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For What Its Worth!

beatnicbeatnic Posts: 4,133
It’s been exactly 1 year since I had my first premium cigar.

What?Where?Why?When?Who?How?

Memorial day weekend, 2010. I woke up on a Sunday morning vomiting and expelling all possible liquids from my body. Several dehydrated, bloating, lesions, swelling, sickness, and agonizing days later it was diagnosed that a brown recluse spider had bitten me 5 times in the leg and the poison was swelling my liver. My body was toxic. My name was put on the liver donor list.

Now, I’ve heard rumors that some people find it very hard to quit drinking. I quit in a nanosecond. Many changes followed during that period. Yesterday, my GI doctor presented me with a clean bill of health. My enzyme #s are all normal once again. My sabbatical from alcohol and healthier diet has allowed my liver to heal.

What started out as doom and gloom has ended up being one of the best years of my life. I have never been healthier and happier. Today, as I sit here writing this, I’m respectfully enjoying an EP Carillo and a brandy glass holding 2 drams of 15 year old Ardbeg single malt scotch.

I don’t know what possessed me to enter the smoke shop in the mall. I had passed it numerous times. I was a pack and a half a day cigarette smoker for 35 years. I had chewed on a few plastic tips in the past. I might have even purchased a bag of backwoods at one time, but I never had a premium cigar. I walked into the humidor, not knowing squat. I walked out with a corona sized stick from one of the only names I recognized, “Arturo Fuentes”. In retrospect, I guess I was just looking for a new drug to replace the one I had just given up. It wasn’t intentional.

The rest of the story has been well documented by so many of you. Buy a stick, enjoy it, look for a cheaper way to smoke, buy a humidor, find Ccom, hook up with Tim, find the forum button, click……………………………So many trails of ash litter this wondrous path. And all the BOTLs here have helped make it so.

I have a new respect for alcohol, I no longer smoke cigarettes, and have found a new love in cigars.

For what its worth!

Comments

  • bigharpoonbigharpoon Posts: 2,963 ✭✭✭
    Wow! Congratulations on your last year, sounds like your path has taken a really nice, unexpected turn! Nice to have you here sharing and contributing.
  • gripnripgripnrip Posts: 502 ✭✭✭
    That's a great story! I quit the cigs (after 30 years) a little over 6 years ago. Started dabbling in cigars about a year later...and, as you say, the rest is history. Just finished an Oliva Serie V-glorious!
  • skweekzskweekz Posts: 2,279 ✭✭✭
    Awesome story bro! Glad everything worked out for the best in the end
  • The3StogiesThe3Stogies Posts: 2,652 ✭✭✭✭
    That's great, really happy for you. The body’s ability to heal itself is remarkable, as is life's events. So if you had not been bitten would you still be on the old path drinking away? Congrats on your recovery bro.
    Ain't life grand.
  • lilwing88lilwing88 Posts: 2,812 ✭✭✭
    Congrats, bro! That's quite an accomplishment. You should be proud.
    Guns don't kill people, Daddies with pretty daughters do…..
  • fla-gypsyfla-gypsy Posts: 3,023 ✭✭
    Fantastic story!
  • jsnakejsnake Posts: 5,979 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Wow what a great story. Thanks for sharing.
  • Amos_UmwhatAmos_Umwhat Posts: 8,814 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Great story! I killed at least six brown recluse last week, barn and garage are infested with them. I've never been bitten, but I've helped care for dozens of people who have in the ER and ICU. This is the most positive outcome I've heard of.
    WARNING:  The above post may contain thoughts or ideas known to the State of Caliphornia to cause seething rage, confusion, distemper, nausea, perspiration, sphincter release, or cranial implosion to persons who implicitly trust only one news source, or find themselves at either the left or right political extreme.  Proceed at your own risk.  

    "If you do not read the newspapers you're uninformed.  If you do read the newspapers, you're misinformed." --  Mark Twain
  • xmacroxmacro Posts: 3,402
    Awesome story man. It's gotta be a hell of an experience to get a new lease on life like that - enjoy!!
  • JCizzleJCizzle Posts: 1,913 ✭✭✭
    Great stuff, it sounds like you're doing things for enjoyment instead of sheer volume.
    Light 'em up.
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