during the hurricane last week, I sent a series of small notes to subscribers – and some of these ideas, of course, apply to the world beyond the weather.
small notes about hurricanes and other things #1
we don’t drink because of weather. not even unusual weather. if it snows in September (alberta) or floods in NC, we don’t drink.
you need to be sober to deal with the random things that happen in life. it could be bad weather, but it could be sick mother, or your fan belt splitting in half. it could be a faulty insulin pump. it could be a tenant’s overdose. you have to be sober to deal with the things.
to mix drinking with dangerous weather just seems like a bad idea.
you’ll agree with me.
if ever you needed to keep your wits about you, it’d be now.
today’s exit-the-booze-down-elevator painting might be about exiting the shitty thinking, or it might be about exiting the dangerous situation, or it might be about finding the exit on the highway as you leave town, windows boarded up. an exit is about you taking care of you.
it’s you, making plans.
~
small notes about hurricanes and other things #2
unexpected things, large and small, are happening around us all the time. this is one of those things. they tell you that X will happen, but it’ll be something like X-2+Y-7. Which means you’re flexible. No black and white. It’s grey. You go where you need to go, soberly, eyes open. You do the next right thing in front of you. You do the basic self-care things every day (sleep, eat, rest, avoid overwhelm). you text your parents and friends and sober coach when you feel wacky. you don’t do this alone – hurricanes or sobriety. we do these things together.
~
This is Exit painting #114.
Exit the booze elevator. Get off and stay off.