What a Day! Warning, It’s a Long One

Seanfhear – 100 Days Quit

Not to dismiss all the usual “Thank You’s” to all of you who are on the site, but I would like to tell a (possibly) slightly different story. With all the quitters here, it’s possible that this story has been told a million times and I just did not read it.

This is the story of the morning of my 100th day.

Saturday mornings are nice in my household. I get up with our two and ¾ year old son (A.K.A. the Boy King) and let my wife sleep in as much as possible with a rowdy boy running around (Sundays are my days to sleep in). This is, of course, after he leaves his room and comes into ours. We took the childproofing off the door a month or so ago. Usually, this is about a ½ hour and then it’s time to cook breakfast.

Saturdays calls for something other than the usual cold cereal and a dash out the door. Eggs fried or scrambled, bacon, toast, sometimes grits, and if I am smart enough to think about it, I slow cook oatmeal in the crock-pot overnight. If you have not tried it, run, don’t walk to your kitchen so you can get it done for tomorrow. Are you hungry yet?

After breakfast, my wife and I usually work around the house, lawn work, etc. We like to get this out of the way so we can do something fun with the Boy King on Sunday, the water park, the zoo; those of you with kids know the drill.

Today, it was mowing the lawn and digging a small pathway so my wife can put down a pathway from the driveway to the front door. We actually poured the stones ourselves using concrete and molds. Pain in the ass if you are thinking about it. My wife also stained them to match the house. This is a forty-foot path that “meanders” to the door. My wife’s words, not mine. Somebody out there can relate! After a good three and ½ hours, I was done, the Boy King was playing in the hose and my wife, the architect of this whole mess was doing what architects do, meaning sitting and critiquing.

So I come inside, me and the Boy King take a shower, then it’s time for lunch. I make some awesome cheeseburgers and fruit salad, not from a can, but from actual fruit. Once the usual appreciative sounds diminish to a dull roar, it’s time for the Boy King to take a nap. He fights, of course, but mom’s will is …just…to…strong, …can’t…….then he’s asleep, sort of. And that brings me to now. Really, right as I am typing this, I can see my son on the monitor, still fighting sleep, but knowing that if he gets out of bed, his momma will psychically know and come in the room.

Now, this scenario may not seem out of the ordinary to you, but to me, it’s the epitome of a life without dip. When I dipped, the day went much different. I did not eat with the family because I had a dip in from the moment I woke up (NINJA GUTTER) until I could no longer put off eating. Missed some serious quality time because of it. Dipping meant more to me on a daily basis than my family, yet if you had asked me, I would have told you you were wrong. In addition, I don’t know how it affected the rest of you, but I could not do a long stretch in the Florida sun with a dip in, made me a little light-headed, so the work stretched into the day we reserved for the family. That sucks, doesn’t it? Have you been in that situation?

And all through this normal day, for the first time, almost like magic, I have not thought about dipping once. After ruling my life for near thirty years, tobacco no longer has a place in my life or in my mind. And that is the real magic of the quit. When you know, that no matter what, you will not go back to tobacco and you DO NOT even think about it for long periods of time. This has now happened to me.

For those of you just starting your quit, stay strong for yourself and the time you can give to those you love. Unqualified time, not distracted trying to figure out how to find the time to get away so you can dip. Enjoy the time with sons and daughters, spouses and family. You never know when it may be taken away, but for me, tobacco will not be the “taker”. Someone on the site has a signature line that says the dipping is suicide by installment. I quit making payments. There’s enough out there to get you without tobacco’s help.

As far as thanking those who have helped me, there are many and if I leave you name off, I did not mean to.

WWB for being the first to reach out with a kind word and a number. Bill, life threw you some shit, but I believe you are tough enough to overcome. Call me if you need me, you were there for me.

Chewie, LOOT, Franpro, LDiddy, Aquaman, Remshot, WhoDey, QT, Mij, Mahum, 11×4, and especially ODT, thank you for your patience and the maintenance of the site. Who knows if I used it properly, but I did and it worked so far.

I want to thank everyone in my group (and other groups) personally, but this speech is already long. Suffice it to say that all of you helped me every step along the way, even through my down periods. I do want to make special mention of a few.

CCM, you started a few days in front of me and cleared the way. Thanks for your leadership, even if you are a lib.

Ready, stay away from the monkeys, but that sure did make me laugh for days!

Mns, you and Ready, the other 2/3’s of the Triplets going in the HOF today. All I can say is “We made it”

LOOT, could you please get it right after 100 days? It’s not pronounced “shawn-fear”, its pronounced “shawn-fair”. But then, it’s Irish and, much to the loss of the race, you are not. Stop bumping me on my HOF day.

In chat, the usual suspects, Timmay, Bubblehed, FAL, SB, SD, and all the rest, thanks for getting the verbal snot kicked out of you on a daily basis.

Mule, just down the road, can you bring me some floor samples to the next Florida meet?

JPine, your colorful language and being constantly singled out for abuse makes for some fun reading in the posts and in chat. You are bulletproof and impervious to shots taken.

Once again, if I have left anyone out, it was not intentional and everyone on this site is important to me in some way or another (Chief, you know what I am talking about).

Now, It’s time for a well-deserved nap, something else I could not do while dipping.

Bill (Seanfhear)

NOTE: This piece written by KillTheCan.org forum member Seanfhear