Yes, Ernie. I stopped this year. Had quit for several years some time ago, but that got busted. 

I was on the phone with an Oklahoma client yesterday and it was 111 degrees. Can't imagine that. 

Have a great day all.

Words of wisdom, for sure, Andrew.  I, too, never thought I’d be a smoker in my early seventies.  Yet, time flys, and before I knew it, I ‘ve been smoking off and on for 50 years.  E gads!!!  Fortunately for me, I’ve always been involved in athletics all of my life and even as a smoker I continued to play squash, tennis, bike, kayak, swim and jog, to name a few.  I have read that athletics will mitigate the damage from smoking.  In my case that appears to be true.  And yet I still have dark shadows in my mind, worrying that someday in the future I may get lung cancer as my “reward” for smoking cigarettes.  I pray this never happens.  

Today, after my early bird swim, I was driving home and on the car phone to my insurance company.  I got so angry with the automatic voice on the other end, that I started to yell into the phone.  After I hung up, I felt a craving for a cigarette.  Then I made the association of anger and smoking.  As though a cigarette would “calm me down”.  So I said to myself, “Anthony, one day at a time.  And remember Andrew’s mantra, “I am not a smoker any more”.  By the time I pulled into my driveway the craving was gone.  Thank god I did not stop at my local convenience store to purchase a pack of smokes.

I really need to be good to myself the next several weeks while I go through withdrawals.  And avoid situations that provoke my anger.  Or any other negative emotions for that matter.  So today I will show myself some respect and give myself a low stress day.  One day at a time.

I liked your philosophical post and I thank you for your sharing.

Have a smoke free day, Andres.

Anthony

Good morning Paul and everyone.  111 is hot, I remember being out at the Sturgis bike rally

and seeing 105 up on the display years ago.  I don't remember hitting 100 here at home but

we might have.  Only 82 here this morn, must be really hot mornings in the city these days.

I imagine if you are still jogging it's during dark hours.  When I could jog it was during my working

years so usually very early in the morning except in the Winter on days off.  Then I would try to

wait until after it was a little warmer.   Glad you managed to quit again. 

Went to clean the air filter in my bike yesterday and the foam gasket that seals it was falling

apart.  Made a new gasket out of a thick rocker arm cover gasket and glued it on.  Bike engines

are very finicky about their air intake.  Won't even start without the air filter installed.  Hope that

was part of the reason it skips or misses sometimes.  That's about the only task I did outdoors.

After the sun came up anyway.  It's getting so the only time I ride is my trips down to PA.  If you

told me that while I was still working I would've had a hard time believing it.  I get busy in so many

directions.  My Monte Carlo SS sees even less action but the paint is still curing and it burns a lot of

premium fuel to keep that 383 stroker engine screaming. 

Keep up the good fight Paul.  Some of us are in a different part of the war against smoking.  It's more

like a chess game after 15 years.  Just have to remember I am still wired for the addition to the receptors

in my brain and can't ever smoke one cigarette or I will be a full blown smoker again.

Have a great day.

Ernie

One of my GS1100Gk bikes at Yosmite National Park out in Calif.  Fires there now.

Astonishing reversal of progress. Forget progress, compassion.

Nice bike, Ernie. You are correct, I can't jog in this weather. I go for a walk. Occasionally go to the gym, but a treadmill is pretty boring to me. Weather should get a bit cooler on Monday.

A good evening and weekend to everyone.

Paul

Good morning Paul and all.  Little cooler this morn at 61, probably 59 or so soon.  I was

jogging 4 or 5 miles years before I stopped smoking, might have helped me to the point

of finally stopping.  I'm spending about 3 hours a day on the elliptical but mostly to keep

my diabetes in remission.   Started hurting lots to jog in 2016 and the foot doc told me

arthritis in my feet.  Tried to pick it up again once in a while but doesn't work, can still walk

but have to go much further and more time to get the same result.  I try to find new movies

to watch while on the elliptical on netflix, have Amazon Prime free for a month so watching

their movies while exercising right now. 

Bikes are both 1982 so problems come up once in a while.  Cleaned the air filter element and

oiled it yesterday and built a new gasket to seal it when it slides in.  Rode it north to pick blueberries

and it ran well up and back.  So hope at least running better than last trip to PA.  Picked a bucket of

berries.  Supposed to detox your body.  I diet and try not to eat processed food, almost always bad

for diabetes, but some toxins find their way in, I'm certain. 

Have a good day.

Ernie

Good morning all.....I do check in every day but.......am not as involved after so many years.....hope everyone stays "clean"......and stay cool too......

Greeting, community of non smokers:  Tomorrow is one week since my Quit.  And what a nourishing week it has been.  I forget sometimes how different my life style is when I choose to become a non smoker.  I sleep better.  I eat healthier.  I don’t drink alcohol as much.  And I exercise more.  Despite eating like a king, I’ve miraculously lost a pound.  That’s a good thing!

I have also been doing some incredible breathing exercises called holotropic breathing.  Not only does it calm me down, but I find it exercises my lungs such that all the tar and gunk come up and begin to expel themselves.  And that, especially, is a good thing.

Discovering Delphi and using its resources has been a HUGE part of my recovery from nicotine addiction.  Many years ago I joined Nicotine Anonymous.  The group support enabled me to quite for over a year.  But once our group disbanded I found I could not maintain my momentum to quit and began relapsing.   I also have read and reread Alan Car’s Easy Way.  It has always prompted me to quit.  But after several months, I would relapse.  The moral of my story is that I have come to realize the importance of staying connected with a non smoking community such as this one, Sensational Seniors.  Your posts edify me, resonate with me, and further my resolve to refrain from cigarettes.  That being said, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.   

Andrew:  I just read that the Forum is shutting down in three days.  Do you know anything about that?  Please advise. 

i've not heard anything