Newbies Nest

[DriftyAlison0]

Re: Newbies Nest

I actually had a nice day although I am still grieving I went out to lunch and enjoyed my time. Then I came home and played games until my mom got home and we got a new kitten for Mittens. So far so good and then I went to take a nap. Last week I was hungover and wishing that I had never drank. This weekend is going better that wise. Its still a hard weekend, but I can guarantee that it will be sober and next weekend will be sober to. Just got to work at it one day at a time.

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good evening Nesters,

Sorry to say another chicken was killed today, I'm sad about this & looking for the best way to deal with these crafty foxes

Alison, I'm sorry about your cat, they are family too. You are absolutely right, no amount of beer will bring them back to us :hug:

NS, I actually have a band that wraps around the thigh & lower leg for stretches. It works great when I remember to actually use the thing. Bad me, ha ha. I will be getting it out tonight for sure.

Rava, Ava, hello to you & everyone.
Wishing a safe night in the nest for all!

Lav

[Pavati]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi, Everyone--

Back from a vacation with lots of family and lots of fun. I have a hard time checking in on my phone, but I definitely stayed sober. Two of my cousins are crippled by alcohol - one of them doesn't drink any more (or maybe he does again?) but had extensive nerve damage from withdrawals. The other is a big big drinker - she has a hard time talking and walking. It is very sad to see them like that.

I will try to read back. Good to see you here, Alison, and sorry about your fur baby. That is very hard. Sorry about your feather babies, Lav. Those foxes are crafty for sure...

Happy SOBER Sunday!
Pav

[Slo]

Re: Newbies Nest

The family vacation is going pretty well. I’m lucky in a few ways this year, including that a good half dozen young men who like to drink & party are missing this year, we didn’t end up going out for fish fry so no waiting on the back deck of the restaurant for our large table while everyone drinks frosty taps, and it’s pretty kid-centric this year with lots of kids including a baby (!) to hold, since my little sister popped out a surprise 4th one at age 41. So all of that has made it much easier to not drink. I’m hitting the sugar & food hard though, and back on soda pop, but whatever it takes at this point.

[MENTION=18725]NoSugar[/MENTION], thanks for the book recommendation and I downloaded it.

[MENTION=20191]Pavati[/MENTION], it feels very confirming that I’m on the right path when I hear about your cousins. It makes me realize how serious this is.

[MENTION=11704]Byrdlady[/MENTION], hard to see ourselves in the young ones, and to see young ones whom we can predict may have problems down the road but in their innocence they have no idea yet what’s ahead. I sure didn’t know.

Thanks for “spending time” with me here. I feel fortified now to go back to the lake house and be with people again.

[available]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning nesters

Glad you had a nice time away Pav and much needed i bet. Sad about your cousins. I work in a hospital for neurology and see so many people come in affected by drinking and i always thought it would never happen to me. How stupid is that! Luckily i stopped playing russian roulette with my life.

Slo, great work on your first sober holiday, the firsts are always the hardest but such an achievement.

Sorry to hear about your chickens Lav, foxes are cunning fellows but do have lovely fluffy tails. i hope the alarm system works though.

Well i am feeling human, tooth pulled and on my 3rd lot of antibiotics to clear the sinus infection that the tooth gave me. not sure why i went through so much misery but i still hate dentists but i know not to wait 10+ years before i go again. Have a lot of work to do so off to the salt mines. Came to work without my glasses so not off to a good start to the day. Had a lovely quiet weekend and yesterday was lovely and sunny, hopefully the worst of winter is behind us.

Take care xx

[Byrdlady]

Re: Newbies Nest

Back home at last.
Hope nobdy expecta much out of me, im beat! Hugs to all, Byrdie

[DriftyAlison0]

Re: Newbies Nest

Had a nice sober day. I am not too worried for the week ahead because I did not normally drink during the week but will still keep an eye out. Next weekend is my next big deal with a sweet corn festival. But I plan to grab some soda and play Bingo if I have the funds. Then the following Friday is a baseball game which I will be careful with but I only drank a couple of times at the baseball field so I am not too worried there.I just won't get the wristband stating that I am over 21. But will still take it odaat.

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Greetings Nesters,

Sounds like everyone had a good Sunday.
My was good primarily because there were no more fox attacks or snake sightings. Never in my life did I ever think I would write a sentence like that, ha ha!

Welcome back Pav, glad your vacay was a good one.

Alison, stick to your plan & you will be OK.

Byrdie, get some rest dear.....we're too old to be worked like kids

Ava, I'll gladly send you the fluffy tails of these three foxes if I ever get my hands on them. They have decreased the size of my flock by 1/3 in just a few weeks.
Glad you are feeling somewhat better after all the tooth/sinus issues.

Slo, we are all happy things are going well for you on your vacation. Hang around with us whenever you can!

Wishing everyone a safe night in the nest!

Lav

[lifechange]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi Nesters!

Just a moment to write this morning before I head back into work. I am in the most beautiful place and am sort of enjoying the project.. at the same time, I'm questioning whether or not this is really "right" for me.. Fortunately, there isn't as much drinking going on as I thought there would be (thank God!) and most people are just finished at the end of the day. Yesterday I fell asleep at 730 and slept until 6! Right now I'm just trying to remain positive and concentrate on what I came here to do (which is difficult because it isn't very well organized so it feels like a lot of wasted time)..Anyway.

I was sorry to read about the loss of pets.. Allison, I hope you're new kitty is finding her place with Mittens. It sounds like you've got a good plan for the upcoming weekend..
Slo, Well done on your first sober vacation!
Welcome home. Pav!
Big hugs to NS, Ava, Lav, Byrdie, Kensho, Rava, Pauly, Nar.. and everyone else flying by or stopping in today! xx

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Yikes, I'm doing a terrible job of checking in here everyday. I really just need to get back to the habit of it being the first and/or last thing I do every day.

Alison - so sorry to hear about your cat. Losing a fur kid is so heartbreaking. Great plan for the festival and baseball game though. Having a plan is more than half the battle usually.

Lav - really sorry to hear about your chickens as well. I hope you're able to find a solution soon (I'm rooting for the dog solution )

Byrdie - you survived another trade show!

Slo - glad your vacation is going so well and your plan is working.

LC - your work sounds intriguing. Keep your mind clear and you'll figure out whether it's "right" or not.

Ava - glad to hear you're recovering from the tooth and infection, but sorry it's been such a difficult process.


Hellos and waves to everyone stopping by the nest today. I have a day off work today (by design - I just didn't schedule anybody!) and we're going to head out soon for a long training ride. We've got a favorite route mapped out, and once the rush hour traffic clears up it shouldn't be too busy cuz for most people it's the start of the work week

Have great days and eves everyone!

[Pavati]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi, All:

Drifty - I like that you're thinking ahead and planning. I do believe that is what it takes at the beginning. And if you're feeling shaky, skip the Sweet Corn Festival or the baseball game. For the first few months I did whatever I needed to do to stay sober which meant skipping some events if I was tired or anxious. Glad you got a chicken!

Lav - for some reason, Foxes have been all around me - references, people seeing them, fighting them, etc. Sorry what they did to your chickens - hope they stay away.

Hi, LC. That sleep sounds wonderful! Your work sounds intriguing and creative, glad there isn't much drinking.

Ava - Ack, that tooth sounds awful. I'm glad you are through the worst part and hope it all clears up soon.

Slo - you are on the path! I was so afraid of family vacations at first because they ARE drinking fests. I get a tad jealous of the easy-going beer after a swim in the lake still, but all I have to do it play it forward for myself. I know for me that it didn't end there - I kept drinking, drank too much, felt embarrassed and physically terrible, and then did it all again. It is easy to romanticize drinking in vacation situations for me, so I have to be cautious, even 4.5 years in. Those thoughts are pretty fleeting, though, and then I can get settled into just having fun.

Happy Monday, All.

Pav

[narilly]

Re: Newbies Nest

Happy Monday everyone!
I just came back from a family event and there was lots of drinking but I did not waiver. Like you said Pav just get settled and have fun.

It’s beautiful here today, so nice to wake up Un Hung.

Love holiday Monday’s.

Talk soon
Xo

[Overit-still]

Re: Newbies Nest

Overit, I only wish we could pour some concrete like that but it's such a large area. We have had chickens for 14 years & never had this problem before. I think it started last fall about two months after our large dog passed away. Somehow the fox population got the word that the coast was clear. I really want to get another large dog, my husband doesn't. Our smaller dog is about the same size as these foxes so she doesn't seem to scare them off.
Sorry about the smoky air, it's tough. My brother lives in northern CA & has been dealing with it too, sad.

Lav

Yes, we had a large dog too. And yes, I live in N. California, maybe we're close to each other

[Overit-still]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good sober morning everyone. I had a very slow, boring, quiet weekend. Just what the DR ordered!

We have only 1 cell tower in our tiny town for the 2500 residents that live in town and around the lake. Our population swells to 50K in the summer and our cell service is almost NIL so it's very hard for me to get online during this time so checking in on the weekends, away from my work WIFI, is spotty at best.

Drifty-so sorry about the pet, it's so hard. I've often wondered why God lets us get SO attached to our animals.
Slo-great job on the vaca
Bird-you exhaust me
LAV-1/3? Yikes!
Wags-good to see you
Hello to AVA, PAV, LC and anyone else I'm forgetting.

Have a great start to the week.

[KENSHO]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi Nesters! I am back and finally have some time to myself! The kids are back in school next week - so there is a flurry of preparation, as well as re-entering work. I’m rested - but dreading the weight of way too much on my plate. But I woke up early today and did my yoga which felt great. I really enjoyed camping and had a few drinking thoughts. Some of them were teetering on scary - as I actually imagined myself throwing my hands in the air and just becoming a drinker again to participate in it around me. I saw my husband “need” to get his fix at times and this reminded me that alcohol is not a friend - but in fact, a limiting, controlling lifestyle that I don’t want any more. I stayed stone cold sober.

LAV… I would have lost my mind seeing a snake in the chicken coop. EW. Good for the ecosystem, but ICK! Don’t big snakes eat chickens? Or just their eggs? Sorry you lost three to the foxes New big dog. Get one.

[MENTION=19794]TJAF[/MENTION] Thanks for checking in and paving the way on your 5 year star-versary! So happy for you and so glad to hear you’re so engaged with the sober life you created!

AVA, glad you are headed toward recovery in the tooth department. That’s no fun. Neither is getting up at 4:12 am, if you ask me… you’re amazing! Getting your tooth out seems kind of like quitting drinking… when we finally decide we’ve suffered enough pain, we fix it.

LC you sound so much like me, with the overwhelm and impossible ambitions in a day. I think we both need to realize our limitations a bit more. I SO get how you feel sometimes. Glad you are in a beautiful place!

OVERIT - way to go on your 30 days of alcohol-the-bastard-is-out-of-your-life!! Keep going. We camped on a lake last week and it was spectacular. Water is energy I love. Smoke, on the other hand, sucks. We had some of it camping and I absolutely hate feeling like I’m not in clean air. Sorry you are in the thick of it, but glad you are safe!

Drifty, nice to see you! Keep up the great work.

[MENTION=19596]Slo[/MENTION], your list is awesome! It sounds like your weekend has been good - update soon please. Don’t forget to just leave and get out of the house if pressured. Our friend [MENTION=7261]Guitarista[/MENTION] told me that one Christmas night, and it saved me. Don't know if I ever thanked him for that. Quitting is messy and uncomfortable - and there is no good time to do it. There will always be an event or a gathering or a reason to postpone it, but the truth is that we just have to start the process and keep moving through it. It’s the only way to get to the other side. Good job!

[MENTION=24080]Jude58[/MENTION], great comment about resisting the first drinks of the evening. I found that that first hour is always the hardest. But once people start acting stupid, it is SO much easier to see how stupid drinking is. Looking forward to celebrating your year anniversary in September!

NS, I like telling people that I don’t drink also. I used to dread that saying, and now it is an unapologetic part of my personality.

Byrdie, the smell of vodka makes me nauseous now. Reminds me of terrible times, drinking to escape, lying and sneaking, obsessing and wasting my life. And hangovers. YUCK! I bought minis during the day on more than one occasion - but I drank them in the car, not the stall.

RAVA, I had several oops-es (as most of us have). Good for you for coming right back. That’s when I knew I was on the sober train for the long haul… when I drank and just KNEW it was not the life I wanted. I can tell you do not want to be a drinker

[MENTION=20191]Pavati[/MENTION], the Native Americans say that when you see or have referenced certain animals with frequency, they are trying to tell you something. A fox as a spirit animal supposedly encourages action and adaptability and sharp mental skills around obstacles. They are said to bring clarity and help through upcoming tricky situations. Does that make any sense to you? I have had an unusual amount of snakes in my life recently (three sightings, one dream and Lav’s mention), supposedly signaling upcoming change and transformation. Hmmmm.

Time to open the calendar and make some calls. Deep breath… here I go. Back to reality. But before I do, a few things I learned this week:
- Sleep is absolutely necessary for me to function. Need 8+ per night ideally
- I can observe strong drinking thoughts and still know it is not the life for me and let them go
- Nature brings me back to homeostasis
- I need to work less and laugh more
- I cook a mean fresh trout
- My kids actually like playing with rope and dirt and sticks and water when technology is not present
- Balance is key to my happiness
- I would notice NONE of this if I were drinking

Have a lovely day everyone.