The Bat Cave

10:00 A.M.

Today is the day that I plan to quit chewing. I woke up this morning with parts of two cans left, but certainly not enough to get me through the day. I have the day off, which is odd, because I work every single Friday, so I don’t have the luxury of serving tables for 6-7 hours to get me off to a nice, fresh start. That also means I won’t have the immense craving to take a dip as soon as I’m finished with my shift.

Some people might think that it’s odd for me to decide to quit tobacco when I have a likely second DUI conviction hanging over my head with potentially life-ruining consequences. With such pressure on my shoulders, quitting my two biggest vices within a month of each other might seem a colossal challenge, but I’m up for it. It simply needs to be done.

12:30 P.M.

Okay, I’m awake now for real. I just took the last dip of one my cans and it’s time to prepare myself for the day. It’s going to be rough since I basically have nothing to do all day. I went to the gas station to buy some groceries, but also to make sure I got some sunflower seeds and gum… it’s important to keep my mouth working if I’m going to get through this.

4:45 P.M.

Just put my last dip in.

6:00 P.M.

Damn, I’m hungry, but I can’t spit this dip out prematurely. I must savor it to its last dying bits of flavor… until the spit is no longer tobacco-colored. I am kind of starving though. My last real meal (and by that I mean Taco Bell) was Wednesday night. Yesterday I ate some fries, some soup, and half a peach cobbler. That’s it. Today, I’ve had some chips. I’m kind of dying here. I think I’ll get a pizza… but probably not for two more hours. LOL.

8:00 P.M.

Okay, I’ve had this last dip in for 3+ hours and my hunger is starting to overwhelm me. I just ordered a pizza, which is going to take about a half hour to get here. The final stretch of use has begun.

8:49 P.M.

Pizza has arrived and I just spit out my last dip. Abstaining begins…

8:53 P.M.

Wow, this pizza is lukewarm as fuck. Shit was probably ready 30 minutes ago. Shouldn’t have to pay $20 for a pizza and need to hit up the microwave.

9:30 P.M.

Just finished eating that lackluster pizza and as I was nearing completion, I could feel that craving coming over me. For a couple of minutes, I seriously considered saying “Fuck it,” but then I remembered the three people following my blog would be disappointed in me. The craving has died a little bit, but it was always extremely strong as soon as I was finished with a meal. Thankfully, I have a full bag of chips, sunflower seeds, and a pack of gum to tide me through the night. I have a feeling I’ve already passed the toughest craving I’m going to get tonight.

1:19 A.M.

Or maybe not. I’ve just spent the last 5+ hours playing in an online poker tournament. I finished 7th out of 1761 people for a healthy prize. Not what I was shooting for, and at the moment I’m kind of disappointed, but it was a great score for my bankroll. While I was playing, I kept busy by chewing sunflower seeds, eating pizza, and chewing gum, but as soon as the tournament was over, I once again considered pushing back my start date. I can start my quest on Monday, right? All I have to do is drive down to the gas station and I can put myself out of this misery. Am I even going to be able to sleep tonight? I think I’m going to make it through tonight because my favored chew is sold at very few places and the one nearby is closed now, so I’d be getting a second rate product if I broke down right now. Not really worth it.

I’ve been typing up my thoughts as they’ve come to me all day and now that I’m about to go to bed, or at least lay down, I’m finally going to publish it. I might have more to add later tonight if I have problems getting to sleep, but if not, I’ll see you tomorrow, my first full day of tobacco abstinence.