I want to tell you about my first 90 days in AA

[NMDemDist2]

in Oct of 1991 I used up almost my entire inheritance to buy a 'fixer' house in California. on Feb. 28th I quit drinking.

My house had concrete floors where we had pulled up carpet and tile, the bathroom was gutted to the point you could literally see the dining room from the toilet because the mold damage was so bad we had ripped out all the walls, we had to hang a tarp for privacy.

the kitchen was concrete floors and peeling paint on the cabinets, only one bedroom was habitable (if you could call it that) and filled with a bed and boxes to the ceiling.

the back yard was full of 6 foot tall bamboo that was EVERYWHERE (it took me 3 years to finally dig it all out)

the roof leaked in about 20 places and the only heat was a fireplace with an insert because the gas furnace needed work.

My boyfriend at the time (God rest his soul, we remained good friends til he died a couple years ago) wasn't an alkie and didn't understand my COMPULSION to drink and why I was unfaithful when I did, but he loved me anyway but I was trying to dump him because he got in the way of my ever increasing addiction. He told me I couldn't dump him (his mom had $$$ invested in the house too) because I was drinking too much to make a rational decision, so I told him "I won't drink for 30 days, then I'll dump you"

But I knew in my heart I couldn't quit drinking, I had tried on my own often enough and failed. So I went to AA. Every day. three times a day actually. and I stopped drinking. but it took being in the AA meeting hall every time they opened the doors to let me in. Sitting in that chair EVERY DAY for 90 days.

and you know what? the house slowly got worked on, the bamboo slowly got removed and while I did break up with my dear friend Tom, I did it with compassion and allowed us both dignity while we did it. and I stayed sober, a day at a time.

How was your life when you got sober??

[Kajsa]

1. I love your story, AZ Dem!

Each one of us takes a different path, at a different pace
yet we end up at the same place- sobriety.

"I won't drink for 30 days, then I'll dump you"

I LOVE THIS!! It's a first, I've never heard this reason before.

It's like you were saying- I'll get sober,sane and show you
that I really DO want to end this! :)

Hey- whatever gets us here works, eh?

My life was completely out of control.

I was losing my marriage and everyone
who mattered to me, and close to losing my life.
Also, I was light years away from God as I
understand him/her.

When I get a chance, I'll go into more detail.

I know this is a piddly entry compared to your story,
but I'm under the gun to get grades and time cards in right now.
Also, I'm helping my son register for classes at his community college, today.

So I wanted to reply with something to your great OP!

You are the lighthouse here, AZ Dem!
And I lurve your story.

:loveya:

Thanks so much for sharing it with us.

:hug:

[old mark]

2. I was a dry drunk for 2 years

before I went to my first meeting.
I made 2 and 3 a day for a while, sonmetimes walking through the snow to get there.
I stopped drinking because my girlfriend at the time nearly killed herself with alcohol, and went right back to it after she got out of the hospital.
I saw myself in that, and stopped.

I found I really felt the need for frequent meetings, even after 2 years dry.

I celebrated 20 years last March 10th.

I might have done it all wrong, but it seems to be working.

mark

[Joe Chi Minh]

3. That is truly awe-inspiring Pecos. With that kind of determination you could

have achieved anything you wanted in life. Perhaps you have.

[NMDemDist2]

4. I was 2 months shy of my 39th birthday in 2/92

I sometimes wonder where I'd be if I'd stopped 10 years earlier


but life is damned good now :D

[Joe Chi Minh]

5. "Eveything happens for the best" is an old saying, but a true one. This life ain't all

by a long chalk, and the sufferings of those lost years won't have been wasted. Or your regrets now. Life's on the up and up. I mean 'cep at present while we're wearing out with our old age...! And thats another wee hurdle ahead of us! As old Polonius might have croaked, "Old age never comes on its own...." Just a little zummit to cheer you up!