Still going strong

Not much news to report at five days to go 'til moving day. I still haven't smoked since I put the last one out two days ago. Let me tell you, yesterday was damn hard. I really would have crashed were it not for the support of my daughter. She's been so great despite the fact that daddy warned her I'd be cranky. I had the worst cravings all day yesterday and every time they came on, my daughter was there smiling at me with such pride. "You're doing great," she'd say. Now, how lucky am I? Still, it's got to get easier from here.

We also found out the J will be able to transfer to a store down in NC and may actually get a promotion and raise out of it, although it's still very low pay and part-time. That is great news for us, though. Of course, he will still be looking for a job in his trained field as that's really where the money is to get us back on our feet. But, it means that we're going down there with some income, even if a pittance, until we've both landed full-time jobs. The other thing is that after the stress and frustration of his last job, it's nice to see him actually enjoying this job. He's happy and that's got to count for something.

So, how's the move going? Slow. I've struggled with motivation and J's been working up until yesterday, his last day. We really need to put the burn on because we've got just two days until the 'rents get here. You know what it's like having someone else messing with your stuff? I'm a relatively private person and it makes me a little bit weirded out. So I'd like to have just about everything, except the kitchen, packed and all that should be left is breaking down furniture, organizing, and loading the truck. Don't get me wrong, though. I am really appreciative that they're coming up to help us. I just don't think they need to be subjected to our mess as much as I can avoid it.

Lastly, a shoutout goes to Pushing30, a new blogger from Canada, who just got started on her own personal finance blog, Pushing Thirty: My Debt Deadline, this month as well. Check her out. She has the dubious honor of being the first to blogroll swimming upward. Thanks a bunch, P30! I'll be watching and cheering for you, too.

Breathe a sigh of relief

You might notice a smoking counter on the right. It may not look all that impressive yet. Ya gotta start somewhere, right? This is something I've been wanting to accomplish for the significant portion of my life. I have stopped and started many times in the 21 years since I started smoking. And I have always had faith that if I kept trying, one day it would stick and I'd wake up some morning and realize that I am not a smoker.

As I type this, I can't believe it's been that many years that I have been chained to that little box of toxins. I can think of the many excuses that I've made in the past for continuing to feed the addiction. None of them ever convinced me that at some point I would not stop smoking. The question was when. The time has come.

My current focus of becoming improving my financial health naturally leads right into trying to eliminate financial waste. With the cost of cigarettes these days, eliminating that expense is going to make a real difference in the budget. The true beauty of this deal is that as my financial health improves so does my body's health. Yay, me!

My new motto is, "Stop Wishing & Hoping and start Doing & Being." It's not going to be easy. This I know. But I'm putting it out there, here on this blog for all to see, that

I AM GOING SMOKE-FREE TODAY!