Ramblings of a Spreadsheeter
Just like you, I’ve tried to quit hundreds of times. We all know tobacco is stupid. But for some reason, I’ve always failed miserably. If you’re new here, I’m guessing you have too. This time, I didn’t try to quit, I actually did. It started for me when my wife sat down next to me after the kids went to bed and told me “Your daughter found a can in your garage. She asked me if you eat tobacco. I told her to ask you, that’s your deal. Talk to her.” She’s a smart kid, and she’s been educated on the effects of tobacco on the human body. I knew that I was worrying her sick.
This happened on the day before Father’s day, 2017. I chewed for 13+ years, but I decided right then and there that I was done, forever. I spent Father’s day in the suck, but happy. Kids want to be like their parents, and I’ve got 3 kids. Tobacco use is certainly not the legacy I want to leave behind.
I think if we’re honest, we will all admit that after the honeymoon phase of tobacco use was over, we wished we could quit, and we tried, but we couldn’t. It became obvious that tobacco had no upside, but was nearly impossible to stop once you started. It had control over you. I didn’t realize it until my 60’s or 70’s, but letting something have control over me was crushing me in more ways than I could count. It isn’t just about tobacco anymore – it’s about me being in charge of my own life. My fellow salooner Sean (Sfurze) likes to say “to be the man, you’ve got to kill the can!”. I’ve got to agree. If you’re letting something like tobacco, that you want to quit, but can’t, rule over you – it’s going to have effects on you that you won’t see until you’re on the other side of a quit. Once you stare that demon in the face and beat it- you will feel like you can beat anything. You will have killed the can, and you’ll be the man. Thanks Sean.
The guys I’ve been in frequent contact with – Phuctup, Olly, Bojax, Broc, JRan, MikeP – you’re a big part of the reason I stayed quit, and I thank you. I don’t know you very well yet, but I consider you my friends. The rest of the salooners, you also played a huge part in me staying quit, even if I never spoke to you (I’ve been watching and tracking you. Like a stalker.) And I hope that on the ride from 100-200 we connect more.
If I could offer some advise to new quitters – find a way to get involved. It feels weird, I know. I know. I didn’t want to either. But just do it. Get some numbers, text them daily. Doesn’t have to be much, just say hi. You might actually make a few friends. I joined up with September with no goals other than to quit tobacco. But because I just did it and texted a bunch of random dudes, I have a new set of goals: I want to crash at Lee’s parent’s beach house, I want to do a crossfit workout with Bryan (or get some mosquito bites on my balls with him, not sure which yet), I actually want to go to Kansas for the first time in my life to meet Dave… The point is, it starts as a bunch of weird usernames, and ends up as a bunch of dudes that fought the hardest battle of your life with you, and you really wish you could just shake their hand one time.
If you aren’t quit yet – just do it, and go all in. It will suck, it really will. But then it will get better, it really will. Your wife will respect you more, your kids will have a better man to look up to, and you might just meet a few weirdos that you can’t wait to meet. And send me a message, maybe I’ll be one of those weirdos!
September – I’ve got the SSOA primed for the road to 200, let’s do this together!
NOTE: This piece written by KillTheCan.org forum member DKAJW
