High C

February 24, 2010
Wednesday, 7:33 P.M.
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For the better part of two years, with a couple of slips here and there, I have been a non-smoker. I smoked for forty two years and tried everything that was recommended to me to aid in quitting. I first tried the patch, useless. I tried the gum, a little better, but not good enough. I sat in a hypnotist's chair and proceeded to find out I can't be hypnotized (had to pay him anyway). I got a prescription for Zyban (now Wellbutrin) and though I was calm, I still wanted to smoke and did. Over and over again, you hear people say that you'll stop when you are ready. Well, what the hell does that mean? I was ready for twenty years, hence, the patch, the gum, the hypnotist, the Zyban!! The trick is, you'll stop when you recognize what it is that is worth stopping for. Not that my kids aren't worth stopping for, I don't mean that. It is that one trigger in your nicotine and tar filled brain that is finally pulled and you have the aha moment. My aha moment was when I couldn't hit the notes on the other end of the musical scale anymore. Not only had I lost the high C's, I had lost the medium A's and B's. Bam! The only reason for that is the damn cigarettes. Bam! Quitting will stop the decline in vocal range. Bam! You might even get back some of what you've lost. Bam! Bam! Bam! Quit, already. Okay, I will. Two years later, my nicotine lozenges and I have conquered the cigarette. A few months ago, I tried to quit the lozenges too, but there came a moment when I was going to buy a pack of cigarettes and I bought the trusty lozenges instead. Will I be dependent on them the rest of my life? Who knows? Do I really care? I'm close to hitting high C again.