Do you suppose that someday they’ll make an ink that -with a specific technology, will allow us to able to see inside of a book, folder… and read what’s in it without having to access it physically?*

If I hear someone speaking, my 1st priority is to determine if it has merit, and if it is beneficial – If the answer is yes to both, then it makes no difference who’s doing the speaking. If it’s one or the other only 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♀️

🤔 Some people have such incredible integrity that to undergo a certain experience: where others may dismiss it, minimize, even rationalize it -these people internalize the experience so deeply -it is absolutely incredible to observe a human-being capable of fully….

Sometimes we do things that seem insignificant at the moment, not even anything worth significantly benefiting or profiting by, and:

1. It could leave a lasting negative impression on an individual

2. That individual could then spread the perception of that experience with you to others

All seemingly form… and to what end? At the bookstore for example, I try to save a few extra bucks. Next time I go in come these young people are looking at me and dealing with me like they’re on guard -see what I mean? They start making comments about pricing, as if they were trying to beat me to the punch this time. People pick up on things -and it changes their behavior what can I say?

When I have an issue a store, something mispriced, a return… certain employees act as if the money’s coming out of their pocket -while others, not at all.

🤔Some Allcoholics have only their alcoholic-mind to guide them in terms of a God of their own understanding -The God of my own understanding is the God that has had tens of thousands of pages written about Him. The God that I started out with in life is the God I ended up with in Alcoholics Anonymous.

If you think about it, the 1st gods we encounter in life are the adults who are surrounded by -giants in their own right. Then of course, we should throw in the fact that we’re totally helpless and dependent on these giants. Some of them are gentle giants while some not so much. Some of them are quite sane while others not so much Some of them are quite sane while others not so much. With such a mixture surrounding us-is it any wonder that we have such confusion about this thing called God? Such mixed emotions? And then there are those who tried to explain to us who God is. Amidst the various perceptions deluding the facts…. By the time we’re old enough to understand the meaning of the words, the melees of experiences and examples we’ve been surrounded by to that point – Let’s just say many of us are worse off -more confused than when we started. 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♀️ Now comes the hard part -unraveling… Getting to the truth of it all! Thankfully, God understands all of this MORE THAN WE KNOW. 😊

*From 20 or more years ago

How are philosophers and scientists spoken of throughout history -in the hear-and-now? 🤔

And how are religious figures spoken of throughout history -in the hear-and-now?

I believe that in certain instances, religious figures have brought as much to the improvement of mankind, if not more than philosophers and scientists alike; And yet, their place in man’s history; their very existence; is often spoken of with great skepticism.

Bill Wilson States that we must grow each day spiritually. Which to me means 1st and foremost -coming to know the one true God. Sure, we start out with a God of our own understanding -but over time we must come to know this God intimately – allowing to fall away all the misconceptions, all the of the facets based upon fear, and illusion.

Tell me something; within these writings -do you see bread, or do you see stones? Do you see pearls, or do you see dung?

The women in our family have chosen to give biblical names to their children. Of course they are always the heroes and the saints…. May these children grow up to be worthy of the names that have been chosen for them. Josiah, Tierza, Liara…

Why did God create Alcoholics? It was the only way he could get mankind of practice spiritual principles.

This so called punishing God -for all the horrible things we alcoholics and drug addicts bring into the world -God gives us THE KEYS TO THE KINGDOM. Our penance is simply to do the things we should have been doing all along -and nothing more. The 12 steps are for people who have lost the natural ability -due to extreme arrogance and self-centeredness- to have a relationship with God as originally intended. THAT WHICH DOES NOT (OR NO LONGER) COME NATURALLY -REQUIRES A CONSCIOUS EFFORT 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♂️

I don’t know which part of The Bible or true -I only know that if God said, it’s true!

When I 1st came to Alcoholics Anonymous I was asked if I believed there was a God – My response was this, “I don’t know if there is one but I hope there is one!”

The other question I was asked was whether I was willing to believe…? – My response was this, “I don’t know, but I believe in the power of good.”

In the early days things were made out of cast iron with a porcelain cover. Then they came out with stainless steel and pro and priced it as if it were gold (sinks, tubs (plastic), microwaves, toasters, refrigerators…). And now, the sinks for example are pretty cheap in stainless steel, so are toasters, refrigerators still cost a pretty penny -washers and dryers as well. But here’s the thing 🤔 People have made a shit load of money off of stainless steel 🙄 appliances. Then all of a sudden, it’s the cast iron porcelain appliances (sinks and tubs) that cost an arm and a leg and the stainless is dropped out with regard to certain things. People are now going around the country buying up old sinks and tubs extend tubs and trying to restore them and retire -That’s right, just like the old cars during the eighties and nineties, when people were going around the country buying them from from people’s backyards. It seems to me that back in the old days things were pretty simple and reliable. Nowadays, nowadays, things seem to be shifting according to whatever one person can get out of another person. While it’s true that there’s always been a certain number of people in the population doing so, it’s never been a part of the mainstream in this country – Allegiance 1st and foremost, was to the American Family -and the American dream. That’s “American Dream” not “individual dream”.

Prices were generally dictated according to cost, including overhead, demand… In most cases, a modest profit margin was tacked on ( People were not looking to retire to Monte Carlo on the sale of a few 1000 of their products). I think today, a lot of people could care less or less about all that -the term “profit margin” doesn’t even hold any relevance anymore -they just wanna get as much as they possibly can: (c + pm = sp doesn’t even factor in anymore); (c + whatever you can get away with = sp).

Some people are of the mindset that if you cannot defend what you have you don’t deserve to keep all that you’ve acquired. I say this, if you don’t have any compassion or empathy for your fellow human -beings, then you don’t deserve to keep all that you’ve acquired.

A bunch of people running around in this country -out for all they can get and with no thought or consideration for their fellow human-beings and how they are being affected whatsoever (immaturity and warped thinking).

1 or 2 things I’ve managed to figure out through all of this 🤔:

The humble people in Alcoholics Anonymous don’t seem to have a problem with what I have to say; so explain to me why you do? I’ll say it one more time and maybe this will give you a hint: The humble people and alcoholics and autumn is don’t seem to have a problem with what I have to say… so why do you? The answer is right in front of you!*

About ten years ago, Superbowl tickets went thru the roof. It was discovered that billion dollar companies were buying 100s of tickets for clients who, in many instances could give a damn about football. So much for the little boy or girl, and their life-long dream. See what happens when people no longer give a damn about their fellow man? During this time I stumbled across something very interesting 🤔: Stadiums and arenas were basically staying the same; but the number of millionaires and billionaires was steadily growing -so the seat of the common man was being edged out by that of the millionaire/billionaire.** WE HAVE TO STOP PANDERING TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER -LIKE, NO OFFENSE, SOME HOOKER!

*This is a conversation I’m having with myself about some issues I’m having with some local people in the program. But there’s a real lesson in there -for us all.

**OK, what would happen if we froze everything? I mean 🤔 if the guy you buy from can no longer raise his prices, then you don’t have to raise yours -right? I mean 🤔 is what’s really going on here is man’s insatiable need to climb, to feel he is getting ahead (so he raises his prices)? But if, so-and-so raises his prices, and you raise yours, are you really getting ahead (some people though, will raise theirs X + $0.5…***)? Or, what if 🤔 we went back to the place where inflation was @ it’s lowest? Where the majority of Americans were able to enjoy life, and the American dollar was strong? Why can’t we do that? Well let’s try it from a different angle -WHO STANDS TO GAIN WHEN THD AMERICAN DOLLAR IS WEAK? Life among the living ALWAYS plays out like this, when somebody loses, somebody wins. Or, quite often, when a boatload of people lose, somebody wins 🏆. Which is just one of the things about God I absolutely love -when we play by His rules, EVERYBODY WINS! POINT BEING THIS, change under this type of system is ALWAYS MEASURED in terms of WHO IS GOING TO BE AFFECTED -AND HOW (MUCH LOL). Believe it or not, alot of changes, along with alot of the same-old, same-old are not being dictated by you or me, but by people with the power to make real change but choose to keep things JUST AS THEY ARE, because it is most beneficial to themselves-NOT US! People do this knowing 10s-of-thousands of people 🙄 and their children are suffering. SIGHS

***some people see change as an opportunity -always!****

****I notice that when a crisis hits, and things go up -they don’t always go back down (as quickly). Gold was slow in going up (I mean in terms of hitting the sales floor -people didn’t know what to make of it) the first time. Then it dropped back down -but people kept their prices up 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♀️.

In the spiritual realm, opposites DO NOT (always) attract!

How is it that two men of God can be opposed to one another?

Looking back on a lot of my experiences in life, the only big deal in many cases many cases were the ones I made. And the only consequences consequences of many of those situations situations were the consequences that came from me making a big deal out of what turned out to be nothing!

There’s a difference between having problems and being the problem-although some people may not know the difference

If you can’t do without your vehicle -you might be too dependent on mankind.

Try Something New

In Alcoholics Anonymous there’s there’s an old daying, “Doing the same thing over and over and over again -expecting different results.” When I was early in recovery I kept banging my head against the wall in my relationships. One day I decided to try something new and much to my surprise and relief the outcome was completely different.

How many times in my relationships chinchips did I act in such a manner as to completely lose sight of “The real issue at hand?”*

Some people would rather create a misery of their own choosing (out of a situation which scares them to death) -a misery that they are familiar with and therefore know how to handle (and endure)! I played that game for a long time and it always ended up with me being lonely which is I suppose is what I know how to handle and endure best.

…does not appear to be an issue here -Thanks-be-to-God 🙏

Probably in every sport, every sport that pushes the human being to their outer limits, they they push the individual from the start to see whether they can go all the way-this was the approach I believe taken by many in the early years of Alcoholics Anonymous – In boot camp… I’m sure people in all of these areas arias disdained the treatment they received. But how else are you going to find out if people are serious or not?

I learned a long time ago that what works for some doesn’t work for others -and what doesn’t work for some works for others. 🤷‍♂️

It seems to me that a lot of things were not a big deal to Jesus, not a big enough deal to get angry about!

Nobody had a greater potential of being a micro manager than Jesus -and yet He was the least Just because we’re capable of something -doesn’t mean we should go around proving it.Just because we are capable of something -doesn’t mean we should do it. Just because we are capable of something -doesn’t mean the timings right

ALL THINGS ARE PERMITTED -BUT NOT ALL THINGS ARE BENEFICIAL!

For some strange reason, people who talk too much are not the most respected people in the world -Nor taken very seriously.

Ii never heard of anyone getting into trouble for keeping their mouths shut -except for maybe with the cops

The only other place I know of that you cannot get thrown out of besides our call it’s anonymous’s prison.

In The Beginning

Keep in mind – when Bill Wilson and Ebbie Thatcher had that conversation in bill’s kitchen on that fateful

-day, Ebby was the old -tmer, and Bill was the wet drunk. 🤷‍♂️

Money and incarceration calm those are the things that people fear most when being penalized. There’s no reason why 98% of the population can’t be pulled in the line…

When I met Ana, I believe she was essentially a positive person -however come all my years of negativity I believe began to rub off on her. This was a huge mistake on my part. You never want to turn a basically good quality in a person -to bad.

Release the Hounds 🐕

We pull people in, possibly guilty of a crime, scare the shit out of them by threatening them with severe punishments – Causing them to withdraw deep within themselves and and attempting to avoid persecution at any and all cost,* Costing millions of dollars in many cases (pun intended), And coming up with mixed results at best in so far as guilt or innocences concerned.** It’s like setting the Fox Lou’s, who scared the shit and can hear the dog’s howling, -and then we go after the!m.

How often do you suppose we as human beings get things right? I mean really right-and not just close enough for government work (pun intended).

* Very seldom licoma with the threat of severe consequences, is air consequences, does a person step forward and simply say “I did it”.

** It’s probably more often than not, the courts come up with a compromised Is version of Justice.

NEXT

We invent these things, make money off of them -and then on to the next

Some people I think are hard on 5he newcomer in Alcoholics Anonymous -because alcoholism is a hard disease!

I didn’t like the hard (thank you Lord 🙏) approach some people in alcohol it’s anonymous took towards the newcomer. But then God pointed out to me that different people need different things, different people respond positively to different things.

I think the recidivism rates in Alcoholics Anonymous were so high because a lot of window shoppers got ran out early on who didn’t take the program seriously.- I also think that Toyota holocaust anonymous had such a high success rate in the early days because the people who weren’t serious got ran out very quickly -too quick even be counted.

Another thing that accounts for the high recidivism rate in Alcoholics is that a lot of Alcoholics who come into the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous think they know what they need more than God does -And when God doesn’t grant them their wish -they’re outta here! These wishes range from “I need somebody kindly, and non-judgmental of me” to -“I’ve been a good boy/girl for a couple of months, I deserve a reward.” God, and God alone is best suited when determing what we need.

The only real urge I ever had from the time I got sober and stayed sober was when I got sick with the flu about 6 months into my recovery -the symptoms we’re very much similar to that of heroin withdrawal. To my recollection, they lasted a couple of hours-I prayed to God to have them removed and they were.. Permanently!

If it aint broke don’t fix it-since when do people with limited or no experience/success tell people with extreme experience/success how it’s done?

If you price something in your store or online and it sits it’s too high. If you price something in your store or online and it flies off the shelf it’s priced too low -which would be refreshing for a change lol

Things came slow for me. Character defects that didn’t want to relent! Day-after-day, year-after-year… 🤷‍♂️ But what else could I do but keep coming back!*

*I remember going thru the steps with Granville and having become painfully aware of some of my more obvious defects-of-character. That being the case, you can imagine… and being told the quality of life, my relationships is directly proportional to the correction of my D.O.C. IT WAS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT -I REALLY DIDN’T KNOW WHAT I WAS DOING!

it didn’t work out that way for me -people weren’t calling me, people weren’t rushing to my aid… showing up at my doorstep to take me to a meeting… Then I realized it’s different for everyone! God gives each of us

My development was stunted in numerous areas -over here I was dealing with a 2 year old; over there, a 5 year old… and this made things extremely difficult to pin down.

We go thru hell so that others don’t have to? 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♀️

Its not natural for an Alcoholic, once they crossed a certain threshold to walk around sober; look at our selves; and constantly think of others.

One of the tenements of being an upstanding member in alcoholic anonymous is to obey the laws of society.