Time to quit...

I've been talking about quitting smoking since the first time I realized that I was really "a smoker". Unlike many smokers, I started when I was in my mid-twenties, and should have know better. I've always had a battle between my desire to quit based on the intellectual grounds that it was a stupid thing to do, and the addiction that makes quitting nearly impossible. So I've decided to try something different. On the 19th I've scheduled a visit with a hypnotist.

I really don't know what to expect from this experience. I have a friend who has been hypnotized, and he described the process as relaxing, and almost as if he was unaware that it was even happening. On the other hand I have, like many of you I'm sure, seen people dancing around like chickens when hypnotized, and that concerns me a little. Don't get me wrong, I've been known to dance around like a chicken myself so I don't sit in a position to judge, but the perceived power of persuasion exhibited can be unnerving.

I'm looking forward to the opportunity to try something new and hopefully cure myself of this nasty addiction. I just hope I don't become the Manchurian Candidate in the process.

- ND