Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic

At one point in time I truly believed that everyone has the potential to do whatever they want. That even an alcoholic could go to a bar or a club and drink and have the potential to limit their drinking. After thinking about it, I concluded that an alcoholic is always an alcoholic. They will never change that, because an alcoholic will always have that genetic pre-disposition or that learned behavior that will always influence their drinking abilities.
He can't get away from the problem, it will always be there. An alcoholic can go out to clubs and bars and drink water, soda, or those drinks that smell and taste just like alcohol drinks, but he can't even take a sip of beer, or a mixed drink because his brain will suddenly fire up and crave more of the alcohol.

Alcoholics Anonymous tells people that once they find out that they are alcoholic they will also be alcoholics. It is a lifelong disease. An alcoholic can't just wake up one morning and say "I'm cured, I no longer am an alcoholic." It is a disease that they will have to live with all of their lives. The best thing an alcoholic can do is change his or her patterns and stop hanging out at the places he used to drink. That way temptation is kept at bay.

An alcoholic must learn how to live without drinking so that he can live a normal life, free of the bad stuff. An alcoholic has to go through counseling and may have to have another reformed alcoholic follow him for awhile to make certain the he doesn't hit the proverbial bottle again. He has to go through intense therapy to learn how to change his life and the patterns of his daily existence to do things differently. You may have a person that every day after work for years was going to a local bar and getting drunk. Through therapy he learns to go home and eat a healthy dinner, talk to his family, and go for a walk with his wife and play with the kids.

The alcoholic might just have too much stress in his life and he has to learn how to deal with that stress rather than tipping back a few. Therapy can help an alcoholic deal with those problems and he can learn how to thrive in ordinary society.

So, no an alcoholic can't drink alcohol in a social setting because he will be too tempted to keep up with everyone else and get drunk. He will get that one taste of alcohol and want more because his brain is wired to be an alcoholic. An alcoholic is always an alcoholic, and with therapy he learns to not drink and to deal with stress and life in other ways than drinking. Copyright 2012, (c).

 

Natural disaster foods you will need just in case by Kate Johns

Tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, snowstorms, floods--- these are just a few natural occurrences that can change your life in a flash. It is always best to be prepared for the eventuality that your family may be without electricity or heat or even a home for a few weeks. Emergency services may knock on your front door in the middle of the night to alert you to impending doom of a flood, a fire ravaging through the backwoods or a tornado coming your way. You may have to gather up your family and a few precious belongings in a matter of minutes.
What kinds of foods will you need in case of an emergency situation? You will need foods that can weather any kind of storm including water, cold, heat, and wind. You will need to find at least two large portable plastic containers that are easy to grab. They must be airtight containers that will keep the food free from harm, and that will keep the food fresh. You will need foods that are nutritious and that consider every family member's needs. Little kids may not want to eat beef jerky, or anything that isn't loaded with sugar or corn syrup. Start training your family now to eat a healthier diet. Considering that milk can curdle and become unhealthy to eat in several days time, you may want to switch to soy or rice milk that stays fresher longer. You may want to create emergency meals now for the family once a week, that are simple and easy to make and will contain ingredients from the list below such as cereal with soy milk, or crackers with jelly and peanut butter or some canned stew.

You will need to obtain foods that come in packaging that you open without electricity, and you may need food for several weeks time. You will need: A manual can opener and scissors to open cans and cut through bags and packaging to get at your food. You will also need the following items; utensils, bowls, zipper bags, salt, pepper, sugar, hand sanitizer, and paper towels. To determine what foods you will need for your family look inside your pantry. How many portable, and canned foods do you already have? Remember to restock your plastic containers every five months to maintain freshness.

CANNED FOODS YOU WILL NEED

Six cans of fruit with light syrup such as applesauce, pears, peaches and apricots.

Several cans of tuna fish

Several containers of soup

Two containers of rice or soy milk

Two cans of chili or stew

One jar of pasta sauce

One jar of jelly

One jar of peanut butter

Several cans of vegetables

DRIED OR READY TO EAT FOODS

Whole grain crackers

Dried fruits

Whole grain cereal

Granola bars

Beef or turkey jerky

Crackers

Pasta

Instant rice or potatoes

Animal cookies

LIQUIDS

Hot cocoa

Tea,Coffee

You will need a gallon of water for each day.

You will need to provide an emergency meal plan for your family as well as trying to make meals that are healthy and nutritious. Pack vitamins for every family member  just in case you have really picky eaters.

Life Lesson; Live Life to the fullest before it's too late by Kate Johns

I suffered a stroke two days before my forty-eighth birthday, and six days before my daughter's tenth birthday. As I lay in my hospital bed, wondering if I would see morning's light, or my family ever again, I made a deal with God. I decided that if I lived I would be a better person.

I had a new lease on life.I decided over the days that became weeks of living until the next morning's light that I would be a more positive person and that I would live life in a more Christian lifestyle. I decided to give this thing called life one more shot. I decided to be more patient with people, and to try to be a better example for my children. I would no longer scream at other drivers and I would give it my best shot to smile and enjoy life.

It wasn't easy, but I knew I had to try to live life unhurried, and to stop and smell the roses. You see, I was always the person who rushed through everything and wanted complete satisfaction right now. But when you can't walk or use the left side of your body anymore, you see life from a different perspective.

I realized that God had spared me this time, and I had to make it through to stay alive and get better for my family. Once I made it through to a nearly complete recovery in a matter of eight months,I realized that I had a new lease on life. I started seeing things differently. Everything smelled and tasted better than it had before. Simple pleasures became fantastic. I had this overwhelming feeling that I wanted to live life. I wanted to call everyone I knew, and didn't know and yell, "I'm still alive!"

I started getting in trouble for being so overjoyed. I started babbling to my husband while he was at work, and to my son and my daughter. I started talking to strangers. My mother warned me many times when I was a kid not to talk to strangers and here I was babbling at them. I became Facebook friends with everyone I could think of. I also realized that everyone is too busy to smell the roses, and they need a new sensation to make them feel alive.

I am not saying that everyone needs to have a life- threatening event happen to him or her. But what you really need to do is stop and grab your loved ones. You need to realize that life is too short for all the drama, and escape remedies and numbing drugs. You need to feel life, to really live life to the absolute fullest.

I just wish I had learned this life affirming magic trick when I was in my twenties. Then I would have gone out and conquered the world. I also stopped feeling sorry for myself, which I had done for years. I felt overjoyed to be alive. It was enough to feel the sunshine on my face, the warm grass beneath my feet, and the love of my family. I tell my family members every day that I love them. I do my best to not yell at my kids anymore. I am also trying to reconnect with family members and old friends and new friends who don't realize that life is meant to live, not run through at hyper-speed.

Now, if only I can get my husband to slow down and take a vacation.

How to find out if a cat is a stray

My sister found a stray cat in our garage after school one day. No wait a minute, I've got that wrong, a stray cat found us one day. We were asking our parents for a new pet when a stray cat literally walked into our lives.

She became my best friend for about sixteen years, until she died from cancer. Our cat had been a stray, and I've always felt that it is very easy to identify a stray cat. A stray cat will be hungry, and may hide in the nearby bushes or meow at you to feed her. A stray can be very friendly because she is a pre-owned model. In other words, she may come running out of the bushes to meow at you as you walk to your backdoor, talking to your kids.

Or a stray may be scared, and shivering next to your backdoor, asking for the food she smells from inside your home. One method to tell if a cat is a stray or not is to check to see if she is wearing a collar that has any identification. A stray may or may not have i.d tags on her collar. Some people try to get rid of their cat when times are tough, by taking off the cat's collar, and letting the cat go into a nearby field, or out in the country.

When a cat doesn't have any identification tags, she still may have had a previous owner. Today animals are being outfitted with a global positioning device, (g.p.s.). You can take a stray to a nearby SPCA or an animal shelter to have them help you find the cat's owner. The shelter may be able to run a device over the cat to see if it has a g.p.s. chip in it, identifying the owner.

You can also identify whether a cat is a stray or not, by how the cat acts. Sometimes, the cat is a feral cat. That means that this cat will have been born in a wild situation, and is a wild cat. Feral cats, usually are skittish to humans, and can be very nasty. This is a cat that is not a stray, and has been living in a non-domesticated situation for it's entire life.

When you find a stray, ask neighbors if they lost a cat recently, and put up posters in your local area. If the cat does not have any identification, or a g.p.s. chip, you may have a new friend that can easily become part of your family. Copyright 2012, (c).

Things you should never reveal on Facebook

Things you should never reveal on Facebook---

Facebook has become one of the the most popular methods for socializing in the world. Having over 800 million users, Facebook commands the ultimate party scene. People can get carried away utilizing this social networking arena by giving away personal information to thousands of people, many of whom they do not really know. The rules of socializing still apply on Facebook, even though many of these are what your mom already told you.

NAKED PICTURES, OR VIDEOS

Having become firmly entrenched on Facebook, having a great time connecting with old friends and making new friends, this is not the time to show that birthday suit. In fact, a man was recently jailed for posting naked pictures of his girlfriend on Facebook as a get-back, when they broke up. The lesson learned here is, don't post naked pictures of anyone, a friend or even a foe on Facebook. The possibility exists that a person could go to jail, or become the subject of harassment, or bullying.

PERSONAL ADDRESS

Thinking safety comes in large numbers while searching, and commenting on the Internet is not true. Above all, Facebook users, do not include a personal address on the profile page. Anyone of the 800 million Facebook users can view a person's profile information. Do not include that vital piece of information, or only allow some profile information to be seen.The real life events of the Craig's List killer have already taken place, a person doesn't want to be the subject of the story, "The Facebook Killer"

PERSONAL CELL NUMBERS

Listing cell phone number means all of your Facebook friends can see it and have the potential to use it. Do you want everyone to have that personal information? That means a friend of a friend, or someone recently added to your friend's list has access to your personal cell number. Reconsider giving out a home, or cell phone number to a vast audience. Giving out a phone number to total strangers could mean getting harassing phone calls in the middle of the night, and receiving suggestive phone calls from a "weirdo".

WHEN GOING ON VACATION

Never reveal to Facebook users when you are going on vacation. Never reveal when you are going to be home alone or when you are going out, leaving the house empty, and don't tell Facebook viewers when older children will be home alone. It's a scary Internet world we live in today. Even when an address is not listed in the profile section of Facebook, people have other ways of discovering an address. Unscrupulous people may come to a home while you are having a great time in a warm, tropical locale, robbing your home.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS

A social security number is assigned to newborn babies, but that doesn't mean a sucker was born on the day you signed up with Facebook.Do not place your social security number on the profile section of Facebook. Do not fall prey to anyone asking for a social security number on Facebook either. Many times while applying for a job, a social security number is not needed, anymore.

The Internet can be a scary place, especially for younger children, who don't have the life experience to deal with Internet predators. Don't list personal information, or say or do anything you may regret on Facebook. Considering future employers are surfing Facebook looking to find what kind of employee you might be, don't do it..Stay safe out there in cyberland, Facebook users! Copyright(c)2012, written by freelance author Kate Johns