And a few other boring characters…
From Mel’s article “Open-Meeting Bores”
The challenge? AA … “is greatly imperiled by the great blanket of boredom that stifles many meetings from coast to coast.”
Mel’s research and conclusion: “Having arrived at the conclusion that boring meetings and groups were caused by boring members, I began to look for some means of identifying just who these members really were. Surprisingly, they were the same fellows I have seen in my own bathroom shaving mirror from time to time.”
The first in Mel’s cast of boring characters;

Moving along in our book “Living Sober” we find ourselves at page 13 and we’re about to get active…
“It is very hard just to sit still trying not to do a certain thing, or not even to think about it. It’s much easier to get active and do something else – other than the act we’re trying to avoid.
So it is with drinking. Simply trying to avoid a drink (or not think of one), all by itself, doesn’t seem to be enough. The more we think about the drink we’re trying to keep away from, the more it occupies our …read more

Making use of the slogan “Live and Let Live” – from the book “Living Sober.”
“An ancient sage said that none of us should criticize another until we have walked a mile in the other person’s boots. This wise advice can give us greater compassion for our fellow human beings. And putting it into practice makes us feel much better than being hung over.
‘Let Live’ – yes. But some of us find just as much value in the first part of the slogan: ‘Live!’
When we have worked out ways to enjoy our own living fully, then we are content to let …read more

After you’ve had the magnificent opportunity to have been a satisfied customer of Alcoholics Anonymous for some time you gather what is called “experience.” With that experience along with the Twelve Steps, there also comes a moment now and then when you “intuitively know how to handle situations that used to baffle us.”
One such moment occurred in the last day or so when I “listened” to a fellow alcoholic share in a general way and use words that offer someone whose seen them before, some intuitive insight that this person wasn’t quite right emotionally.

I was speaking with a female friend yesterday. A couple of months ago her daughter gave birth to her first grandchild.
Not long after the baby was born the mother and, more specifically, the father, returned to their addictions. Mom could very well be a “social” experimenter but Dad is certainly one of “us.” He has come and gone a number of times in the last 9 years yet has not been able to remain clean or sober.
Within a short time, the baby’s parent’s had resorted to calling in bogus prescriptions for xanax, again. The law enforcement community here knows the …read more

To continue the “What A Concept” thoughts…
We return to “Living Sober” and page 12;
“We’ll meet some people in A.A. or elsewhere who won’t be exactly crazy about us, either. So all of us try to respect the rights of others to act as they choose (or must). We can then expect them to give us the same courtesy. In A.A., they generally do.”
I’m not so sure I want to develop expectations along those lines.
This goes on to say: “Usually, people who like each other – in a neighborhood, a company, a club, or A.A. – gravitate toward each other. When …read more

So, you say you’ve been making your relationships better because you’re not drinking anymore. Your wife/girlfriend/husband/boyfriend is acting nicely towards you today. Your children aren’t running around with computer eyes wondering when you’ll lose your cool.
The neighbors say “good morning,” the boss says “good morning,” people smile at you as they pass by. The young lady at the coffee shop has a kind greeting for you.
It seems as if you’re not raising your middle finger to other drivers nor they to you. You have extra time when you arrive at work. You have extra time when you arrive home.
Your grades …read more

Yes, I’m being a bit facetious…
From “Living Sober” on page 11;
“To begin to put the concept of ‘Live and Let Live’ into practice, we must face this fact: There are people in A.A., and everywhere else, who sometimes say things we disagree with, or do things we don’t like.”
Ya’ think?
“Learning to live with differences is essential to our comfort. It is exactly in those cases that we have found it extremely helpful to say to ourselves, ‘Oh, well, Live and Let Live.’”
How often did you wind up with a resentment and drink at someone simply because you didn’t like what …read more

The First One!
From “Living Sober” we’re told something profoundly simple on page 3;
“We have found that for us recovery began with not drinking – with getting sober and staying completely free of alcohol in any amount, and in any form. We have also found that we have to stay away from other mind-changing drugs. We can move toward a full and satisfying life only when we stay sober. Sobriety is the launching pad for our recovery.”
That ain’t middle-of-the-road psycho-babble, that is directly out of AA approved literature! This is for those who have questioned the presence of the word “abstinence” …read more

Okay, I’ve heard it a thousand times… and, guess what? I think I did the same thing!
A couple of days, weeks, months of not drinking. No sponsor. No Steps. No clue.
But – you’re smart. Or, you really don’t want us to know your truth.
So you wear a mask of “I’m sober today.” You wear a mask of “I’d like to thank my Higher Power whom I choose to call God that I’m sober today, I’ll pass…” When you’re asked what your sobriety date is you say “April, 2008.” If you’re asked what Step you’re on you tell us “well, in …read more