Member: Ricky
Location: Wisconsin
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 8:25:35 AM
It appears I may be the first one hear this morning. If so, I would like to suggest we share on how our interpretations of the AA slogans has changed since entering the program. Thank you.
Member: SallyB
Location: Oregon
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 8:33:29 AM
When I first entered AA, I had no clue what any of those slogans meant that adorned the walls. In fact, they seemed quite silly and useless to me. However, as the days went along, I have found each and every AA slogan to be very meaningful. My personal favorite is "Think, Think, Think." I like to add "before you Drink, Drink, Drink to the end of it. I also like this saying because it reminds me that I don't need to be alone in my thinking if I don't want to be. By having the word "think" posted 3 times, it appears obvious that it can be a group effort and we can all join in to solve our common problems. Thank you.
Member: Margie
Location: New Orleans
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:16:17 AM
Hi, I'm Margie, a grateful recovering alcoholic. Thanks for the discussion topic, Ricky. I find THIS, TOO, SHALL PASS to be effective. When I first sobered up, a minute seemed like an eternity. Every obstacle seemed almost impossible to overcome without picking up a drink. I needed to realize the issue was certainly not worth drinking over and an answer or solution would come. Today, life keeps happening which, to me, means problems do occur. However, if I focus on the program of AA, I realize THIS, TOO, SHALL PASS and I will continue to remain happily sober.
Member: beautiful dayand loving it
Location: south
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:43:24 AM
I am new (11 days) and like the slogan "Easy Does It". It reminds me to slow down and not expect too much too fast from myself or the program. All I have to focus on is the 24 hours at hand. What a relief!! In my second meeting a new person asked what her 24 hour chip was supposed to do. The "chip guy" said to keep it with her always, if she felt the urge to drink to place it on her tongue, if it melted, she could! That was as profound to me as it was funny. I've convinced myself I could drink for all kinds of insane reasons. I probably will have to put my 24hr chip in my mouth a few times before my 30 days. LOL
Member: AZbill
Location: az-bill@mindspring.com
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 11:25:56 AM
HI. Bill here. alcoholic from Arizona. I like "This Too Shall Pass" Helps me over the rough spots. At one point in my career I was having a lot of trouble with one of my colleagues. My boss called me into his office to "council" me. He ended our little talk with.. "Bill, I am not asking you to kiss her on the mouth. All I am asking you is to get along with her for eight hours. Now you can get along with anybody for eight hours can't you?" How right he was. I have found out that everything passes....... well everything except construction on the interstates. Love ya all Bye..
Member: Jodie
Location: Philadelphia
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 12:22:44 PM
I like this topic, & my personally favorite solgan is... "If your way was so good, what the hell ya doing here". It reinforces why I came to A.A. & why I still choose to go.
Member: Slogan Lover
Location:
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 12:27:20 PM
My favorite slogan is Keep Staying Away It Gets Better and a close 2nd is, 0 MEETINGS IN 90 DAYS.
Member: Fellow Traveler
Location: Happy Road of Destiny
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 12:59:50 PM
...It Works...If You Work It... I like this idea and I keep coming back to insure I'm still doing just that.
Member: Charlie Darling
Location: Key West FL
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 2:07:15 PM
Hi Family, Charlie Darling a very grateful recovering ALCHOLIC, and mine is LET GO AND LET GOD. If I remember that I can't do it but he can, and he has helped keep me sober JUST FOR TODAY. Peace and Love,Charlie kwduke_1999@yahoo.com
Member: Craig L (Dogmanor@yahoo.com)
Location: Aloha, Oregon
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 3:38:03 PM
Craig L here another real alcoholic (page 21). While in detox after my last relapse, my commitee tried to keep me upset and anxious about all the things I had facing me when I got out. I was glad for "One Day at a Time". It reminded me that I only had to work on what was in front of me and not the past or future. Staying present and letting God has allowed me to stay sober and happy through many trials and tribulations.
Member: Beto L
Location: Tampico, Mexico
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 3:46:34 PM
One Day at a Time has taken a much more profound meaning since the days have mounted to years. I've been sober more than half my life now, but every day of it was one day at a time.
Member: Gayla C.
Location: USA
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 3:47:17 PM
hi, I'm an alcoholic, my name's Gayla. What a great topic! I love what everyone has shared. When I first got to the rooms of AA I didn't care too much for the slogans. It just seemed too simple. I wanted to get sober and all they could say was Don't drink and you won't get drunk? I'd tried that ya think? Easy does it? Hey I overdid everything obviously! Keep coming back? Oh great, a permanent disease for which there is no cure... Fortunately people were patient with me and I wanted to stop drinking. I believe today that AA is a program for people who want it, not for everyone who needs it. I finally started working the steps after 3 months of going to AA, most of it spent not drinking... and the slogans started making sense. My favorite is Live and Let Live! With teenagers sometimes I must be a bit overbearing but for the most part I try consciously to not hinder anyone's pursuit of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And in doing so I'm pretty happy and sober today!
Member: lmao
Location:
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 3:50:17 PM
yes,one day at a time,dumbasses everything is done a day at a time,you have to wait for the sun to come up before you can do anything.
Member: Mike A
Location: El Cajon, CA
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 4:31:31 PM
I have three I like, "If nothing changes, nothing changes." "The same person will drink again." "You can't save your face and your ass at the same time." Have a safe, sober, sane day!
Member: Sarah
Location: Texas
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 4:40:38 PM
I like "Yet." I didn't understand it for a long time. I would sit in a meeting and wonder what it meant until someone finally told me! I don't think "one day at a time" refers to the amount of time it takes to accomplish something, LMAO! do you really think that? my interpretation is that anything seems less overwhelming if you break it down into smaller time increments. like, say you are looking at a lifetime of a miserable condition like being an asshole! Ouch!
Member: FrankD
Location: NJ
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 4:46:35 PM
When I first came to the rooms I though the slogans were something thought up by advertising people trying to sell me something. What I realize now is that most of these slogans and sayings are accumulated experiance, strength, and hope of those who came before me. They gave me something to hold on to when everything was too complicated to grasp. One day at a time was and is my favorite. Followed by It's a great day to be Sober! Thank you all for helping me stay Sober today!
Member: maverick
Location: readying for long, cold winter
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 5:17:34 PM
Well, since you asked.... First of all as I'm already on record as saying, the vast majority of the little colloquialism's thrown around in AA are either from another source or half-truths at best if they are directly drinking related. While I was somewhat enamored with a few of them when I first got sober, I was always struck by the ones I had already known to other origins and mean vastly different things fromwhat was applied to them in AA. While I had always known that "There but for the grace go I" was from St. Augustine in the 4th century and nearly 1500 years before AA was ever dreamed of, it gave me a slightly different take on it. Like the good-little follower of AA dogma that I'd become I'd learned to apply it to other alkies who either went back out, or simply never made it in. Now however, a number of years later and a little more wise than at first I've changed that perception totally around. It's now more along the lines of "There but for the grace of God go I" in relation to an "old-timer" who is absolutely miserable and does nothing except not drink and go to meetings for the rest of his/her life here on this planet. Since that's the majority of "old-timers" in AA you can only imagine the ire this perception draws when I say it aloud at meetings. The funny thing is though in reality that is but one small illustration of the way in which I truly view it. I see it as coming full-circle back to it's original author's intended meaning of being able to apply it to most any situation of any particular individual at any given point in time and thus all-encompassing of humanity in general. Funny how things work out and perceptions change, huh? "To thine own self be true," now that's an interesting one with an interesting history that few can find out it's proper origins....just a hint, it's not in the Bible nor is it Shakespearean in origin, but it does indeed hold a special significance for all of mankind as well.... best wishes to anyone who hunts its original source, that's one of the tougher ones....
Member: oldtimer
Location: To : "Slogan Lover"
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 5:22:54 PM
"My favorite slogan is Keep Staying Away It Gets Better and a close 2nd is, 0 MEETINGS IN 90 DAYS". If You dont like AA & what it stands for, then why are you here every week? Are you just a wannabe who cant seem to understand the not drinking part. I`m sure if you just try hard enuff & reach out in a positive way then maybe you can be a success in life & not just a wannabe, cronic "don`t get it type." Just trying to be helpfull thats all have a nice day.
Member: Dale W
Location: W.Y.
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 6:04:19 PM
hello there! I'm Dale an alcoholic, For me the slogans I like best are on page 135 of the B.B. We have three little mottoes which are apropos. Here they are. 1) First things first. (my alcoholism) 2) live and let live. (Live my life and allow others to live thiers) 3) easy does it. ( don't be so hard on myself, laugh and enjoy life.) The last one that that makes good sense to me is. The longer you have the closer you are to your next drink. Thanks.
Member: Kari H
Location: Utah
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 6:13:10 PM
I'm quite new to the program, however, my favorite slogan thus far has been "Let Go and Let God." I find that it's all the little things I worry about and fear that add up to STRESS and the underlying thinking that God does not have MY best interest in mind, which leads me to self-medicate with alcohol. And if I can remember that it's NOT IN MY CONTROL - that God DOES have my best interest in mind - and that God will always give me what I need TODAY and NEVER too much, then I can LET GO of those worries and fears! Repeat and memorize these slogans .. then they'll be etched in your brain giving you a better chance to remember them when you need them the most.
Member: Billy
Location: Argyll Scotland
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 7:57:23 PM
hi everyone. great topic. the slogans helped me when I first came into AA to slow my mind down and focus on what was important. I think that is why my favourite is HOW IMPORTANT IS IT. it is important I know I am an alcoholic and if I do not practice the programme of AA I can easily suffer from this dreadful illness I will have until my dying day. the slogan let go and let God helps me see that without His help and you guys I would end up a hopeless drunk again. if I don't go to meetings I would not keep in touch with you guys so that is why it is IMPORTANT I keep coming back ONE DAY at a TIME. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR COMMENTS And I love you all.
Member: Frankie
Location:
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:18:14 PM
This slogan is the best of all.My worst thinking got me here,but my best thinking will get me outta here.
Member: MICHELLE MC.
Location: TEXAS
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:25:51 PM
I NEVER UNDERSTOOD ONE DAY AT A TIME UNTIL I HAD A RELAPSE. THE FIRST TWO WEEKS SOBER I HAD TO LIVE ONE DAY AT A TIME. I COULD NOT FATHOM ANYTHING BEYOND TODAY..
Member: Isabel N.
Location: AZ
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:33:42 PM
Hi! My first time at this site and it's great. I like the old "One Day at a Time". It took me a long time to figure out that that's what it's all about. I can't keep trying to go back to my past, all that does is keep me in a self-pity mode feeling sorry for myself and re-living all the stupid mistakes I made and how I could have/should have done things. And I can't think about the future because none of us has a guarantee of a tomorrow, so why stress. The only thing I have is this one day I'm living right now and I have to make it the best it can be. Thanks.
Member: Slogan Lover
Location:
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 9:36:04 PM
Oldtimer,please try and help yourself as a lifetime of meetings and the program have not taught you yet not to take another's inventory.Oh shit I forgot the oldtimers run the show and you have the right to be objectionable but not anyone else. Try this one oldtimer,TAKE THE COTTON OUT OF YOUR EARS AND STUFF IT IN YOUR MOUTH AND SIT DOWN,SHUT UP AND LISTEN.Do you know that one oldtimer,I bet you do.
Member: SLC
Location: Michigan
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 11:09:37 PM
My name is Scott and I'm an alcoholic. After reading some of the slogans posted I started thinking of one that I haven't seen. This would B.A.R., Too Bitter, Too Angry, and Too Resentful. This is usually what you find in a Bar, but even if you drag the drunk out of the bar you can't always drag the B.A.R. out of the drunk. I'm grateful today not to be in a B.A.R. and hope that others find the door I have found.
Member: Mollysue
Location: usa
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 11:18:38 PM
Live In The Solution! That is my all-time favorite slogan because although I am not responsible for having the disease of alcoholism, I am responsible for my recovery. I need to accept the fact that alcohol is cunning, baffling and powerful in my life. However, this knowledge also frees me to become the person I want to be in recovery. I have found the answer to my alcoholism in the steps of the AA program. I consider the solution of sobriety to be truly a wondrous gift. Get out of the problem by living in the solution.
Member: Kathy F.
Location: Texas
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 11:38:24 PM
I'm Kathy, an alcoholic. Early on my sponsor would frequently ask me to take a look at HALT (hungry,angry,lonely,tired). At first these things were easy to spot. Over the years, when I would get out of whack, they weren't so easy to identify because I was eating regularly, working the steps, surrounding myself with AAs, and getting to bed on time. However, I found that I must look very carefully and I might find these bedevilments are at hand; for example I may not be eating or sleeping well, or I might be keeping something to myself (working it out/not important) instead of verbalizing it; or I may have my "social" face on and am not truly engaged with others (for whatever reason).
Member: Tommy H
Location: Charlestown, MA.
Date: 10/19/2003
Time: 11:40:53 PM
11:40pm gratefull to have stayed sobah another day, which I started at a men`s meeting this morning. Tommy H
Member: SuzyQ
Location: Ct.
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 12:13:34 AM
I have 2 favorites...A little different from what is usually used in the rooms... 1. Always choose kindness 2.How I treat people should come from who I am,not who they are. Both of these helped me to get over my resentments when I first came back.Since working the steps,they now quiet the committee in my head, reminding me to place spiritual principles first.
Member: Mike A
Location: El Cajon, CA
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 2:07:49 AM
"Don't drink if your ass is falling off." "More will be revealed." "When the puiple is ready the teacher will appear." "Don't leave before the miricle happens." "Act as if." "One is to many and a thousands not enough." "K.I.S.S. keep it simple stupid.
Member: Stupid Dork
Location: Homeless
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 7:23:40 AM
I like what the guy who opened up the topic said how our interpretation of the slogans has changed since we entered the program. I think that's very important since everything changes, our conceptions especially changes in time, and to say that it doesn't is actually stagnant, there is no real growth in it, just believing in what other people say without one's own truth. Some sort of a uniformly machine-like thinking. There's nothing wrong with that if it works, as the saying goes, "Whatever works!"; which is actually what I want to discuss here the slogan after every meeting, "It works!", then along the years it was added, "If you work It!" and then some more years, "So work it, because you're worth it!" And when I was in New York State, they have another couple of lines added to it which I think the whole world will catch up. It just shows how change constantly takes place. But then, "There by the Grace of God goes I", isn't it a little in contradiction with It Works if you work It? Now lets us clarify: is it really you or God who works it? Are "you" and "God" the same? Or are you just plain stupid that you want to "Keep It simple" that even common sense you can't figure it all out from wet brain damage? You better clarify this once and for all in your lifetime, because you don't wanna be in your death bed asking, "Was it really me or was it God?" Please refer to Bill W. "Emotional Sobriety essay in the Grapevine magazine when he said that he had, "great bouts of depression for ten years of being sober and not even the steps would work for it." And to think that he had already figured it all out by writing the Big Book just 3 years of being sober, now where in the whole Big Book did it say that he was in great bouts of depression even during that time that he was writing it? You see my friends there was this guy who wrote (and I know Oliver Stone know who this man is) that lies attracts people, because it asserts the hypocrisy and lies in themselves, but almost too often truth repels, (just like what society had done to Christ, Socrates, Galileo when they spoke of the truth). I think the greatest tragedy in this lifetime is that people kill other people because of lies that they too eagerly accepted because they all along believed and practice its hypocrisy. But I'm not saying that it doesn't work, Survival of the fittest always works on the strong and the dominant, this is the only way how the human species could continue existing from it's environment. "... work it, work it!" I hear ya sayin.
Member: Sasha
Location: uk
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 7:32:59 AM
To thine own self be true..That would be the Greek Stoic Philosopher EPICTETUS 55-135 AD Interesting man with a great take on life and comunication. He said famously..... " Lose no time in setting before you a ceratin stomp of character and behaviour. To observe both when by yourself and with others. Let silence be your general rule or say only what is necessary and in few words. We shall however, when occasion demands, enter into discourse avoiding such common topics as;Gladiators,horse races,athletes and perpetual talk of food and drink. Above all, avoid speaking of persons either in a way of praise, blame or comparisons. If you can,win over the conversation of your company to what it should be by your own. But if you should find yourself cut off without escape from strangers and alians,....be silent." Now that seems to me to be good advice that works on many levels. As for slogans.....put your head between your legs and kiss your ass goodbye is a particular favourite. (((( MAV ))))) stay sober Sasha
Member: mav
Location: sashaying in
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 9:08:12 AM
Well done Sasha, very well done. I'm impressed....
Member: Terry
Location: in clover
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 10:25:36 AM
I worry about slogans. I worry more about organisations who use slogans as a baited hook.In fact never has the slogan " attraction rather than promotion" been more apt. Throughout,AA is littered with soundbites which serve to feed on fear yet seeming to offer hope of recovery. All good so far you might think, yet,when some with many years of sobriety and a desire for self determination decide that meetings and blind obedience to a creed serve to limit rather than foster growth, a whole new set of slogans is spread around seeking to damn into the realm of dry drunk those who only weeks before were pillers of sobriety. Perhaps the answer is do your time then live your life. AA is not going anywhere are you??
Member: Kelly M
Location: NH
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 10:26:32 AM
"You've got to give it away to keep it", is one that alluded me in the beginning. I did not get it because I don't think I was ready to get it yet. It took a long time for the fog to clear and to nail down the basics, don't drink, go to meetings, ask for help, etc. The slogans for me at first, as with the serenity prayer gave me something small to hold onto and to repeat over and over when I was weak. Until I was ready to believe in myself I believed in the others that believed. Now that I'm a bit stronger I try and pass it on in my own ways. I'm no longer a totally empty vessel. I find that when I help another drunk God quickly refills my reserve. I keep pouring myself out to help others and he refills me with his spirit. The more I give the more I get back. If I get selfish and try to keep it all to myself I get blocked off from God, my source of supply and quickly become stagnant. To be clear, a lake must have a an inflow and an outflow. Today, I understand that to keep it, I have to constantly be giving it away. Kelly :)
Member: trey
Location:
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 10:59:07 AM
"HALF MEASURES AVAILED US NOTHING" In the beginning of my sobriety...I thought this only pertained to not drinking...now I can see that in order to live the principles in all my affairs...half measures have no place in my life about anything...so far remebering this thought has helped me stay happy, joyous, and free...great discussion...thanks for letting me share
Member:
Location:
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 11:24:01 AM
Well said Terry in Clover, well said....
Member: Chase C
Location: Fargo
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 11:51:37 AM
"Alcohol plus damage=alcoholism" "The victims of alcoholism are those around us" These slogans help me remember why I am here.
Member: ytr
Location: usa
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 12:19:32 PM
Best slogan for me: "One Day at a Time". Its great for me because it puts my focus on living in the present. Future plans are fine..what happened in the past is history and can't be re-done..so I make the best of eacy day. Its a great living philosophy for anyone..especially a recovering drunk like me.
Member: Vickie H
Location: Alabama
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 3:42:31 PM
Hi Family, for me, "Keep Coming Back" was the one for me. Instead of being asked to leave, because of my actions, I was now invited back, reguardless, of my defects. Even then, I remained lonely for quite a few years, until I began to share from my experience. I still have found no reason to drink today. For this, I am blessed. I can't, God can, I think I'll let HIM.
Member: Joe B.
Location: Charleston, WV
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 4:00:09 PM
Hi, I shared something yesterday & then was disconnected.Shows you how important I am. All theslogans and the SP helped me a lot. I still get a bit whaco every now and then, but its better. Have a good week.
Member: Stevie
Location: MI
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 4:19:14 PM
In my home group, the one saying that hit home in the beginning and continues to make sense today is, "I am positive I was negative when drinking." I think that sums up alot. Another good one is, "There are a million excuses to drink but not one valid reason." I enjoy slogans and one-liners because they help me Keep It Simple.
Member: Lance Z
Location: PITTSBURGH PA
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 6:23:22 PM
Hello My name is Lance and I am a Alcohilic...Not sure if this is a slogan though it has been said to me recently over many meetings "Stay Close" it is now making more sense then ever.....and MEETING MAKERS MAKE IT" Thanks
Member: Lance Z
Location: PITTSBURGH
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 6:25:12 PM
Lance and still Alcoholic...Just wanted to let you know I spelled Alcoholic wrong on my previous posting.... Thanks
Member:
Location:
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 6:33:42 PM
don't forget---MOST OF THE TIME to that Lancey-wancey boygenius---NOT!
Member: B.B. thumper
Location:
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 6:35:41 PM
Mr. stupid dork, please read pg 52 of the B.B. We had to ask ourselves why we shouldn't apply to our human problems this same readiness to change our point of view. We were having trouble with personal relationships, we couldn't control our emotional natures, we were prey to misery and DEPPRESSION, we couldn't make a living, we had a feeling of uselessness, we were full of fear, we were unhappy, we couldn't seem to be of real help to other people--- was not a basic solution to these bedevilments more important than whether we should see newsreels of lunar flight? Of course it was. I imagine Bill was talking about himself quite a bit there. espesially his deppression. The only thing the B.B. says is IT WORKS, IT REALLY DOES.
Member: Mike M
Location: MA USA
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 7:56:55 PM
Keep It Simple Stupid (K.I.S.S.) is a shocker so add "And Stay Sober" but the bumper sticker may look funny at a distance. Dr. Bobs last conversation with Bill W. was his advice to Bill about the simple beauty of the fellowship. "Let's keep it simple"
Member: Les
Location: San Diego
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 9:09:08 PM
Before entering the AA program I did not know any slogans. In fact, I knew nothing of AA except what I had seen in movies: "Lost Weekend" and "days of Wine and Roses."
Member: howdy d
Location: tx
Date: 10/20/2003
Time: 10:05:52 PM
my best is Expect a Miracle
Member: Joe S
Location: Texas
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 12:37:22 AM
"One Day At A Time" was sure crazy thinking when I first got to aa, however when the thought to drink would hit I learned that I didnt have to drink today. That gave credibility to that saying to where I started practicing using it in ohter areas as well. At work I could work hard only to find in the evening another mountain of work that came in to be dont tomorrow. As I began to apply that slogan at work then work became less stressful as I started dealing with just one days worth of work. Amazingly true also as I started applying that in my marriage. LOL Am married just like I am sober and that is ODAT. By continuing to live my life in today I have been able to manage longivity in sboriety, on the job and in my marriage. Page 88 Line 8 BB
Member: KAthleen
Location: Floral City, Florida
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 6:35:49 AM
Hello all, I like a lot of the slogans. Live and Let live I like because it helps me to live in acceptance. On the KISS, I like to put a twist to that and instead of Keep It Simple Stupid I say Keep it simple spiritually because I don't feel any of us are stupid. We have a disease, not stupidity. Peace Kathleen
Member: take a
Location: wild guess, go ahead
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 11:25:50 AM
No kathy-wathy it's NOT a disease, and yes little girl most alcoholics ARE stupid or they wouldn't need to be told such simple things a gazillion times, now would they?
Member: am I right
Location: why hell yes I am
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 12:19:05 PM
Take a wild guess.Why hell it's the Maverick One for sure.
Member: Stupid Dork
Location: whomless
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 2:28:10 PM
Kathleen I love you.
Member: Brandon
Location: Ohio
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 3:40:11 PM
Well from the time I have entered the program I have gotten to know and respect these phrases.
Member: CATherine T.
Location: CO
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 4:52:56 PM
HI First time on this site. I see we have some wildly, funny drunks participating. The slogans are short and simple because most of us when we came in, could not remember or concentrate on much more than short and simple. Just like most of our prayers were,"Help me, God, I won't do it again." Keep it Simple STILL helps me because I can allow my life to become so complicated and overwhelming. When I remember that my relationship with the Goddess comes first, when I can do nothing without my sobriety, then I pray and let everything else go. Happy to know that there are a lot of you recovering drunks out there.
Member: gil
Location: lansing
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 7:22:09 PM
"IDENTIFY INSTEAD OF COMPARE" Hi Everyone! When I first came to AA, I found myself trying to find reasons that I wasn't the same as the rest of the alcoholics in the rooms. Today, I focus on our similarities. One drunk helping another drunk is what it is all about.
Member: ConnieN
Location: Minnesota
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 7:57:38 PM
Great meeting so far this week...for me it's "One Day at a Time". I can do it for today, but I'm not speaking for next week or next year yet. Today will take care of itself. 155 days sober today, thanks to one day at a time.
Member: Rick P
Location: upstate NY
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 8:55:33 PM
My favorite slogan is: "Don't drink and go to meetings. I'm not one to need all the rest. I have and do read the BB. I don't feel it necessary for me to quote it. Instaed I have fasioned my life by the wisdom of it. I feel that the true meaning of the teachings therein have been twisted severly. There's a simple program for my life in the BB. Bil and Bob put down on paper a program that works. "If it ain't broke, Don't fix it!" Thank you all for the space. I feel better now. Rick
Member: MEP
Location: Boston
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 9:41:05 PM
Hi World , MEP Here Boston , Ma My Fava : Slogan when i 1st came to the hall's was Remember When !!! , for it was the only one the didn't seem foreign to me . My Remeber when was to keep my last drunk right up front - for as i was told i believe / that if i pick up i'll be right back were i left off . in a padded cell caged like a animal .:[ As time went on i came to have a understanding of more slogan's i use to say sorry i'm a agnostic . but now i say iI Am A Child Of The Creator > and think of >> But For The Grace Of GOD Go I . tx's 4 being here all C U 4 now MEP :}
Member: bud d
Location: ohio
Date: 10/21/2003
Time: 11:05:44 PM
i'm new here and glad to be here ,also kinda new to the pc, i like one day at a time and the serenity prayer..... see ya all again
Member: Kevin J
Location: Atlanta, GA
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 12:20:48 AM
Hello, I'm a GRATEFUL recovering ALCOHOLIC! Slogans seem to be what keep me going sometimes. Not really sure if this is a "slogan" but it really has helped me most believe it or not. When I first came to the rooms I felt ABNORMAL(Go figure). Anyways, Everyone kept talking about "normal" people this and "normal" people that. So, after one of the meetings I got around to asking an old timer from the group, "What is NORMAL?" the answer I got was, "A setting on a washing machine!" You see no one is normal. What's NORMAL to me may not be NORMAL to you and visa versa. That answer about NORMAL helped me reach that peek where I accepted my diseaese for what it is, a problem, and to an alcoholic like me I can accept that EVERYONE has problems. Therefore, I'm no different than anyone else, just how my PROBLEM affects me is what makes the difference. LOVE YOU ALL!
Member: Stupid Dork
Location: Homeless
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 6:09:43 AM
Just a quick one for Mr. Big Book thumper here: yes Bill W. did write those in that page but didn't he also said that there are solutions and then the steps to getting those solutions and the Promises when you get those? My point is the Big Book was written only 3 years after he was sober while he have written in his essay, "Emotional Sobriety" that he had great bouts of depression for 10 years after being sober, now how could he figured out all of the steps the solutions and the promises of his problem when he was still suffering from it? I mean you got a disease like depression and still having great bouts you don't write a book and said these are the steps to be taken in order to fight depression and then you will be reaping the rewards of Happiness when you are still ...(guess what?) SUFFERING FROM IT? This is so simple and common sense if you really use your mind and as what others advocates in the slogan Keep It simple, but have you heard from all the members of AA past and present that anybody have seen the absurdity and to tyhe point of being a hoax of the Big Book? I'm not saying it doesn't work sure it does, but when you see the statistics, how many stay in AA and had it working for them 2%? My point is that if that Chicano Rev. Jim Jones could command 600 sane people to drink poison because this is the way to be save and people obey without using their heads yes it works well for them but are they being objective? There is great danger in the slogan, "Whatever works" because not all that works is "good", like war and religion works but in history you will see that it wasn't that all too good. And I'm not saying AA doesnt work it works, and I'm the perfect proof of it being off alcohol so is this reason enough for me to shut up even though I sense something's not right? It's very simple to see but like the Emperors New Clothes people couldn't for they are subjects of the emperor themselves. And this is the great danger not only for cults but for societies and nations as well.
Member: On Bill W.
Location: A thought
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 7:02:04 AM
Stupid Dork, Very appropriate! I either need more coffee or what you just wrote is an oxymoron? Bill W. suffered from depression in an era without Prozac. So what if he had a chemical imbalance in his brain as well as being an alcoholic? It did not stop him from helping Millions. He also did not once ask for any special thanks from his great works but left that up to the God of (our) understanding. Yes, he was a hero but he earned that and never asked for it. He tailored a plan for living, not a plan for dying, designed for the alcoholic, through his own experience and with the great faith of Dr. Bob. Just think, without his works you would not be sitting on an AA site, sober, typing... Another thought to ponder... Were not some of the most famous poets of all time depressed and tortured souls? It doesn't mean diddly and may have enhanced their writing. Just a thought.
Member: some cant see the forest for the trees
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 7:04:53 AM
There were over 900 who died practicing WHATEVER WORKS.There is no way no how that someone suffering from depression and all of the other things Bill W. was suffering from should be able to write a book with instructions on how to relieve the suffering and depression while on a pitypot.
Member: Potty
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 7:54:10 AM
My favorite slogan is:Get up off the pitypot so someone else can sit down for awhile.
Member: CalvinS
Location: Idaho
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:04:57 AM
How about the slogan SOBRIETY IS A JOURNEY NOT A DESTINATION. Originally, I thought by putting a plug in the jug that would be the end all and be all and I could close that chapter on my life. Today, I realize making the decision to stop drinking was just a start. Each day of sobriety is a new and different experience in this new way to live.
Member: death by big book
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:13:19 AM
Haha, No one with depression or alcoholism should be allowed to publish a book on alcoholism. It should only be written by someone with no character or mental defects and definately not someone that ever had a drinking problem! Lets enact a law addressing this issue... NOW! Good alcoholics are dying everywhere because of this book.
Member: Onew who can see the forest
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:29:42 AM
Lets enact a law addressing this issue... NOW! Good alcoholics are dying everywhere because of this book. Yes you are correct in your statement.Defects are a cop out for lack of responsibility.
Member: Onew who can see the forest
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:30:05 AM
Lets enact a law addressing this issue... NOW! Good alcoholics are dying everywhere because of this book. Yes you are correct in your statement.Defects are a cop out for lack of responsibility.
Member: AnilG
Location: MtVernon,IL
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 9:00:47 AM
I am an alcoholic accept the things you can not change to me sounds like a good slogan. there is no point getting angry mad at the whole world just accept people places and things u can not change just accept take day at a time and practice yor steps. thanks to aa and alanon for giving me the tools to work with for my sobriety.
Member: ConnieN
Location: Minnesota
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 10:36:35 AM
To those who are on this site to tear down the concept of AA---please remember, that we are all trying very hard to recover from our addiction to alcohol and our general condition of the “ism”. Your comments that refer to AA being some sort of a cult or “brainwashing” organization are very hurtful to us who are hanging on by a mere thread of sanity. If AA helps us to overcome our addiction, Praise God and AA. I can’t disagree that AA can become another sort of addiction for some people, but for me and my friends in AA, it’s a saving grace that brings sanity to a once insane life. We’re no longer out there living a life of potential destruction to ourselves and innocent others. And a little more on topic, my second favorite saying is Live and Let Live.
Member: SMS
Location: Tennessee
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 10:38:04 AM
For this alcoholic, the following saying makes sense...Some People Drink Normally, However, I Normally Drink...the difference reminds me to keep coming back to share my experience, strength and hope with others who drank like I did.
Member: Bobbijo
Location: Missouri
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 10:45:50 AM
IF YOU DON'T TALK ABOUT IT, YOU'LL DRINK ABOUT IT. Prior to AA, I used to stuff all my thoughts and emotions which caused them to fester negatively. At this point in my sobriety, I find sharing things with others helps me keep things in perspective. Nothing is that bad as it seemed when I was alone with it. Talking about issues helps me work through them. Excellent meeting, thanks.
Member: works-for-me
Location: here-and-now
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 10:55:30 AM
Let God Save Your Soul--AA Can Help You Save Your Ass.
Member: teammate
Location: AK
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 11:21:53 AM
How I treat people should come from who I am, not who they are. That's a great saying and one I hadn't heard before. I have earned my one month chip three times in five months. That's better than the three month chip I earn eight years ago. Obviously I'm working the program more consistantly then I did then. Staying sober is easier than living soberly. The journey is the key. Thanks for sharing.
Member: rw
Location: sc
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 11:34:43 AM
So you are ALCOHOLIC, don't think less of yourself....think of yourself less
Member: me
Location: uk
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 11:37:12 AM
huh
Member: Millie
Location: Arkansas
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 11:43:01 AM
Hi! I'm Millie, a grateful recovering alcoholic. "Don't Tease Your Disease." I learned the value of this AA saying the hard way. At first I didn't take my recovery very seriously and I had a slip that lasted for a couple years. Now, I work the program of AA as suggested which is working very nicely in my life. Remember alcoholism can and does kill. I feel fortunate in finding an answer that works for me and millions of others. Thanks.
Member: Susan A.
Location: Vernon, Connecticut
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 12:07:44 PM
Hi all, I'm Susan and I'm an Alcoholic. Good topic, Ricky, thanks. A lot of sayings are important to me, and I've got a few new ones from this meeting, which is nice. "Bring you ass and the rest will follow" helped me alot when I was new and full of "why"'s and "How?!"'s and "I can't"'s and "But you don't understand!"'s. This isn't a saying, but is one of the best helps to me at the beginning of learning how to live without drinking, and still today - at the end of appendix II, it says: "There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance - that principle is contempt prior to investigation". (Herbert Spencer)
Member: Charlie Darling
Location: Key West FL
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 4:32:04 PM
Hi family charlie Darling a very grateful recovering ALCHOLIC, and with all the craziness going on this week here in Key West. What with Fantasy Fest I use all the slogans , and I thank God I am not out there acting as the crazy normals, as I know we are the normals. They all mean so much and each day can be different. Today I already went to 2 meetings and if I need to I will go to more, but right now it is there for the grace of god go I. I was there and today so grateful I am not. Peace and love Charlie kwduke_1999@yahoo.com
Member: John B
Location: Kentucky
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 5:01:42 PM
John, alcoholic. Today is 18 years sober for me. I love AA and the way of life provided for me in the 12 steps. All of the slogans have been useful to me at different times, but my favorite is "One day at a time." When I first came to AA I couldn't stay sober because I kept telling myself I couldn't go the rest of my life without drinking. Finally, I decided to just try to stay sober one day at a time -- and that was 18 years ago. I'm a very, very grateful alcoholic! Godbless.
Member: frankie t
Location: chicago
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 6:45:20 PM
first things first
Member: Dale W
Location: W.Y.
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:07:38 PM
Hi Dale here I'm an alcoholic. Unfortunately Bill W. did not write the big book there were many other influences that put the big book together. Dr. Bob, Dr. Silkworth,Sister Ignatia,Dr. tiebout,clergy Sam Shoemaker, Father Ed.and many more. Bill wrote the first manuscript, and was editedby others, These Ideas came to Bill by way of Ebby Thather who sobered up with the help of the Oxford Group. It all boiled down into a pretty consistent procedure which comprised six steps. 1) We admitted we were licked, that our lives were powerless over alcohol. 2) We made a moral inventory of our defects or sins. 3) We confessed or shared our shortcomings with another person in confidence. 4) We made restitiution to all those we had harmed by our drinking. 5) We tried to help other alcoholics, with no thought of reward in money or prestige. 6) We prayed to whatever God we thought there was for power to practice these precepts. Several of the Oxford Groups other ideas and attitudes had been definitely rejected, including any which could involve us in theological controversy. So thanks Ebby for planting the seed in Bill and for Gods wisdom to help bill expound these first ideas. IT WORKS IT REALLY DOES!!! Thanks
Member: Ron L
Location: Winnipeg Man Canada
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 8:59:35 PM
Happy Birthday John B...... I have two slogans that I enjoy in my life of sobriety, and one that really bothers the hell out of me. Easy Does it. I look at that and think of "make haste slowly" in stead of racing around like a chicken with its head chopped off, go slowly think thing through. Keep It Simple "and I was simple enough to keep it" The slogan that makes me shutter is 90 mgt in 90 days, a guy I sponsered was trying to follow this slogan, he was a perfectionist and alcoholic, Well he made it to day 48 sober with 48 mgt. Then for reasons beyond his control he missed a mgt and gave it all up. He would have been 38 years old but died drunk in an auto accident. The name of the game is one day at a time, The very first drunk Bill and Bob 12 stepped they asked if he could stay sober for 24 hours, not for 90 days
Member: AcronymLover
Location:
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 9:18:57 PM
R.I.D. leads to R.E.L.A.P.S.E Restless Irritable Discontent Really Enjoying Life And Presto Sobriety's Extinguished
Member: Ardis M
Location: Fl
Date: 10/22/2003
Time: 11:31:35 PM
*** Happy 18th Soberversary John B. *** The slogan: 90 meetings in 90 days, makes you just as sober as sitting 90 days in a PTA meeting makes you a parent. ~~~ My brain was washed 'to stay in the now' --- now I am typing on the computer, --- or now I am doing the dishes --- or now I am dancing and enjoying myself. I could not do 'just for today' or the next 24 hours, too long for me. The stories I could produce, holey, moley. I was policeman, jury and judge and also the director, producer and filmmaker, too much time to let me loose 'for today'. It had to be 'stay in the now' for me, including today, this moment. ~~~ 'Pass it on' is another I love and practice, no matter if it is taking someone through the 12 Steps in the AA Big Book, or helping someone stranded on the hiway out of gas. ~~~ When I feel for one or another reason out of place or discomfort when with people, I use: Please God let me treat the people at this moment like you will treat me the rest of the day. It works, instantly at home. ~~~ Seize the moment and enjoy, Ardis
Member: Mrs. Mav.
Location:
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 1:02:20 AM
The best part of the slogans are what they stand for. They are parts of our experience strenth and hope,when helped by the motivation of our higher power sobriety is achieved. For one minute to one hour to our favorite one day at a time sobriety takes us home to our family.
Member: Stupid Dork
Location: Homeless Destitute
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 6:14:17 AM
It's very hard to be objective to people when the idea works for them, even if the idea has some questions in the validity of it. It's like religion for most of its members it works well for them, it gives them everything they need for life but to question its validity is out of the question. People cannot have any capacity to think that perhaps what they are believing is wrong because it works for them, so what's the problem? they ask. Again there's no question about it, it works, it really does! If they read what I have written once more it says that I am a perfect proof that it works because I'm off alcohol. And sure I'm grateful for it, if I haven't stopped heaven knows I would be in a much worse position right now, I'm sure. And theBig Book was written with the ideas of other people put into it as Dave said, but who is the writer? Who is quoted in saying all those words as from the Book 'As Bill Sees It'? People don't seem to understand that my point is simple and clear, if you are still suffering from great bouts of depression you don't write a book saying that if you do this, this and this you will be free from alcoholism (which is actually a disease of depression) because you still HAVEN'T GOT IT, why why the heck do you go ahead and write something about its treatment when you are still in "great bouts of it and even the Steps won't work for it?" Look if I write a book with the ideas of other people about getting rid of an illness yet I am still suffering from it don't you think that the book is highly suspect? Why would I write a book in which I still haven't experience the healing part but still in the midst of its chronic stage. And yes the Big Book doesn't say it treats depression, but take away the drink and what do you got?-Depression! that's what we all suffer from as alcoholics. It's like for example Christianity. When you ask any christian why Christ didn't ressurrect to the Scribes and Pharisees and the whole Jewsih congregation who were responsible for his death, in that way He would have converted them right away convincing them of His ressurrected body, Christ would have spared teh Jews of being persecuted from all those years from the christians. But no, no one ion the whole world and history of Christianity ever thought of that because you know why? Christianity works fine for them! It made them happy, etc. etc.Now this is the great danger of dogmas, cultisms, one track mind, The Emperor's New clothes Complex that I've been talking about.
Member: Jodie
Location: Philadelphia
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 8:22:02 AM
Congratulations John, on your 18 years.
Member: lk
Location:
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 8:41:37 AM
slogans suck,who needs them to stay sober,no one,it is just part of the plan.
Member: mav
Location: for the dorkked-one
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 11:29:17 AM
Stupid, homeless dork----You're obviously not stupid, the homeless portion I have no idea about, and the dork part is subjective. However, while your points about that idiot Bill W. and AA, it loses validity to compare it with Christianity and Christ as that's another realm entirely. The analogy is erroneous and il-fated, hence loses sight of the original implication about Bill and the ridiculous little book he wrote. Those other people did not write it, that's false information and misleading at best. I mean hell, Bill took LSD for a substantial period of time as well since he believed that was a "cure" for depression/alcoholism too, so why don't we all do that too? Thanks for your valuable input Dork, but you are way smarter than the average alkie that's for sure! Are you sure you're even an alcoholic?
Member: Marilyn O
Location: Montana
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 11:45:48 AM
Hello, my name is Marilyn and I'm an alcoholic. I'm new to this site and grateful to find it. I remember being clueless as to what the saying meant in the beginning. I had some very childish ideas about AA because that was the best I could do when I walked through the door. I think the greatest realization I had along the way was about the concept of "first things first". In the beginning is equated this to doing things--washing the dishes, going to work, paying the bills. It was a way to prioritize my life and focus on one thing at a time instead of feeling overwhelmed with the list of "everything" I needed to do--get sober, be honest, support myself, stop crying, etc. After a few years, I realized that the first thing I need to do always, is seek God. As for the comments on the Big Book, I hate to validate the discussion, but, quite frankly, I'm living proof that it works. God can work miracles through those who are willing, not those who are perfect.
Member: fobw
Location:
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 12:20:55 PM
welcome marilyn--excellent share--thank you
Member: BABE
Location: independant philosiphy
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 2:18:23 PM
right on sasha)!.. man oh man, just goes to show ya how egotistical some can be, buddy gives us a spiritual task from on higher wherest he liveth (enter bow and curtsey here)... and then when his 'percieved underling' gives the answer, he congradulates her even tho the answer is loaded with advice that goes completely contradictory to what he practices here on the site..(try to get him to see it?.. no thanx)). (now how funny is that?)) im not rotflmao......im fallin off my chair... whoo hoo!.... so slogans eh?... well sometimes i have wondered what the whole point of them is, considering everyone will percieve them to thier own self being true... you'll have hundreds if not billions of different takes on the same one... isn't that a kick? and doesn't that put it together as to why people have been argueing about religion for ever?... then i get to wondering what the point of religion is, then i get to wondering what the point of anyone ever trying to have the answer for anyone else is, when they like everyone else are: "to them own selves should be true. for eg. here's a slogan and how it works for buddy boy... To thine own self be true".... buddy boy feels he has to have the blonde, he treats god like a bell hop pimp asking god dilegently and daily for her. (buddy is really scary as he can not even concieve of the fact that she might have some feelings all of her very own and doesn't want buddy)) kay, nuf outta my past issues. after all its in the past :).... hmmm Slogans: here's the slogan "to thine own self" from the perception of a practicing pagan witch.....here's the perception of that slogan from the perception of a devout catholic priest:... here's the same perception of billy W.... and here it is from the view of a man and there it is from the woman...get the picture?... so its all good. to thine own self be true,,, and for the love of god, let others do the same... lest you live in everlasting irratation, and go on exhauhsting the world with your force feedings of your anything but humble pies.. thanx bye now.
Member: Kim D.
Location: Bridgewater
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 3:14:00 PM
Personally, I looked upon the slogans with DISTAIN when I first came around AA. I thought they were catchy phrases for the non-thinkers of AA who needed easy one-liners to sound like they were apart of the fellowship. AAaaahhhhh... contempt prior to investigation. Such an EGO I had/have... Today - the AA slogans are a valuable tool for my sobriety. It's easy for me to pull those 1 liners out of my memory when I'm all jammed up and they help! First Things First - Easy Does It - But for the Grace of God - We never have to be alone again - Let Go and Let God - etc., etc., etc. Simplistic - yet effective. Who could ask for more????
Member: Lyle
Location: Ohio
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 3:33:40 PM
I like "We have no opinion on outside issues", "Does not wish to engage in any controversy", and "Neither endorses nor opposes any causes". Words for me to live by!
Member: Mickie
Location: Des Moines
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 4:45:37 PM
Rarely Have We Seen A Person Fail Who Has Thoroughly Followed Our Path....is my favorite followed by....Thoroughly Have We Seen A Person Fail Who Has Rarely Followed Our Path. Each morning I make a conscious effort to decide which way it is going to be for the next 24 hours.
Member: afg
Location: ergt
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 5:03:06 PM
What is disTain? is it like disDain? Damn, she is not too bright, huh? Maybe that explains her take and she is one of those non-thinkers? And Lyle ole boy, it says WE, as in AA as a whole, not individuals, of course you and I and every other person in AA all have opinions, some of which we endorse and some not, on every outside issue under the sun.
Member: carl (c.j.) M
Location: North Carolina
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 6:00:56 PM
'i'm C.J. a cross addicted acoholic been clean & sober 5 yrs. in dec.GOD WILLINGAT FIRST THINK THINK THINK appealed to me, but then I got a sponser and he told me to forget think think think that that would only get me in trouble that i thought to much as it was
Member: Michael B.
Location: AZ
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 9:25:30 PM
Hi! My name is Michael and I am a recovering alcoholic and addict, sober today only by the Grace of God and the Fellowship. Thanks for the sincere shares. Welcome newcomers! The AA slogans have had a mixed impact on securing my sobriety. Some of them I have tended to ignore and others I have considered especially helpful. One of these is "First Things First," which I found to be invaluable for me in my early sobriety and whenever I was struggling in sobriety. In addition, I have found different areas to place a different emphasis on the utility of the slogans. For example, in the meetings I've attended in eastern Massachusetts, the slogans play a key role in sharing and typically several of them are prominently displayed on the walls of the meeting hall. On the other hand, in Tucson, there is little emphasis on the slogans as a tool to maintain or gain sobriety. As such, the slogans appear to be as significant in maintaining sobriety as we want them to be, although, to me, it seems difficult to ignore the truths they contain.
Member: Jerry C.
Location: MN
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 9:26:30 PM
My sponsor introduced me to "PLAN THE ACTION, NOT THE RESULTS." I didn't understand it for a while; I wanted to think my way to sobriety. But today it is a litmus test for how well I am doing - if it doesn't make sense to me, I know that I need help- a meeting, prayer, a recovering person top talk with.
Member: Patti
Location: Denton, Texas
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 10:40:13 PM
"Half measures availed us nothing." That has proven so true in my years in AA. Many of our members think they can drink a little and, surprise, they're back to drinking a fifth a day in no time. Many others in our group think that they can use other drugs so long as they don't drink. The major offender is, of course, tobacco. They come to meetings with their half measure sobriety and smoke up a storm. But, as we all know, it catches up to them as it catches up to everyone. Sadly, they eventually die from one of the many smoking caused diseases. It is so true that half hearted efforts produce nothing. Like it's said, 'You're either clean and sober or you're not. There's no in between.' Good night, all.
Member: LAMO
Location:
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 10:46:51 PM
Patti,suck old buck,I promise there is no nicotine in old buck.
Member: Bobbi
Location: Maryland
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 10:50:17 PM
Thanks, Patti. That's a good reminder for many. We too have lost many a good member from smoking because they wouldn't face up to their addiction. Half measures, especially in the area of drug addiction, avail us nothing.
Member: Patti
Location: Denton, Texas
Date: 10/23/2003
Time: 11:38:43 PM
I must decline your offer, Old Buck. Since nicotine causes impotence and also causes your manhood to actually shrink, I'll find a real man instead. But, thanks for the laugh!
Member: blanche m
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 2:31:23 AM
smoking is more deadly and addictive than alcohol. I hate kissing a smoker. It seems hipocritical for AA members to smoke so much. It is just another drug and should be against the rules.
Member: did you really not know
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 7:46:51 AM
there are no rules in aa,just suggestions and most folks dont really follow the suggestions
Member: STILL LMAO
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 7:50:22 AM
Patti,did you not read my post correctly,there is no nicotine in old buck cause I have never smoked.Want to rethink the offer as it is still on the table.No shrinkage here.
Member: STILL LMAO
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 7:50:28 AM
Patti,did you not read my post correctly,there is no nicotine in old buck cause I have never smoked.Want to rethink the offer as it is still on the table.No shrinkage here.
Member: STILL LMAO
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 7:50:29 AM
Patti,did you not read my post correctly,there is no nicotine in old buck cause I have never smoked.Want to rethink the offer as it is still on the table.No shrinkage here.
Member: J. Scott
Location: Ozona
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 11:04:44 AM
Right on Blanche. But, since there are no rules in AA, we can just all agree to call those who still smoke hypocrites - at least until the day they get honest and get clean and sober.
Member: Rookie Alkie
Location: Billigs
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 12:47:40 PM
I am a newbie, still in treatment I really enjoy "Nothing is as bad as it seemed when I was alone with it" and "Bring your ass and the rest will follow" Thanks for all the great slogans.
Member: Kelly M
Location: NH
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 1:18:20 PM
Hello, Can we all play nice? This is an AA site not Nicotine Anonymous. I'm here to stay sober not worry about outside issues. Male impotence caused by smoking? If that was the case you would never see a man smoke! Good scare tactic though! Anything can be turned into a witch hunt if your looking for a fight. Anyone want to debate putting Dr. prescribed drugs in your system for health reasons? Is that not being sober? What about them Yankees with all the chewing tobacco and spitting ? Disgusting to watch but are they really sober? Shouldn't they be drug tested for trace amounts of nicotine as well as steroids? I think the slogan for this is 'FIRST THINGS FIRST'. If you have cancer and a hangnail what are you going to take care of first?
Member: Kelly M
Location: NH
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 1:44:37 PM
PS. Sorry to be in a bad mood but read that a couple of my AA friends got DWI's recently. I really hope they make it back in one piece. This disease is a killer.
Member: Harold
Location: Kentucky
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 1:46:13 PM
Awesome perspective on slogans (for the most part). SLOGANS ARE WISDOM WRITTEN IN SHORTHAND!
Member: use your own brain kelly
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 2:24:09 PM
kelly you do not have a disease and you saying you hope your friends make it back is just more parroted rheotoric you have picked up along with the senseless slogans
Member: BABE
Location: what was the point of starting na?
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 3:06:45 PM
Hey Kelly girl.... good stuff!... im with ya on sticking to the traditions and so forth... albiet it is probably true that good sobriety does not include packs and packs of cigs... why?. because being of SOBER MIND/SOBER ACTIONS/ and SOBER THOUGHT does not include a near death experience from the gross abuse of any substance no? So with that said, i have to tell you about a friend i hadnt seen in a while. Saw him outside a meeting a few years back and he noticed me staring at him when he lit up; he looks at me after his first long draw on the cancerous stick and says; "Im no quiter!" ya.... i laughed. what does it really means to <<BE SOBER>>. alot of people practice all kinds of damaging conduct without ever taking a drink is that not true?.. it was for me. so today being sober means alot more than just not drinking, it means trying to practice sober thought/ sober action/ and sober decisions, soberly, in my right mind, and so on. (not always easy and im sure not always successful, but im aware enough to try and that's good enough for moi)) One last comment on the subject of substance abuse; NA....aka narcotics anonymous, and why was it formed. wasn't it because people on drugs thought they were "different" and special?... somebody felt they needed to branch out a little eh?.... and here's the ultimate kicker.... if there ever was a place that the issue of abusing nicotine and caffine and so on, should be addressed, wouldn't you think that was the whole point of na? wasn't it to specifically address the "special issue of drug abuse?... and yet you go to an na meeting and you feel like you've entered the realm of "lets do these less harmful drugs and wean off the crack and so on... it like they are detoxing and self prescribing cig's and coffee and probably med's of all kinds...(which aa does as well) so although my motive is not to be mean spirited, i gotta ask; what was the whole point of na?....(does it make sense to anyone else?...
Member: A.J.
Location: St. Cloud
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 4:06:19 PM
"Sobriety is not for people who NEED it but for people who WANT it." I want it. Thank you all for sharing your experience, strength, and hope with me.
Member: Where Do I Find Recovery?
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 4:08:51 PM
12 steps passed any lengths:)
Member: Janna
Location: New Orleans
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 5:05:41 PM
Talking about smoking cigarettes is an outside issue and not allowed in AA. We can talk about other outside issues, like my job, and my husband, and my friends, and my children, and what happened at the grocery store, and who cut me off in traffic, and everything else you can think of, but you cannot talk about smoking in AA. Why? Because I am a drug addict and I don't want you talking about my addiction and reminding me that I am still relying upon addictive substances to get me through the day. So what if I can't start my day without a cigarette? So what if I can't go to an hour AA meeting without smoking five cigarettes? So what that I've had a heart attack, a stroke, cancer, and empheysema? So what if my smoking has caused my children to be sick and resulted in the death of my baby from SIDS? So what if I burned my house down while smoking in bed and killed a friend of mine? So what if I'll steal if necessary to get my cigarettes? So what if nothing has changed in my life except that I've substituted tobacoo for alcohol as my drug of choice? - - - You can't talk about smoking in AA because I don't want to hear about it. I don't want to face the truth. I don't want to ever get honest with myself. I would rather bury my head in the sand and die of my addiction. - - - - - Babe, your analysis is excellent. As long as we are relying upon an addictive substance to get us through the day, we haven't changed at all. We're still just another unrecovered drug addict. Thank you, Babe.
Member: Michael (Mahesh) V
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 5:40:53 PM
Hi Folks, I am reconnecting (actually coming back home) and on the topic of Slogans. Some are trite at times some profound . I am not really sure if tey help you stay stober or deal with emotional stuff when alone. They at best seem to convey very key lessons to us in this journey of recovery rather succintly. Anyway folks I am glad to be back home.
Member: mc
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 5:49:08 PM
Hi - this is day one for me. I went to an AA meeting in 1996, and it convinced me that I didn't have a problem, because those people seemed so much worse. I never drink and drive, have never had a DUI, don't drink more than once a week, hold a great job, etc. BUT drinking is wrecking my marriage, and I my "craziness" when I'm drinking has also hurt other relationships and has caused me much embarrassment. I asked my teenage daughter this morning why she was not so nice to me last night when I came home, and she said, "Mom, nobody likes it when you're drinking." So, here I am. Sad and afraid, but hopeful. MELLY
Member: DUH
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 7:51:33 PM
If someone was drinking and smoking and decides to quit drinking but continues to smoke that is not substituting tobacco for alcohol.It is simply choosing to stop one addiction while continuing the other.Most folks in AA smoked way before they came to AA.
Member: joan s.
Location: n.c.
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 8:06:45 PM
this is my first online mtg as i am home by myself this eve and have already driven far today. is anybody out there now?
Member: we are all gone
Location:
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 8:59:45 PM
no,no one is here right now
Member: joan s.
Location: n.c.
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 9:30:29 PM
thanks for answering.
Member: FRANK D.
Location: PENNA
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 10:13:10 PM
THE 1ST 3RD AND 5TH TRADITION IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY(EASY-DOES-IT)
Member: Mark K
Location: Prince Albert SK Canada
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 10:17:25 PM
My name is Mark and I am an alcoholic. Good stuff these onbline meetings. When I frist came to A.A. I saw a sign in the club room that said "First Things First" I thought you people must have real problems and must be insane, if you can't figure that out. Then I kept coming back, and it hit me. I was doing 2nd,3rd and sometimes 4th things first, and all of a sudden it made sence. Today, figuring out what to do first is a key for me, and due to the program, sponsorship and the fellowship drinking has not been on the first thing to do in over eight months. Thanks for being here and thanks for my sobrity.
Member: Vern Y
Location: Bistrita Romania
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 11:22:22 PM
So what I seem to be hearing here is that if you come to A.A. and stop drinking but not smoking you have not recovered from alcoholism. Would that also apply to sex addiction? food addicton? gambling addiction? golf addiction? If that were the case I can't see anyone ever getting well in A.A. Thank God A.A. is for Alcoholics, who have one primary purpose, GET SOBER AND CARRY THE MESSAGE. So my Dad lived till he was 14 years old. he smoked and died from a heart attack. are you going to say smoking killed him? He only smoked for 3 months?
Member: Kelly M
Location: NH
Date: 10/24/2003
Time: 11:29:25 PM
Hey ((Babe)), I liked what you had to say. Actually I like most of what you say because you put a lot of thought into your posts... which kicks my alki brain into thought also. I guess that is why I like meetings too because even if I can't relate to the persons story I can relate to them on an alcoholic level. I need to remember (always) what it was like. Seeing two close friends go back out was tough but out of my control. Both picked up a second DWI in 6 months time, not long after getting their licences back. One is a school teacher and she may lose her job and the other had 7 years sober not too long ago. That is the part that scares the crap out of me is the split second decision to pick up a drink and then right back into the gutter. The BB talks about it and when I see it happen I know I'm only one drink away from being them. There is actually a slogan about this too. "PEOPLE THAT DON'T GO TO MEETINGS DON'T GET TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS TO PEOPLE THAT DON'T GO TO MEETINGS". I thought it had to do with gossip but I think now it is more a reminder of what happens when we don't get to a meeting regularly. I started smoking at 16 and realized I had a drinking problem at 30. At 40 I want to be off both but the one that brought me to my knees was alcohol. I have seen people in AA quit once they got sober for awhile. In my area ALL AA meetings are non-smoking. Most AA's I know do smoke and have for a long time. If AA were to shut the doors to smokers most meetings would fold. That does not seem like the solution. I have been to NA but it is not for me because my primary problem is not allowed to be talked about and that's booze. I got sick of being called on for saying "alcohol" and not "narcotic" as they ask. I have a hard time speaking when I have to say what I'm not. That was one problem with NA. My other problem would be going to NA for nicotine addiction because the hard core addicts would eat me alive. We had one Nicotine Anonymous meeting but it did not get enough support which is a shame. I feel like a pariah smoking nowadays, as it is socially unacceptable. My goal is to be free of all addictive substances... as long as men are not included ;) Thanks Babe for the reminder.
Member: J. D.
Location: Miami
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 8:09:52 AM
"Easy Does It." I just read an interesting article about the origin of the saying. It seems ole Bill suffered from hemmoroids and an enlarged prostrate as the result of his healthy lifestyle (hooked on booze and cigarettes and all). So, being the 'honest' guy that he was (ha, ha), he talked Dr. Bob into giving him free medical care. When Dr. Bob inserted his finger for the prostrate exam, ole Bill jumped with pain and said, 'Easy Does It, Smitty!' It got to be a joke around AA. Every time ole Bill saw Dr. Bob, he tried to embarrass him with the 'Easy Does It, Smitty.' Neat guy, ole Bill, wasn't he?
Member: D.J.
Location: FLORIDA
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 9:34:42 AM
J.D.,I heard the same thing about the origin of (easy does it)that slogan.I mean goodness it would really apply in that situation.It must be true.
Member: Jack
Location:
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 12:08:29 PM
"It's Always Easier To Take Someone Elses Inventory Than It is Our Own" seems an especially appropriate slogan for today. I will continue to work on what I can do about me. Thanks to those of you who share their experience, strength and hope on this on-line meeting. It works, it really does.
Member: Anne S
Location: glasgow scotland
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 12:22:00 PM
hi guys and gals.first time visit this week and i love the topic of the slogans as i held on to those when i went home from ftf meetings when i first came to aa.dont think i ever found one i didnt like but i think you are no longer alone was my favorite as i had always felt alone even in crowds of people.i also learned a lesson from,anger gets you into trouble but pride keeps it there. thanks for a great topic...a bit disappointed in the smoking thing tho maybe its different in usa but in glasgow we have smoking/non smoking meetings and its your own choice which you attend,kind of sad tho to see members of aa picking holes in other folks lives,whats up didnt you do worse when you were drinking?i know i did..have a good one and always remember soberiety rocks!!!!!
Member: Terry G.
Location: Phoenix AZ
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 12:33:19 PM
There,s so much I,d like to say but the big book tell me to cease fighting anything,or anyone.That sounds God inspired to me.
Member: Stupid Dork
Location: Homeless Destitute
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 12:49:24 PM
I stopped smoking before I stopped drinking when I came to AA. Tt was so much harder to stop smoking because you don't ahve a support system of people and quite frankly nicotine is more addictive than alcohol in my perspective. Since with smoking it is more than a part of our culture that almost all people smoke, they have been brainwashed my media and entertainment that it relieves tension and is a status symbol. But the high you get from nicotine is actually symbiotic with the confidence you have in social settings, and helps you with your loneliness. Today there are more than hundreds of 12 Step programs that addressess issues of certain problems. But I still believe that the steps were not made for every addiction and obssessive-compulsions, it does not claim to be the answer to every problems you encounter in life and I have to learn that the hard way. In fact of the 2% success rate it does with alcoholics it is a proof that it doesn't work for all the 98% majority of alcoholics, statistically wise. Bill W. was taking peyote and experimented on other alternatives to treat his obsessive-compulsive disorder and even advanced the use of it in the medical community. To say that you are sober and dry because you take credit for the work that you did is actually bloating up your ego in one upping people who never made it in this program and died or sunk so low. And I see most of them in AA rooms in the higher hierarchy and like the main people of a club. If you ask people who want to stop what they're doing because they don't liek what they are getting you see almost all of them say that they have the will and want to stop but cannot. And a lot of them die and continue to suffer greatly.
Member: Connie S.
Location: Nashville, TN
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 12:58:22 PM
Hi ya'll Connie here, grateful, recovering alcoholic. I haven't been to this site in a while because i got tired of reading the anti- AA comments. As far as slogans, my favorites today are; "take what you need and leave the rest" and "some of us are sicker than others", "there are assholes in AA (and on AA related sites especially on sites since haters wouldn't have the balls to spout that shit in a f2f meeting) just like there are assholes in the bars" I don't come here to try to force feed my opinions to others and opinions are like assholes, everybodys got one and that is mine for this moment. Have a safe and sober 24 everybody.
Member: SO LONG
Location:
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 1:45:47 PM
BYE CONNIE
Member: bw
Location: ont
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 3:35:06 PM
Member: bw
Location: ont
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 3:42:23 PM
Barb alcoholic: My favorite slogan is "One DayAt A Time. Iread somewhere that things come to pass not to stay & this helps me to stay sober to-day.
Member: For Connie
Location:
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 4:33:50 PM
hey Connie; re read your post and maybe this time take some responsibility; first your made a choice to read the very posts that you found objectionable, not just once, but enough times to really piss you off; then you come here to tell us that your own behaviour was what made you stop attending the site.... may i make a suggestion?... why dont you hang out at the newcomers site, sounds to me like you have a lot to learn about taking responsibility for your own choices honey.
Member: d. nicole shandley
Location: ks
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 6:55:50 PM
hi to all fellow recovering alcys. i like the toppic for this week. it makes you think, but its also fun. and having fun in recovery is importent. my three favorite sayings are THY WILL BE DONE, IF YOUR GOING TO PRAY DONT WORRY, AND IF YOUR GOING TO WORRY DONT PRAY!, and ONE DAY AT A TIME. these slogans have been very benificial to my recovery. thanks for the cool topic.
Member: Norman C.
Location: Reading, PA
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 7:30:01 PM
I liked the topic this week. My favorite is just part of what has been posted - "It works" The practise of all the slogans has helped keep me from picking up for several 24 hours. As to other addictions - I don't think smoking is that terrible as long as it is not done in my space. When I came in, all meetings were smoking, and I have known of some who were allergic to smoke who had to avoid smoking meetings for reasons of health. Now, this is not a problem.
Member: Sara
Location: dc
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 10:13:08 PM
AA is about alcohol, not any other substance. Probably fewer people would smoke if it caused the devastation that alcohol does. I *wish* more people would think about addictive behaviour and what they learn about it in AA and apply those principles in all their affairs, though! Like eating...sad to see food replace alcohol. Proves it is the behaviour itself, to some degree, we crave. (After I stopped shooting dope I stared at television daily -- hourly -- until I found out that tv activates the same area of the brain that heroin does and makes you pretty hypnotized.) I don't talk about heroin or crack (here it is not my addiction to heroin, just referentially) in AA because there are some old-timers who get annoyed with non-alcohol addictions. Yes, some of them smoke! Yes, some of them are obese! But that is not why they or I sit in AA meetings. There's one old-timer who goes on this big diatribe every time someone shares about a non-alcohol-related substance....and then says he takes "one Sudafed every day" -- well, that's addiction in some fucked way, if you don't need it, right? Whatever. I was in jail for a while with a lot of girls in for crack charges and it was amazing how with crack out of the picture, they turned to food or t.v. -- an interesting way to see how substances are interchangeable (so you have to look at the underlying behavior). While in jail (for 10 months) I didn't crave a drink at all...just heroin, which I hadn't wanted in a long time! Although alcohol was available! As for slogans -- I always like "YET." I can sit through a boring meeting, and contemplate...."YET" for many minutes, and have.
Member: sara
Location: again
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 10:44:51 PM
p.s. 1) The common reference to "To thine own self be true" is to Polonius's speech to Laertes in Shakespeare's "Hamlet" (although it is meant as irony because Polonius is scheming and self-serving). Shakespeare, like most scholars, warriors, artists and theologians, drew heavily from the Greeks -- he wrote tragedies based on the Aristolean model. Whoever credits Shakespeare is absolutely right. Both say pretty much the same thing. 2) "90 in 90" was a slogan that developed in DC and caught on (probably because it is so catchy to say, as a lot of slogans are -- I tend to dislike them wherever I encounter them because they seem suspiciously simple, though "90 in 90" is not really an AA slogan, per se). When I got sober I was pretty daunted by the idea of doing 90/90 and a lot of people explained its origin to me, and that it was often a more damaging idea than a necessary reality (like somebody mentioned above). Better off missing a few days here and there than showing up because you think you have to -- and stressing if you miss a day.
Member: Hot DIggity Dog
Location: Wild Wild West
Date: 10/25/2003
Time: 11:51:45 PM
Att Maverick, "To thine own self be true" -- So if we don't come up with the answer are you going to tell us? I always thought it was Shakespeare. I looked it up on line and got a million references. Bible, Shakespeare, Pagan, The Bagavadgita, and a zillion more. Are you going to let us in on what you have discovered about the origin of this particular bit? --Oh and my own favorite AA slogan; They refused Jesus too. HDD
Member: Mike L
Location: Kalamazoo Mi
Date: 10/26/2003
Time: 12:32:48 AM
I'm not sure if this is officially an AA slogan but I've heard it from my sponsor and a few others."The two definitions of fear are Face Everything And Recover or Fuck Everything And Run"
Member: DB
Location: KC
Date: 10/26/2003
Time: 6:08:03 AM
My name is Dave and I am Alcoholic. One thing I heard in AA is fake it until you make it. Well when i hear this i think of the gal who said that and I must have been fakeen it becasue it took me right out there, and didnt get back for about 7 yrs, so I dont think that slogan has any real purpose except that I still was hoping against hope that i was not an alcoholic. when I finally realized that i was an alcoholic in Feb of 94 and was seperated from alcohol the last time, I got see that person again who said that in 1988 and she had not had continus sobriety, God hopes it she has it now, so God bless and I am thankful for my sobriety evryday.
Member: sober today
Location: Netherlands
Date: 10/26/2003
Time: 6:53:54 AM
I'm a gratefull recovered alcoholic. I was a slow learner and had trouble comprehending any of the slogans (or even putting a sentence together) when I was new. Over the years the things people say in meetings started to make much more sence. HALT (paying attention to whether I am hungry, angry, lonely or tired) is absolutely vital. I have worked the steps as they are laid out in the book, continue to work them on a daily basis, pray, meditate, talk to my sponsor, go to meetings, and am of service. Without all of those things I absolutely can not stay sober. However, if I do all those things and ignore hunger and exhaution, etc, I can quickly become insane anyway. Nobody ever promised me that life would be easy or perfect with sobriety - life does keep happening. But this program (when practiced properly) gives us incredible tools to deal with life and live happy and free despite external circumstances. On my own, I absolutely can not stay sober or live in this world. With AA, everything is possible. I am so grateful to be alive, sober, and grateful today. Thanks for your help.
Member: Gerald L. over 21 years sober
Location: Lennox Ca.
Date: 10/26/2003
Time: 7:54:11 AM
I agree with Frank D.. The 1st,third, and 5th traditions is all I have to say.