alcohol for at least five days, beginning April 29.
This won't be that difficult, as I'm flying out to visit my mother for five days beginning April 29, and I'm going to be in her home and in a state that frowns upon substance use.
But why am I doing this? For me, and my health? Well, yes of course, but I have an ulterior motive.
The money I will not spend on tobacco and alcohol during this period I am going to donate to Obama's campaign.
Times have been tough lately for my wife and me. I'm on disability and my wife only earns a bare-subsistence wage at her job. Her job is working in the local bank as a teller. She's on her feet all day long at the driveup window, while I sit here on my butt collecting disability payments that amount to more than she grosses. While I sit here I smoke and drink and blog.
I enjoy the opportunity to throw my two-cent's worth in to Daily Kos, Firedoglake, Crooks and Liars, Pharyngula, Talk to Action, and other progessive blogs. I usually spend at least six hours each day reading and occasionally commenting on these different blogs. I'm a talker and a storyteller by nature, so like I say this is enjoyable for me.
But what I'm not having much fun with is trying to keep up with the bills. My wife is long-suffering, and without her I'd be in one heck of a pickle. I turn over to her virtually everything I collect from my disability payments, and trust her explicitly to keep us above water. I must say she does a magnificent job of stretching our meager income to meet our needs.
I know my tobacco and alcohol expenditures make this difficult for her. She doesn't smoke or drink. I'm sorry I have these "habits", but these are indulgences that keep me from going crazy otherwise.
But I'm going to give them up for at least five days. By my calculations this is going to be about sixteen dollars a day. Heck, call it twenty. That means I will not spend one-hundred dollars on tobacco and alcohol during my visit to my mom.
I'm going to send that hundred bucks to Obama's campaign. Hope it helps.
Even if I fail in staying off my junk for the week, I'm still sending Barack a hundred bucks.
He needs it. We, you and I, need it. Our country needs it. That's why I'm doing it.
Ask yourself, what are you willing to give up to send some money to Barack Obama's campaign instead? I'll bet you can find something.