Before I’m anywhere close to being an oldtimer lol…

And the “trick” remains the same (I know – its not really a trick);
Don’t die, don’t drink and keep on keepin’ on.
From Ralph -
“Dear Mark,
“Congrats on your anniversary. If a knucklehead like you can get sober and stay sober, well, there’s still hope for a knucklehead like me.”
That’s right… this is why we “celebrate” the miracle of sobriety, so that others might know it works and have hope!
Thank you all
[Hey! Mr P. - Congrats to you too! Now... talk about a knucklehead 8O]

Theme Day for the Science and Health Channel – asking an alky to go back in the past and dredge up old stuff about 2006! LOL…
“We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it” – a promise many of us have learned to live by… thankfully.
There were posts in 2006 that I’d consider favorites and then there were entries that generated a bit of controversy (or were generated by controversy that I created).
Here are a few beginning with my beginning in April;
Change – Where I introduce myself to you…

Are You Co-Signing BS? – Keeping meeting …read more

Thanks to Rexie I found the Akron AA Archives and then the Akron, Ohio Intergroup.
Like the sponge I am I’m looking all over the site and I see this;
“A.A. does not promise to solve your life’s problems. But we can show you how we are learning to live without drinking “one day at a time.”

Food, glorious food! I’m an alcoholic. I don’t want to drink again. But what if I were to find a way to “eat” my booze?
Sound funny? Not really… It’s Theme Day at The Science and Health Channel. The Theme is Food.
Through the years I’ve heard various theories and stories about using alcohol in foods and having the alcohol burn off, therefore I need not worry. Well, as usual, I still need to maintain constant vigilance and look at this theory one more time with the help of the AA History Lovers Group and The Grapevine Volume 47 Issue 3 August …read more

Hmmm – for your serious consideration;
The Re-socialization View Of Recovery
This view of recovery is…
‘…highly social and involves the use of informal community resources that provide a sobriety-based framework in which one can stop drinking and maintain sobriety.’
William L. White – “Slaying the Dragon”
“In the Re-socialization View of recovery, the biggest problem of the addict is not a need for spiritual experience, nor is it underlying psychological stressors. Instead, the Re-socialization View believes that the addict’s biggest problem is using. When the using stops, the addict’s biggest problem becomes how to stay stopped. Solutions to these problems are fairly straightforward. ‘Don’t …read more

John has requested a topic and it feels like it is exactly what I need
Relating to The Traditions, John says;
“What am I supposed to do when I see a tradition is being broken at my meeting? Who is responsible for upholding the traditions? Who sees to it that the group understands that a tradition is being broken?”
Please, feel free to comment… John – much thanks!

From page 53 in the 12 and 12;
“When we habitually try to manipulate others to our own willful desires, they revolt, and resist us heavily. Then we develop hurt feelings, a sense of persecution, and a desire to retaliate. As we redouble our efforts at control, and continue to fail, our suffering becomes acute and constant.”

I often still, make efforts to control others. It is in my nature. I have made enormous progress with it through the years and have even asked God to remove it. It still is…
This specific passage is of very large importance – for me. It …read more

I’d like to refer to the Traditions Checklist once again…
This time from the First Tradition, #’s 7 and 8;
7. Am I as considerate of AA members as I want them to be of me?
8. Do I spout platitudes about love while indulging in and secretly justifying behavior that bristles with hostility?
Let’s consider the First Tradition – “Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity.”
Within the First Tradition in the 12 and 12 is this;

Once again, from pg. 124 of “The Language of The Heart,” in November of 1950, Bill W. writes about our Traditions saying;
“they were written first in our hearts. For each of us knows, instinctively I think, that AA is not ours to do with as we please. We are but caretakers to preserve the spiritual quality of our fellowship; keep it whole for those who will come after us and have the need of what has so generously been given to us.”
Considering the dilemma I face currently, I especially see this quote;

First Things First – from pg. 417 (used to be 449) “When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, or situation – some fact of my life – unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in God’s world by mistake.”
A few years ago, when Dr. Paul was interviewed, I believe I heard that he said the trick is to be in God’s world.