This page is by no means complete. But it is enough for now. Feel free to email Jim Lang with additions for the list. Be a quittin' pal. <G>
There are more sections below. Another group of reasons to quit, followed by things that help me.
Do everyone a favor. If you know a smoker, don't pester him or her. All that ever did was irritate me. Just offer a little support once in a while. |
- So why quit smoking? Since 4:00 on 5 March 2000, here are some reasons. BTW, I started this list instead of running for a pack. I'm making this page instead of running for a pack. Every time I want a pack, I'll work on something else.
- Thanks, quittin pals! Without a little help right now, I'd be loopey.
- They test smokes on critters!
- Every cigarette smoked is a nickel for the tobacco companies.
- Shorter (anything here. How about) life.
- Before we can love someone else, we must first learn to love ourselves.
- Love myself by quitting. Pass it around.
- Think of the Kids!
- When was the last time you kissed an ashtray?
- Do I want to find (and maybe marry?) a smoker? If I don't, why should she?
- $3/pack = $30/week = $1,560 per year
- My boss would pay me to quit. Not that the money I save won't be enough to pay for the patch or the gum. He can keep it. I'll have my reward.
- What if one acre of tobacco were planted as corn instead?
- Roller blade around the penninsula in 50 minutes this year.
- Dad
- Mom
- It smells bad.
- My windshield looks like poop.
- Bad breath (see kissing ashtray above)
- Think of the kids.
- Yellow teeth (Hey, mine are brighter already!)
- Cancer
- Flavor. There is a world of flavor out there I haven't even seen yet. I want to taste it all.
- That time thing.
- Girls don't like kissing ashtrays.
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- Impotence.
- it's reversible Very large sigh of relief...
- Life insurance is cheaper.
- Clogged arteries.
- Who really wants to be addicted to a mind altering drug? (yes, it's mind altering. Sort of an anesthetic with a stimulant)
- More productive.
- Fudge brownies.
- PI doesn't need any more butts on the ground.
- All the people who would bust my chops if I ever lit up again.
- Girls don't like it. hehe, girls
- Makes my clothes stink.
- air out the house.
- Karen said so.
- I want to run again (6 minute miles? Maybe. Or just skate...)
- Save the puppies,
save the cats,
save the bunnies,
save the rats.
- They test tobacco on our animal friends.
- Cigarettes are not Vegan.
- I gave my word.
- My family loves me, and wants me around for a while yet.
- Children of smokers are more likely to smoke.
- Children of smokers are more likely to become ill.
- Lungs are black.
- They'll come back
- Save the Rats!
- Reduced bloodflow the the brain.
- Reduced oxygen content in the blood.
- Have I mentioned the kissing the ashtray?
- Puts a smile on my face, without yellow teeth.
- Something smaller than a pen controls my life.
- Think of all the time I've wasted smoking.
- Coffin Nails.
- Cancer Sticks.
- THINK
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This is essentially Day 3. 60 hours, 42 minutes. I got a bunch from co-workers and friends. Helps alot. Also going to list all the things that seem to help.
My paper is full so I'm starting a second sheet.
More Reasons: |
- Quitting would make me better company.
- It could actually make me less high strung.
- Do it for Howard.
- Wrinkles
- Emphysema.
- Black Boogers. (I know, but blow a smoker's nose)
- Clean lungs.
- Prove that I can.
- House stinks.
- They don't call them coffin nails for nothing!
- Collapsed lungs.
- Just because.
- I'm not a quitter, so this isn't quitting. It's starting something better.
- What if I can help one other person quit?
- Quitting is making me unbearably happy.
- Strokes.
- I'll be able to breathe deep.
- No more cigarette burns.
- Not gonna die before my time.
- Lungs will regenerate if I quit.
- I enjoy life too much to kill myself.
- I'm giving my word.
- There's formaldehyde in cigarrettes, to which I am alergic.
- 43 cancer causing agents in tobacco smoke.
- No smoking zones.
- It's stupid.
- Women don't find holes in throats attractive.
- It's harder to carry around your grand children if you have to worry about carring around an oxygen tank!
- What if the tar built up on the outside of the body rather that the inside? Instead of burying you, they can use you to fill in some of the holes in the roads!
- Take a shower, spray some nice cologne on, they go hang out at the bowling alley for an hour. When you are back outside, smell yourself. That is how smokers smell! There is no getting away from it.
- IT ISN'T HEALTHY!
- Smokers cough is very annoying and not attractive.
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| Okay, now it's time to list some of the things that have helped. These are my helps. I'm sharing because they may help others. |
- Take deep breaths. Often.
- Remember, the craving only lasts 3-5 minutes. Or 30 seconds. or less. Nowhere near as long as you've held it in line at a restroom.
- Nicotine gum just irritates my mouth.
- Tell everyone you know that you are quitting. The thought of the shame of not quitting would be unbearable.
- Drink lots of water. This flushes the system. This also gives me something to do when I stand up besides run out back for a smoke.
- Avoid coffee. At least in the afternoon.
- Balanced diet. Don't make your body crave anything else.
- Vitamins.
- Gum and breath mints. I'll lose 10 pounds because I think I'm full at meal time. Mints.
- Run. Exercise. Good thing my neighbors don't see me dancing in the morning.
- Call a quitting buddy (anybody who can help). and ask for help.
- Make a list of reasons to quit.
- Don't avoid all triggers. Sitting at a computer is a trigger for me, but it's my job. So is driving. But sitting and watching the tube isn't necessary. I'll get more work done.
- Go to the local health food store and ask. They helped me.
- This from my niece:
Hope these help. Good luck, if I did it, anyone can.
It's been almost two years for me now.
Love you
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| Day 4. 85 hours, 15 minutes. Over the hump now. Gonna make it. I'll keep adding to this as long as I have more. Now, if I could just..... |
- John & Shelley said so:
- A certain friend once told me that "he would die of something anyway, so it might as well be the cigarettes."
This excuse is terribly cliche. At the risk of sounding morbid... I would say that there are vastly more interesting (and sometimes more noble) things to die from. Any of them would be preferable to hacking your lungs to death. Besides, they'll take (hopefully much) longer.
- I just wanted to say that when all those people were telling you to quit, they were just trying to find a polite way to say that they cared about you. Remember all those times the next time you want to light up. Keep in mind all those folks who care about you (like John and I).
- whew!
- My uncle Troup:
- But what is really weird, is look around at the really intelligent people that are smoking. What part about cooking their lungs don't they understand? Always remember, they smoke all kinds of meat to cook it. What do you think it is doing to your lungs?
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Time for a refresher here.
Smoking, like other addictions, has more than one face. There is the physical addiction, certainly; but there is also a psychological addiction that depends almost entirely on the individual.
In my case, I found (not find, anymore) a tremendous comfort in reaching for a cigarette and lighting it. There is also the repetitive action of moving the cigarette to the mouth, inhaling, and exhaling. This was something I could count on, more than I could count on anything or anyone. Don't. Don't think that I should know that there are people that could do the same, because I know that there aren't. Not 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I never had to wake anyone else to get a smoke. I could always take my smokes with me when I went to the store. They could always go with me. That's the part that made them so comforting.
Rationally, no smoker should have any trouble quitting. Emotionally, it tore me apart. This has been one of the most trying weeks of my life. And I'm not even telling you all that's happening.
Every smoker that wants to quit must find a reason. Without the reason is failure.
I have succeeded. Is that enough? I think it is. No matter. I have lived my life. I've made my bed. No regrets, ever.
No, I don't have some fatal disease. I just pulled my soul out, took a good look at it, gave it some air, and put it back. There were some things there I didn't care for. A purge won't hurt. Funny how we do that sometimes.
Try that. Take your soul out and give it a good shake. What falls out?
Okay, more reasons. Paper is getting full. Don't know where to put them all. |
- I want to `bad enough'.
- It's filthy.
- I went to the beach, and I smelled every girl that walked by!!!!!!!!!
- Do it for Howard.
- THINK.
- Compassion for all things. Finally, apply this to myself.
- Did I mention Black Boogers?
- I could make more friends.
- Girl(s) have told me that I stink even when I don't smoke around them.
- Do it for the ladies!
- Karen.
- Renee.
- Just because.
- Collapsed lungs.
- Start something better.
- Die at age 52.
- Stroke.
- Heart Attack.
- Do it for Carl!
- Second Hand Smoke. (Not smoking could kill you!)
- Moss will give me a penny a day if I quit. That's $3.65/year.
- If I die, who will fix the copier for Cindy C.?
- It cuts off blood flow to the brain.
- Did I mention they test cigarettes on lab animals? Don't they know already that it causes cancer?
- I enjoy life too much to kill myself.
- Did you know there's formaldehyde in cigarettes? I'm alergic to them!
- I have been so obnoxiously happy the last few days that no one can stand me. This is a good thing. I want to live long enough to be happy with everyone for a long time.
- I can taste things again. I never realized all the subtle flavors there are in a banana! And apples! And hummus!
- If I quit, I can have a cookie!
- Pretty girls.
- cute kids.
- could there be a connection?
- Finally, I've run out. Not for long.
- Kittens.
- Peter Pan didn't smoke!
- Live, and love, or die. Live.
- I want to live.
- Can there be any more than that?
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| I'm considering a letter to the tobacco companies. What could I say? |
How's this for an open letter? Could someone do better? Undoubtedly. Would it work.?
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Dear Sir or Madam,
I had considered writing and calling you and your company the most foul and obnoxious things I could think of. Fortunately (for all of us), I will NOT do that. <G>.
Knowing that tobacco kills, why do you persist in selling it? As a smoker for many years, I know that I would have kept buying it until it killed me. And you would let me? Why?
For years, I have advised others to not smoke, even as I took a drag off a cigarette. Why? I knew it was foul and obnoxious, and that it would eventually kill me. It still may. But I don't want others to go through that.
With that in mind, why not put yourselves out of business? I know that you are diversified enough that bankrupting the tobacco subsidiaries would not significantly affect, for instance, RJR-Nabisco. Funny how a plan to boycott tobacco companies (on my part) quickly brought about the realization that I cannot. Many fingers, many pies.
Further, you could help all the smokers out there quit. How much does it cost to quit smoking? How much have you lost to the lawsuits? How much will you lose? Perhaps a bit of good publicity would show that the company of today is more humane than the company that was.
Bankrupt yourselves by helping the people your companies have harmed in the past.
As for the tobacco farmers, let's not abandon them. If the farmer is a corporate farm, I have little sympathy. Corporate farms should be well enough cushioned to withstand a change in crops. The family farmers, though, will need your help. A stake crop of soy or corn would probably work well. If the soil is unsuited, find something that will work. Get them off the bandwagon, as well.
Please, help end this. |
Sincerely,
Jim Lang
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Okay, finally, a last list. Time to get off this bandwagon. My thanks, and love, to those that have helped, those that have watched, and those that need it.
- My list is so full I'm squeezing reasons in the margin.
- No Smoking signs all over the place.
- Have I mentioned:
coffin nails
cancer sticks
death rails
clock ticks
- Have I mentioned the sense of smell?
- Have I mentioned the sense of taste?
- What else have I been missing all these years?
- How much time have I wasted stepping out for a smoke?
- My favorite sweat shirt has a hole in it. Guess where it came from?
- This may help someone else quit.
- I enjoy life to much to kill myself.
- Save a tree! cigarettes are wrapped in paper.
- I want to run.
- I have all this energy I never knew I was missing.
- I can see, smell, taste.
- Have I mentioned cancer?
- The kids.
- So many reasons.
- tears.
- funerals.
- lost loved ones.
- smiles.
- weddings.
- Those that survive.
- Live, love, live.
- AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
- carpe diem!
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Though there are undoubtedly many more reasons, those are the last I will list. I have surpassed the 100 hour mark, and am into day 5. I can call myself a success for now. A week from now, I will go ahead and update this page.
Quitting is not easy. I cannot believe how easy it seems now, but how hard it was to do. I will not tell anyone to quit. I will not go out and tell anyone that `I quit, you can too.' I can only do what someone did for me. Smile. Offer only as much help as is asked of me.
Thank-you. And if this helps anyone, drop Jim Lang a line. |
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It has been more than 1 week since I've had a cigarette. Believe it or not, I'm actually calming down. The nervous energy is going away, though a general feeling of euphoria is still floating around. I don't feel bad about the way I've been acting anymore. It's a more or less natural reaction when you quit. You have all these nervous habits that you don't realize you have, but now are being disrupted. cool.
Time for some more realizations. Ten years ago, I would never have mentioned these things. They are just a little on the embarassing side. But, then, I'm more likely to live long enough to blush. This is fair warning.
These are the things that I've realized in the one week since I've stopped sucking all those poisons into my lunges. |
- Morning wood. It's back! (Didn't even realize it _wasn't_ there.)
- The gallant reflex. (You know, you're too embarassed to stand....)
- The taste of food.
- The smell of food.
- B.O. (Okay, so this one isn't so good. But better than _not_ smelling it.)
- More energy. Some of this is nervous, but most, I think, is more O2 in my system.
- The list.
- The skin condition I've had for the last 3 years is practically gone.
- Deep breaths.
- My smile.
- Girls smile.
- I don't have to go out in a frozen gale for a smoke. (I still go outside, but not to smoke.)
- For the 5 family members who still smoke and I love dearly, the message:
It can be done.
- I don't have to lie to myself about how good (or bad) it makes me feel to smoke.
it sucked.
- I did it!
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