A Shot Glass of Recovery Welcome back to A Shot Glass of Recovery! Whether you're a first-time listener to A Shot Glass of Recovery or a loyal member from my 2 Sober Chicks days, I’m glad you’re here. 🌟 paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery If you love the show, I’m asking for your support. Drop a 1$, 5, 10 or 25 in the virtual pay pay basket at paypal.me/AShotGlassofRecovery .  Any amount will help me afford to fund this project and continue to bring you great speakers, the Big Book Study, Literature studies on recovery, workshops and Lisa shots that contain a wildcard of variety. You can also support the show by liking, subscribing, and following it on your favourite platforms. Leave a 5 star review while you're there! There is nothing I love more than your engagement so please email me at ashotglassofrecovery@gmail.com and let me know how this show has contributed to your unique journey in recovery. Let me know if I can celebrate a milestone with you and give you a shout out. Would you like to be a guest? Drop me a line by email.     Hunter starts with this poignant thought off the top - When I opened up my eyes this morning, I became a grateful alcoholic. And it wasn't always that way. Gratitude, humbleness, all these words that we learn around here that allow me to get out of self, to get into God and to get into others didn't, you know, come easy. Ouch. I got a cat here just bit me real good. I am a blank page right now. You know, I love to talk. I host a big book study. And I have so much what God has done for me inside me. But I guess it's good that I'm drawing a blank. So God grant me the serenity. Yes. I love words like peace, tranquility. You know what I mean? Especially when I'm having a chaotic day and joy just takes over and just erases everything that's going bad in my day. Just, you know, just simple words that you guys gave me in the beginning. You didn't make it too hard when I got here.   I was born in Los Angeles and I couldn't wait to be born, I guess. And on my birth certificate says born in central Washington. To show you that God was doing for me what I couldn't do for herself or do for my mother, when the car stopped, it stopped right at the corner where back in the day, like doctors that worked at General Hospital, they had a house and they had a clinic in front of the living room, right? And a doctor came out and delivered me in the car. And so we're in a program of miracles, right? And so you could say that was basically my first miracle.   I grew up camping, fishing, Boy Scouts, surfing and all kinds of outdoor fun. My dad and uncles were in the service and we had a boat, so those weekends were special even if I mostly cleaned the boat. But my family life was complicated: my mom struggled with alcoholism, my dad was often absent because of school and work, and I learned sneaky, deceitful behaviors early on. My moms alcoholism got worse and there were scary momentslike her falling asleep with a cigarette and the house catching on fire, driving the wrong way on the freeway, and even taking us away without telling my dad.   I started drinking young with the neighborhood kids on the street corner. Our wine was cheapThunderbird, White Port, Silver Satinand that corner taught me more than drinking: sex, stealing, relationships. Later I worked jobs near Skid Row and thats where I thought alcoholics lived. I kept thinking I wasnt that bad because I could still work. I eventually drifted into heavier drinking and drugs; by my late 20s I tried to stop when I found out I was going to be a father, but I couldnt.   Life spiraled: I lost my job as a longshoreman after using on the job, my marriage fell apart, I couch-surfed, and I went in and out of treatment. My moms prayers and her own recovery were the bridge that got me back into recovery rooms. I tried treatment multiple times; sometimes Id leave feeling good and think I could do it on my own. I learned humility the hard way.   I eventually hit bottom