alkathons

Hello Friends,
   The following is for your information.

   AA-Alive.net will be hosting 3 alkathons, Christmas day, New Year's Eve and New Year's day. The schedules are as follows.

   Christmas day, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2013

   3:00am, 5:00am, 8:00am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm, 8:00pm, 11:00pm

   New Year's eve, Tuesday, Dec.31, 2013

   8:00am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm, 8:00pm,11:00pm

   New Year's day, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2014

   3:00am, 8:00am, 11:00am, 2:00pm, 8:00pm, 11:00pm

   It would be a good idea to post this several times during the month.
   Thank you, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody.

   Jackie L, alt. IGR, AA-Alive.net

PS Our url is www.aa-alive.net and we have open chat between meetings
24/7 if anybody wants to visit before Christmas.

Carrying the Message

~~~ Holiday Alkathon! ~~~
Come celebrate with us!
http://www.aa-alive.net/christmas-alkathon.html
December 25 Christmas Alkathon Meeting Times (Eastern Time)
3:00am, 5:00am, 8:00am,11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm, 8:00pm,11:00pm.

AA Thought for the Day
(courtesy AA-Alive.net)

December 20, 2013

Carrying the Message
What message?  Hope.  Example.  The way out.  The way back.
A handful of simple principles to unravel most our snarled-up problems.
A touch of humor -- not taking ourselves so damned seriously.
Meetings.  Availability.  Talk, talk, talk.  The willingness to listen with understanding
as the still-suffering alcoholic thrashes his way out of his mental mire.
Tolerance.  Guilelessness.  The honesty to face situations and people,
not go around them by the old, familiar route of sneakiness and subverted honesty.
"Carrying the message" is all these things.
- The Best of the Grapevine [Vol. 2], p. 179

Thought to Ponder . . .
In AA we carry the message ... not the mess.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
T L C = Tears, Laughter, Caring.

Thanks to all of you for sharing so generously of your experience, strength and hope in carrying the AA message.
Blessings in sobriety to all,
In love and service,
joanna b
dailythought@aa-alive.org

Our Daily Thought Discussion Board is Live and Online!
Please join us for thoughtful conversation at:
http://dailythought.aa-alive.org

AA-Alive Online Meetings at:
http://www.aa-alive.net
8:00 AM Daily
2:00 PM Daily
8:00 PM Daily
11:00 PM Daily
(all times in Eastern Time)
All are welcome to attend!

Willingness

~~~ Holiday Alkathon! ~~~
Come celebrate with us!
http://www.aa-alive.net/christmas-alkathon.html
December 25 Christmas Alkathon Meeting Times (Eastern Time)
3:00am, 5:00am, 8:00am,11:00am, 2:00pm, 5:00pm, 8:00pm,11:00pm.


AA Thought for the Day
(courtesy AA-Alive.net)

December 18, 2013

~ Scroll Down for Share ~

Willingness
My level of comfort is in direct relationship
to the degree of willingness I possess at any given moment to give up my self-will,
and allow God's will to be manifested in my life.
With the key of willingness, my worries and fears are powerfully transformed into serenity.
- Daily Reflections, p. 75

Thought to Ponder . . .
I can't do His will my way.

AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
W H O = Willingness, Honesty, Open-mindedness.

A Member Shares:
Good morning everyone, my name is Debra and I am a grateful recovering alcoholic.  I have been working on Step Three with my group for the last few weeks and have discovered that it is really at the heart of my recovery.  When I first came into AA I was willing to turn my will over to anyone who could help me to stop feeling the way I was feeling.  I was desperate.  I hadn't lost any of the outside stuff but my insides were a total disaster -- my soul was basically dead.  As time went on, I often asked the question "How do I know what God's will for me is?"  I was baffled by this.  But the more I come around, the clearer it is to me and sometimes the harder it is to follow.  One thing I know for sure is that God, as I understand him/her, wants me to be sober and happy.  But it is the day-to-day situations that sometimes confuse me so I try to keep a couple of things in mind.  The first is that if ever I am confused about God's will for me I just don't do or say anything.  I find that my gut usually gives me the answer, because the more AA I have in my head and in my heart, the more I get that unsettled feeling in my gut when something just doesn't feel right.  And if I don't listen to that little voice inside my head and heart, I will get farther away from what God wants for me.  And the farther I get away from that, the closer I get to picking up a drink. With all the noise of the world it is not always easy but if I just keep coming, the wisdom I get from AA drowns out all that noise.  God will never lead me astray.  And for today, I plan on turning my will and my life over to the God of my understanding.  Thanks everyone for being here.

To respond to the sharer, please email DTShare@aa-alive.org and it will be forwarded to them.
(All shares are reproduced with the kind permission of the person sharing)

Thanks to all of you for sharing so generously of your experience, strength and hope in carrying the AA message.
Blessings in sobriety to all,
In love and service,
joanna b
dailythought@aa-alive.org

Our Daily Thought Discussion Board is Live and Online!
Please join us for thoughtful conversation at:
http://dailythought.aa-alive.org

AA Thought for the Day December 8, 2013

AA Thought for the Day
(courtesy AA-Alive.net)

December 8, 2013

~ Scroll Down for Share ~

Step Three
"Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him."
To every worldly and practical beginner, this Step looks hard, even impossible.
No matter how much one wishes to try, exactly how can he turn his own will and his own life
over to the care of whatever God he thinks there is?
Fortunately, we who have tried it, and with equal misgivings,
can testify that anyone, anyone at all, can begin to do it.
- Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 35 

Thought to Ponder . . .
What have I been given today?
Am I willing to reach out and grasp it?

A Member Shares:
My name is Hope, an alcoholic.  I said at my first Women's Group that I want to live in Step Three, and the older ladies smiled.  I felt silly -- such an obvious thought.  The very first Third Step decision I made was to come each day to the first meeting.  I didn't have to decide each day.  I made one global decision, and indeed that has taught me how to listen.  So I began to appreciate listening.  I think the big question, as Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions says, is "How?."  Just, how?  And we are all seekers and finders each day.  To bring my will in line with God's will -- that is the big "How" question one day at a time.  And the path is beautiful.  Who could have imagined asking such questions before?  Not me.  It's a gift at the heart of my sober life.

AA Thought for the Day

AA Thought for the Day
(courtesy AA-Alive.net)

November 7, 2013
Making Plans
On awakening, let us think about the twenty-four hours ahead.
We consider our plans for the day.
Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking,
especially asking that it be divorced from self-pity,
dishonest or self-seeking motives.  Under these conditions,
we can employ our mental faculties with assurance,
for after all God gave us brains to use.- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 86

October DCM Report

District 8C DCM Report
Oct. 26, 201-3 District Mtg.
I am happy to report that I had the pleasure of attending the sWTA 68 Fall Conference & Voting
Assembly held in Weslaco from Oct. t8-20. This trip was much more enjoyable and pleasureable than
the one I took to Round Rock. The room was very nice and appeared to have been recently remodeled,
as I also noted the shower fixtures appeared new and worked great.
The Assembly opened with registration at 4:00 pm , I arrived at approx. 6:30 Fri. evening. Area
Chairperson Denise Thorn did the opening welcome and theme presentation done by Dean Dubal, Dist.
10 DCM. Afterwards a recovery skit was performed by several members with a parody of Gilligans
lsland, which I really enjoyed and thought was real neat, and had some good laughs. That was followed
by a speaker from David T. When he was done the Area CIfficers & Chairs had a planning get together at
9:15 and that concluded the Fri. night events.
Sat. events started at 8:00 am with the welcome and opening readings, followed by introductions of
Area officers, chairs, DCMs,and GSRs The Area Sect., Treasure, and Registrar gave their reports.
According to the registrar there were 22A paid registrations at the assembly. At 8:45 GSR workshop and
Area committee meeting were held. I attended the area committee meeting facilitated by Alt. Area
Chairperson Jonathan Smith. I have the agenda of that mtg. if anyone would like to see. At 10:00 am
Fred Castro, Area comm. Bilingual chair gave a real good Spanish speaker mtg. which he did in English
and Spanish. At 1:15 business item was voted on, regarding the Delegate funding for this coming year
General Svc. Conf. in New York. Motion was made and passed to send GSO 52000.00 for the Delegates
trip, 5400.00 above what GSo suggests, which is $1600.00. We then broke for lunch, afterwards there
was one proposal that was voted on that did not pass, see newsletter. After that elections of area
officers began and lasted for some time. Area Officers elected were as follows: Delegate James Hurst,
Alt. Delegate Denise Thorn, Area Chairperson Jonathan Smith and Alt. Area Chairperson Stephen
Schaeffer. Also the nominations by the newly elected Delegate for the other area officers were as
follows :Area Treas. Don Stubblefield, Area Sect. Tony Ruiz and Area Reg. Sonya Baker. After dinner
Delegate Pam iurica gave her farewells that was followed by Regional Trustee Clayton Vandivort being
the nights last speaker. The raffle followed shortly there after, with me winning a small price.
Sun. events started at 8:30 am with the days opening by Den ise. The Area Comm. Report was given by
Area Sect. Jere Johnson. The GSR workshop report given by Cindy Johnson, Area Svc. Comm. Reports
given by the rest of the area chairs. After a short break the ask it basket followed with various questions
being submitted, see notes. That was followed by the last speaker of the conf. Jim Chancy. Afterwards
the Conf. closed at approx. 1l-:30am. This was a condensed version of the weekends activities, I have
notes that go into more detail if anyone would like to see them. At this time I would like to thank all of
you for placing your trust in me to be your trusted servant and will continue to do my best to serve you
to the best of my ability. lt was a very informative weekend and had lots of fun as well. I look forward to
the next assembly which is the winter workshop to be held in New Braunfels Jan. 17-19 20j.4. Once
again thank you, your Dist. 8C DCM Mario Rodriguez.

District 8C Minutes of 8-31-13 meeting (approved)

District 8 Meeting
8-31-13
Meeting was opened at 1:30 pm with the Serenity Prayer by DCM, Mario R
Group Attendance:
. Alice - Steve G.
o Al-K, Kingsville -Linda, Bill J, Gary D
. 2nd Chance, Falfurrias - Mario R
o Glossbrenner, San Diego -
o SASTO, Riviera- Steve M.
o Una Dia a LaYez, Kingsville - Jose

Minutes of July meeting were read by Linda K. and approved as corrected.

Finance report was givefby Linda K.

Committee Reports:

o CFCiJimmy K. (not present)

r Website/Steve M: Started a BLOG for the District

o Flyer for Workshop/Steve M: emailed it to CBLA. Has some printed at home, will
bring to future meetings.

o PI/PCP/Don J: (not present)

o Treatment

o Bilingual:

o Grapevine/Tomas: (not present)

DCM Report:
Mario handed out his printed report and read it to the group. The report included
personal notes to members, activities in his home group 2nd Chance, and his participation
in the Area 68 PVCPC Conference August 16-18 in Austin. Mario will be attending the
Area 68 Fall Assembly October 18, 19,20 in Weslaco.

Old Business:
o The Sept. 2l workshop on "Seryice and Individual Participation" by James Hurst
was discussed. Each group was reminded of their commihent to bring a food
item to be served at the event, also, to invite members from their groups.

o The idea of hosting an Area PVCPC or CFC Conference was discussed again. It
is still on the "back bumer."

o Archives are still in the *thought process" and hopefully will surface soon.
New Business:

o Motion made by Bill J, 2nd Steve M to have District 8C pay for a case of Big
Books to be mailed to Glossbrenner SAF-P Unit. Linda K will order them on her
credit card when she orders a personal contribution to the Unit; ttre District will
reimbrnse her for their share. Motion passed.

o Motion made by Steve G, 2ott Linda K to have a special line item for literature
included in the finance report. The literatrne fund would be used to buy bools for
any of the correctional facilities within our disfiict. Motion passed.

The basket was passed according to the 7tr Tradition; collections totaled $78.
Next meeting will be September 2l at l:30 pm. The workshop given by James H. will be
in lieu of an official district meeting. If there are urgent items to discuss, members will
meet immediately after the workshop to take care of business.

Meeting was closed at 3:15 pm with the Responsibility Statement.
Respectfully Submitted,
Linda K, Secretary