The Home Office

During 1991-1992 I lived in Guildford, England. That's about 50 miles southwest of London. An hour train ride to/from Waterloo Station.

My boss rented this home for us to live in and use as an office. My bedroom was about 5 steps from the den which we used as the office. It was owned by a couple who lived in Glasgow and used this as their second home when visiting the southeast of the country.

at right is the front view from the street

It was a wonderful home in which to reside, sitting on top of a hill. The Two Brewer's pub (my local) was only a 6 minute walk away. (well, it took 6 minutes to get there - downhill -- and about 20 minutes to walk back home)

the picture on the left is the rear view

The home was completely furnished and the bottom picture is the study or living room.

Another of my fond memories of living in jolly old England.

Part of the Journey

This is my Mom.
She was born in February, 1923, so I assume this picture was taken later that year.

She's now 83 and living in a nursing home after living a full life. After her stroke last October, she can't swallow, which prevents her from speaking or eating.
Ever again.

She is suffering from a deepening depression. Yesterday, while my sister and I sat with her trying to cheer her up, she wrote to me, "I WANT TO DIE." That's the first time she has said that. It was tough to hear (read). We could only comfort her and tell her that God will take her when He's ready.

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

that I am sober now and can be with my mother as she nears the end of her journey

for the absolutely wonderful life she has given me

that I have finished with the trash/dumpster part of cleaning out her home

for a productive Lambda Center Board meeting Saturday afternoon

that I try not to exxagerate the truth now that I am sober

that I am able to help an ill recovery friend today when he leaves the hospital

An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness.
-Elbert Hubbard

The Hotel Maid

You should never piss off your waiter in a restaurant.
And you should never piss off the maid at your hotel.

Faith

"When I was driven to my knees by alcohol, I was made ready to ask for the gift of faith. And all was changed. Never again, my pains and problems notwithstanding, would I experience my former desolation. I saw the universe to be lighted by God's love; I was alone no more."

letter written by Bill W., 1962
AS BILL SEES IT, page 51

** Somebody please remind me of this the next time I start isolating.

Honda advert

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On the first 605 takes, something, usually very minor, didn't work.
They would then have to set the whole thing up again.

The film cost six million dollars and took three months to complete, including full engineering of the sequence.

click here

Draw a Pig

And now ladies and gentlemen, here is today's

Interactive PIG PERSONALITY Test

CLICK HERE and begin

Sound Familiar?

"Few people have been more victimized by resentments than have we alcoholics. It mattered little whether our resentments were justified or not. A burst of temper could spoil a day, and a well-nursed grudge could make us miserably ineffective. Nor were we ever skillful in separating justified from unjustified anger. As we saw it, our wrath was always justified. Anger, that occasional luxury of more balanced people, could keep us on an emotional jag indefinitely. These emotional "dry benders" often led straight to the bottle. Other kinds of disturbances -- jealousy, envy, self-pity, or hurt pride -- did the same thing."

TWELVE STEPS and TWELVE TRADITIONS -- page 90

Sobriety Society

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

for the group of bloggers whom I have named The Sobriety Society

for major progress made with Mom's financial matters

for my experience with half measures, which availed me nothing but more misery

for the 10am Group Of Drunks A.A. meeting today

to be included in planning sessions for fundraising activities @ Lambda

(I suppose) for the seemingly never-ending string of phone calls I got yesterday until such time as I went to sleep (I say suppose because I am not Ma Bell's biggest fan)

True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost.
-Charles Caleb Colton

The Musical Fruit

I met a sweet gentleman and we fell in love. When it became apparent that we would marry, I made the supreme sacrifice and gave up beans, my favorite food. Some months later, on my birthday, my car broke down on the way home from work. Since I lived in the countryside I called my husband and told him that I would be late because I had to walk home.

On my way, I passed by a small diner and the smell of baked beans was more than I could stand. With miles to walk, I figured that I would walk off any ill effects by the time I reached home, so I stopped at the diner and before I knew it, I had consumed three large orders of baked beans. All the way home, I made sure that I released all the gas. Upon my arrival, my husband seemed excited to see me and exclaimed delightedly: "Darling I have a surprise for dinner tonight."

He then blindfolded me and led me to my chair at the dinner table. I took a seat and just as he was about to remove my blindfold, the telephone rang. He made me promise not to touch the blindfold until he returned and went to answer the call The baked beans I had consumed were still affecting me and the pressure was becoming most unbearable, so while my husband was out of the room I seized the opportunity, shifted my weight to one leg and let one go.

It was not only loud, but it smelled like a fertilizer truck running over a skunk in front of a pulpwood mill. I took my napkin from my lap and fanned the air around me vigorously. Then, shifting to the other cheek, I ripped off three more. The stink was worse than cooked cabbage. Keeping my ears carefully tuned to the conversation in the other room went on like this for another few minutes. The pleasure was indescribable. When eventually the telephone farewells signaled the end of my freedom, I quickly fanned the air a few more times with my napkin, placed it on my lap and folded my hands back on it feeling very relieved and pleased with myself. My face must have been the picture of innocence when my husband returned, apologizing for taking so long. He asked me if I had peeked through the blindfold, and I assured him I had not.

At this point, he removed the blindfold, and twelve dinner guests seated around the table chorused: "Happy Birthday!"

... naturally

"All alcoholics have personality problems. They drink to escape from life, to counteract feelings of loneliness or inferiority, or because of some emotional conflict within them, so that they cannot adjust themselves to life. Alcoholics cannot stop drinking unless they find a way to solve their personality problems. That's why going on the wagon doesn't solve anything. That's why taking the pledge usually doesn't work. Was my personality problem ever solved by going on the wagon or taking the pledge?"
A.A. Thought For the Day -- Twenty-Four Hours a Day

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

that I have never considered myself on the wagon nor have I ever taken a pledge to stop drinking (successfully)

that Mom seemed pleased with her visit to her new Endocrinologist

that my nephew dropped by to see me and DID NOT ask for any money, despite the fact he had just been laid-off from his job

that I haven't taken a day off from recovery since I stopped drinking

for a well-told and inspiring AA story yesterday at the nooner by Bob R.

that my tear ducts continue to operate freely

that justice takes many forms

to welcome Big Sky mAAck to our little world of recovery bloggers

The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us.
-Ashley Montagu

hAAlf nAAked thursdAAy

my
2006
Houston
Astros
hat.

check
out
the
other
HNT
guys
for
today.

Speaking of being grateful ...

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

for a very productive Monday

that I've got the dumpster at Mom's house just about full at the same time her house is just about cleaned out

that I can adjust my intended schedule as shit happens unexpected things occur without going crazy or sinking into a barstool

that I gave my fireplace a good, thorough cleaning while watching The Astros get their butts whipped lose

that my internal clock has Daylight Savings Time installed

that I am off to my 6:30am meeting and then to Tomball, Texas to visit Mom

that I discovered Angie's blog (through Mel)

for the Wisdom, Courage and Perseverance of Martin Luther King, Jr.

We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ringtones for YOU!

this should need no explanation

Along this journey ...

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

that my Mom will be seeing a couple of specialists (doctors) this week

that usually, practicing Step 7 on a daily basis, provides some relief for me, from me

that by staying sober, I can change my behavior to meet my goals (instead of the other way round)

that my toe surgery and recovery seems to be successful

for free tickets to The Astros season opener last night and the way things happened that made that come about

for the consequences of trying to do the right thing(s)

Every problem has in it the seeds of its own solution. If you don't have any problems, you don't get any seeds.
-Norman Vincent Peale

Lincoln & Kennedy

I had forgotten some of these "coincidences" ...

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846.
John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860.
John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.

Both were particularly concerned with civil rights.
Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.
Both Presidents were shot in the head.

Now it gets really weird.

Lincoln 's secretary was named Kennedy.
Kennedy's Secretary was named Lincoln.

Both were assassinated by Southerners.
Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.
Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808.
Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.

John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839.
Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939.
Both assassins were known by their three names.
Both names are composed of fifteen letters.

Lincoln was shot at the theater named 'Ford.'
Kennedy was shot in a car called ' Lincoln' made by 'Ford.'

Lincoln was shot in a theater and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse.
Kennedy was shot from a warehouse and his assassin ran and hid in a theater.

Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

And here's s little bit of a stretch......
A week before Lincoln was shot, he was in Monroe, Maryland.
A week before Kennedy was shot, he was in Marilyn Monroe.

Operating Instructions

todAAy i AAm grAAteful & thAAnkful

that Mom keeps ticking (even though she's taking quite a licking)

for all the volunteers who helped out with Intergroup Phones over the weekend

for a very productive District 20/GSR meeting Saturday; reasonable heads prevailed

for time to read the Big Book

that I went to an Al-Anon meeting and took a desire chip

for an extrememly busy weekend

that The Astros get started today

if Dolly Parton married the Dalai Lama, would she then be Dolly Lama?

Anger or hatred is like a fisherman's hook. It is very important for us to ensure that we are not caught by it.
-Dalai Lama

Flying

From the age of 3 (me, pictured in my pilot uniform), I've been fascinated by airplanes and stuff that flies. I remember many trips to the airport as a kid when I went outside onto the observation deck and would watch the planes take off and land as long as my Dad would let me.

That fascination remains intact today. I have flown several hundred thousand miles between North and South America, Europe and Africa. East to West and North to South. And the other way round. I always try to arrive at the airport 2 hours or 3 hours or 4 hours early. Just so I can watch the planes. I know airport operations and pilot lingo. I have a basic understanding of weather patterns as they relate to flying. Until I got this particular computer, I had Flight Simulator on my hard drive and flew a variety of aircraft often. A few years ago, I had the opportunity to pilot a Canadian Coast Guard/Fisheries and Oceans aircraft for half an hour offshore Newfoundland. What a thrill!

I have flown on various styles and sizes of helicopters, two-seater planes to 44-seater planes and of course, all types of larger commercial aircraft. It's now been over 3 years since I have flown and I kinda miss it. When my life settles down a bit, I'm going somewhere.

Batter Up

I've been a baseball fan since I was about 11 years old. From that time, I was obsessed (maybe that could have been a warning sign of what was to come). I kept statistics on The Astros. On the pitchers. On the hitters. As a teenager, I would sit in my bedroom every night avoiding my homework listening to the games on the radio, years before the games were on TV. And I would keep score, then compare my stats with the official stats in the newspaper the next day.
My beloved Houston Astros begin their 45th season tomorrow. For the first time in their history, they actually made it to the World Series last year. Whooppeeee!!

Go get 'em Stros!!

Wanna go to Rio?

If you've ever been to Rio de Janeiro or have ever wanted to go there, you'll appreciate THIS SITE. It's almost like being there.

Take a virtual panorama tour of the city from just about any location. Use your mouse to control the panning speed of the tour.


courtesy of fellow blogger Made in Brazil.

Bird flu

Government research experts believe they have found a cure for the latest strain of the "Bird Flu" epidemic.
Here's one of the first "patients" to receive the new treatment.