100 Days and Counting!!! – GrizzlyB HOF Speech

101 days ago i wouldn’t have thought this was possible. I remember sitting here in my recliner with a big dip of Grizzly straight in my mouth. I pulled out my iPad and searched “how to quit dipping.” I really didn’t expect to find anything that would make a difference.

I had started out like most of you. I was in elementary school the first time i tried it. It was Skoal bandits and I was in 4th grade. I didnt even understand how to use them. I ripped one open and dumped the contents in my mouth. I ended up spitting it all out. I lived in rural North Carolina where tobacco is used by almost everyone at the time i was coming up (not that im that old). My grandpa chewed, my grandma smoked and my dad was a former smoker. I was around plenty of users. After all at one time that is what made the economy in the south, especially NC and SC.

As the years went on I tried it a few more times. Never wanted to keep using it, sometimes I got sick. I was an occasional cigar smoker and Redman chewer. Finally I came up with a stupid plan to try “dip” again. It took me a week or two to build up a tolerance where it didnt make me queezy. After that I was hooked, but didnt know it yet. I thought I could quit whenever I wanted. Then i got married. My wife didnt even know i dipped. I had kept it frm her when we were dating because i didnt think it was an issue and i could use that to motivate me to quit. A couple years went by and she still didnt know. I wasnt doing it but 2-3 times per day so i could easily hide it from her. I was working in a place where all my co-workers dipped and i was starting to do it more often. Finally my wife and I went on vacation to a place where I wasnt going to get a good oportunity to hide it from her. I told myself “this is it. Im quitting”. “this will be my motivation”. But when i got to our destination I just bummed some off her dad and told her the situation. I said “I dip, I have for a while and there is no point in fighting about it”. Since i was now doing it in front of her I was doing it a lot more often. Most days 1 can a day.

Then she got pregnant, and it was gonna be a boy. I told myself, as the time gets closer for him to be here you will find the motivation to quiit. Because I knew if he saw me doing it he might. Well he was born ans i had a hog leg in my jaw in the delivery room. So that came and went.

The day i finally quit had been like a lot of other days. I had told myself many times before “when THIS can is empty”. I would always break my neck to gt a new can. That weekend I told myself the same thing. “when this can is empty im done”. The saturday night before my first fathers day as a dad I put my last dip in and found this site. I really didnt think it would help, but i thought I would half ass give it a try. I signed uo saturday night and went to bed. I didnt post anything, just signed up and went to bed. I had one dip in my last can and i had told myself that i would have it Sunday morning, Fathers day, Moms birthday and that would be my last. But Sunday morning I got up and got on this site first thing. I started reading the HOF speeches, the cancer stories, looking at the pictures and reading what I needed to prepare for and I tossed that last dip in the trash. If you cant throw a can away with a dip left in it then you cant stop yourself from buying a new can tomorrow.

I didnt expect to make it through a day, maybe two. I didnt exchange numbers, or get on the live chat. Hell the only reason I actually posted roll in the beginning was to keep people from bitching at me and calling me a troll. But KTC was enough to give me a push in the right direction. I am the best definition of the phrase “take what you need and leave the rest”. I have posted roll evy single day since 6/17/2012. I promise you, if youre that guy who is just poking around this site wondering if it will work for you KTC has something for everyone.

I am big on taking responsibility for your own actions, so one thing I always told myself was ” if i end up sitting on my death bed because of tobacco I will know before I die that there is nobody to blame but myself”. Were all going to die, but if youre laying in that hospice bed suffering because of a nicotine addiction it is your fault. You could have prevented it. So if y oure checking out this site, thinking about quitting, grow a pair and throw that can in the toilet. Hit the chat and learn what this site is about.

I want to thanks my September “quit or split” BAMF’s. I didnt get as involved as others, but you guys made a big difference in my quit. Even Gordy…..i have to admit when you were stirring shit up it kept my mind occupied and my fingers out of the can. Swede, Worms and Biscut handled ur spreadsheet (hope i got thag right) and you guys are badasses. You put up with BS from me and everybody else at times about the damn spreedsheet, but you kept on takng care of the responsibilities for us. SkoalMonster, CoachSteve and all the veterans you kept us in line and we appreciate it. SkoalMonster always kept stuff interesting and gave great advice. Thanks guys and if any newbies need any guidance get with me, or any of the september vets.

NOTE: This piece written by KillTheCan.org forum member GrizzlyB