disappointing people, so if someone sees me with a fag in hand in the future, I'm going to feel like a total idiot! Anyway.....in those sixty five days: I've saved over SIX HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS!!!! Yup, with the current Canadian prices at seven plus bucks per pack, my habit would cost ten bucks per day. Simply astonishing!! I can breathe properly! I can walk up the three flights of stairs at radio CIUT without nary a puff.! At the Lunenburg Folk Festival I walked at least FOUR MILES per day, up and down hills! My god I haven't been able to do that in ten years! My audience response was great and heartwarming...is it possible that my voice sounded better without the fags? Probably. I feel a great sense of relief, period. I don't try to explain it....I just feel it. I'll NEVER be a person who dumps on smokers....it's rude and it doesn't help...but boy if anyone WANTS to talk to someone who felt they couldn't quit, I'll be happy to say "YOU DAMN WELL CAN!" So to my friend....Good luck kiddo! You can do it! Cheers Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Steve Latimer Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:11 AM Ah Rick, And you made it past Saturday night. 6 people there, Rick the only non-smoker. Good for you. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Genie Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:12 AM Congratulations, Rick! I quit (for the 4th and last time) in December, 1976, after pretty much chain smoking for the better part of 16 years. Of the various important accomplishments in my life, that one ranks way up there. Keep it up! Genie |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: DonMeixner Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:18 AM Rick, As a retired smoker some twenty odd years ago I found it hardest about 6 months down the line. The big saviour for me was seedless grapes and oranges. One or two grapes and the cravings went missing. Half an orange and the desire for a Salem Lite was shot to hell. Congrats and good luck. Don |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Big Mick Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:20 AM I am very proud of you for this accomplishment, my friend. I did not think it possible. Keep it up, cause I want to make music with you when you and I grow up. Mick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Genie Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:21 AM BTW, Rick, I understand that when Dylan cut "Nashville Skyline" it was after he had quit smoking (at least for a while). Didn't sound like the same guy. What an improvement! I know what you mean about the folks with oxygen tanks still smoking. Then there are those who take a drag through their tracheotomy holes. What an addiction! I hope your example helps your friend to "embark on a similar journey." As a woman (and therefore vain [just kidding]), let me add that I would probably look at least 5 to 10 years younger had I not given 15 or so years to than nasty habit. I'd sing a lot better, too, no doubt. Genie |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: JedMarum Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:27 AM May you go another 65 YEARS without missing 'em! |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Steve Latimer Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:41 AM Another 300 days and it's a year. It may sond like a lot, but it's not. Keep it up. Karen and I have set Sept 1 as our date. We hope that the next time we see you it will be a smokeless night. BTW, I kid about Saturday, but I know how tempted you were. Good for you for not succumbing.
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: leprechaun Date: 22 Aug 02 - 03:21 AM I quit smoking in the seventh grade. I guess I realized how silly a kid four feet tall looks with a cigarette. But you've inspired me. I've resolved to quit saying f*ck. Damn! |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Murray MacLeod Date: 22 Aug 02 - 04:46 AM Well done Rick. As a matter of interest, do you find yourself eating a lot more? When I stopped I put on some weight, and have never really lost it again. I just wonder whether that was me or whether everybody who stops experiences the same thing. Murray |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Dani Date: 22 Aug 02 - 08:01 AM Rick, I hate to tell you all the things that DIDN'T make me quit. And all the times I THOUGHT I'd quit. But, as you say, there comes one day that the decision is made, and you just have to help it along by not smoking ;) Last month I (and my husband) celebrated 7 years without smoking, after 15 years of. We have made huge changes in our life and health, and we're both probably in much better shape now that when we were in our "prime". There are still times when it can be tough (well, just one tonight wouldn't hurt) but then I remember how little in control of that slippery slope I am. And how nice kissing is when neither one smokes! Now that you're out, use this thread for help if the urge hits you! Get some phone numbers (mine included) if you want to call for someone to say "Don't DO IT" And congratulations. Dani |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: BanjoRay Date: 22 Aug 02 - 08:21 AM My mother smoked heavily since 1941 when she took it up in a munitions factory of all places. In january this year, aged 84, she went to hospital with a suspected heart attack. When she came out, she said that if she smoked again it would show ingratitude to the hospital staff, so she gave up instantly and hasn't smoked since, nor has she even considered it. She can't explain why she never did it years ago! Cheers |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST Date: 22 Aug 02 - 09:06 AM 16 years (and I smoked cigs cigars and a pipe) resist the odd craving and you will be free of the need in about one more month.... Good Luck and Good Health Rick. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 22 Aug 02 - 09:53 AM Holy Cow!! Thirteen posts and not one anonymous drive by flaming...ya know, those folks who get positively gleeful when someone croaks who'd been a smoker. Figgered they'd find SOMETHING to get on my case about, ha ha! One of the tougher aspects for me, was that there were a few folks who were unaware that I DID smoke. Yup, I perpetuated the lie (addicts do).....but of course when I met them, the jig was up......clothes really DO smell, I sure know that now. OK, OK......I'm being a bit OVERLY casual about this. Yes, at least a couple of times a day I want one......keep thinking "Well, I've made it for over two months, so what's the big deal? I can handle one littttle one". But I ain't gonna do it (said in Dana Carvey, George Bush Sr. voice).....'cause I've bloody well told everybody and their brother that I'll NEVER touch another....and like I said, I don't wanna look like an idiot (or a liar) Cheers Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:02 AM I quit smoking when I was 13. I took two puffs, and I quit, cold turkey! Dave Oesterreich |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:05 AM Just think: At $10 a day, in a year you will have saved $3,650! In After-Tax dollars! Enough to go out and buy something to feed another addiction, like a new guitar, a new banjo! Dave Oesterreich |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:08 AM Yes INDEED, Uncle Dave! I'm drooling already! Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Kim C Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:14 AM Good for you Rick! :-) |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,Foe Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:31 AM One reason people put on weight after they stop smoking is they can now TASTE food again. (yum-yum) Just be wise in your eating and taste the salads rather than hamburgers. When I stopped smoking in the late 70s I discovered that the cheap scotch I'd been drinking was cheap scotch. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:45 AM Good point, Guest Foe, I started on chocolate and Scotch mints.. but a few extra pounds is better than lungs full of soot... |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Peter T. Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:51 AM With the gray crewcut and the slimmer look, soon Rick's biggest problem will be even more groupies, the ones whose preferred body type is "Leonard Cohen Comfy". (which takes in a lot of the female community, to say the least) yours, Peter T. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jeri Date: 22 Aug 02 - 11:10 AM I quit in 1987, after my mother - a smoker of 40-some years had quit - after she had open heart surgery. I went through a class. I think I was the only person in the class that didn't start back up...at least not for a few years. Quit a whole bunch of times since then. There are people I hide my smoking from. I have some really good justifications for that. (Let me know if you need any - they'll work for most anything.) Bottom line, as Rick, that For me the problem isn't quitting. Quitting's a piece of cake. I've never had intense cravings. The worst part is that I smoke while I do certain things and to mark time. I start things with cigarettes: sit down to play music and light one; get in the car and light one; light one right before bed or when I get up. It's more of a ritual. I don't need the nicotine that badly, but all the while I'm doing something, I'm thinking "I should be smoking while I do this," and I keep reaching for where the ash tray isn't. What's tough is not starting again down the road. At some point, I won't feel any sort of wish to smoke. The part of my brain responsible for twisting logic and creating the above-mentioned justifications will think "if you don't need it then it's ok to do it." I will bum a cigarette, light it, cough and get a wicked head rush. I will think "wow - this happened to my body every time I smoked one." I will do this over and over again until I quit feeling that rush and I give up and buy a pack. If the person I bummed the first one from had said "I won't give you one, I'll give you the pack," I wouldn't have taken it. I wouldn't have been just "cheating" but starting up again. Funny. Rick started this thread around 20 minutes after I smoked my last one. He knew I wanted to quit, but I never told him I'd made up my mind about when. Anyhow, this is day 1 for me - the 22nd of August, 2002 - sometime around 11:00PM Mudcat time, I'll complete day 1 and start on day 2. All I'd better think about now is getting through the 11th hour. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Fortunato Date: 22 Aug 02 - 11:30 AM Hey Rick congratulations. I'm 6 0r 7 years off them myself. And besides the money I have a good prediction for you. Since quitting smoking over time I've added notes at the top of my voice and kept the bottom. In other words when I sang a bluegrass tune the high G was a problem (you know they love their G tunes). Now I can sing all those tunes in A without strain. The range is growing. Here's the scary part though: I can yodel now! And I do without scaring my children. Keep up the good work. Chance |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Ebbie Date: 22 Aug 02 - 11:53 AM I remember the frustrating phase, about a week into it, when I was so pleased with having quit that all I wanted was to celebrate by lighting up! But that passed. Next came the dreams- about 15 years of them- when I lit up in a dream and thought, Shoot! I was thinking I had quit! And knew I had it to do all over again. But that too passed. What hasn't passed is being proud of having quit. I had tried so often to quit, and then like Rick, one day I KNEW I wasn't going to be a smoker anymore. Mind you, I still wanted to smoke. I just didn't act on it anymore. And the smells! Aaaaarrrrrgh... It was a really smelly world for awhile. Couldn't bear the scented candle section of a store, for instance. And the smell of stale things... I was a bloodhound, could've been used for tracking lost kids. But that too passed. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Bobert Date: 22 Aug 02 - 11:59 AM 5,814 days fir this ol' hillbilly and hoping to make it 5,815... Bobert |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Peter T. Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:04 PM Another good thing about quitting is that it takes the burden off your friends agonizing about how, if, when, to beg you to stop without being a "Smoke Nazi" -- to use Rick's phrase. We respect other people's private decisions, but it is depressing to watch people you care about endangering themselves. Given the slightest opening, like that provided by Jeri just now -- please JERI, KEEP STOPPED!! People would rush to your aid, ordinary citizens, not just those who love you, if you accidentally took fast poison, because they don't want to see you injured at all. Smoking is slow poison, directly targetting toxic chemicals at the most sensitive tissues in your body. I know you know this, but what the hell, you gave me the opening! KEEP STOPPED!! Beg you on hands and knees. yours, Peter T. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:33 PM Way to go Jer! I'm on your side for the long haul. Luv Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jeri Date: 22 Aug 02 - 12:55 PM Looking forward to my 65th day - November 4th. I'll complete it on Nov 5th. Ironically, the day I first quit was Nov 5th, '87. Peter, thanks. I watched my father keep smoking with emphesema. Didn't even keep me from starting. I wasn't going to ever get addicted. I also seem to remember I was bulletproof at the time. Good thing no one shot at me. Rick, thank YOU! I didn't even say congratulations on your 65th day. Next time I see you, we'll have to take a nice long walk to nowhere in particular. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Steve-o Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:23 PM Rick, I don't know, maybe it does help to talk about it. I'm about to hit six months, and I smoked 'em for practically 40 years. My major problem (and the reason I'm not really saving all that money) is that I'm eating more and putting on weight. And I've been a skinny kid all of my life! This part of the deal might be harder than giving up the smokes! No matter what somebody said earlier, munching on salads don't cut it...gets tiresome really fast. I now eat breakfast every day, and I never did at all....coffee only, until lunch. It's a big problem. I like not being winded when walking, I like singing in G occasionally, and I really LOVE not coughing (which is basically why I quit in the first place), but...I miss smoking a whole lot. I like going outside to the patio for a break, I like being away from the crowd, I like being different from most of the people at a gathering, I like the camaraderie of other smokers ("defiantly different" types), and I honestly don't trust people who claim to have no bad habits (I think they're hiding something that's probably worse than smoking). And I'm pissed at the fact that I've gotten old enough that I actually have to pay attention to things like whether I smoke, or if I eat too much. There...I got it all off my chest. Somehow, I don't have a problem abstaining- simply because I have said I QUIT, and that means I QUIT. I mostly need to get a handle on the eating cross-addiction, and I need to not be so angry at myself because I'm now one of THEM (non-smokers....many of whom are self-righteous and obnoxious about it). And I can no longer squeeze the filter flat and stick it between the fifth string and the peghead of the D-28, which is perfect when you're playing the blues. OK, I feel somewhat better, I guess. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Dani Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:42 PM Go Jeri, go Jeri, go Jeri..... Dani |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Mark Clark Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:43 PM Rick, This is wonderful news. Congratulations! I quit more than thirty years ago—after fifteen years as a heavy smoker—not for any noble reasons but because I finally figured out I wasn't going to survive much longer with the chronic bronchitis I'd been trying to live with. Made a big difference in my life and my health. Oddly, I am now faced with having to learn to smoke again. A local theater company is doing Wendy Wassersteins “An American Daughter” and I have the role of Walter Abrahmson. Walter is a chain smoker and that business can't easily be scrubbed from the play so I'm now carrying a cigarette around and fiddling with it trying to make it feel natural again. I haven't actually smoked one—no real desire to do so—but I'll have to smoke some before opening night just to keep from caughing or becoming dizzy during a performance. I sure hope this doesn't become a problem. - Mark |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Alice Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:56 PM I recall a story someone told me about quitting smoking and eventually being able to smell old smoke on clothes... something he had not been aware of while smoking. His mother in law had sewn a bathrobe for him for Christmas, smoking all the while she was sewing, and when he opened the gift Christmas morning the stink of it was overwhelming. It was at that moment he suddenly became aware of how bad he smelled during all those years of smoking. It was one of the things that kept him from starting again. Great job, Rick. Glad you are healthier and have the extra $ to spend on instruments! |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Don Firth Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:56 PM Way to go!! I started smoking when I was in high school and soon was smoking a couple packs a day (this was when cigarettes cost about two-bits a pack). Smoked like a chimney for about thirty years, despite a couple of really bad bouts with laryngitis, one of which required that I not utter a sound for six weeks while my vocal cords healed. I'd had lots of singing lessons by then, so my vocal technique was fine—the problem was the constant irritation of cigarette smoke. This six-week hiatus and subsequent rebuilding of my singing voice (another four to six weeks) cost me a regular three night a week gig at a coffeehouse where the pay was good, and I had to cancel my guitar students until I could talk again. No income!! And this was in the early Sixties, when I was really in demand! A few weeks later, I was back to smoking again. I believe that is the definition of Really Stupid! I finally quit on my birthday, June 19th, 1978. I was working at a job where I could only smoke on breaks, I had recently married a woman who didn't smoke, all of my friends were quitting successfully, and I was getting tired of spending fifteen minutes every morning sitting on the edge of the bed trying to cough up my lungs. On a pleasant Sunday afternoon sitting on John Dwyer's deck overlooking Puget Sound, it occurred to me that the following day was my forty-seventh birthday. This would be an auspicious time to quit. So I smoked my last three cigarettes, gave my Bic lighter to a woman there who smoked, and spent an enjoyable evening eating spare ribs and potato salad and swapping songs with friends. The following day was the first day in years when I didn't smoke. And I haven't smoked since. I believe that is the definition of finally growing a functioning brain cell. If you are a singer—and a smoker—ask yourself this question:— If I played the clarinet, would it make sense to blow hot smoke through my instrument several dozen times a day? (And a clarinet could take it a whole lot better than your larynx can!) A few weeks after I quit, my singing voice grew a couple of notes, and it developed a clarity that it hadn't had before. Congratulations, Rick! You've got it beat. And hang in there, Jeri. You'll never regret it! Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,toribw who should be working Date: 22 Aug 02 - 02:02 PM Congratulations Rick! That's an accomplishment to be proud of. Jeri, your post describing your experience was amazing. I was just explaining to a co-worker why it's so hard to quit, and I could have been quoting your post. *climbing back on the wagon* |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Memphis Mud Date: 22 Aug 02 - 02:47 PM Congratulations. I quit 13 years ago after trying to for 15 years. It is chemical addiction, no doubt. You've purged the chemicals now just stick it out. Soon enough, you won't even think about it. There is a surprize waiting at the top of the stairs. Walk up them and give yourself a big pat on the back.
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Firecat Date: 22 Aug 02 - 04:39 PM Congratulations! Keep going. I've not started and I don't intend to! Dad does though, and I'd love it if he gave up, but I doubt that's going to happen. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jeri Date: 22 Aug 02 - 05:23 PM 17.5 hours. Thanks all. I've been saying "Well, no - I don't do that anymore" to myself all day. Rick, you got 'detoxed' in the hospital. Supposedly, after about 48 hours the nicotine is out of the body. Low/diminshing levels of nicotine are what trigger the cravings. No nicotine, and what you have is the memory of a craving. That's how I understand it, although I could be full of crap. Maybe someone who knows about addiction could jump in. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: nutty Date: 22 Aug 02 - 05:37 PM congratulations Rick .... just caught up with this thread so forgive the delay in sending. I gave up 18months ago and although it has been hard at times I've just spent a week with friends who smoke and found it very easy. My voice has really improved (better breathing, more power)so I'm sure yours will have done. I look forward to hrearing you on your trip to the UK. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,Caz Date: 22 Aug 02 - 05:48 PM Well done Rick, I quit 15 years ago on my wedding day. The fact that Michael, right up to us being married, had no idea helped! It's a long story so I won't go into it but it's one of the best things I ever did, that and marrying him of course! I finally came clean on our 5th wedding anniversary and told him the truth. We are still happily married and I've not touched one since! Keep going, after all those years you deserve a medal! Carole |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Don Firth Date: 22 Aug 02 - 05:55 PM Whenever I tried to quit (before my successful effort described above), it was generally on the third day that I caved. That's the one you really need to watch. Once you get past that, it gradually eases off. I once read a book on quitting smoking by a fellow who worked with hard-drug addicts--like heroin. He said that it generally takes about three weeks for the craving to die away completely. Once you reach the twenty-first day (with either heroin or nicotine), you are genuinely off the stuff. And if someone goes back to it then, they can't blame it on the physical addiction. Watch that third day like a hawk. After that, it just fades away. . . . It isn't a matter of luck, it's a matter of who or what is going to rule your life--you or RJR. Hang in there! In the future (and it's nice to have a future!), if you remember it at all, you'll look back on it as one of the best decisions you've ever made. Don Firth |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Clinton Hammond Date: 22 Aug 02 - 06:21 PM ^5's Rick! Way to go! ,-) |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Melani Date: 22 Aug 02 - 06:36 PM Congratulations, Rick! My dad might still be alive if he'd done what you have. Go for it! |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 22 Aug 02 - 10:38 PM Jeri's right about me being 'detoxed while in the hospital'. Heather says they had me on morphine for two days. Hmmmmm, I guess that made it much easier. Hang in there Jeri......dangit I've been happier since I quit! Thanks SO much for the good feedback Mudcat friends. The words are much appreciated. Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Ebbie Date: 22 Aug 02 - 11:43 PM And you know what, Rick? That glow - that pleased feeling, that inner grin- doesn't go away. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Banjo-Flower Date: 23 Aug 02 - 06:59 AM Congratulations Rick you've past the hardest part Mark Clark tell me to mind my own business if you like but is this part in a play worth throwing away 30 years of non smoking i had to make a similar choice after 1 year of non smoking now another 16 years of not smoking i'm still pleased i stuck to my guns and refused this part (why could n't it go to one of smokers in your group and if you don't have any smokers is the play worth doing ? sorry to sound as though i'm preaching Gerry |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Roger the Skiffler Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:10 AM Proud of you Rick, I hereby award you the Order of the Licorice Kazoo (third class), just send six hundred dollars for post, packing and insurance to Count Jim (knees) Moriarty at the usual address. RtS |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,rob Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:19 AM go for it .Hope that the total is now even bigger. Can you taste food and beer now. best of luck. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,rob Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:27 AM jeri and rick take a walk in the FRESH AIR in the country breath deeply and smell success, flowers , new cut grass, water in the streams, great things like that will help you sustain your effort and get to 65 days and beyond. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Dani Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:54 AM Oh, yes. You'll be amazed at the way food and drink can taste and smell. I've learned to cook since quitting, though I still have a tendency to overseason, since it was hard to get flavors through to my tongue. And what was that after-dinner cigarette all about?! To stretch out the memory of good flavors? YUCK! There are still times that a cigarette is SO appealing. But it'll never be worth it again, once you know how it feels to be healthy. I have several strong, healthy beautiful young adults working for me, and when they go outside our restaurant to smoke, I just want to slap them. And then I know what they mean by OLDER and WISER. Glad they come together~ Dani |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST Date: 23 Aug 02 - 08:50 AM With a few exceptions, anyone can do anything, if the desire is strong enough. You said you were glad no one had flamed you yet for the personal nature of your thread. Although it may be interpreted as such, and at the risk of being perceived as boldly presumptuous, please consider these cautionary words: don't let your head get in the way of your progress. Beating the physical addiction is a walk in the park compared to the psychological battles you may encounter. When the little voice says, "Hey, it's been X number of days/years/decades since I've had a smoke, one now can't hurt," don't listen to it. As hard as it is for ex-smokers to sometimes accept, we are drug addicts. Humbly incorporate that image into your persona. It's part of what you are, like it or not. It's not a sign of weakness that you became addicted; it's a sign of strength that you can quit. But that doesn't mean you have control over your addiction. You can win all the battles, but the enemy is not defeated, and never will be. Until the day you die, that addiction will always be with you, and it is relentless. Occasionally, it will make a stand against you, attacking you with hubris and self-deception throughout the rest of your life, and you will have to fight the psychological demons all over again, and win. From personal experience, the passage of time happily weakens the campaigns they're able to mount against you, but perhaps that is just part of the strategy to deceive you into thinking you're Superman. Addicts have to be candid with themselves, and they'll tell you and themselves that keeping the demons suppressed isn't child's play. It takes never-ending perserverance. Then again, most things worth doing take perserverance. Never let your guard down. And congratulations. Signed, Eleven years and counting - still taking it one day at a time, but they are really good days. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: MsMoon Date: 23 Aug 02 - 08:55 AM Hey, congratulations Rick and everyone right there with you proving that winners DO quit. I'm actually just a few days behind you - I quit on June 30th and am damn proud of it. I have a couple of excellent resources for you and anyopne else who's still smoking or just quit. I used this online class from American Lung Association to quit...has a message board just like this with some great folks on it, and a lot of information and plans to prepare you for those moments when the thought occurs to you...and I know they still do, that will take longer. Just go to LungUSA and look for "Freedom From Smoking". It's designed for people to start using it before they quit, but don't let that put you off...it's worth going even just for the boards. Then there's Why Quit? , which is a compendium of articles and information that are incredibly interesting and just FULL of facts about why people smoke, why they relapse, how to learn to live w/o nicotine, and so on. In other words, you don't have to just grit your teeth and endure. If it weren't for these two resources, I don't think I would have been successful this time. It's been 15 years for me, but I'll never go back. Good luck! Links fixed. You have to use "http://" for off-Mudcat links. --JoeClone |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: MsMoon Date: 23 Aug 02 - 08:57 AM Aw, Poop, my links don't work. Here you go: WHY QUIT? www.whyquit.com LUNG USA: www.lungusa.org |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: bbc Date: 23 Aug 02 - 09:12 AM Great news, Rick & Jeri!!! Draw on whatever support we can give. I watched my granddad die of lung cancer. My best friend's husband died of the same & she has still not quit (even though she's cut down to 4-5 a day, since she was diagnosed w/ emphysema!!!). I know, from their experiences, that it's rough, but it sure seems worthwhile! We'd like to have the 2 of you around & healthy for a good long time. Keep up the good work! love, Barbara & Duane |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Steve in Idaho Date: 23 Aug 02 - 09:59 AM Congrats Rick - I'm in the process of quitting myself - went nearly a year without one and then slipped for a couple of weeks - now back on track. The thing I noticed was my voice changed radically. I'm relearning my music in the key of "B"? Geez and I was always a "G" guy. But what the hey - I don't hack my lungs up on long no breath passages!!
All the best to you
Steve |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 23 Aug 02 - 10:50 AM Hmmmmmmm.....No chance of forgetting that I'm a drug addict. Ya see, I was never what might be called a "proud smoker". When the laws started to change, forcing me to go outdoors to smoke, or to tough it out on long plane trips, or to be part of little groups huddled on the periphery of whatever....I never once thought "This is unfair, dammit I know my rights, Nobody's gonna tell me what to do etc...." Surprising I guess, since my views on the ambitious morons who make our laws are well known here. Nope, it was dumb to start, it was dumber to allow myself to become addicted, and then the dumbness was replaced by weakness. End of story. I've also noticed that my penchant for jokes and witty rejoiners is missing from this thread. Guess I CAN take some things seriously. (but Roger the S. can handle them for a while!) How's it goin' Jeri? You can phone anytime you like, if you get that ol' nicotine itch! Cheers Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: dwditty Date: 23 Aug 02 - 11:03 AM Rick, this thread is days old. I am sure the only thing that has changed is the number of days. WTG. dw - ex-smoker, and glad of it. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: katlaughing Date: 23 Aug 02 - 03:40 PM Couldn't have happened to two nicer people! Congratulations, Rick and Jeri and THANKS for taking care of yourselves. We do love you and want you around for a long time! I tried it the summer I was 13. Couldn't figure out why everyone liked it so much, so I just stopped. I've always been grateful for that. Now, if my son and daughter and husband would do the same... luvyakat |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Mark Clark Date: 23 Aug 02 - 04:28 PM Kat, I tried it at about that age too and had the same reaction. But I figured it was sooo cooool and everyone who was cool was doing it so eventually I overcame my body's natural aversion. Shoulda listened to my body back then the way you did. Gerry, You're not preaching. If there was more time left before the opening, I'd do as you suggest. I'm certain your solution is the correct one. I'm a strong willed person though and I don't see myself becoming a smoker at this point in my life just because of a play. Thanks for the advice, - Mark |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,Nobody you know Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:37 PM This just popped into my head: To the tune of 16 TONS I've gone 65 days without a cigarette My body wants one but I haven't lit it yet Oh, Peter can you help me cause I gotta pay Paul And they don't allow no smokin' down in the pool hall I've gone 65 days without a cigarette Although I get the spam where they sell it on the net Can't smoke at work, at home or at school To smoke is stupid, but it used to be cool. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,Refresh Date: 26 Aug 02 - 12:57 PM |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Glen Reid Date: 26 Aug 02 - 01:19 PM I smoked for the best part of 20 years and the cigarette I enjoyed the most,was the first one of the morning( as soon as my feet hit the ground and sometimes before). The last and hopefully final time I quit, I knew I had it licked, was when I had been up and active for a couple of hours, before I even thought of a smoke( about 3 weeks into it). Its been 14 years now and the one big difference in my life besides losing the "HACK" has been all the extra money I would have in my pocket at the end of the week. Ocassionally I would treat myself to matetial things, like maybe a new guitar or somesuch. Hang in there, you wont be sorry. All the best, Glen |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: MMario Date: 26 Aug 02 - 01:31 PM *sigh* one more thing about the two of you I have to be jealous of....
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Fortunato Date: 26 Aug 02 - 01:34 PM Rick, if you're stopping in here, I wanted to add that the desire for a butt does go away. It gets replaced with an strong aversion to smoky places, disgust for full ashtrays, and a tendancy to avoid people who have just smoked -- they just smell badly. I've wondered how my non-smoking friends ever stood my stench. Keep up the good work; I'm down here pulling for you. Two close friends of mine have gone back on the butts and it's sad and frightening. best regards, Chance |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Clifton53 Date: 26 Aug 02 - 08:24 PM Been 15 days, 8 hours and 9 minutes for me,thanks to Zyban and the disgust I feel after smoking for the better part of 30 years. Also a few nasty battles with bronchitis over the past 3 years.
The only advice I have is do not give in, don't have a smoke as a reward for not smoking. The mind must be contained, or it will talk you into anything, fortunately, you can also use your mind to talk you out of it. Good luck to all who try to quit. Clifton |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Chris Newman Date: 27 Aug 02 - 12:35 AM I'm on 22 months now, also thanks to Zyban. After a lifetime of puffing away, nobody is more surprised than me! Loads of money saved though some weight put on. My GP told me it was a lot less harmful to lug the extra weight around... Well done anyway! |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Mudlark Date: 27 Aug 02 - 04:32 AM Congratulations, Rick, Jeri, and all the other ex's that have shown up in this thread. I quit about 30 years ago after my husband had a heart attack...I didn't want to be the one to undermine his resolve!
And every time I see this thread title a bottom heavy blues beat starts playing in my head... Sixty five days, without a cig a rette Sixty five days, and I haven't had one yet I'm on a roll...cold turkey, that's the best And I'm shoutin hallelujah Cause I'll never smoke another one, I bet |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jeri Date: 27 Aug 02 - 08:37 AM Chris & Clifton, Zyban can be good stuff. You don't realise it's doing anything, but the cravings seem to be nothing more than "Where'd I put my c...oh yeah - I quit. Now what tune do I wanna play after 'Dark as a Dungeon?'" (I said it before, I'll say it again - it makes a great waltz.) The weight gain thing - I think almost everybody goes through it. Food tastes and smells better - appetite wakes up. Smoking ALSO affects the metabolism so a smoker's body doesn't use food as well as a non smoker. The good thing is that it's easier to excercise. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Catherine Jayne Date: 27 Aug 02 - 09:15 AM I've just about reached 2 1/2 months without a cigarette and I have just spent 4 days at Towersey folk Festival and not one!!!!! It was difficult at first but by the 2nd day I was fine!!!! Cat |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Rick Fielding Date: 27 Aug 02 - 10:29 AM I look at this thread title and I simply can't believe that I'm the guy who started it. Many of the finest folks in my life (I won't embarass them by naming them, but there's a few Mudcatters) I met while taking 'smoke breaks' off to the side of a stage somewhere at a gig or Festival. But yesterday......I walked three miles up some VERY serious hills without a lot of puffing. A year ago, I simply could not have walked three hundred yards without really feeling it. In the morning I went to my Producer's (Mudcatter Paul Mills) house, to begin work on finishing a new album that I started two years ago (!!). We listened to a couple of existing vocal tracks, and it was obvious to me that I was "covering" on certain notes because I was running out of breath. I had never felt that smoking had affected my singing ('cause I wasn't someone who coughed, or cleared their throat) but I was wrong...it very much affected my lung capacity. I still get the odd feeling that I "Should" grab for a fag, but it's not the fearsome craving that I dreaded....for me, a lot of this was strictly behavioral...Play guitar=smoke cig. Drink coffee=smoke cig. Read book=smoke cig. Hang tough you folks, Cat and Clifton....and Jeri...I'm bloody proud of ya! (especially for admitting it publicly....that must have been tough)! Rick |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jeri Date: 27 Aug 02 - 11:26 AM Rick, I'm gonna have to give you credit for something else. Not just for your shining example, not for your guitar advice but the fact that whenever I want to fidget, I grab the guitar. I have improved SO much since last Thu I can't believe it. (Of course no one else would notice it, but I do.) I still have way too much fidget time - I actually cleaned the shower and toilet yesterday. I may go on a quest for the |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Jande Date: 27 Aug 02 - 12:57 PM I've been moved to both laughter and tears by this thread! I tried to quit smoking for 9 years before I actually got *determined* to be a NonSmoker. I had quit for a year, once, then got hooked back by "lighting one up for a friend", then smoked for another year before I got tired of the "hacking", being unable to sing a note, and generally feeling very ill most of the time. (I found out many years later that I was ill all the time due to allergies --one of which was, yep, Smoke!) But this time I knew I needed to have *something* in my mouth and hands most of the time and since I felt it would be degrading to be sucking on a pacifyer in public, and waaay too fattening to be sucking on food items, I bought myself a large $10 bamboo flute and went outdoors to a nearby park to try and teach myself how to play it. That was great! At first it gave me the same slightly dizzy feeling I used to get from "bacca", but that passed within a week. It strengthened my lungs, gave me a voice while I was waiting for mine to heal, and satisfied my cravings. It forced me to *breathe*. And like someone said above it made exercising so much easier. When that old thing broke, it was like losing an old friend. I've been looking for a replacement ever since, but I never smoked again. I'm not even sure how long it's been --16 or 17 years? I have no interest at all in smoking. Recently, at a little drum shop in Ithaca NY I found my new flute. It's a 6-hole solid maple Spirit Flute, but right now I keep the third hole covered so I can have a C-minor flute. My partner bought it for me because I played it in the store and I loved it and he loved the music I was making with it! Thank you for the wonderful and inspiring "I Quit!" and "I'm Quitting!" stories! and congratulations to all, especially to Rick and to Jeri! And the best of luck to those who are still struggling to BE NON-smokers! ~ Jande
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: EBarnacle1 Date: 27 Aug 02 - 04:43 PM Some of the comments on this thread demand a response. I applaud the effort to quit and stay off. I stopped 20 years, 4 months and 8 days ago. In that time, my voice improved, I lost several friends to various combinations of cancer and emphysema, my voice improved and I have gained weight. A lot of it. And lost the weight several times. The doctor who said that the weight is not as bad for you as the tobacco stopped before he got to the important part. Try out arthritic joints, try a fatty liver [very similar in its effects to cirrhosis]. Unfortunately, you can't do just one thing. Once you have the first step on its way, you have to go for the next one. Lose the weight. It does not get any easier. I know, but I have to do it. By the way, as the weight comes down, you will also have more lung capacity, according to my doctor. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Clifton53 Date: 28 Aug 02 - 06:52 PM Thw weight gain factor scared me as well, since I'm no gymnast to start with, however, after all these years of smoking, with numerous failed attempts at quitting, I'm willing to worry about the weight later.
The only worry I'm having now is what happens when the Zyban is done with. As of now it is doing a great job with the cravings, and it did an even better job in the first few days of quitting, which were by far the toughest, but the program calls for two months on the stuff and then you must come off of it. I suppose that will be another challenge.
I find it very enlightening that most people can recite the years, months etc since they've quit, right down to the minute they stopped. How powerful a habit it is.
Hang tough everybody!! Clifton ( 17 days 6hours and 45 minutes) |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: Brakn Date: 28 Aug 02 - 07:28 PM I am not going to read this thread! Too long. I gave up two years ago when my my wife told me she was pregnant. I thought I'd never see my child grow up if I carried on. I had tried a thousand times to do it but never succeeded. I got Zyban and I did it. It's the hardest thing to do. You lose a friend. I'm so glad I did it!!
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: mack/misophist Date: 28 Aug 02 - 09:54 PM If any one here is having a hard time working to the resolve to quit, have yourself tested for emphysema. It worked for me. I used Zyban too, but I don't think it helped at all. There was no perceptable change when it ran out. If it does work for you, my doctor says 60-90 day regimins are common. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: leprechaun Date: 28 Aug 02 - 11:28 PM It's just not fair. I quit smoking in 1967 and I still can't sing worth crap. |
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Subject: RE: Sixty Five Days Without a Cigarette! From: GUEST,Mcknees Date: 28 Aug 02 - 11:54 PM I am so proud of you for being a survivor. You can do anything you set out to do. 12 years down the line and I still don't dare take one or I would be back to 60 a day. Fear of defeat keeps me on the straight and narrow. Your fighting spirit will keep you on your path. Hear you are back to full volume! |
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