100 Day Club members/Maintenance Thread

[Lavande]

Hey there 3June, great to see you
I resent any fridge space being taken up by beer bottles especially since I never drank the stuff, ha ha!
Isn't is great how we can easily blow off those random thoughts now? That's the gift of long term sobriety for you

[Sunbeam]

I've reached the three year milestone, I feel great!

Lav, I saw sweaters for chickens on Facebook, and of course thought of you.

[Byrdlady]

Sunbeam! I wish you'd go post on Roll Call so we can brag on you a little!!! 3 years is just amazing!!! The sense of peace that comes with these major milestones is really beyond words. GREAT JOB on this trifecta!! Keep up the great work!! :three:
Byrdie

[Lavande]

CONGRATS to you Sunbeam on 3 years AF :welldone:
Of course you feel great because you are

Three different people on Facebook sent me that picture of the chicken sweaters yesterday, ha ha!! I will never, ever go there, believe me! Luckily my bird are big, heavily feathered & well suited for winter weather. What they really need is an AC unit for the summer but they'll never get that either, LOL

Hey there Byrdie!!

[Byrdlady]

Hey Lav! I'm glad I didn't send you the chicken sweater thing, too! I thought of you when I saw it! :haha: B

[Rahulthesweet]

Wow Sun beam

This is super !!! You must be really proud ... Abstaining is the only way .. I too crossed 1.5 year and am strong and follow on your foot steps

[Elvis]

Good job on 3 years Sunbeam!

[Samstone]

all right sunbeam!!!

[TJAF]

Nice job sunbeam!

[Eloise]

Have not been here in a while. Congrats Sunbeam.
Three years, now that must feel pretty good. Interesting you continue to check in here, I understand why. The longer I am sober the more I realize how important it is to not take it all for granted.
Nicely done!
I am at around the 16 month mark, give or take a day here or there. Now it isnt terribly important, just that I stay on track.
What a blessing it is to be sober and handle things better.
So very grateful to have gotten this far!

[little beagle]

I remember when 100 days felt like an eternity.

[Byrdlady]

Congrats, Eloise! 16 months is AWESOME! Did you EVER think you'd have that amount of sober time behind you? Sometimes it feels like a dream! So grateful to have the worst over with.

LiL Beagle, I remember counting forward to 100 days and it was April 29, 2011. It so happens that Prince William and Kate decided to marry on that day in honor of this huge milestone in my life (as IF!!) So I had a pretty easy time of remembering when it was going to be because of the massive media attention around the royal wedding. There was no mention of my hitting 100 days in their ceremony, which was disappointing, but I finally moved on. It was a very big deal to me, because it seemed as if the people who hit this milestone were able to continue the marathon with relative ease. They were over the hump! I still think that's true. 100 days is a big deal.

I got some disturbing news at the eye dr yesterday. I take Plaquenil for arthritis and we check religiously for a side effect that occurs in the eye from that drug. While looking for signs of that, he discovered a void in my left eye. As they looked back over two years of ultrasounds, they found it is growing in size. This void (he explained) is like wallpaper lifting off the wall and as it does, it can tear the retina. He said you won't believe the treatment...I said, "I know what the treatment is, they shoot a gas bubble into the eye and you have to stay face down for 6 weeks so it will reattach!" My Dad had to do that twice! I felt so sorry for my dad when he did that....it was just awful for him, but he did it. His eye was so badly damaged by the second time that he could barely see out of it. But he was either in his late 70's or early 80's when it happened. Heck, I'm only 55!! I have a bad case of feeling sorry for myself but I am trying to NOT borrow trouble from the future! I go back in 6 months to recheck it. There is some good news....the thought of drinking NEVER crossed my mind as a solution. I am grateful for that. It's been all I can do NOT to consult Dr. Google. NoSugar told me NOT to do that, so I haven't. He told me there was no course of treatment at the moment and we will keep an eye on it (Optometrist joke, I guess). So I will trust the experts.

Hugs to all, Byrdie

[NoSugar]

Byrdie, Most of the the things I've wasted my time worrying about haven't happened. My biggest challenges have been things that didn't even cross my mind before they were right there to be dealt with! If worrying helped, I'd be right there with you but all it does is weaken you and make you less resilient to whatever is coming. (Easy for me to say but not to do, being a natural, chronic worrier...). The thing that I'm so grateful for for all of us is that by quitting, we've put ourselves in a position to thoughtfully and clearly deal with whatever the future holds. xx to you, NS

[Pavati]

Just popped in to say hi. Sorry, Byrdie! Hope it is all ok. Eyes are pretty awesome, and knowing enough to keep an eye on it is a positive step forward I guess.

Bye, all.

[Rahulthesweet]

I am about to board in a packed train during rush hour here in Mumbai. It's an adventure as an alternative to taking a cab back to hotel which will same me an hour of traffic Jan. While taking such a journey I plan in such a way to start from the first stop to avoid the rush as trains come in empty and fill-up in subsequent stations. So I climb on this empty train which I know will packed up by people by the time next stop comes in.

I have taken such trip across mumbai especially during rush hours but this time as notice that while there is chaos around I am at peace with myself. For one thing that sobriety has brought is calmness on my mind and body.

Passing thru streets of Mumbai I cross several bars some of them shut now as the taste of music changed... But I recall how.much fun I have had in these places. Drinking and just having fun. Live music etc.

Drinking such to be fun and it was the fun and excitement I was after. I was younger then ambitious. Spend hard day at work and go back to hotel drink and turn after party.. With more work the next morning.

Past 10 years or more I have travelled all across the world. Work has taken me to as far as LA and Korea on the otherside. Scotland, New Zealand and Switzerland are some of places as cherish traveling and all of them I have drinking memories. enjoying the bars and evenings. But my travel adventures all started here in Mumbai...

Last week in Korea brought me memories of last year when I went there too... I recall I was fresh in sobriety then. I declared ti this supplier that I don't drink and this time he didn't offer. I recall I last year I was a bit nervous and a bit unsecured. As then had feelings of Grief (I lost a friend: Beer) and feelings of delight (I still can enjoy!).

Last week in Seoul I met a Korean business man a machine builder who certainly was "high" on life. His idea of life was having strongest possible cigerettes and hard Korean booze mixed with beer. "I have only 3 tastes", he proudly was saying : "Music, drinking and smoking". Having dinner with him.. Traditional Korean food which was a delight but seeing him drinking, I felt nothing but pity and sadness in his way of life. Not long ago I too was always "high on life... Chasing the next high!" and workaholic.

It's interesting travelling and meeting new people. My last adventure to Srilanka I went inside a casino. While I am not into gambling I could sense how some people (so as heard) are addicted to it badly. The efforts casino do to lure you (free cab rides, free booze, free food) All so that you can gamble. I guess there is a craving, cue and reward cycle in that addiction too. So I witnessed this old lady on a card table gambling away and losing for a long time but got super excited when he won a small sum. Thanking and enjoying the feeling of high she got from winning.

I as I see deeper in myself I see my mind too wants to satisfy basic animal hungers: whether it hunger, thirst or Sex drive. I see all other addictions nothing but a substitute: alcohol, drugs, gambling etc etc. I have been eating a but too much. When I workout I workout too much. Is that a way of chasing my high? Does or can one free ourself from these needs of chasing highs or pleasures which life brings.

Not long ago I just wanted high Of booze. Rest all was Un important. Now with that's gone. I see myself getting hooked on to other forms of giving pleasure to myself: Computer games, food, ice creams, coffee, adventurous (hiking, cycling across cities), travelling etc. I wonder is it good? But when I see someone badly hooked to booze like this workaholic business man whose idea of life was drink, smoke and work and work. I fell much better off.

I feel free! Is there one more level Of sober freedom ? I wonder. Ancient text in Hinduism (read Yoga) and Buddhism (read meditation) somehow hint at that. What ever do: breathe in rythem or mediate in silence are they don't talk about breaking from the other form or "addictions" in life?. Worldly desires as they call it sometimes.... I wonder

So now Mumbai, next week work takes me to New York then to another place where one can satisfy all their addictions: Las Vegas.

There are small things which I sometime notice like not buying duty free booze upon arrival.

Oh! How much sobriety has given me.. Peace and love from family. My kids now know me. My wife has started missing me rather than someone which wished he had. Sobriety has indeed the best best gift this life has given me.

And here I am in streets of Mumbai now in a Tuk Tuk which makes it way thru traffic and I look forward to having my evening dip in pool.

So good I have something to look for which is not booze...