Ack I'm making a monster

Let's see.... I'm in denial and just looking for excuses. I live in the country on a dirt/gravel road 3 houses long. Can't walk there- especially not with The HairyButt Gang as loose dogs are a problem- and cuz my hip isn't stable enough for a misstep on the rocks and loose gravel. Can't walk on the paved road that intersects my dirt road. Cars drive waaayyy too fast and reckless. It's known as 'Thrill Hill' cuz of the ups and downs and the thrill you feel when driving 60+ mph and catch some 'air' at the top of the hills- and even the little bit of sedate traffic can't see you with the hills. There's a very small park about 5 miles away. With my big four wheel drive truck that will cost me about $2.50 or a little more in gasoline for each trip. And the park is a known hang-out/meet-up/pair off place for (ahem) gentlemen.

Okay. Enough excuses. So there. I don't have to walk. PFHBBTTT! :-P~~~~

Grumpy, Sleep-Deprived, Nicotine Starved Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

Thanks. We may turn orange... or change into a 'giggle' of rabbits... from all the carrots we are eating. Yep. We. If mom eats a carrot then all four HairyButts must have carrot, too. Sheesh!!!

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

You just go ahead and be grumpy Leslie. Maybe there is something else you can substitute? Suck on something low calorie? I have no great ideas, but grump as much as you want....just stay away from those ciggies. We are pulling for you!

Try keeping a ready peeled and broken into segments orange, washed grapes and a cut up apple ready - to make a change from carrot! The time taken to prepare the fruit, when you're desperate is too much; so, just have a bowl of perfectly ready fruit - so you can just put out a hand and there it is ready to savour. . In message , Leslie & The Furbabies in MO. writes

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You'll make it Leslie - we're all rooting for you. I used every excuse in the book too - I was surprised at my own imagination!! :-)) When you feel a really bad urge, lick a peppermint - don't gorge on the things, just a lick, then throw it out or wrap it up for a lick later on. I just always found a cigarette didn't taste very good at all if I had peppermint anything. Another good thing - a honkin' big glass of water. Good luck. Go Leslie Go Leslie

Sharon (N.B.)

That's a great idea, Pat. Leslie, if you do this, just make sure not to give the grapes to the hairybutt gang -- grapes and raisins are toxic to dogs, remember. More good news, huh? Good luck on the quitting! I'm pulling for you!

Snip Another good thing - a honkin' big glass of water snip

So what you are saying is that I'll be so busy running to the potty that I won't have time to smoke??? LOL

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

I think that's also the theory behind Weight Watchers!

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Yes I've heard that - maybe I better start on that honkin' big glass of water myself. :-)

Sharon (N.B.)

One of the many times DH tried to quit smoking (he's been smoke free 15+ years now), he started chewing sugarless gum - LOTS of it. OH MY GOSH! He had a perpetual case of the runs & constant stomach aches. After about 2 -

3 weeks of this, it finally dawned on me that sugar free anything has that ingredient that gives you the runs if you overdo it & he was. Once he stopped eating/chewing the gum, his runs & stomach aches went away. We still laugh about it, although, at the time, it wasn't even a little bit funny.

There are lots of tricks to help you quit smoking - just got to find the one that works best for you. For me, it was seeing that I could cut back from 3 packs a day to 6 cigarettes a day - in one week. When I saw that, I knew I could do it. Life is so much simpler - for me - without smoking. It would kill me to pay the price that cigarettes are going for now. That might be a good incentive too.

Pauline Northern California

Howdy!

Assuming the path to your potty is not a rocky road, should be an easy jog. Unless you have one of those outdoor wooden set-ups... . ;-)

Quilt & drink & run: you'll be over that #&$^ craving in no time!

Yup running to the potty is a good thing - you can do it Leslie - just set your mind to it. No one believed I could ever do it - I was a 3- pack a day nut - friends from places where we've lived often call and while chatting say 'well did she go back on the cigarettes?' They are shocked I could quit .... without murdering someone. :-)) It's one of the best things I've ever done for myself - one of the other best things was getting rid of the first husband.

Sharon (N.B.)

Hey Sharon,

Me too, me too! Quitting smoking is one of my proudest accomplishments & getting rid of my first husband ranks up there too. I used to tell people that the "kindest" thing he could do would be to die. I didn't wish him dead, but he just caused so much grief for everyone, including himself. So . . . . . . .he died - the same way he lived - caused lots of grief for everyone, no will, yada, yada. He surely is at peace now - nobody could keep going the way he was going. I found a good one the second time around - he's a keeper!!

Yup running to the potty is a good thing - you can do it Leslie - just set your mind to it. No one believed I could ever do it - I was a 3- pack a day nut - friends from places where we've lived often call and while chatting say 'well did she go back on the cigarettes?' They are shocked I could quit .... without murdering someone. :-)) It's one of the best things I've ever done for myself - one of the other best things was getting rid of the first husband.

Sharon (N.B.)

Get some grapes and pull them off the stems and put them into a small baggie in the freezer and let em freeze. That taste really good during the summer when it's hot and yucky out but I'm sure it will help with the cravings.

Hey Mz. Grumpy!! I'm right there with you! Can't walk in my neighborhood - no sidewalks and nobody ever pays attention to the posted speed limit signs. WOuld have to take the dog AND the daughter with me, so it would be more of a wrangling trip than a walking trip. Treadmill is in the garage and it is still too cold to go out there....

What I'm doing to quit is, and I know it will sound strange, but when I want a cigarette, I take one of my hubby's cigars . He smokes WInchesters...they are cigarette-sized cigars and are probably some of the most vile things I've ever smelled/smoked. I've found that, if I

*really* want a smoke, just taking one drag off those things cuts it short rather quickly. So, where I was smoking half a pack of light cigs a day, I can make 1 of his cigars last that long. I've stopped smoking in the car because I can't stand the small being trapped with me and it gets into EVERYTHING.

Next step, nicotine patches...1 week at the highest level, 2 weeks at the middle level, 2 weeks at the lowest level.

Of course, I'm so obviously a glutton for punishment that I'm trying to quit smoking while dieting....woohoo!! Already lost 3 pounds, just by changing my eating habits, can't wait to see what it will be like when I actually get my butt moving on the treadmill and with the weights.

The frsh fruit thing is what is really helping me with both, I think - I have a whole bin filled with apples, oranges, pears, and blueberries...okay, the blueberries are already gone (yes, I ate BOTH little packages without sharing any of them!!). I've started substituting fruit for some of the 2 puff garage visits, and I'm feeling LOTS better...have been able to confidently tell hubby that no, I don't want to go outside with him or to the garage....just hand me a 40 calorie strawberry bar on your way out...lol.

You CAN do it if you stop making excuses for yourself and starting making CONSCIOUS decisions about your actions.

Larisa, 35, smoker for roughly 21 years (scary thought, huh?) and quitt> Let's see.... I'm in denial and just looking for excuses. I live in the