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01
Jan

Happy New Year and Now is a Time to be careful.

Archived in the category: Recovery, Site News
Posted by: ukjohnd - 2 Comments

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to the Internet and Recovery peeps, this must have been the quietest Christmas Holiday I’ve ever had and I must say that the break has been much needed. Contrast that to last years Christmas Ghana trip, for my brothers wedding, it has certainly been less eventful and far colder but good all the same.

Passing on a message that was given me in my early days which was to be careful post holiday period. Particularly after my first few Christmases in recovery I found, having had my defences up against the excesses of the period around me, January was quite a comedown. There also seems a higher than normal rate of relapse after Christmas, so I will, as usual, up my meetings for a bit and get back into a regular routine.

Keep Safe and Happy.

14
Oct

Recovery Rocks

Archived in the category: Recovery, my photos
Posted by: ukjohnd - 1 Comment

Considering I landed up in AA just to stop the pain and fear that ruled my life in active adiction, recovery just continues to amaze with those things that are truly beyond any of my wildest dreams.
It’s seen me zooming around Manhatten in a helicopter, eating lobster under Sydney Harbour bridge and seeing elephants in the wild in Ghana.

Yesterday I had the joy of floating over the Sussex English coutryside in a Hotair balloon. Such stillness and peace flying with the wind thousands of feet high.

flare
sky1
sky2
sky3

07
Oct

AA sites

Archived in the category: Recovery
Posted by: ukjohnd - 0 Comments

I’ve always kept an lazy eye on the AA/recovery related sites out there particually those in the UK. The Electronic Communications Team at GSO is York have been doing some great work on the official UK AA site adding some great stuff for both the public but also members of the Fellowship, including forums/doc repositories and even an online shop for conference approved material.

The advent of addicts blogging recovery still leaves me unsure as to whether it’s a good thing or not to be bearing fragile souls to the internet, that’s not just a recovery thing though rather the nature of blogging, but there are some really great recovery blogs out there.
Check out sober chick who’s gratitude for recovery and life is a good reminder to me of its importance when my head is disapearing up my arse.

Phils Recovery Shed has evolved into a great unofficial UK AA site, with an emphasis on Fellowship/Community, Phil has done a supurb job of putting together a very slick recovery site with a growing Forum at its heart with over 80 members.

Phils Recovery Shed

04
Aug

Well that didn’t work & Happy Birthday Mark H

Archived in the category: Funny, Recovery
Posted by: ukjohnd - 0 Comments

After 3 1/2 weeks off the fags a weekend back on em after a minor car crash set me off smoking again, justified in my addictive head as a way to control the anger and self pity, thank god no one was hurt and the thought of a drink is far away in moments like that today. Reset the smoking clock and back to 24hrs,

Happy 5th birthday to Mark H, top night Saturday celebrating and a visit my first ever Drag Cabaret at Rubyz in the court of Dame Kitty Glitter, an hilarious evenings entertainment.

And as a minor aside “Total Eclipse of the Heart” as never seen before, especially love that drumming.

23
Jul

19 days of the fags

Archived in the category: Recovery
Posted by: ukjohnd - 1 Comment

Wow, the worst part (the first two weeks) are over. Really is a miserable experience giving up the Marlboro Reds I’ve smoked at 30ish per day for the past 13 years. 3rd attempt at it, and hopefully third time lucky, first time I managed 8 weeks a two years ago, a pathetic 8 days last year. Last year didn’t really count as I had a crazy idea I’d still smoke cigars after meals, funny how controlled smoking didn’t work either…..
Well still got my nicotine patch on, so not given up the drug quite yet, but at least the grumpy constant suppressed anger has started to subside after this little period. Seven years 5 days off the drink and 19 days off the cigarettes, a day at a time, still not giving up caffeine anytime soon tho.

As an aside thought I’d test drive the new Firefox beta (Bon Echo) as the ebuild just landed masked in Gentoo portage. Seems the “must have” new feature to justify the upgrade from 1.5 is the inline spell checking in text boxes as you type in the web browser, it’s an absolute god send for my crapness at spelling.