Glad to be here

[Athan]

I'm at O'Reillys getting some brake pads when I notice the distinctive anchor tatoo on the old man behind me.
"Were you in the Navy?" I asked him.
He nodded with a smile.
"Me too" I said, "attack submarines" I smiled back at him.
"My father died on one" he told me, Dale Wilkerson, USS Robalo (SS-273) somewhere in the South China Sea in 1944.
He left me speechless and a little misty eyed.
I had rubbed elbows with the progeny of greatness and almost escaped not knowing anything of it.
At the memorial in Charleston, S.C. there's a plaque honoring those on eternal patrol. He's on it.

[Athan]

I've got a pet peeve about Independence Day: I hate seeing it marketed or referred to as 'the fourth of July'. Those that fell at Lexington and Concorde didn't die for cheeseburgers. The fought for independence. History has shown us that freedom, ironically, isn't free. It must be fought for, earned, cultivated, and guarded.
So it is with the quit.
If you are to be free from nicotine addiction, you're going to have to fight for it. It won't be easy. The nic bitch doesn't want to let you go any more than the British empire wanted to release their grip on the colonists.
How about today becomes YOUR Independence Day?
I leave you with a timeless quote from Samuel Adams:
“If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen.”

[oldschool]

Congratulations on 1.5 comma @Athan !!

[Keith0617]

Glad you are back home and typing away on the forum. Look forward to reading your next post brother. Rest up.

[Athan]

"...In short, the essence of masculine behavior is self-control. If you do not have the ability to say “no” â€" whether to others who offer you something you shouldn’t take, or even more importantly, to yourself â€" then you must get to work developing this ability immediately..."

From the essay On Christian Masculinity by Michael Witcoff. One of the best on the subject that I've read thus far.

[kybo]

Congrats, buddy!  I am so happy for you. 

It feels so good to know that after 1400 days quit we now have reduced our stroke risk to that of a non-tobacco user.  And let's not forget that after that first year of quit we had already reduced our risk of coronary heart disease by half and our risk of heart attack had already dropped dramatically. It won't be too much longer and our risk of mouth, throat, esophagus, and bladder cancer will also be reduced by half (if it isn't already).  How about how good your mouth, teeth and gums feel today? 

Damn!  This whole quitting thing might have been the smartest thing we ever did! 

[Aquaman43]

Belated congrats sir. I've looked for you on the Discord server, hope to see you there soon.

[Athan]

How is the view brother? Congrats on hitting the 14th @Athan

By golly - the view is spectacular! 18 guests on the fence pondering, wondering, waiting. The ONLY difference between you and me is that I made the decision. You can too. Put that can down and reclaim your life. Going through withdrawals is a drag but not as big a drag as having all of your teeth pulled or esophageal cancer. The thing is, you only gotta go through the suck once. Then freedom is just lying in wait on the other side. We here, waiting to give you support along the way. You've nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Like big Chris says, "addiction is giving up everything for one thing. Recovery is giving up one thing for everything".

Congratulations on the big 14th @Athan . Well done brother!

You ROCKKKKKkkk!!!!!

Aw shucks FLLip, the only reason I made it this far is because vets like you and Chick paved the way, stuck around, and provided a context of quit. Hat's off to ya both!!

[FLLipOut]

How is the view brother? Congrats on hitting the 14th @Athan

By golly - the view is spectacular! 18 guests on the fence pondering, wondering, waiting. The ONLY difference between you and me is that I made the decision. You can too. Put that can down and reclaim your life. Going through withdrawals is a drag but not as big a drag as having all of your teeth pulled or esophageal cancer. The thing is, you only gotta go through the suck once. Then freedom is just lying in wait on the other side. We here, waiting to give you support along the way. You've nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Like big Chris says, "addiction is giving up everything for one thing. Recovery is giving up one thing for everything".

Congratulations on the big 14th @Athan . Well done brother!

You ROCKKKKKkkk!!!!!

[ChickDip]

How is the view brother? Congrats on hitting the 14th @Athan

By golly - the view is spectacular! 18 guests on the fence pondering, wondering, waiting. The ONLY difference between you and me is that I made the decision. You can too. Put that can down and reclaim your life. Going through withdrawals is a drag but not as big a drag as having all of your teeth pulled or esophageal cancer. The thing is, you only gotta go through the suck once. Then freedom is just lying in wait on the other side. We here, waiting to give you support along the way. You've nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Like big Chris says, "addiction is giving up everything for one thing. Recovery is giving up one thing for everything".

Congratulations on the big 14th @Athan . Well done brother!

[Athan]

How is the view brother? Congrats on hitting the 14th @Athan

By golly - the view is spectacular! 18 guests on the fence pondering, wondering, waiting. The ONLY difference between you and me is that I made the decision. You can too. Put that can down and reclaim your life. Going through withdrawals is a drag but not as big a drag as having all of your teeth pulled or esophageal cancer. The thing is, you only gotta go through the suck once. Then freedom is just lying in wait on the other side. We here, waiting to give you support along the way. You've nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Like big Chris says, "addiction is giving up everything for one thing. Recovery is giving up one thing for everything".

[Keith0617]

How is the view brother? Congrats on hitting the 14th @Athan

[Keith0617]

Younger brother just had ALL of his teeth removed. FU big tobacco.

Sorry to hear brother. Keeping him in my thoughts and prayers.

[Athan]

Younger brother just had ALL of his teeth removed. FU big tobacco.

[Keith0617]

Just replaced the wax ring on the downstairs commode. Sans nicotine of course. I figure I saved myself $75 for the plumber and $5 for the can of worm dirt for a grand total of $80. The way things are going lately I figure I'm gonna need to save every penny.

On a sad note, a co-worker is back smoking again. He was clean 6 months. Just reiterated to me that anyone can stop for a while. It's staying clean for the long haul that counts. Still here. Still clean. Still free. One Day At A Time.

I’ll be right here with you brother.