Chrysalis

Add my 6,624 cigarettes for a total of 70366 cigarettes on the bonfire!! I like adding up the amount of money we have taken away from the tobacco industry, too. So far (including me) we have deprived them of $22,604! :acute:

calm

Yes, diabetes in cats is very common. But it can be well-controlled. If she needs insulin, be sure to ask about the insulin pen where you just dial in the correct dose. Much, much easier on the human and the cat. Good for you for noticing her change in behavior and getting it checked out. I'm sure that she will be just fine because of your quick action.

I really like the way you do that, Tom. Thanks for the tip! I'm going to try that the next time I make stew (which I guarantee will be soon!)

So do you add vegetables at the beginning of cooking to flavor the stew and then add more vegetables at the end of the cooking period? I never heard of doing that. Sounds smart.

Yes, Sue, the "sticky things" we had as kids were called burrdocks. My brother thought it was very funny to throw burrdocks at my hair. Wow! Did it ever hurt to get the burrdocks out. I think that was one time my mother really put her foot down with my brother.

Welcome, Rosie! It's so great that you quit and that you chose to join us and share your journey with us. Quitting smoking really will improve the quality of your life and your daughter's life. I used Chantix to help me quit smoking but I don't have enough information to understand why you are having so much trouble. As MQ said, were you OK while you were on Chantix and just developed strong cravings when you stopped the Chantix? Do you miss smoking cigarettes because they relieved your stress or your boredom or something? Have you been craving cigarettes for the whole 2 months or just the past week? Please explain in a little more detail what you are experiencing so we can help you.

Chris, I hate those cone things! I know that they don't hurt the animal, but they're so annoying. A few years ago, our cat had surgery on his flank. To keep him from tearing off the dressing and the stitches, the vet put one of those collars on him. It really bothered me (probably more than it bothered the cat). If the only purpose was to keep the cat from licking the wound, the collar just seemed like overkill. So I cut the legs off a pair of panty hose and I cut the crotch out. I removed the collar, put the cat's head through the crotch and put his front legs through the leg holes. Then I pulled the panty hose down the length of his body almost to his tail. Sort of like a T-shirt. It was so light and comfortable the cat didn't even know it was there. But the mesh fabric prevented the cat from messing with the bandage or the stitches. When we took the cat back to the vet 5 days later, he was delighted. He thought it was a brilliant idea! Could you put some panty hose on Alex's back legs to keep him from crewing on his stitches? Just a thought.

muffle

hypnotized

Well, I guess I'll play the Devil's Advocate here. If your outfit was so modest why did this horrible man not know where to look? Just the fact that he used that particular phrase means to me that he was trying not to appear to be leering at any part of your body. I mean, if he was truly lecherous he would say something like, "Nice boobs" or "Hubba hubba" or something, right? So I think that he was trying to gently let you know that your outfit made him uncomfortable. You may think that he should not have felt that way, but he did. If your garment is way above your knees it's not modest. It doesn't matter whether you call it a dress or a tunic or a potato sack-- it's very short and not modest. If your legs are covered with a stretchy material that shows every luscious curve of your ankle, calf and thigh it's very tight-- doesn't matter if you call it tights or leggings or opaque pantyhose-- it's skin tight and not modest. Women wear skin tight leggings and a short, short top to show off their nice bodies and attract male attention. If you want to do that and your company allows it, go right ahead. But why do you get bent out of shape when a man verbalizes the reaction you were trying to provoke? That doesn't make sense to me.

[Hey! Where is everybody? You don't like "fleeting"? OK. I'll try something else.] Joyful

The paella turned out great! It looked just like the photo except that I didn't have any butternut squash so I used some chopped sweet red peppers, frozen corn and frozen peas (mine was prettier than the photo :) ). My husband (who hates leftovers) said that he would be happy to eat it again tomorrow.

For some reason, I have been "off" cooking for the last month or so but I think I'm getting in the mood again. So tonight we're having a chicken and chorizo paella. I've made it before but I decided to try a new recipe from Michael Symons. Wish me luck!

Hi, Beacon. Being "Chrysalis" means that I am in the process of becoming the best me I can be. I hope and expect that the process will continue for the rest of my life. But if and when I become truly perfect, I most certainly will change my name! :D

Gee, thanks, everybody. You're so sweet! :wub: For the newbies among you, you will be happy to know that this celebration came as a surprise to me. I just realized that I finally stopped counting the days and the weeks and now just consider myself to be a non-smoker. Hooray!! The last time I had a really, really tough time keeping my quit was 2 months ago. Something bad was happening in my life and the stress was getting to me. I almost relapsed. It took all my willpower and every coping mechanism I had learned to stay the course. But I did KTQ! Now I still do think about cigarettes from time-to-time, but they are just thoughts and I dismiss them immediately. No big deal. One of the things that was most helpful to me at the beginning of my quit was all the folks here promising me that it DOES get easier day by day-- just hang in there. I clung to that promise and you know what? They were right! :)

SueBeDoo, I guess that the €450 is more for heat than for light but that is a lot! I live in a condo complex that was originally an apartment complex. There is only one gas meter for the entire complex. So the cost of gas heat is divided equally among all the units and included in our monthly fees. Although we now live in Atlanta I grew up in the north and we always kept our thermostat set at 65 F during the day. I still do that now to conserve energy. You won't believe how angry I get when I enter the condos of little old southern ladies who keep their thermostat at 85F. "HECK!", I feel like shouting, "You're driving up the heating costs for the whole complex!! Turn down the thermostat and put on a sweater!!" But I don't say it. :( There will always be some aggravations associated with multifamily living arrangements.

Yes, it's amazing, isn't it? Vets are the nicest people and so kind and gentle with animals but it doesn't do them the least bit of good--my cats still hate the vet. :angry: Not fair to the vet, I think, but try explaining that to a cat.

Hey Rowlyd, you're almost through Hell Week already! Good for you! It sounds like you're doing OK for now, but please do keep close to the board. We want to help. Keep the Quit, Baby! :)

Very powerful post, Doreen. Beautifully written. I identified strongly with, "In the end I would light up and cry all the way through smoking it...." Yes, I was there, too. Thank God we finally pulled out of that trap!

fleeting

trampoline

Whacko

Somehow, I think this thread got hijacked! (But in a good way :D ) Go ahead, boys, get it out of your system.

No, the dates for Daylight Savings change. Over the last 25 years, the US has greatly expanded the number of weeks of Daylight Savings Time. Rumor has it that the outdoor grilling industry lobbied hard for the changes. (Remember... just because you're paranoid doesn't mean you're wrong! :P )