I was an isolater (okay sometimes still am). A runner. A “get too close to me and I’mma run like hell” type of chick.  (yes. I am aware that I’m not unique. hmmph) A “lick my wounds alone because it’s not pretty” until I can regroup and write it out. I used to believe [...]

Continue Reading

    It’s National Recovery Month… huh? What does THAT mean exactly? Well according to SAMHSA (Substance Abuse And Mental Health Administration) it’s this… National Recovery Month (Recovery Month) is a national observance that educates Americans on the fact that addiction treatment and mental health services can enable those with a substance use or mental disorder to live a [...]

Continue Reading

It’s more of who you ARE (on the inside) than what you DO on the outside… that people will remember. Think differently than the rest… you are an original. Sheep-ism is so last week. Know that no matter what… you are valuable. There is a learning curve, you do NOT have to be all things [...]

Continue Reading

What do you do when you’re hurt? And not in the “some guy hollered at me in the store” or “I got cut off in traffic” or “my boss said I needed to improve”… sorta way. But when someone you’re close to… screws up.  What if that person in your life (family, friend, ‘close’ person) [...]

Continue Reading

Shock and awe. No not an undercover ops mission but my reaction to the information my eyes are absorbing from this computer screen. Riots. Ones that make you shiver and shake. Ones that make you cringe and wonder how a human being could do such a thing? The mob mentality. One starts the brawl and [...]

Continue Reading

I was asked to speak at a meeting. Share my story. You know the experience, strength, hope thingy that’s part of our 12 step work. Yeah. It just so happened that on that night… I had a sick babygirl with a fever well over 100 degrees, I worked late, it was so hot any makeup [...]

Continue Reading

So I’ve been busy. Really really busy. So busy that getting three hours of sleep a night is a good night. Yeah. Balance is important. In every affair and no not the cheat on your spouse kind although that might be a good blog topic for another day. So I’m the new Editor-In-Chief of this [...]

Continue Reading

I see all these folks writing about “happy”. That recovery is this sugarcoated plastic smiled “O.M.G” malarky. That’s not been my experience. Not even a little. Sure I’m a basically happy person, but I’m also sad and melancholy and afraid and hopeful and angry and and and … I believe the definition we’re looking for [...]

Continue Reading

Sometimes the most stressful things can be … good? (whatever that word might mean to you) Think of a new job, moving up in the world, buying a house, getting married (ugh. kidding. sorta) dating again (double ugh. not kidding), et cetera et cetera. You see I’ve been used to chaos, drama, ‘bad’ stuff; so [...]

Continue Reading

I’ve been going to Founders Day in Akron Ohio since 1992 (take away four years due to marriage-from-hell-ism and a six month relapse after 15 years sober. bleck). Every year I get uber nostalgic, because I’ve had the privilege to grow up in AA. Getting sober at 19, I literally learned how to live and [...]

Continue Reading