Integrity ...

is the fifth principle behind the Twelve Steps of Alcohol Anonymous.

I am a nut about following the rules. This can be evidenced by the fact that I was a baseball umpire for a decade. I also officiated a number of other sports, but not as obsessively. I knew the rule book (which is quite complicated) forward and backward.

I try to take the concept of honesty seriously. I try to obey the rules and the law. When I screw up (I often do), I don't try to hide it (usually). There's still a lot of room for improvement here. But becuase I am sober, I am aware of this need to improve and am also able to make progress from time to time.

If you must judge me, please make that judgement by my actions rather than my words.


todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

that Saturday was my friend Sonny's twenty-fifth sober anniversary -- Sonny runs Lambda Center as its only full-time employeee for the past 20? years

for a beautiful weather day on Sunday, although we stayed home and had a quiet day

for my relationship with my sponsor -- he DOES NOT try to run my life nor would I allow that. He knows my story and he knows me. I can talk to him without reservation about anything and I think he feels that he can confide in me too. He gives me suggestions and then lets me decide what to do. This is my idea of the proper AA sponsor-sponsee relationship.

that Hayden and I have recently spent a lot of quality time together

that I have now owned my home for 4 years -- I closed on it Sept 15, 2003 and moved in on Sept 20th -- just a few days after getting sober

In pursuit of happiness, the difficulty lies in knowing when you have caught up.
-R.H. Grenville

BY THE WAY - on Saturday, I received the much-and-always coveted
Inspirational Blogger Award from Pam