One Less Vice

I quit smoking on April 20^th.  Just like that.  And the amazing part is how easy it has been to stay (mostly) cigarette-free.  How did I do it?  Well, I did it with this slim blue item:

It’s an electronic cigarette.  My sister was using one and nudged me into trying it, so when I was at her place in April I went and bought one.  And you know what?  I love it.  It completely satisfies the cravings, and it tastes good, too.  I fill it with a few drops of e-liquid, which comes in a myriad of flavors, and that’s all there is to it.  A puff or two totally eradicates the craving for a cigarette, and the e-liquid costs only a fraction of the cost of cigarettes.  The high price was, in all honesty, the main reason I quit.  I do keep a pack of cigarettes around – you never know when you’re going to have a high-stress moment – but a pack is lasting about a month and a half.  I think I only smoke one occasionally because I know it’s there, and I think I’d be perfectly fine with just the e-cigarette even during a meltdown.

I can sit at my desk at work and take a puff whenever I want to, because there’s no fire, smoke, ashes, or odor.  It’s mainly water vapor with a little nicotine and flavoring, and it has no smell whatsoever.  I predict my boss will be on one of these soon, because he’s been trying to quit smoking and has met with little success.  He said Friday he was getting “the patch” this weekend.  He’s done the Blu e-cigarette before, but I’m told that there’s no comparison to the kind I have.  I think he’ll end up with one of these since he's seen how much I like it and how effective it is.

New Addition

I've been away from the blog for a while. This, that, and the other, not to mention work -- and keeping the wolf away from the door -- has kept me busy. There's always "stuff" going on. You know what I mean? Plus, there's the "nothing much to say" factor, and the "laziness" factor. Once you miss writing something for a few days, the few days has a tendency to stretch into many days. And weeks. And so on and so on.

Well. In any event, I have a new little family member. Yep, I adopted the little girl up top two weeks ago. As you can see, she's a Chihuahua. She's 5 years old, and a very well behaved little pup. Smart, too.  She understands pretty much everything she needs to, such as sit, stay, bed, walk, and ... eat.

She's a tiny little thing, weighing in at 4 pounds.  She knows how to work "cute," though, and rules the roost around here.  Within reason, of course.

She's lying in her bed here, using a hand towel for a blanket.

And this is her out on the patio, sitting on her pee-pee pad.  She knows what the pads are for, and uses them between outdoor walks if she needs to.

 She's a great little family member, sweet and personable ... and eaten up with cute.  I'm really glad to have her.