I've been Reading a Few Good Books

Reading memoirs about now sober people has been a hobby of mine for years. I keep waiting for Anne Lamott to write one because I love her and would totally follow her advice just because she said so. I have read Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp more times than I can count. (You can read about it here) I borrowed it from a friend years ago. I've read it so many times that I had to finally throw the raggedy book jacket away. (Is there a statute of limitations on "borrowed"? I think by this point I should just call it "took".) I also love Mary Karr's Lit. (Here it is)

I think it made me feel better about the way I drank to read about women who also drank. A lot. (And by a lot I mean drank a lot, not felt better a lot. That part was only a little.)

I've been reading two books these past few weeks that have helped enormously. Don't be put off if you aren't a parent, they both have some solid suggestions. You can substitute words like husband, partner, or cat for the children ones.

The first is Mommy Doesn't Drink Here Anymore. (voila!) Reading it helped me realize that to get sober you have to stop hiding, put yourself out there and ask for help. OUT LOUD.

Another is The TurnAround Mom. (ta da!) I bought this at the same time I bought the Mommy one a year or so ago. And then it disappeared. Only to reappear two nights ago while I was looking for something to read. Wooo ooooo ooooo (make mystical noises here y'all if mine doesn't make sense). :) It is chock full of the good advice every  recovering  living person needs to see from time to time. My favorite bit was about really looking into your children's eyes several times during the day. You could do this with lots of people. I have conversations all the time and then realize I wasn't even paying enough attention to remember if I'd even seen the person I was talking to. But don't get too creepy about it. Freaking people out might not be the best esteem builder.

Sixteen days today! La la la. :)