Happy One Year Anniversary Ken Fitzgerald!!!

[Frank Chaffee]

That you have refrained from lighting up (and from killing anyone, too), for a full year now is terrific! Near as I can tell from here, your even-keeled demeanor has barely tipped this way or that.

Ken, you are truly The Man!

Congrats, and thanks for being who you are.

[John Hart]

Ken, you are truly The Man!....

Yup...better man than I. Some day I'll join the ranks.

[Mark Pruitt]

Today is proclaimed Ken Fitzgerald Day! Give 'em h*** Ken!:D

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Thanks Guys! Yup....1 year ago today I quit smoking....Now I'm hooked on the nicotene laced gum....I"m at least 33 lbs heavier......but I survived! Now I'm going to start working on getting rid of the gum!

Thanks again!

Even keeled?.............I don't know about that.....I'm very heavily....I'm mean absolutely......totally........positively......... .For ........Without a shadow of doubt.........Insanely.......for turning wood!:D

Bill........You can attach just about anything to just about anything with epoxy...........

[Gordon Seto]

1 year ago today I quit smoking....I"m at least 33 lbs heavier......
Ken,

If the reverse is true, may be I should start smoking.

Congrats to your anniversary to the "road to the poor house club". But I'll bet you had a lot of fun.

Gordon

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Gordon.......I quit smoking just a week before the inmates here lathed me. I'm very sure turning was a major influence on getting off the cigarettes too! It's funny....late one night while working on a CT scanner I bumped into a local cardiologist in the hospital...."Ken...you look like you're gaining a little weight"....."Yeah Doc....I quit smoking"......"How much did you smoke?"...."1 1/2 packs a day for 41 years"....."You could probably put on 80-90 lbs before you have the same effect on your heart as the 1 1/2 packs a day."..........Now I have to work on getting some of this 33 lbs. off.

[John Miliunas]

Congrats, Ken! You're a better man than I! However, I've proclaimed '07 to be the year I quit, as well. :) (I've pretty much got the weight thing licked now; dumped a bit over 60#'s in the last year and working to regain some muscle.) :) :cool:

[John Hart]

Yesterday, I carried a 35 pound bag of concrete mix down to the end of the driveway. I was winded by the time I got there. I've never gained weight so I don't know what it feels like....but that 35 pounds of extra load sure made me think about it....and that I want to be sure to keep it off in the future.

[John Miliunas]

Yesterday, I carried a 35 pound bag of concrete mix down to the end of the driveway. I was winded by the time I got there. I've never gained weight so I don't know what it feels like....but that 35 pounds of extra load sure made me think about it....and that I want to be sure to keep it off in the future.

LOL! Got that one right, my friend! I think of stuff like that often. When loading up a couple 25# weights on the barbell, I think to myself, "Self, you used to carry that much and more around on your own body ALL the time!!!:eek: " Really helps keep things in perspective! :) :cool:

[Bobby Perry]

Ken I quit smoking on Aug the 18th 2005. So it has been just a little over a year for me too. I had smoked 3 packs a day for close to 40 years. Quit cold turkey. All because of my granddaughter who is 14. She told me she was going to get married someday and wanted me to be at her wedding. But if I kept smoking the way I was I wouldn't be there I would be dead. So I quit. I have 3 granddaughters 14, 11, & 6.

Time passed since I quit: 73 weeks, 3 days, 21 hours, 42 minutes, 55 seconds

Cigarettes not smoked: 30,894

Money saved: $6,951.15

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Congrat Bobby! It's tough!

[Bobby Perry]

You go here and enter the date you quit and other info and get the same info I posted
http://www.quitmeter.com/

[Gordon Seto]

Money saved: $6,951.15
Bobby,

You gave me the perfect logic to tell my wife.

I am going to use my smoke money to buy the big Oneway.
Plus the extra money saved on cleaning the drapes in the house because of the smoke odor. That will be enough for another Glaser gouge or two.
In case it doesn't fly, I better save some shaving for bedding in the garage first. LOL
Gordon

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Hey! I think I'll go back to smoking......That calculator says I've saved $1,694 ............I've spent a lot more than that on turning tools!:eek: :rolleyes: :D

Nah I won't.......the LOML would kill me! My youngest son would load the gun for her!

[Tom Sherman]

Congrats Ken, love to hear success stories like that, I quit once for four years then changed jobs and started again due to stress still with it. Been thinking of giving it up again though, can't afford to gain any more weight though have all the turning muscle I can carry.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Congrats on the anniversary!

My wife and I quit smoking Oct 11, 2004. Both of us decided we were sick of the expense, the mess and the constant smell - plus, if either of us quit - we both had to quit in order for it to work. It did!

We took up riding bikes in the summer, snowshoeing in the winter and walking when ever we can - just for the fresh air. Took over a year to get the smell out of the house and almost as long for me to be able to regain some of my sense of smell. It is worth it!

Oct 2004 is also when I started turning - about a week after I quit smoking. We all know the effect turning has of just absorbing you into the work - it really helped.

Again, congrats on quitting smoking and more importantly, congrats on becoming a turner! Looking forward to seeing your work for many, many years to come!

[Mike Ramsey]

Thanks Guys! Yup....1 year ago today I quit smoking.....I"m at least 33 lbs heavier......

Thanks again!

Happy RE-Birthday to you & the Jet Ken! The extra weight will help
when you turn those big out of round blanks!

[Ron Jones near Indy]

Way to go Ken! I know it isn't easy, but that it's worth it.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Congrats Ken and Happy Anniversary. On January 1st 2006 I laid down the smokeless tabacco. I think the thing that helped for me was getting the lathe. Didn't go the nicotine gum route but have taken out stock in Orbit sugarfree gum. Way to go Ken. Proud of ya man.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Thanks.....I'm sure Bill Grumbine will be proud of me too! I've developed a great turning muscle! It's not too talented....but it's a great turning muscle!:rolleyes:

[Ed Scolforo]

Hey, Ken, you trying to put me outta business or something?;)

[Jon Shively]

In high school my consumption of tobacco products was a pack of cigarettes a day, a roll of Skoal a week and a pack of Beechnut a week. Quit smoking in 1977 and quit chewing for the second time in 1988. Couldn't afford to start now if I wanted to! Good for you Ken and all others that quit, it is hard and worth every minute of the frustration.

[Keith Burns]

Congrats Ken !!! You are one of a kind and we are all glad you are here.:) :)

[Lisa Gilbert]

Congratulations! You've saved youselves and your families much anguish. My dad finally quit after being diagnosed with emphysema -- it's way too late by then. I was at his side when he passed in September 2005. It's a terrible way to go and almost as terrible to see. It breaks my heart that he won't see my children grow up. My only consolation is that I know my children will never smoke. My 6-year-old daughter goes after people like a pit bull when she sees them smoking!

So on behalf of your families -- THANK YOU! And keep it up!

[Bill Boehme]

Ken, congratulations to you and the others who have quit the smoking habit. My dad quit about 50 years ago and now he is 85 -- I am so glad that he did quit. His brother waited until it was too late before he quit.

I have never smoked, but when I retired about three years ago, I started putting on the weight. I wonder if I took up smoking if I would get back to my normal weight. I think that avoiding good (as in tastes good, but not necessarily healthy) food may be more difficult than quitting smoking.

Everybody has hit the nail squarely on the head about the theraputic value of woodturning. It is very easy to get totally absorbed in it -- most of the time my thoughts go something like, "what can I do now to salvage what I just did ... ahhhh ... another design opportunity ... designer toothpicks."

Bill

[Karl Laustrup]

Congrats Ken. It will continue to get easier.

It'll be 10 years for me at the end of this year. Over 132,000 cigs not smoked at a savings of $16,500. Now if I can just figure out what I did with all that money. :confused:

Karl

[John Chandler]

Congratulations on quitting a bad habit and starting a good one. I enjoy reading your posts and hope to for a long time to come.