T-minus 2 days. I appreciate the comments and welcomes on yesterday's post. I spent yesterday thinking of the ways to help myself in my quit. Here is my list so far:
1. Cleaning- I love to clean. I have an obsession with cleaning products and tools. Freak of nature, I know. There is nothing more pleasing to me at the end of the day as having a clean and tidy home. I have been neglecting the deep cleaning lately, just doing the surface cleaning. What a better way to keep me busy than to pick a room each day and clean the devil out of it. Cleaning helped me through some bad days last time.
2. Reading- I love to read and have since childhood. I have a stack of books waiting to be read. I can completely lose myself and all track of time when I really enjoy a book. Fingers crossed these books will do just that. If not, I have my old reliables on my shelves. I am currently rereading Allen Carr's book and hopefully take more away from it this time than I did previously.
3. Bullet Journaling- This is a fairly recent hobby I picked up. I have always kept a journal, but the artsy approach to bullet journaling is very appealing to me. Plus it is hard to hold a cigarette when you have a pen in one hand and a ruler or stencil in the other.
4. Organizing my She-shed- We bought our house in January. One of the many appealing aspects was the two storage buildings located at the rear of the yard. The smaller one is for lawn equipment, gardening tools and such and the larger one came already electrified! My She-shed in the making. Right now it holds all my crafting and quilting supplies and anything else I didn't want to be brought into the house. To say it is a hot mess is an understatement. I need to organize this, go through things, toss out and start planning on insulation, heating, and cooling, flooring, and walls to complete my shed. Although this will have to wait for a few more weeks until cooler temperatures, I think this would be a great project for when I am feeling lost in "No Mans Land" which will hit in the cooler months. So while it is on the back burner, it still makes the list.
5- Crafting and Quilting- I love crafting and especially quilting. These are skills passed on to me by my dearly departed grandmother. Everything from quilting, to crochet, to needlepoint. Doing these things helps me feel closer to her even though she is no longer with me. I don't do it much anymore....well because I smoke. Nothing worse than creating a beautiful heartfelt piece and it has cigarette stench on it. So I plan on pulling out the old sewing stuff and creating some Christmas creations. Plus my work buddy will need a new baby quilt 
6- Planning my hike- It has been a life dream of mine for numerous years now to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. For those who aren't familiar, the AT is a footpath that runs from Georgia to Maine covering almost 2200 miles. It takes on average 5-7 months to complete a thru-hike. It is looking like I can follow my dream in 2020. Financially before now, we were never in a good enough place for me to be able to quit my job. I am finally down to part-time and we are able to put one of my two paychecks back a month. Thankfully I had already planned on 2020 being my year (thank you orthodontia) before the heat pump died or I would have been a little disappointed if I had planned on next year. Planning and dreaming are fun. And think of all the nice equipment I can buy with unspent cig money
7- Hang around the Ex- The only ex I ever wanna hang around with for certain. 
I am really enjoying this website and I have found the members and community to be an encouraging and supporting environment thus far. I want to be supportive of others while also receiving support, being receptive to comments, thoughts, and ideas.
8. Keeping in check of my emotions- I am responsible for my emotions and behavior and how I make others feel. I need to recognize when I need to step away and get myself under control before lashing out on an innocent bystander. If I am ugly to someone because I didn't check myself, I need to apologize. Everyone I come in contact with at home and work will be warned that I have quit smoking and I won't be myself at times. This in no way excuses any bad behavior though but hopefully, it will help them understand why at times I may maintain a distance from them.
9. Deep breathing- I have never been one for the whole deep breathing, meditation stuff. I can't focus long enough. But I am willing to give it a shot. Bad air and emotions out, good air and good vibes in.
and finally,
10- Listening to music- I love most music and it does tend to relax me. I plan on making some playlist up on my Amazon music to able to chose accordingly to my mood.
While this isn't my end-all, beat all list, I figure that it is a good place to start. I am sure I will continually add to my list as I find things I want to try, something that has worked for someone else. This is something I can pull up, look at and chose an activity to keep me occupied and busy or help me over that hump when I am in a bad spot.
Things I Plan on Doing Daily
-Plenty of water, flush those toxins
-Do something that is totally not my normal routine
-Don't replace smoking with food
-One happy thought a day even if its a crap day
-Take my prescribed medications every day on time (I am horrible with this right now)
-Check in on the Ex even if its just an I am okay or today stinks post
-Never stop learning about quitting
-Own my quit. Don't compare myself to anyone else
-Realize that if I have just one, I have to start all over again. This cannot be an option. EVER!
Have a great day
S.........
