Dodging Death

Stop smoking! It sounds easy.

Until I am doing something on a computer, which does not work — and I convince myself that it would be much easier to solve the problem if I was sucking on a cancer stick.

Usually, I chew on sugar-free candy, until the urge passes. Since the worst computer problems occur at night, and are often caused by simply staying up too late, sometimes I go to sleep, as soon as I want a cigarette.

Unfortunately, “usually” plus “sometimes” does not equal “all the time.” Because occasionally I take $3.18 to a nearby store, which never closes, and trade it for a pack of smokes.

Alas, occasionally is more powerful than sometimes and usually together.

Eventually I reach for a cigarette, as soon as I wake up in the morning.

Additional Inspiration

• I promised my daughters another 30 years. It will not happen if I smoke
• Someone I know was just diagnosed with emphysema from smoking

My New Plan

First, it does not involve Chantix, which is the worst drug I ever tried.

This time, I am going to use my computer. I plan to tweet about smoking.

Tweeting Tobacco

My thinking, is that I am more likely to stick to it, if I keep reminding myself on Twitter. It might be boring, because I might actually stop, or (even better) just forget about it.

I counted the days when I stopped drinking for awhile, but cigarettes are different. During my first month without liquor, I wanted a drink all the time, and each day was a challenge. Cigarette cravings pass in a few minutes, and are not nearly as strong.

Countdown

I have 11 cigarettes left.