9 th. March.

09 Mar. 07
Day three on Zyban.
Had an early night last night, 10.30. got up this morning dressed went to toilet and made myself a cuppa and a smoke.
Sat thinking how cold it was then I looked at the clock, 5.30 a.m!
Looked to be a promising start to the day, sunshine.
I returned to the warmth of the duvet and got back up again at 11.30
Sun is still shining but the wind has picked up so I decide to stay in, again.
My post consisted of an official looking brown envelope;
the type that makes your mind work overtime until opened.
It was harmless enough.

I read through some of the paraphernalia which I picked up at the stop smoking clinic, the majority of which concerns patches and gum, i.e. Nicotine replacement.
I have opted for Zyban, wishing to rid body of nicotine completely so most of the leaflets were designated to be thrown out by being dropped on floor on right side of chair to await pick up when I get in the mood to tidy up.
(Will have to be sooner than later).
I take a break and decide the lounge music is not to my liking so I change to new age.

So the government has decided that the war on drugs is costly and ineffective.
Just look at the film History of Cannabis and see how much America has spent on the war on drugs since the 1920’s, hell of a lot of money.
The effects of Alcohol and Nicotine are to be highlighted at last.
Will be interesting to see where cannabis comes on the list of potential harmful substances.
If the cost of alcohol in terms of policing, medical, and judicial hours is considered it should be ranked much higher than Cannabis.
The poor quality and high price of street cannabis leads me to warm towards any ideas of making the supply somehow legal and regulated.
Having all but given up cannabis use I do not take a great deal of interest in Government proposals but agree that there is a vast amount of money involved and if the G could get their fingers into the pie then I suspect they will find a way.
There has been enough research and studies carried out over the past decades to prove that cannabis has beneficial effects
True cannabis use may allow the user to enter the margins of drug suppliers and therefore come into contact with dealers of class A.
But it remains the individuals choice to move up the ladder and experiment with hard drugs, which by their design have a very short period of induction to addiction.
The price of a decent joint may have risen to £5.00, but to many of us it is preferable to pay the price than enter the world of danger in our towns and cities surrounded by people who drink, unchecked, ridiculous amounts of high priced alcohol.
The rising price of street cannabis has curtailed its use as a social drug,
people tend to enjoy it on their own more.

An enjoyable treat after having the evening meal at the end of a working day.
A way of unwinding, relaxing to sounds or whatever turns you on.
The influence of the Americans, the propaganda, misinformation and general attempts to frighten the majority of the population into accepting newer and more restrictive laws is similar to the present scare mongering following the rise in stature of terrorism.
How exactly the government aims to get involved in the regulation and supply of the drug is beyond my imagination.
If cultivation of a restricted number of plants was decriminalised then I’m sure a large amount of the regular users would make some attempt to grow their own crop.
Having recently bought a deal of skunk sprayed with glass beads, and having secured several deals of solid with obvious additives.
I for one would like to return to pure home grown greenery.
Dealers are charging hundreds of pounds for what is basically a bar with on ounce of content and eight ounces of bulk, the majority of which is harmful if inhaled.
A side thought; any politician willing to put their name to changing the cannabis laws would surely find a surprising increase in his or hers popularity and therefore vote potential. Timing vital.

I leave the subject alone, having been a regular user for over 30 years I am disillusioned with the attitude both past and present.

I am however in favour of regulation in the work place and use of dope in public.
Too many people fail to realise that combining dope with alcohol is dangerous and counter productive.
Drinking and driving is tolerated in as much as the police do not pour the same resources into tackling it as they might do.
I would expect driving while under the influence of drugs will also be a potential mine filed because of the residual property of cannabis as apposed to other stronger drugs which the body is able to get rid of quicker.
Random dope testing in the workplace has stopped many users from enjoying their “weekend joints”, they have had to choose other, possibly more dangerous drugs
(ones which will linger no longer than 24 hours.)
or revert to joining the herd and drinking.

Nowadays there are more dealers than public houses.

The sun disappears and the sky becomes threatening, I turn the fire on and get settled for the duration.
I had intended to finish the November section of the on line diary but I got as far as 20th. and ran into same old hassle of account verification.
Quite annoying after I’d taken the time to proof read each entry prior to posting.
3:47 PM
I count the tab ends in the ashtray 12 so far today.
I really am annoyed at the hassle from the blog site; I’d read that the site wasn’t that good and intended to use it for practise purposes until I found a suitable site to post to.
I pour myself a vodka and orange and relax,
I have allowed myself to get annoyed and one thing I’ve learnt over the years is,
never get annoyed with the computer.
As usual the problem is with passwords and logging on.
I’ll leave it for a while and do some surfing.

If you are a smoker, when the blood level of nicotine falls, you usually develop withdrawal symptoms such as restlessness, increased appetite, inability to concentrate, irritability, dizziness, constipation, nicotine craving, or just feeling awful. These symptoms begin within a few hours after having the last cigarette.
If they are not relieved by the next cigarette, withdrawal symptoms get worse.
If you do not smoke any more cigarettes, the withdrawal symptoms peak after about 24 hours, and then gradually ease over about 2-4 weeks. So, most smokers smoke regularly to feel 'normal', and to prevent withdrawal symptoms.
Bupropion does not 'make' you stop smoking. You still need determination to succeed, and to break the smoking habit.

If you want to stop smoking, taking varenicline (trade name of Champix) is likely to more than double your chance of success.
Apparently been used with great success in American prisons.
This is another alternative treatment I’ve just come across.