Dad's Home, Tobi's almost done, the Braves made the playoffs!

Here's what is going on with me.

Tobi

It's Tuesday and I only have 2 days of Tobi left. I'm so ready to take that 2 hours of therapy out of my day. I have to do Tobi every other month as it is one of the prime drugs to keep pseudomonas away.

More about my speech

I recently was told by another Kiwanis club member that my speech last month was the first in his 27 years at the club that he ever remembered seeing a standing ovation. That was really nice to hear.

Life is busy

Well, the last 7 days have been interesting and especially busy. Last Thursday I had my addiction meeting. It went really well. One of the guys said something that really hit me. He said "You can't help having your addiction, but you can help being a victim of it." I love that line and it's true. When I think of my addiction and how down I was, I thought of the song from Creed called "I've created my own prison." That's what I did. By having more faith in God and myself, I believe I'm destroying that prison and living a healthy life. I want to apply my new coping skills to being a good daddy and husband. These are the two most important roles I've ever had.

Zenpep

I started Zenpep which is a drug that replaces my Pancrease MT-16. This may sound like no big deal to you but I'd been taking Pancrease for over 30 years so this change had me worried. Pancrease is no longer approved by the FDA so that's why it is no longer available. Zenpep helps me digest food. Two days in and no side effects.

Seeing Family

On Friday, Andrea and I went to one of my cousins' bar mitzvahs. I think he's my cousin twice removed or once removed or he was put on probation and now he's allowed to be my cousin again. Anyway, it was nice. It was at the synagogue I grew up in. We met some really cool people and got to hang out with some family that I hadn't seen in years. I even learned that the Lipman family is cursed with people with no direction sense. I was wondering where I got that wonderful trait.

The Braves

On Saturday, Andrea, myself, Emily and a friend of hers went to Bobby Cox day. It was pretty cool to see all of the past players that were there. We actually sat near the suite where most of the players hung out during the game so I got to talk to Fred McGriff briefly. The Braves got crushed so it was another horrible sports day for me as my Dawgs lost to Colorado later that night.

Sunday made up for the bad sports day. After Avery's soccer game, I went home to watch the Braves clinch the wildcard and the Falcons win a last second nailbiter. I can't wait to go to the first playoff game Sunday night. Hopefully we won't be down 2-0 by that point.

Dad


Mom and Dad are coming home tonight. I'm so happy they are back. Dad is doing great. We had a Wish for Wendy meeting at my house tonight. Wednesday, Andrea is playing tennis so I have the kids. Thursday I have my meeting. Friday, we are going to dinner with my dad to celebrate his return. Saturday Andrea and I are going to our rivalry game. This will be our 10th consecutive year going to Tennessee-Georgia. I believe I lead the all-time series but it's close as the Dawgs have choked recently. We have a deal that our kids get to wear the winning team's outfits the following day. I will enclose a picture next week HOPEFULLY of the kids wearing red and black. Sunday we are going to the Braves playoff game. It's been about 6 years since a playoff game was played at Turner Field. I hope the crowd is as revved up as I am.

Yesterday my softball team won 10-5 and moved to 3-0. I had a hit but didn't do much else. The team is having fun though and I think we have a real shot to compete for a title if everyone stays healthy. It was cool to see my sister come out and cheer us on. She might just be our good luck charm.

I met with my sponsor today and completed Step 10 and began Step 11. I will be working on Step 11 next week and then turning in my work to my sponsor...and then we will work on the 12th and final step of my recovery process. I'm excited to complete this program. I'm also looking forward to a year of addiction sobriety.

I am going to the doctor tomorrow morning to have my cholesterol looked at. It was high a few weeks ago so I will probably be on more meds. I went to my dietician and got some facts about lowering cholesterol and continue to lose weight by giving up most sodas and some candy. I've gone from 197 three weeks ago to 188. The goal is 185 within 4 weeks. We'll see.

Have a great day!

Andy