Quitting Smoking Can Be Hazardous to Your Health

We all know that smoking is linked to a myriad of diseases. We see all the campaigns about the dangers of smoking. I have encouraged people to stop smoking. I’ve evern purchased the gum and patches for an girlfriend I was dating years ago who was having difficulty quitting.

I never thought I would meet someone who almost died from quitting smoking. Technically, I didn’t meet him, but I did meet his daughter. A couple of Fridays ago (Friday the 13th to be precise) I was heading back to LAX on my second redeye of the day. I got to talking with the lady sitting next to me about things, and we got onto the topic of her dad. Her story was one of the ironic stories I’ve ever heard.

Her dad had been smoking for decades. For years, everyone had been telling him to quit smoking. He smoked a couple of cigarettes on his way to work and on his way back home. He also smoked during the day, but most of his smoking was in his truck because it was a long commute and stressed him out. One day, he decided that it would be best for him to quit so that he cold live a longer, more fulfilling life. He worked hard to resist the urge to smoke while driving.

After a few months, he ended up in the hospital with severe headaches and an increasing loss of mental capacity. He was diagnosed with brain damage. It turned out that his truck had a cabin leak that was pumping carbon minoxide into the cabin. While he was smoking, he always had the windows down to let the cigarette smoke out. After he quit smoking, he kept the windows rolled up.

There is one upside to this story. It generated awareness in his neighborhood about the dangers of carbon minoxide poisoning in their cars and homes.

Movie Recommendation: Run Fat Boy Run

It isn’t often that I recommend a movie to people. After all, in my opinion, most movies aren’t good. Yet, I’m still paying 10 bucks to go see them every week, go figure.

Anyway, Run Fat Boy Run is a perfect movie for any of the following people to see:

• Men who ever dated someone that you just could decide if she was the right one
• Women who ever dated the guy who just couldn’t decide if you were the right one

The above includes just about everyone in the world, but here are more people who should go see Run Fat Boy Run:

• Dead beat/loser fathers – So you can see what it takes to win your family back
• Co-parents of the dead beat/loser father – So you can see what someone who is really committed to your family does to win you back
• People who like to laugh… A LOT!!!
• People who like to cry… a little
• People who like to watch movies with real life scenarios that aren’t overacted

I really enjoyed this film. I was laughing throughout, save a couple of times when tears welled up in my eyes. It is a superb film and well worth the money at the theater. And don’t forget to take the woman that you haven’t been able to make your mind up about for the last five years either! That adds value to the experience of this film 😀

View the trailer for Run Fat Boy Run.