Heard in a Meeting: My mother told me if the bottle starts to go too fast,…
My mother told me if the bottle starts to go too fast, I might have a problem. So I bought a bigger bottle. Very sadly, my wife developed a bad case of Alanon-ism. I got sober without my permission. Resentment is like setting myself on fire, hoping the smoke will bother the other person. In […]
Sponsorship Café: Guest Columnist this month – Meet Al Kasaurus
By Bill M. We are taking a light-hearted look at sponsorship this month, through the eyes of everybody’s favorite fictional bleeding deacon, Al Kasaurus (say it fast). Al is fielding questions on sponsorship and sharing his wisdom with patrons of the Sponsorship Café. Dear Al: My sponsee calls me all the time and just wants […]
Plain Language Big Book: A Tool for Reading “Alcoholics Anonymous”
From A.A. World Services: For years, A.A. members have expressed a need for a Plain Language Big Book. Based on the shared experience of A.A. members, some people may not have regular contact with other A.A. members to help them understand the A.A. program of recovery and the specific vocabulary as it is used throughout […]
AA History: Sam Shoemaker
By Dan M. Sam Shoemaker was another non-alcoholic who was instrumental in the development of the AA program. In Bill’s words, “The early AA got its ideas of self-examination, acknowledgement of character defects, restitution for harm done, and working with others straight from the Oxford group and directly from Sam Shoemaker…and from nowhere else.” Samuel Moor […]
Heard in a Meeting: I was busted, disgusted and…
I was busted, disgusted and not to be trusted. Hope was my first higher power. I was told it stands for Hearing Other People’s Experiences. I decided to promote my Inner Critic to Inner Cheerleader. If you ask God to move a mountain, be prepared to wake up next to a shovel. Let us love […]
Sponsorship Café: Ego and a False Sense of Importance
Sometimes, when I have my sponsor hat on, I feel a tug of ego telling me what a valuable and important person I am. My ego tells me my sponsee is lucky (and smart!) to have me as a sponsor, and that I am the only person able to help this poor soul. These thoughts […]
AA History: Carl Jung and AA
by Dan M. In January of 1961, Bill W. wrote a long-overdue letter of gratitude to Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung, world-renowned as the founder of Analytic Psychology. Among other accomplishments, Jung developed the concepts of the collective unconscious and archetypes, and devoted much of his later life to examining the relationship between psychology and religion. But often […]
Sponsorship Cafe: When Working with Another Alcoholic Leads to a Moment of Clarity
by Bill M. I found myself smiling, remembering one of those defining moments in sobriety we are blessed to have. A moment of clarity when we are led to a Truth that changes how we look at something, and maybe how we live. I never really searched for them, they manifested as gifts through working […]
Heard in a Meeting: At first, alcohol was magic. Then it was medicine. At the end…
At first, alcohol was magic. Then it was medicine. At the end, it was just madness. Cry and we’ll all cry with you. Drink and you’ll drink alone. I was a social drinker until the age of 12. I take what I like to call “immaculate footsteps”—not doing actions that will require me to have […]
Letter from East Bay Intergroup to Groups – Financial Situation
July 17, 2024 East Bay Intergroup – 4096 Piedmont Avenue, Box 407, Oakland, CA 94611 | info@eastbayaa.org To all Group Treasurers, Intergroup Representatives, and Group Mailing Contacts Re: Financial Situation Thank you for your service and for being a part of our fellowship in the East Bay Intergroup. Our financial situation requires that we write […]
