Hi.
It's been too long since I've updated here, or written anything more creative than a Hashtag War post on Twitter. I plan to be changing that now that life has settled in a bit.
My soapmaking business, Lyeslingers, can currently be found at this link right here. Facebook is working well for communicating with customers and I get better sales as a result. Right now it's coming up on mosquito season so my special catnip laced Skeeter Dope formula will be ready in a couple of days and 2 oz bottles will be found for sale this week so check out the Facebook link if you're up for this or any of the dozens of other products I've invented.
Vaping vs. smoking: I'm still struggling quite a bit with getting tobacco out of my life. I do still use both my nic pens and smoke cigarettes, but it's time to look at quitting again. I'm too sensitive to drugs similar to quit drugs like Chantix, so that's out as a help to me and I've never had much luck with Nicorette products except for their inhalers--they come closest out of what Big Pharma offers to tobacco products so I've already gotten familiar enough to know the patches don't fill my hands as they're used to, lozenges make my teeth ache and contain artificial sweeteners (another no-no, since I have a chronic pain issue and new studies are actually showing the anecdotal evidence my friends and I had already discovered has science behind it), and the inhalers just don't have enough to make me feel like I'm actually smoking. The vaporizers have been the best shot I seem to have but Whole Tobacco Alkaloids (WTA) seem to be the larger issue I'm not addressing. If I can find a way to deal with it I'll be setting (yet another) quit date and trying again.
I'm still pretty damned tired of being treated like a criminal for being a smoker, and being a vaper instead doesn't seem to have many perks other than as a way to get off tobacco. As of this writing nicotine liquids aren't being taxed heavily in my state (they are in some) and just the usual sales tax on equipment, so this is the way I want to go. The hard part will be staying in supply for my preferred style of vaporizer. High-output "sub-ohm systems" make me seriously ill (I accepted a generous loan from a friend, using the lowest nicotine content liquids, then cutting them with nic-free liquid when I started getting sick from the slightest use) so I've had to really stock up batteries, atomizers and of course the liquid I need to use for my lower-powered systems.
Something I should add: There are studies (funded by tobacco companies) used very high voltage/high wattage systems (no info around on what liquids they used in the testing) have shown some odd output chemicals that didn't show up in European studies, done with lower-powered systems like what I use. Johnson Creek still supports my systems, and the new batteries they sell and recommend for them are still widely available but I'll be watching for sales and keeping an eye out to be certain JCSmoke continues to support pen-style systems. They're also supporting a sub-ohm system that looks cute but I can't use them, They're also not only making their own liquids for sub-ohm vaping and cloud chasing, but they're bringing in other companies' products. No, JC, I'm not thrilled--I began with your original system, can't use sub-ohms and hope like hell your company continues to support non-sub-ohm vaping as well.
More changes: Both my mother and father passed on a little over a year ago. Mom had her family here for support; I hadn't gotten word about Dad until after Mom passed. While it's yet another reason to quit smoking, it's far from the strongest one. Between taxes, restrictions, regulations, changes in allowed products and even whether or not I can or should smoke in my own house, I'm tired of dealing with it. I'm no criminal and not only am I treated as someone who should be controlled because of a perfectly legal habit but I'm paying for the shitty treatment too! I pay every one of the people who think the places I go and the things I like to do to treat me this way and I think that bites ass on steroids, which is why so much about quitting goes on here.
WausaubiCon lives on--I have stepped down as event Co-Chair and board of Directors Vice President. I have been asked to stay on as an advisor and I agreed to do so. I've made it clear that I'll be waiting for the Board to tell me when they don't need me anymore, so I'm not sure how long I'll continue in my role but I expect likely through the next event (more on that once they announce them).
I need to write better crap than day to day crap so as I do it'll be here. Meanwhile look around--I'm not hard to find.
