Monday, October 31, 2016
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Meetings. Me Being Me. Cubbies! Expensive Cars. And Other Stuff.
RECAP (AND THEN SOME!)
On Saturday I got to spend some additional time with my sponsor Lyn as we discussed my 4th Step. After our meeting, we went into one of the satellite rooms and had an honest discussion. We'll do so again this upcoming Saturday. My 5th Step meeting will require me to (probably/possibly) meet with an actual priest to admit my faults to that God portion. (Lyn's going to see if he can arrange something.) I haven't done an actual confessional conversation with a priest in decades, so we'll need to augment/edit my character defects.
The general topic of Saturday was Love and Tolerance. L&T for those of us IN the program and those that are OUTSIDE of the program. All in all, it was a good meeting for me. I have L&T for the people that I deal with on an AA basis... and I'm working on extending that L&T to those around me.
I expressed my 'pride' moral defect with Lyn... but is it wrong that I can actually exercise it for the benefit of others? I personally think I handled the portion of those "outside of the program" in a grand fashion when I footed a coworker (Nestor) a fair amount of cash while we were being fed during a training session at work this past week. Nestor wasn't part of the initial training meetings and apparently no one told him to come with cash in hand to help pay for the meal. Jose ordered a TON of food from a place he knows quite well... and it was DYNAMITE food... still and all, no one told Nestor that we all had to pitch in. Seven pounds of pork costs a lot, so rather than witness him sitting there watching the rest of us eat, I pitched in enough cash for him to eat. (Is that my moral pride defect or just me being a decent human being? I didn't see anyone else pitching in some coin. Cheap bastards.)
SIDENOTE: I did the same thing a few years ago for a VERY DEAR friend of mine, Bill, when the Coven adjourned our daily work functions to have lunch at a Naff-Naff location. Neither of us had eaten there before and Bill was stunned that they wanted nearly six bucks for a meager bowl of <censored> soup. He only bought a bottle of water. There I was with an entire corned beef sammich, pickles and chips. I had to force the guy into accepting one half of the sammich... and never EVER asked for reimbursement, but it all worked well in the end. I do miss Bill greatly, as he was one of the last true male friends I've ever had, and often wonder what he'd have said about my current sobriety. He'd have been there for me. I say hi when I do my nightly meditations. (I'd like to think he'd like that.)
On Saturday night, I blubbered like a moron... but I have an entire city with me, as the Cubs advanced to the freaking World Series. An entire city... several generations of fans... and myself NEVER thought we'd see the day! But, I digress.
Sunday was a great open meeting as the speaker came in from the city region and shared a great story! I only wish more of those open meetings could be like that! A great speaker and a lovely shared story.
Meanwhile, at work, I had a chance to test a car that cost more than two of the last houses my name was legally attached to! Some guy pulled into the lot in a freaking McClaren P4!!! I didn't even see the thing as it's built so low to the ground. There were barely 5,000 miles on the thing, and one wonders two things. 1.) Who has over a quarter of a million dollars for a car... and 2.) Apart from the emission test spot... where do you even drive it? It's not exactly designed for the Kennedy or the Dan Ryan! The photo beneath is what I exactly tested.
Today's meeting at Westminster was another nice one! I'm just fortunate enough to have had a Wednesday off to be able to attend. The general topic was having found a place where I belong and being able to share. That sentiment is SO enormously true! I said so today and was supremely happy to be part of the discussion.
I'm presently in a good place. I have Lyn and my AA friends to thank for that. A very good place. And I will deal with it as I've been dealing with it:
One Day at a Time. :)
On Saturday I got to spend some additional time with my sponsor Lyn as we discussed my 4th Step. After our meeting, we went into one of the satellite rooms and had an honest discussion. We'll do so again this upcoming Saturday. My 5th Step meeting will require me to (probably/possibly) meet with an actual priest to admit my faults to that God portion. (Lyn's going to see if he can arrange something.) I haven't done an actual confessional conversation with a priest in decades, so we'll need to augment/edit my character defects.
The general topic of Saturday was Love and Tolerance. L&T for those of us IN the program and those that are OUTSIDE of the program. All in all, it was a good meeting for me. I have L&T for the people that I deal with on an AA basis... and I'm working on extending that L&T to those around me.
I expressed my 'pride' moral defect with Lyn... but is it wrong that I can actually exercise it for the benefit of others? I personally think I handled the portion of those "outside of the program" in a grand fashion when I footed a coworker (Nestor) a fair amount of cash while we were being fed during a training session at work this past week. Nestor wasn't part of the initial training meetings and apparently no one told him to come with cash in hand to help pay for the meal. Jose ordered a TON of food from a place he knows quite well... and it was DYNAMITE food... still and all, no one told Nestor that we all had to pitch in. Seven pounds of pork costs a lot, so rather than witness him sitting there watching the rest of us eat, I pitched in enough cash for him to eat. (Is that my moral pride defect or just me being a decent human being? I didn't see anyone else pitching in some coin. Cheap bastards.)
SIDENOTE: I did the same thing a few years ago for a VERY DEAR friend of mine, Bill, when the Coven adjourned our daily work functions to have lunch at a Naff-Naff location. Neither of us had eaten there before and Bill was stunned that they wanted nearly six bucks for a meager bowl of <censored> soup. He only bought a bottle of water. There I was with an entire corned beef sammich, pickles and chips. I had to force the guy into accepting one half of the sammich... and never EVER asked for reimbursement, but it all worked well in the end. I do miss Bill greatly, as he was one of the last true male friends I've ever had, and often wonder what he'd have said about my current sobriety. He'd have been there for me. I say hi when I do my nightly meditations. (I'd like to think he'd like that.)
On Saturday night, I blubbered like a moron... but I have an entire city with me, as the Cubs advanced to the freaking World Series. An entire city... several generations of fans... and myself NEVER thought we'd see the day! But, I digress.
Sunday was a great open meeting as the speaker came in from the city region and shared a great story! I only wish more of those open meetings could be like that! A great speaker and a lovely shared story.
Meanwhile, at work, I had a chance to test a car that cost more than two of the last houses my name was legally attached to! Some guy pulled into the lot in a freaking McClaren P4!!! I didn't even see the thing as it's built so low to the ground. There were barely 5,000 miles on the thing, and one wonders two things. 1.) Who has over a quarter of a million dollars for a car... and 2.) Apart from the emission test spot... where do you even drive it? It's not exactly designed for the Kennedy or the Dan Ryan! The photo beneath is what I exactly tested.
Today's meeting at Westminster was another nice one! I'm just fortunate enough to have had a Wednesday off to be able to attend. The general topic was having found a place where I belong and being able to share. That sentiment is SO enormously true! I said so today and was supremely happy to be part of the discussion.
I'm presently in a good place. I have Lyn and my AA friends to thank for that. A very good place. And I will deal with it as I've been dealing with it:
One Day at a Time. :)
Thursday, October 20, 2016
Late Again Blogging
I've been busy the past number of days, and every time I try to make time to blog, something gets in the way. Namely work it seems. I've got a screwy schedule due to training. We've got some new apparatus called "Smog Daddy" being installed and I have to go back this evening for two hours, having already worked a shift this morning. The same will be true for tomorrow and a portion of Saturday. People are leaving, so I've got an uber-funky schedule next week that I'm not looking forward to.
But, on the plus side, it allowed me to attend some meetings this week. I will go backwards and address as best as I can:
Yesterday was a meeting at Westminster. There's normally a huge crowd for that one. The topic involved all the time we spent (read: wasted) drinking and what we could've done had we'd been better people. The second half of that topic included what is it we will be doing going forward, now that we're not drinking. So, basically service work where applicable and attending meetings.
Monday morning was a day off for me, so I was able to attend my favorite meeting over at St. David's. There's almost always a nice group there and our topic was the "daily tune up". Basically, are we doing our morning and evening meditations and following up on our progress. I make it a point to try and do both every day, but it depends on how tired I am when I wake up. For the most part, I'm successful. (On a side-note, I also technically celebrated my six months sober anniversary. I didn't claim it on Saturday or Sunday, but I claimed it on Monday.)
Sunday was the normal Open Speaker meeting, and one of the guys from my home group on Saturdays spoke. Jack's been in the program a very long time and it was nice to hear his story. I read the "How it Works" pages again. That's always fun.
Saturday was the usual home group session. Lyn was there and we had to push back on my next Step progression. What with my training this week and the now funky schedule next week, it's going to have to wait again. But, like Lyn said, there's no rush. It's a marathon, not a race.
So, that's it for now. I'm going to try and relax before I have to head back on out to training. Yahoo.
One Day at a Time.
But, on the plus side, it allowed me to attend some meetings this week. I will go backwards and address as best as I can:
Yesterday was a meeting at Westminster. There's normally a huge crowd for that one. The topic involved all the time we spent (read: wasted) drinking and what we could've done had we'd been better people. The second half of that topic included what is it we will be doing going forward, now that we're not drinking. So, basically service work where applicable and attending meetings.
Monday morning was a day off for me, so I was able to attend my favorite meeting over at St. David's. There's almost always a nice group there and our topic was the "daily tune up". Basically, are we doing our morning and evening meditations and following up on our progress. I make it a point to try and do both every day, but it depends on how tired I am when I wake up. For the most part, I'm successful. (On a side-note, I also technically celebrated my six months sober anniversary. I didn't claim it on Saturday or Sunday, but I claimed it on Monday.)
Sunday was the normal Open Speaker meeting, and one of the guys from my home group on Saturdays spoke. Jack's been in the program a very long time and it was nice to hear his story. I read the "How it Works" pages again. That's always fun.
Saturday was the usual home group session. Lyn was there and we had to push back on my next Step progression. What with my training this week and the now funky schedule next week, it's going to have to wait again. But, like Lyn said, there's no rush. It's a marathon, not a race.
So, that's it for now. I'm going to try and relax before I have to head back on out to training. Yahoo.
One Day at a Time.
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Thinking of an Old Friend Today
At work this morning I noticed a tree changing its colors for Fall. The tops were both red and purple. I hope it lasts a little longer! I was reminded of someone who was a very dear friend to me in some formative years.
I just wanted to take a moment to remember my friend, Felice. He'd have approved of where my life has led me and the people I shared him with. :)
Leo loved his leaves. And he'd have laughed himself silly knowing what the Leaf Liberation Army did one night... oh so many year ago. :)
I just wanted to take a moment to remember my friend, Felice. He'd have approved of where my life has led me and the people I shared him with. :)
Leo loved his leaves. And he'd have laughed himself silly knowing what the Leaf Liberation Army did one night... oh so many year ago. :)
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
Four Days = Four Meetings
My new gig has allowed me quite a number of days to attend meetings! Whoo hoo!
Friday gave me one of my favorite meetings at St. David's and it helped to build upon previous Step meetings I've attended. (I'm still working on Step 4... but I like to think I am doing much better for Step 10... by making it a point to admit when I am wrong.
Saturday was my normal meeting at my home group with my Sponsor... always a good thing... and it was a meeting to do with Sponsors and the support they offer us. Lyn's great in that regard. He's ultra-easy to speak to and has been an absolute blessing in my life. A fact that I told him when the meeting ended. I also spoke briefly with Miguel about service work. They have monthly meetings at Westminster, so I am thinking about volunteering for a position. It would go a long way to completing the 12th Step... and my psychiatrist and I were talking about doing something along those lines. I believe I am ready for that now. :)
Sunday was a meeting with someone I know fairly well. I see Shelly most Saturdays and it was her turn to speak in front of the Open Meeting. It was nice to see a huge contingent of Saturday folks there to show their support.
Monday was a state holiday so I got the day off. (Paid too! Granted not the whole day... but still...) The day off afforded me a chance to hit St. David's again. The general conversation was about our experiences with newer members and whether or not we openly speak with them... or... to put a finer point on it... do we make "LISTEN" to what they have to say. I've been in the program a while now... and I work very hard to make new people feel welcome. I do listen and I do comment on their input. So, I suppose I do indeed try and spread the message to other alcoholics. It's a nice feeling.
Stef commented after Sunday's meeting that she's starting to understand what it is I was previously going through... during my previous half-assed attempt. That was nice to hear, as she didn't have to say anything... but it was still nice. I can't dwell on what happened. I can only be the best possible person I've started to become. (If that makes any sense. It does to me, so that's all that matters presently.)
Another day sober! One Day at a Time!
Friday gave me one of my favorite meetings at St. David's and it helped to build upon previous Step meetings I've attended. (I'm still working on Step 4... but I like to think I am doing much better for Step 10... by making it a point to admit when I am wrong.
Saturday was my normal meeting at my home group with my Sponsor... always a good thing... and it was a meeting to do with Sponsors and the support they offer us. Lyn's great in that regard. He's ultra-easy to speak to and has been an absolute blessing in my life. A fact that I told him when the meeting ended. I also spoke briefly with Miguel about service work. They have monthly meetings at Westminster, so I am thinking about volunteering for a position. It would go a long way to completing the 12th Step... and my psychiatrist and I were talking about doing something along those lines. I believe I am ready for that now. :)
Sunday was a meeting with someone I know fairly well. I see Shelly most Saturdays and it was her turn to speak in front of the Open Meeting. It was nice to see a huge contingent of Saturday folks there to show their support.
Monday was a state holiday so I got the day off. (Paid too! Granted not the whole day... but still...) The day off afforded me a chance to hit St. David's again. The general conversation was about our experiences with newer members and whether or not we openly speak with them... or... to put a finer point on it... do we make "LISTEN" to what they have to say. I've been in the program a while now... and I work very hard to make new people feel welcome. I do listen and I do comment on their input. So, I suppose I do indeed try and spread the message to other alcoholics. It's a nice feeling.
Stef commented after Sunday's meeting that she's starting to understand what it is I was previously going through... during my previous half-assed attempt. That was nice to hear, as she didn't have to say anything... but it was still nice. I can't dwell on what happened. I can only be the best possible person I've started to become. (If that makes any sense. It does to me, so that's all that matters presently.)
Another day sober! One Day at a Time!
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