LESS Alcohol ~ APRIL 2025 ~ One Day at A Time

AF - 14
A - 3

Thank you everyone for the well wishes for my daughter. She is slowly recovering from this flair, but we are preparing for the long haul of future hospital visits since I’m being told that UC flairs happen suddenly and probably more frequently than I want to imagine. So, I’m prepping a hospital bag for us. I did the same when my son had cancer. Even if we never use the bag, it’s just better that it’s there and ready to go.

I finished the 2 glasses left in the bottle the other night, so last night was AF. I’m going to go on a walk today, and the amount of trash I see on the road is horrible. So, I’ll be out there for a while. It’s Good Friday, so salmon is on the menu (or as we call it “water chicken”). So today should be a decent calorie day.

Praying everyone as a good day!

@SurferGirl1982 we have plenty of Tex-Mex, but we also have a wide variety of authentic Mexican - pick a region, and we probably have it. I've been liking Oaxacan lately. A lot of the Mexican places here do a green salsa that is apparently unique to Houston, for all intents and purposes it's just jalapenos roasted and pureed with a little oil. A lot of people think it's too hot, but I put it away on chips like it's going out of style. TBH, I've never found a Mexican dish or sauce that came close to a proper jerk chicken, pad kee mao or vindaloo.

Years ago, back in NOLA, we were at a little get together with friends…..jeez, I guess it might have been the last time I saw Steve alive. He was my friend, mentor, bandmate, he showed me the ropes and taught me a lot, never hesitated to call me out for stupid stuff or praise me for doing well. I miss him a lot. Anyway, it was my family, another close friend's family, Steve, and maybe a few other friends from that circle, and we'd ordered an assortment of dishes from Nirvana, an excellent Indian restaurant down on Magazine. I just remember Steve taking a bite of something, and saying "Hooooooo! Boy, if a Cajun cooked food that hot, he'd get his @$$ kicked!" We all just about died laughing.

Steve had his demons, same as the rest of us….the music scene was brutal. For too many years, anytime I heard from anybody, it was "hey, you heard about Chris? Yeah he ODed…." "hey, you heard about EJ? He had a stroke…." "you heard about James? His liver gave out…" "you heard about so and so, wrapped his car around a pole on St. Charles…." "heard about so and so, kidney failure" I don't know anybody from the scene anymore. The stuff we did…you couldn't keep up that pace without something to keep you going, it was everywhere, we all did it in amounts that would kill an elephant…mix that with the booze, it was madness. One night, I guess the band was off that night, I was down at Molly's At The Market, Laura was tending bar and I was halfway through my second fifth of the night with no sign of slowing down. She walked by, looked at me, shook her head and said, "You're not human, are you?"

AF tonight, on that note...

10 LA
5 AF
3 A

-m

April:

AF=7
A=11

11 AF

5 LA

4 A

AF - 16
A - 4

If I had wine in the house tonight, it would be gone. Went to my parents’ for Easter dinner and both my brothers were there and my sister-in-law. But, that wasn’t what made me want a drink. It was my mother-in-law.

1. We have to take 2 vehicles whenever she wants to go somewhere with us because we can’t all fit in one vehicle and take her walker. I have to lay the seat down in my car so it will fit. So, it’s usually me, her, and my daughter traveling together. I’d much rather be able to be the passenger princess.
2. She tries so hard to be funny, and she just isn’t. It’s really irritating most of the time. She can’t hear, so often her jokes fall flat because they just don’t make sense based on the conversation. I think she just interjects, so she can have some attention.
3. Her loud eating and breathing are getting worse. My brother kept looking at her, and without anyone seeing me except him I mouthed from across the table, “I’m sorry.” He laughed because he didn’t realize I saw him, but he has the same issue I do with people making noises when they eat. He handled it well though. But her little portable oxygen machine is crazy loud too! You can’t have a conversation when it’s going. In the car, I had the radio volume twice the level I normally do to hear the music, and I still couldn’t hear some of the songs when they came on.

I know it’s mean, but I just want her to stay home. I need a break from her, and she just ruined one of my chances.

Anyway, @SurferGirl1982 I’m sorry your bloody nose scared you. I’m very glad you are still with us. @RubyRed427 is absolutely right. Keep trying, you’ll get there.

@RubyRed427 and @SurferGirl1982 it IS hard to be sober, but we still try every day because that's all we can do! Hugs to both of you and keep on keeping to try form new habits and do what you can do!

@NonnieDoiron I'm sorry your holiday was not as pleasant as you deserve. I hope you get a peaceful day to yourself to make up for it!

We didn't do much yesterday. The kids and grands came over Saturday for tacos. I had a tongue in the freezer from the last time we got 1/2 a cow and wanted to make some Lengua tacos, so we had a taco night. Yesterday, I rode with SO to drop off some equipment that he needed on site to start a job today. Then we had lunch and rode up and looked at a piece of property he just had surveyed. Then we rode the casino for a bit, so I did drink yesterday. We also went to the casino on Friday, so I drank then, too. AF on Saturday with the kids and grands, though, so there's that. I also have not had any more episodes. So there's that, too.

Have a good week, everyone!

A=5/AF=15

For me, transitioning to sobriety required daily work and commitment for the first couple of months and then it was effortless. You have to put in the work, plan well, and accept discomfort at times. It's work since it feels like 100 cravings hit out of the blue during those first few months and each one is a battle that needs to be fought, its annoying and tiring but for each one not fed alcohol, the more improved my thinking became and the stronger I got. This is healing. At some point I needed to starve the wine devil of his juice and weaken him to the point he can no longer be a pest in my head.

Drumming up the confidence and strength to push through took 7 years and many attempts to do a short term break. I could have done it sooner but didn't believe I could therefore never made it a goal.

It was all thanks to a saint on MFP who challenged my false belief and said I was capable. That and I got sick and tired of failing.

I had a lovely Easter holiday with great food and company and I felt happier than when I used to have my bubbly rose buzz on.

About 50/50 over the last few days…

@NonnieDoiron ~ I read your post the other day and didn't have time to comment. Poor child, had to eat leftovers! Well, at least you were missed! Glad your daughter is home. That's very smart to keep a bag ready. hopefully, by being prepared, those needs to go will be less than expected. Praying for your family. Sorry you had such a tough time yesterday. I can relate in so many ways!

@chicbuc ~ Kudos to your SO, that was a very kind jester and obviously a stress relief for you. How are you feeling?

@SurferGirl1982 ~ profound words and the best thing is…you haven't thrown the towel in. You're very aware and it will happen, when you're ready.

@Womona ~ you are doing well with your one glass plan. Just having one glass is very hard, I think :)

@mfowler883 ~ my count is "about" as well. I know I had a couple of days AF as I wasn't feeling 100% (those darn grandkids! :) Congrats on your son passing his finals and good luck with the transition.

@globalhiker ~ Yes, the week flew by for me as well. Sometimes I wish I could push a button and turn my brain off from time to time. I guess it's kind of what the wine does, but good for you continuing your NA journey. You are killing it!!!! Thanks for explaining your transition to where you are today. It's helpful.

Have a marvelous Monday!!!

Stats thru 4/20
A = 12
LA = 3
AF = 5

@MissMay I'm so sorry to hear that. But I want you to know how much I valued you and your contributions and I wish you love and happiness. xo

@MissMay I'm so sorry to hear you're leaving MFP, and am forever grateful that I found this discussion thread a few months ago.

I hope all is well with you, and that whatever you do in life, it's filled with nothing but happiness, compassion and love, because that's what you brought to these threads every month, and it's what you deserve, and more.

Peace and love, Spring ❤️

I almost wonder if someone hacked into her account and wrote that because that just does not sound like how she would say good bye. The writing style and tone of the message is not her typical either.

I hope she is OK and I wish her well. She helped change my life.

If she does not resurface, hope someone with MFP technical skills wants to volunteer setting up the monthly group. I'm happy to continue as a contributor. And I need this place to come to keep myself in check and stay supported.

Been a very busy week; here's my April update so far…Had a mimosa at Easter brunch (ocean view vibes) and no regrets! Back to AF until Stagecoach kicks off Thursday. Down 5 lbs since I started AF for Lent and feeling good — calling this my reset & being more mindful when choosing to drink.

AF = 21

A =1

@globalhiker My first thought was "Miss May was hacked". I really thought that at first. Her post didn't sound like her. But if something is wrong in her life, I can see why she quickly posted. I'm puzzled and will miss her greatly.