Hi Jenny!

Yeah, two months on March 1!  It's really happening!  Congrats to you too with the upcoming March 4!  

So glad to read about your surgery recovery, I can feel the joy in your post about being suddenly pain free, and especially the relief of waking up without a splint.  That's amazing!

My daughter and I were house bound this past week because of the blizzard but it ended up being NBD.  We did our stuff on Zoom and just took it easy.  I barely thought about smoking at all, except maybe to think how grateful I was to not have to sneak outside and find somewhere to light up.  That was always awkward in years past, seeing my neighbors shoveling out and looking at me funny for polluting the air.  Or having to wash my gloves all the time because they reeked after one cigarette.  Ugh, I always felt so bad about that.  Now it feels unreal, like I can't believe that was ever me.  

Speaking of blizzard - shout out to Lisa for being such a trooper about handling a stressful winter situation without smoking!!!!!  So glad you are back in your place again, Lisa, and with power and internet.  The power of NOPE!

Thanks for writing and so glad that everyone is doing so great!  

Erika

Erika,

So happy to hear the blizzard didn’t hit you bad! We had family in Southern California that got video of their backyards with pools and palm trees, all with snow around them. It was kinda crazy! I think a lot of people there enjoyed our “blizzard”, but it did cause some chaos since our lower elevation cities don’t normally have snow plows handy. Lots of people had a couple stay at home days and not everyone was thrilled with that. Cities 1 hour from us got snow, but closest we came was something called graupel, which is apparently tiny snowballs. Not technically snow, but also not hail. I learned a new word, lol. Anyway, we were very excited for our 10 minutes of graupel. Well, I was sick in bed that day, so I missed it, but I was excited to hear about it and see videos of it from friends.  

Then I hear of people who got hit by it so hard and I wish they’d got the graupel instead. I’m told people out East don’t bother with distinguishing such silly things as which kind of slush comes from the sky. I’m so sorry so many people were hurt, either physically or emotionally, by those storms.

It’s great to hear you’re doing so well! Not going out in the snow to smoke has to be, well, so much more comfortable in so many ways! I love that I have days I don’t think of smoking, too. I really didn’t think that would happen so quickly. Yay!

Do I remember right that you’re in New York? Or was it Boston? I’m losing track of places. I’m thinking you’re New York since you’re going to Hamilton, but I suppose you can see Broadway shows all over. I do remember correctly that it’s you going to Hamilton, right? Maybe 2 am isn’t the best time for me to try to remember these things, lol. We’ll see how I did!

I hope you have a wonderful Tuesday!

Jenny

Hi Jenny!

Graupel is a great word, thank you for that fun fact!  I love fun facts!  I got graupeled on during a camping trip a few years ago and was like, "What is this stuff?  It looks like hail but doesn't sting when it hits me!"  And now I know! 

Yeah, y'all's weather has been crazy out there!  There was some snow in San Diego county one time when I lived there and one of my clever neighbors got a cooler full up in the mountains and then built a small snowman on the beach for her xmas cards.  So creative!

Oh--I live in Minneapolis.  We have a good theater scene here!  Very stoked for Hamilton next month.  Good camping hiking and swimming too in the warmer months.  

Also a good place to quit smoking, turns out.  After yoga the other week I overheard these ladies talking about how stressed they were to (1) rent their air bnb to smokers because they made the place stink, even when the guest smoked outside and (2) one of them was having a houseguest who smoked in her car and her clothes reeked of it.  Normally this would've made me defensive and craving a spiteful cigarette, but instead I realized I had no idea how other people felt about third hand smoke.  These ladies seemed nice and weren't being catty.  They were honestly distressed.  I chalked this up as the universe trying to tell me something.  

So proud of us!  And to quote the OG Minneapolis Lady theme song (from Mary Tyler Moore show, lol), "We're gonna make it after all."

Have a great day!!!

Erika

Erika,

Michigan or a different M state were going to be my 3rd and 4th guess…  

We are gonna make it! Love it!

Jenny

Hi Jenny,

My son fixed the gutter drain today.  I am not sure if I need the gutter itself fixed, it is a little bit askew but not detached.  No the big limb did not hit my neighbors house just mine.  I am lucky there wasn't worse damage.

I have been sleeping a lot since being home again.  A LOT . My sinuses were better and then last night not so much.  Hopefully just a weather/allergy combo and not an infection.  All it did yesterday was rain with wind and chilly.

I am so glad you are feeling better.  Laughing and having an appetite again , yay.

Some of the benefits of not smoking that are my favorites so far are no coughing , and no phlegm from smoking, and not having that dependency of a required need to smoke.

                                         Lisa

Graupel, live and learn. Derived from the German word for barley. 

Enjoy a smoke free day everybody.

Paul

Lisa,

so great you’re getting so much sleep! All those days of cold, then noise at your son’s place, I’m sure you needed it very much. 

Nice that your sinuses have calmed down some. Hopefully they will again. Not fun stuff when it’s weather or allergies and not fixable. 

Yes, that dependency of needing to smoke is definitely something I don’t miss at all. Climbing into bed, wondering if I’d be “needing” to get up in an hour to go back out? That wasn’t fun. 

You’re going to get another dot tomorrow! I was thinking of your smiley face stickers and how your February calendar page must look. Are you going to rip it off and hang it next to your calendar? Would be nice to have it visible somewhere. 

Btw, which state are you in? If you don’t mind me asking. I think you said before? I’m thinking Michigan or Massachusetts, but I was wrong on my guess with Erika. Memory isn’t great, but I’m hoping I can get a better idea where we all are.

Jenny

Erica,

Congratulations on 2 months today !!!    You are a 2 star gal now !!!

I wondered about you when Minnesota was having that blizzard.  Yeah, I was really challenged with the ice storm we had and all the other non perks that came with it.  Before I quit , that was something that I would deal with by smoking even more and that would make my anxiety even worse .  I didn't realize smoking was making my anxiety issues worse until I quit.

                                             Lisa

Hi Jenny,

I am Michigan gal.  I have lived here my whole life and in the same area.  I stayed here because I wanted to be near family.  Have you always lived in California ?

My 4 week and 1 month are on the same day tomorrow.  So I guess I skip the 4th dot and move on to the star ? What do you think ?  Yes, I am going to cut out February on my mini calendar and put it up on the wall.  I need to see it and it looks fabulous, so full of smiley faces.  March will get green smiley faces , February had pink ones.

                                            Lisa

Hey Lisa... I definitely feel you regarding the anxiety that accompanies a smoking habit. I am still using 6 nicotine lozenges a day, and I am noticing that when I do get anxious, it is not usually the stressful situation or stressful person that makes me anxious.  It is the urge to pop a lozenge and the wait that comes with being able to have one. I am trying to find new ways to cope with boredom, laziness and everyday minor stresses or uncomfortable situations. I think I need to get my passion back for wanting to quit the lozenges. I used to use 12 a day. I have been telling myself that I have done a good thing by cutting my intake in half, but at the end of the day, I would like to be quit. I read Leo's Top Ten Tips for quitting and it moved me and made me feel hopeful again! There are a lot of positive things to do and more positive ways to think than waiting and depending on a nicotine lozenge in order to fill a space or boredom or loneliness or to pump yourself out of a little laziness. With that being said, I am off to chew some gum!