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!

You are so so so right, Lisa.  My anxiety went from a 6 to a 2.  It's exhilarating!  Or . . . serene I should say.  Lol.  Thank you for reminding me about the double star!  And congrats on your star!!!!  I loved reading about your decorated calendars--such an awesome idea.  

Hope your gutter wasn't too badly damaged.  Glad it was just the corner that got hit.  We are two midwestern gals who are due for a pleasant spring!   Maybe not until May though according to Farmer's Almanac.  But that's soon enough.  This past month flew by.  I wonder if living my life from smoke to smoke was making time pass slower.  It sure seems that way.

 OK, have a wonderful evening!

-E

Lisa,

Yay, I guessed right! Well, I gave 2 guesses, so I suppose my chances were good. I actually lived in Michigan for maybe 4 years as a small child. I think it was a tiny town called Gobles. We may have lived in a couple towns, really. I don’t remember much, since we moved from there when I was maybe 5. I remember making tunnels in the long snow mounds that the plows made. I also remember dressing our cats up in our gazebo, lol. My 2 main memories of Michigan. We were in Tennessee before that, then came to California, so it’s pretty much all I know. 

Ah yes, February is the month for moving straight to the star! Yay!! I love that you’re putting up your calendar page. On to the green smiley faces! I really love you have a paper calendar. So many people don’t anymore. I have a moose one my friend in Canada sent me. I have a tiny moose obsession. I really want to see one in person someday. A live one. I’ve seen taxidermy ones and they just aren’t that cool.  

Jenny

Hi Jenny,

My son actually works at the schools in Gobles.  Gobles is about a 25 minute drive from our town.  Our town is much bigger than Gobles. I hate the winters here but like the other seasons.  

My youngest brother lives in Colorado.  He sent me a video of about 20 moose walking on a somewhat busy country road.  It was cool.  The moose were oblivious to the traffic , they were on a mission I guess.

I have to get some housework done and prepare papers for my 1st PT appointment tomorrow at the new to me place.  I am not motivated to do anything .  Maybe a cup of coffee is required. I have a crap load of medical appointments this month .  It is stressful for me and burns me out.

A month without smoking today .  Yay me.

What has been up with you?

                                                     Lisa