> I once had a patient (I was a home health nurse) who said she > couldn't afford to buy the patches to quit smoking. When I > calculated and pointed out that she actually spends MORE on > the smokes and would SAVE $$, (and her health) she was NOT > impressed..... Maybe you could convince her to take up Geocaching. I started smoking when I was twelve. (For those I haven't yet had the pleasure of meeting, let's just say that was a few... decades ago.) Like Mark Twain, I found quitting easy, and did so dozens of times. Never could make it stick, though. Last spring, I came to the realization that I was taking this Geocaching thing rather seriously, and that I was running out of 1/1's to pursue. It was also right around then that Bob Renner invited me to go do Table Mesa with him. I started thinking that I was either going to have to get the smoke out of my lungs or give up on my goal at the time of breaking 100. So some time in the middle of March (and, ironically, I don't remember the exact date), I put 'em down. Here it is Christmas Eve, and I'm still on that particular wagon. I've fallen off frequently enough in the past that I won't claim I quit for good until I'm dead, but this is certainly one of my longer stretches. I'm still not ready for Bronco Butte or Lost Ark, but I did hike the six mile length of the Lost Dog Wash Trail last week while doing Musicbox, so I'm making progress. If you've ever wondered what makes me so enthusiastic about what we do here, does "Geocaching got me to quit smoking and start exercising" sound like a reason? I'll call that my Christmas gift to myself. I'll wish all of you a joyous holiday. Steve Team Tierra Buena