Word of the Day

February 12th - In Thought

Word of the Day - Slow

I was lucky to have gone to an inpatient rehab and, then after, an outpatient rehab.  There are many that don’t ever make into any form of treatment.  It was in rehab that someone first wished me a ‘long slow recovery’.  Huh?

I wanted what I wanted and I always wanted it NOW.  There was no journey for me; it was only about the destination and everyone would have to get out of my way, or else.  When I got where I was going or when I got what I wanted I still was not satisfied; I wanted more. More of this, more of that, or something else until that was tapped dry too.  

Going into treatment I thought that was all I needed. A 28 day quick fix and then I could go back to what I was doing before rehab.  Well, in those 28 days I did learn something about disease of addiction.  It is chronic and can be fatal.  That was upsetting to me.  Boy did I start hating God of that. I’ve since gotten over that.  

Well, like any other chronic illness, I must continually seek treatment for my disease of addiction.  I did go to outpatient straight out of rehab - that helped immensely.  I was able to connect with others that suffered from the same disease as me and learn from those that were staying clean and had changed their lives.  One thing that I had to learn to do was to slow my roll.  Followed by learning to not force my will onto others and situations.  To this day these are not easy for me… Hey, I used crystal meth; everything was about instant gratification and nonstop craziness.  Little by slowly, I’m getting better at pausing and just letting things be as they are rather than trying to make things happen in my time and the way I want.  

So many of life’s lessons are learned when I take a moment and pause and experience the now. Staying clean I get to live the journey - one day at a time.

January 31st - In Thought

Word of the Day - Moralize

As if I were ever the go to person when it comes to what is right and what is wrong.

I surely feel like it sometimes.  What terrible character defect to have (self-righteousness).  I had an opinion on everything that was not any of my business.  My using days I would look at other with disdain like I was so much better than them even though inside I hated everything about me.  

Still, I catch myself getting into that mode (Walk on water).  It’s a behavior that I am so familiar that I must put contrary actions into practice to keep it arrested.  

Recovery brings the focus on me and what am I doing and what type of energy am I putting into universe.  I am putting in the effort to be more of an active listener and to be of service to others rather than to just have a moral-hypocritical-high-ground opinion on things and people.

Staying clean I am learning when to STFU - one day at time

February 12th - Word of the Day - Slow

slow
[sloh]
adjective, -er, -est, adverb, -er, -est, verb

adjective
1. moving or proceeding with little or less than usual speed or velocity: a slow train.

2. characterized by lack of speed: a slow pace.
 
3. taking or requiring a comparatively long time for completion: a slow meal; a slow trip.
 
4. requiring or taking a long time for growing, changing, or occurring; gradual: a plant of slow growth.
 
5. sluggish in nature, disposition, or function.
 
6. dull of perception or understanding; mentally dull: a slow child.
 
7. not prompt, readily disposed, or in haste (usually followed by to  or an infinitive): slow to anger; slow to take offense.
 
8. burning or heating with little speed or intensity, as a fire or an oven.
 
9. slack; not busy: The market was slow today.
 
10. having some quality that retards speed or causes movement, progress, work, etc., to be accomplished at less than the usual or expected rate of speed: a slow, careful worker; a slow road.
 
11. running at less than the proper rate of speed or registering less than the proper time, as a clock.
 
12. passing heavily or dragging, as time: It’s been a slow afternoon.
 
13. not progressive; behind the times: a slow town.
 
14. dull, humdrum, uninteresting, or tedious: What a slow party!
 
15. Photography . requiring long exposure, as by having a small lens diameter or low film sensitivity: a slow lens or film.
 
16. (of the surface of a race track) sticky from a fairly recent rain and in the process of drying out.

adverb
17. in a slow manner; slowly: Drive slow.

verb (used with object)
18. to make slow or slower (often followed by up  or down ).
 
19. to retard; reduce the advancement or progress of: His illness slowed him at school.

verb (used without object)
20. to become slow or slower; slacken in speed (often followed by up  or down ).

February 5th - Word of the Day - Blame

blame
[bleym]
verb, blamed, blam·ing, noun

verb (used with object)
1. to hold responsible; find fault with; censure: I don’t blame you for leaving him.

2. to place the responsibility for (a fault, error, etc.) (usually followed by on ): I blame the accident on her.
 
3. Informal . blast; damn (used as a mild curse): Blame the rotten luck.
noun
4. an act of attributing fault; censure; reproof: The judge said he found nothing to justify blame in the accident.
 
5. responsibility for anything deserving of censure: We must all share the blame for this deplorable condition.

 Idiom
6. to blame, at fault; censurable: I am to blame for his lateness.

January 31st - Word of the Day - Moralize

mor·al·ize
[mawr-uh-lahyz, mor-]

verb (used without object)
1. to reflect on or express opinions about something in terms of right and wrong, especially in a self-righteous or tiresome way.

verb (used with object)
2. to explain in a moral sense,  or draw a moral  from.

3. to improve the morals  of.

January 30th - Word of the Day - Appearance

ap·pear·ance
[uh-peer-uh’ns]

noun
1. the act or fact of appearing,  as to the eye or mind or before the public: the unannounced appearance of dinner guests; the last appearance of Caruso in Aïda;  her first appearance at a stockholders’ meeting.

2. the state, condition, manner, or style in which a person or object appears;  outward look or aspect: a table of antique appearance; a man of noble appearance.
 
3. outward show or seeming; semblance: to avoid the appearance of coveting an honor.
 
4. Law . the coming into court of either party to a suit or action.
 
5. appearances, outward impressions, indications, or circumstances: By all appearances, he enjoyed himself.
 
6. Philosophy . the sensory, or phenomenal, aspect of existence to an observer.
 
7. Archaic . anapparition.

Idioms
8. keep up appearances, to maintain a public impression of decorum, prosperity, etc., despite reverses, unfavorable conditions, etc.: They tried to keep up appearances after losing all their money.
 
9. make an appearance, to come; arrive: He didn’t make an appearance until after midnight.
 
10. put in an appearance, to attend a gathering or meeting, especially for a very short time: The author put in an appearance at the cocktail party on her way to dinner.

January 7th - Word of the Day - Intractable

in·trac·ta·ble
[in-trak-tuh-buh’l]

adjective
1. not easily controlled or directed; not docile or manageable; stubborn; obstinate: an intractable disposition.

2. (of things) hard to shape or work with: an intractable metal.

3. hard to treat, relieve, or cure: the intractable pain in his leg.
 
noun
4. an intractable person.
 
Synonyms
1.  perverse, headstrong, dogged, obdurate, stony, willful, froward. 1, 2.  fractious, refractory, unbending, inflexible, adamant, unyielding. See unruly.

Antonyms
1.  amiable. 1, 2.  amenable, flexible.

Word of the Day - Melancholy

mel·an·chol·y
[mel-uh’n-kol-ee]
noun, plural -chol·ies, adjective

noun
1.a gloomy state of mind, especially when habitual or prolonged; depression.

2.sober thoughtfulness; pensiveness.

3.Archaic .
     a.the condition of having too much black bile, considered in ancient and medieval medicine to cause gloominess and depression.
     b. black bile.

adjective
4.affected with, characterized by, or showing melancholy; mournful; depressed: a melancholy mood.

5.causing melancholy or sadness; saddening: a melancholy occasion.

6.soberly thoughtful; pensive.

Word of the Day - Together

to·geth·er
[tuh-geth’-er]

adverb
1. into or in one gathering, company, mass, place, or body: to call the people together.

2.into or in union, proximity, contact, or collision, as two or more things: to sew things together.

3.into or in relationship, association, business, or agreement, etc., as two or more persons: to bring strangers together.

4.taken or considered collectively or conjointly: This one cost more than all the others together.

5.(of a single thing) into or in a condition of unity, compactness, or coherence: to squeeze a thing together; The argument does not hold together well.

6.at the same time; simultaneously: You cannot have both together.

7.without intermission or interruption; continuously; uninterruptedly: for days together.

8.in cooperation; with united action; conjointly: to undertake a task together.

9.with mutual action; mutually; reciprocally: to confer together; to multiply two numbers together.

adjective
10.Slang . mentally and emotionally stable and well organized: a together person.

Word of the Day - Practical

prac·ti·cal
[prak-ti-kuh’l]

adjective
1. of or pertaining to practice  or action: practical mathematics.

2.consisting of, involving, or resulting from practice  or action: a practical application of a rule.

3.of, pertaining to, or concerned with ordinary activities, business, or work: practical affairs.

4.adapted or designed for actual use; useful: practical instructions.

5.engaged or experienced in actual practice  or work: a practical politician.

6.inclined toward or fitted for actual work or useful activities: a practical person.

7.mindful of the results, usefulness, advantages or disadvantages, etc., of action or procedure.

8.matter-of-fact; prosaic.

9.being such in practice  or effect; virtual: a practical certainty.

10.Theater . practicable ( def. 3 ) .

Word of the Day - Unconventional

un·con·ven·tion·al
[uhn-kuh‘n-ven-shuh-nl]

adjective
not conventional;  not bound by or conforming to convention, rule, or precedent; free from conventionality: an unconventional artist; an unconventional use of material.

Synonyms
eccentric, individualistic, idiosyncratic, atypical.

Word of the Day - Rescue

res·cue
[res-kyoo]
verb, -cued, -cu·ing, noun

verb (used with object)
1.to free or deliver from confinement, violence, danger, or evil.

2.Law.  to liberate or take by forcible or illegal means from lawful custody.

noun
3. the act of rescuing.

Synonyms
1. liberate, release, save, redeem, ransom, extricate, recover.  3. liberation, deliverance, release, redemption, recovery.

Word of the Day - Rapacious

ra·pa·cious
[ruh-pey-shuh’s]

adjective
1.given to seizing for plunder or the satisfaction of greed.

2.inordinately greedy; predatory; extortionate: a rapacious  disposition.

3.(of animals) subsisting by the capture of living prey; predacious.

Synonyms   
2.   ravenous, voracious, grasping; preying.  See  avaricious.   

Antonyms
2. generous.

October 23rd - Word of the Day - Retrospect

ret·ro·spect
[re-truh-spekt]

noun
1. contemplation of the past; a survey of past time, events, etc.

verb (used without object)
 2. to look back in thought; refer back (often followed by  to):  to retrospect to a period in one’s youth.

verb (used with object)
3. to look back upon; contemplate  retrospectively.

Idiom
4. in retrospect,  in looking back on past events; upon reflection:  It was, in retrospect, the happiest day of her life.