My first diary!

Hi Flagg,

I have been feeling very down 2day but thought I'd make u smile 🙂

There def is only one 40 yr old big bro santa..aka Flagg lol

Have a gr8 wknd xx

Good morning Mr Flagg

Well what a day yesterday , I had the unfortunate pleasure to see most of it unfold and av to give duncanmac some great praise for highlighting it so quickly , through the blink of the eye it could av become a little uncomfortable for u my friend through one mindless individual who has obviously got some serious issues

Fortunately it was dealt with pretty quickly and ur good name was not blemished , I would av found it so hard to believe that a man of ur stature and intelligence would av stooped to such lowness and guess everyone else thought the same

I know this won't affect u and will carry on doin all the good work u do for this site and carry on doin so well in ur own recovery , for me it showed a couple of things one been it could av happened to any one of us removing the 2 from castle2 would av worked even better one suspects but 2 the unity this site stuck together shows that not one individual will ever break a group of people that show some much support for each other and thats something for us to be all proud of

Castle2

Good Evening Diary,

Day 217 - Well another Sunday is drawing to a close. Another week gamble free is coming to an end. When certain things happen I wonder what I would have done 7 months ago, usually they are really minor things that I would have overreacted about or taken as a sign the world was against me.

Strangely I use little things going wrong now as a measure of my progress. The first priority was and I guess always will be to stay bet free. However, I have to know and show I am growing as a person, putting right previous wrongs and rebuilding my life. I feel progress is being made on many levels and attempting to stay bet free is the best decision I have ever made.

Really pleased to see the site back to normal today. It was a real shame we had to endure that rubbish and although it was lovely everyone rallied around it should not have happened.

Week 4 check in on the xmas thread tomorrow. The thread also took a knock in the nonsense of yesterday but seriously the time absolutely flies by in these threads and it is 100% a take it or leave it thing. No pressure from me or any other member here. Super week last week with 100% check in and fingers crossed the same will happen tomorrow. An absolute pleasure to be part of a wonderful collective of people.

Day 217 - 31 Weeks Done!

Week 4 tomorrow, no, you're joking....where does the time go? At this rate I'll be dead soon which is a shame and ironic because it feels like I'm only just starting to live. You're sounding good at the moment and 100% focused. 7 months is a long time without gambling, we've done well. We just need to keep doing what we're doing. See you tomorrow at sign in.

There's only one Flagg

Steve

Your right Flagg what I said was a controlled version of what I really wanted to say. It does anger me the way some people have nothing better to do but to put others down. Anyway it's all over now. Things seem to have settled and although it shouldn't have happened and I hope it never does again, I feel the group seems stronger for it. You could feel the unity that we all have, that part of it was great to see.

Thanks for the post the weekly count is helping and the new thread is flying by - 4 weeks - crazy! Going really well - you must be very pleased.

Glad all is well in your world and you keep progressing. Keep it up and I'll keep following your lead.

Afternoon Diary,

Day 218 - No sooner you talk about one week ending then a day in the new week is nearly done and dusted! Madness really! I've mentioned time before and how it's flying by I think whilst gambling time became a bit like money I totally lost all concept of it! I wanted, no I needed payday!! Other than that nothing else mattered! Now I view time as a currency and one I value very highly!

I look around this forum right now and see a growing list of people really comfortable in recovery! Yes we are all striving for more and to continue bettering ourselves but just to see so many bet free and in a sound frame of mind is a great success in its own right!

Right, think I have talked enough for one post! Will keep abreast of thread check ins for the rest of the day and hopefully make no more errors (Sorry again Joan)

Day 218 - Flagg Admin Error

Hey Flagg,

No worries and no wrist slapping! I will have none of that. You are to be commended for all of your good works and support on this fine forum! And, that is all I have to say about that! 😀 Have a great day Flagg and seriously thanks for the thread. -joan

hi flagg

Carl

Thanks 4 the post flagg i thought u made a great point when u said u viewed time now as a currency.

I remember a man in G.A once saying he was early in his early 50s and lost a clean fortune but he said he didnt really dwell on the money it was all those lost years that he regretted he couldnt get that precious time back.

U have ur whole life ahead of you u have ur head screwed on and a day at a time the world is ur oyster.

Btw martin is my middle name haha.

And finally i thought u handled saturday brillantly!

Take care

HI FLAGG well done on Day 218 - i no what your saying about the day's although im still waiting for payday's to pay my debts off haha there coming down slowly but i suppose it's better than them increasing fast

Hi Diary,

Day 219 - A day at work with no thoughts of gambling that is pretty much how life should be. I won't complain that my days are regularly like this now.

Still not 100% sure I put everything into work, I now put much effort into exercise and coupled with a life free of gambling things are drastically better than a few months ago. I guess this is why recovery isn't an overnight fix though, there are still many things I could do much better.

I will continue to work at improving other areas of my life. Being aware is surely a start!

Day 219 - Working in cruise control!

Hi Flagg

Congrats on 219 days gamble free.

Life without gambling is much better then life with gambling.

Stay strong

Cruise control is fine, effortless. The body and the mind need moments or even days like these before the enthusiasm returns, it's cyclical. If it didn't you'd burn out. You're doing great Flagg on this site and in life as a whole. You'll look back in ten years time from now when you have everything you'd ever want and realise that it was your strength and determination at this time which brought you there.

220, excellent.

Steve

Hello Diary,

Day 220 - Thanks for the ever gratefully received posts everyone. Today I look at some of the small things in life which really make us feel good. For me I have just had a slight move around with work shifts. I now have 3 early starts in the week which offers me the wonderful opportunity to also return home early.

This time of year work is quieter and there will be times where I could be home, done a workout, had a shower, and be settled down by 5.30. Today I appreciate this time, it is time I can spend doing something productive or sometimes doing nothing. In the past I would have been gambling with this spare time but that life has gone now.

Been a big day at work with the announcement we will be merging with another company. Anyone who watches news will probably workout who I work for. Cut a long story short the merger is great for the business but uncertain for the individuals i.e Me.

Not worrying about it though, it's all going to take time and I believe I will still be employed by the end of any restructure, even hold out a hope I might be in a better job. It's pretty much watch this space and things will develop in the months ahead. Lots of people are really worried, me well I'm pretty laid back about it. A life not gambling relieves many pressures and anxieties.

So, today is another day without a bet and I could read at least 100 of my previous posts to highlight why that is a good thing. I will include this post in that ever growing list.

Day 220 - Finishing Work Early!

flagg,

Carl