When I tried getting clean and sober, I knew I had to give up the friends that I partied with for years. That didn’t sound so easy. I knew what my friends would say. Some of their comments would be, “You can just have a couple, you don’t have to get drunk” or “you can still hang out with us and you don’t have to drink alcohol, you can drink pop or coffee and you can be our designated driver.” Their ideas aren’t going to work for me and a lot of other alcoholics.

I’m afraid you’re going to have to…

It’s been almost thirty-one years, since my brother, Donald, put his revolver in his mouth and blew himself away. I remember August 3^rd, 1975–like it was almost yesterday.

I was on a first date with a very young woman, named Belinda. She was very attractive–curves and all. She lived with her mother only two doors down from my apartment. I wanted to show her off to my brother. I was twenty-two and Belinda was eighteen.

I was pretty close to Donald–especially the last couple years of his life. He was my oldest brother. There was almost fourteen years difference between us.…

I will be celebrating my fifth anniversary of sobriety on the Fourth of July, 2008. Independence Day has a new (second) meaning to me now–my independence from alcohol. This is my other birthday. This is the new and improved Earl.

My recovery is all about truth. And to be truthful, I am writing a book about my infamous character from birth to present. Also, I hope my readers can appreciate and realize how important the truth is in their recovery.

I have had eleven DUI arrests from 1972 to 2003. Nine of those were convictions. Two of them I was a no-show…

July 4th, 2008, marks my fifth year of sobriety. Coincidentally by accident, the day I sobered up was Independence Day. It was to be my new birthday. My independence from alcohol. I didn’t plan it that way. Oddly enough, I planned on getting drunk during the Fourth of July (2003) on a solo RV camp out. Things were bothering me that day. But sobering up was far from my mind.

I had one beer that day. The tavern was dead. As a matter of fact, I was the only customer. I got bored, so I left. I planned on coming back later.…

On July the Fourth, 2003, I set off to go on a solo camping trip. It was a holiday that turned my life around completely.

I drove to Lake Kapowsin and found myself an RV spot on the lake. Then I thought I would drive into town and have myself a cold beer. Something had come over me. I felt it. I was so bored nursing that one beer for almost an hour, until the beer became warm. There was only one other customer and me, and the bartender had as much of a personality as a trout in the…

As I was driving to the hospital, it was like the same, long drive I was taking to the bank on my way to work about sixteen months ago, when Bobbie notified me first about her cancer.

As I entered the hospital and took the elevator up to her room, the nurses came out shaking their heads at me. My legs weakened, and then they said it was too late. I refused to believe them. Eventually, I went into her room and said my final goodbyes and prayers. Her daughter, Shawn, came later.

Bobbie passed away on January 15, 2001, the holiday…

In 1999, my wife, Bobbie, and I received the worst news any couple could imagine. Bobbie was diagnosed with cancer. We had been patiently waiting for test results for weeks to hear the sad news. I remembered my mother, who would always say, “No news is good news.” This sure rang true.

When we hear devastating news, we always remembered where we were when it was first announced. We all knew where we were when President Kennedy was assassinated. We all knew where we were when 9/11 occurred. It is etched in our minds forever.

Before I heard the fateful news about…

I will not go as far as saying that I have had the worst luck of the draw, or the most difficult and saddest life ever. Many have had worse. Many have had better. Some have lived with little pain and grief. I recommend writing your own story. This kind of therapy is a powerful remedy to depression and sorrow. My words I’m writing are not in competition with others—there only my own true words. My interest in writing the following story is to help people identify their own problems similar to mine. I hope it helps those who might…