operation 11: HABIT

when you say the word "habit" to me, there's only one. ok sure, i have plenty...good and bad...but the main, primo, ultimate, really-hard-to-break, big kahuna of habits was smoking. i was hardcore for fifteen years. at the time i quit, that constituted half my life. i knew it was stupid, i knew it was disgusting, but i was HOOKED.

then i met an acupuncturist called kathy goldstein, who saved my life in so many ways i cannot even count them. plus, she helped me ditch the evil weed. it wasn't easy. to tell the truth, there are still days (luckily they're infrequent, now) when i want a cigarette so badly i am practically drooling. that's when i remind myself how hard i had to work to quit. then i think about the tobacco industry spending millions of dollars a year hiring lobbyists and attorneys to protect themselves, and advertising agencies to attract new customers, and scientists to figure out how to make what is perhaps already the most addictive substance in the world even more addictive. i ask myself if i'm willing to give them one more dollar of my money. today's answer is a resounding,

"HELL NO!"

i'll worry about tomorrow's answer tomorrow.

(ashtray image from the internet, printed on kodak premium photo paper; dymo labeller)

(text inspired by a conversation i had with lovely husband jeff when i read this assignment. in the course of it i rattled off the exact amount of time which had elaspsed since i quit smoking, and received an incredulous, "YOU'RE STILL *COUNTING*???!!" in response. yep. i'm still counting. maybe i always will. ...BUT... i'm still not smoking. go, me!) :)

(ps: i know what you're thinking. you're thinking, "hey-- lauren never did "operation 10: GOT TALENT" did she?" and you're quite right, i did not. but i'm working on it. and when it's done, you'll be the first to see it. but see, i knew this one was going to be MUCH faster, so i decided to play out of order. because it's not a PAPER JOB...it's a PAPER ADVENTURE! savvy??!) :)

read about this week's paper adventure assignment, "HABIT" here.

read more by paper adventure's elise blaha here.

see the 85-member paper adventure flickr gallery here.