**REVIEW** SMOK Veneno 225W TC Starter Kit (& Breazy.com)

WARNING: This post has to do with vaping. If you are under age, please know that I do NOT encourage smoking or vaping for minors and this post is not intended for you.  I don't encourage nicotine use of any kind for anyone. This post has to do with my personal experience as I attempt to stop using nicotine.


This is going to be a sort of double review. First, I will talk about the SMOK Veneno vape device I got (and why) from Breazy. After that, I will discuss Breazy. Let's go.

I chose a SMOK Veneno Starter Kit.

$39.99 for the Starter Kit

One thing I can say is that the device is boxed nicely and the presentation is impressive for $40. My nephew was surprised at the cost because he has seen the same kinds of set ups for as much as $70.

The kit came with everything except batteries and juice:

This is the actual device.

The display is awesome,
shows puffs, power, and voltage setting

I wanted a more muted color but everything was sold out but this Purple/Red combo and it's now sold out. The other colors that are shown and might be available at some time are Red/Gold, Black/Red, Silver/Black, Black/Yellow, Blue/Red, and Rainbow.  My choice would have been the Silver/Black, but I wish there were solid colors available. The one I got isn't horrendous, but it seems a little juvenile in my opinion. It's not really a big deal because I onlyh use this at home. I use the JUUL when I'm out and about.

I like the display on this one for several reasons.

What I like most about the display is that it allows me to set a limit on my use.

I am, after all, using this device to cut down on and quit nicotine.

The device itself fits in my small-ish hands.

Juice goes in that little side slit

The reason I wanted this is that I am doing so well with the JUUL device that I haven't smoked a traditional cigarette in over two and a half weeks and I have not missed traditional tobacco at all. Not one little bit. As a matter of fact, I wish I had started vaping sooner. I am feeling better and I noticed how much easier I am breathing.

Since I have the JUUL, you might wonder why I bothered getting another vape device. The main reason is that with the JUUL, there are no zero-nicotine pods and my goal was always to become free of tobacco and nicotine. The tobacco is gone and that wasn't hard at all, but I want to wean myself off the nicotine. Also, I like the idea of more vapor. Not only does the JUUL not come with nic-free pods, but it also doesn't put out a lot of vapor. The Veneno does. Oddly, the vapor is more satisfying to me than the nicotine.

Anyway, I got some nic-free "juice" to go with the vaping device.

                          

I got the "Mad Peach" and it's nice but a little too flavorful for me. I should have gotten something a little plainer.  This is a 100ml bottle for $15 and I've been using it every day for about 10 days and there is barely any gone from the bottle. I can see having this bottle for months at this rate. That right there is definitely cheaper than traditional cigarettes. At about 5 dollars a pack, three packs of smokes would not last long, especially when I share them. I've shared the vape with my SIL. By the way, this juice is very smooth and there is no throat burn at all like with regular cigarettes.

Once I get finished with the JUUL pods, the nic-free juice is going to be my main game.  I'm kind of looking forward to it. By the way, I am still getting used to the language of vaping. There needs to be some kind of dictionary. The first new terms I learned had to do with the liquid (or "juice") and the different methods of vaping (mouth to lung vs mouth to throat). There's even a term for how different levels of nicotine feel ("throat hit" sounds vaguely sexual) and I'm glad I going to be weaning.

Now that I have used a different juice and a different device, I can tell that this one is much smoother than the JUUL. I still love the JUUL, but this one is so dang smooth and I love that it produces so much vapor. Maybe that is silly, but the vapor is my fave part.

Now, this is the part of the review where I will talk about Breazy.com...

I didn't exactly know where to go to get a vaping device so I scoured some YouTube videos and vaping forums before I chose Breazy. I can't say it's been the best experience.

The prices at the site are some of the best I saw. The problem I had was with order fulfillment and slow delivery. For 4 days after ordering, my items didn't make a move to shipping. Not only that but when I was placing my order, I used the chat option to ask a rep if by ordering a starter kit I was getting everything I needed to start vaping. They said that the only other thing I needed was some juice. So I got some juice and thought all was well. Then, when watching a video about the particular device I'd chosen, I heard mention of something about batteries. I went back to Breazy and asked about this and was told that I would need to order batteries separately. I should have realized this because there was mention of this somewhere on the product page. Still, I had mentioned to the previous rep that I was new to vaping when I asked about having everything I needed. I was a little peeved so I ordered the required batteries from Amazon. They came in 2 days as my Breazy order was still sitting unfulfilled. Grrr....

Now, understand that I am all motivated to stop cigarettes completely and get started vaping only. My JUUL is running on nicotine with no non-nic options. And I was possibly going to be going out of town soon and had no idea if the vape device would be delivered beforehand.

Finally, I mentioned this on a forum where I asked about potential other sites that were faster. Luckily a Breazy rep is on that forum and jumped in to see what he/she could do to expedite things. As soon as they got involved, my order shipped. That's great but what if I hadn't come across them on the forum?

Maybe my problems with order fulfillment was a glitch because so many other people claim to be very happy with the speed of receiving their orders. Thankfully, now that I have a device, I don't plan on shopping as much for juice online but if I do, I will give Breazy another try.

Finally, let me say that spending a one-time total of about $60 for a device, batteries, and juice is not far off what I would pay in Alaska for a carton of cigarettes. As for juice, I plan to buy cheap and local when I can and I've been told that I won't have to spend over $10 every few weeks at the rate that I vape. For now, I don't have to spend any more money because I have everything I need for at least the next couple of months. I'm off traditional cigarettes and I'm not going to have to worry about braving the extreme heat or cold of outdoors smoking. I count all this as one big "win".


Once again, I do NOT recommend vaping any more than I would recommend smoking. I do think this is a great way for smokers to wean off of nicotine.


Peace
--Free

I Challenge You All: To Do vs Done It

I am an app junkie. Time, weather, math, spelling, games... If there's an android app, I probably have had it on my phone.

It's dawned on me in the past few days that what I need is not a "To Do" app, but a "Done It" app. Until I find such an app (or learn to create one), I have been using pen and paper. Every couple hours or so, I make notes of what I have actually accomplished. Just before bed, I take a look and - well, I just started doing this so, right now, I mostly realize how little I do accomplish. What I am learning is that I waste a lot of time. Since I am forcing myself to be more aware of how I spend my time, I hope to start spending it better.

The Challenge:
If you want to try this, I suggest that you keep pen and paper nearby. Every couple hours, jot down what you have accomplished. (It can be a little cringe-worthy at first. If you don't think so, look at my first list below.) Don't try to change your usual routine for the first day if you want to get an honest idea of your time use. On Day Two, on one side of your paper, make a note of what you'd like to get done by day's end. On the other side of the paper, keep a log of what you actually did get done.

Wow, right?

So, yeah. That's my little challenge. But I'm not knocking the use of apps. Matter of fact, some apps are really necessary for me. I have one that tracks my blood pressure checks. This is because my doctor's like to monitor that sort of thing and I can rarely remember appointments, let alone a month's worth of pressure readings. Because I check my phone so much, I always notice the widget, which reminds me to check my pressure and log it.

I used one app when I was quitting smoking. It was (literally, I guess) a lifesaver. Whenever I wanted a smoke - which was about every 2 seconds, it seemed - I'd open Quit Smoking: Cessation Nation (*) and play a game or check my quit stats. It's kind of nice to be reminded of how your body is healing itself after years of nicotine abuse.

The apps I love though are the ones I just know I am going to use. I see them and think, "Wow, this is what I need to help solve every life problem I have." (Okay, not really, but I do get all hopeful like that.) I have so many apps on my phone that I forget about half of them unless I try to re-download them. Seriously.

One of the things I struggle with is keeping myself on track with goals. I am trying to get this book written, but I have trouble keeping plot and characters in line. Evernote has been my best friend for a minute now - though I don't like its widget. But the main kinds of apps I have been attracted to are the memo and list apps.

I actually use the Memo app (that came on my Samsung Infuse) several times a week. It's the only app of its kind that I do use on a regular basis. Not that it's the only good app of its kind, but there is something about how easy it is to use. Also, it never gets trashed up with updates. It's a good thing and they let it be. Bravo! (Watch what happens now that I mentioned it...)

Here are just some of the other apps I always intend to make use of:

• Assistant (a little bitchy & you need data or wi-fi open)
• Bother Me (needs work, but a great idea)
• Calendar (don't like the layout)
• Executive Assistant (I got tangled in options)
• Days Since (does "until" also. I like it a lot.)
• InNote (forgot I had it til this post!)

By the way, I hope my challenge works for you.

Peace

--Free

My 1st Day List 

Checked and answered email

Online

Blogged & Music

Set out stuff for dinner

TV

Online and email while eating

Exercised for about half an hour

Light cleaning

TV

Music and on phone

Visited family and took a nap

Early dinner

Ran errands

TV

Some editing

That's it. Like I said, cringe worthy. I am pretty embarrassed that I got nothing much done. And what in the hell did I do that warranted taking a nap? What am I - 2 years old?

Thankfully, I can say that this is one of my slower days, but I was up at around 8am and in bed by about 11pm. This is all I did with my precious life hours??? Yeah, so, my next step will be tracking start and finish times. 

(*) Thank you, Ron Horner, for an app that probably really did add some years to my life.

Peace
--Free

I'm One of THOSE Ex-Smokers

I always swore that I'd never be one of those sanctimonious former smokers. So far, I have been pretty good about how I treat and act toward people who (still) smoke. That is, for the most part.

The other day, my doctor's assistant called in a bit of a huff. Apparently, when I checked on my insurance change-over at the pharmacy, they re-ordered all my 'scripts. They are pretty helpful like that (I think because they think I'm a little slower than I actually am), but they called in a RX for an expired Chantix. My niece picked up the meds but I just left them at her house. Still, I'm pretty sure my doctor was telepathically kicking my ass since I am taking estrogen now.

When I told my friend, she asked if she could have the Chantix.  First of all, I don't give out my meds. Second of all, this chick could get those pills any time she wants. She doesn't want a thing to do with quitting smoking. She was just trying to mess with my head. Her doc had prescribed her some months ago. I think she took them like she takes her vitamins - when she feels in need of one. Idiot. I wasn't as bitchy about it as I could have been; it was easier (and nicer) to just say that my niece tossed the meds. I don't know who was more relieved: my friend or- No, it was her.

The very next day - I mean, less than 24 hours later - this chick asked if I could pick her up a couple packs of cigarettes while I was out. Her car is in the shop for a couple of days and I know what it's like to be without a ready ride. Hell, I know what it's like to be a smoker and out of cigarettes. Still, I think it's rude for her to ask me to pick up cigarettes for her. Why not ask an alcoholic to stop by the liquor store for you? It's rude. And I am actually okay with being around cigarettes and smokers - that's not my point. What bothers me is that, in this case, with this friend, I had to beat my nicotine habit while she smoked around me. After I did beat my habit, I had to get an air purifier for my room so that I don't get all of her smoke and stink and ick second-hand. The only time this girl isn't puffing is when she is in my car. She smokes so much, she won't even pick a brand. She smoked three different kinds of cigarettes - King or 100's, Full Flavor or Light, Menthol or Regular - all at the same time. She keeps at least three open packs around her at all times!

~deep breath~

Anyway, when she managed to fix her lips to ask that I go and buy her cigarettes, I fixed my lips to tell her to kiss my not-as-fat-as-it-used-to-be ass. I didn't actually tell her to do that, but I did fix my lips to tell her. Then I had a visit from that little cartoon figure of my conscience. (It was a little pencil-drawn me puffing on a cigarette.) My cartoon-me told me not to be a bitch. She reminded me of what I used to feel like when I wanted a cigarette and couldn't get to one. She told me that being mean to my friend was not going to keep her from smoking.

GIFSoup

I listened to cartoon-me and ended up giving my friend a lift to buy her own cigarettes. That was the nice part of real-me. (The bitch part of me knew that my friend couldn't wait to light up the minute we got back home so I made a few stops for errands along the way. She almost slid down getting out of that car when we got to the apartment.)

At any rate, this has all reminded me that I really don't want to be one of those ex-smokers. I don't want to act like I never had a killer habit for nicotine. I don't want to pretend that there wasn't a time I would've probably turned a couple of tricks for a pack of cigarettes if I'd had to. You think I'm kidding? Ask a smoker what's the most they would do for a cigarette - but ask them when they are out of smokes and don't have another pack on hand.

While I don't want to be that kind of an ex-smoker, I sure am glad to be any kind of an ex-smoker.

Peace
--Free

Saved by Ice Cream

Did I mention that I recently screwed up my 7 month smoke-free streak?

Yeah. When I eff up, I eff up with top marks.

So, now I am popping Chantix twice a day, which helps with the nicotine cravings but does not a damn thing for murder cravings. (I won't get on a rant about this, but my roommate makes me consider trading in the contents of my closet for a jumpsuit stamped "Property of County Jail.")

Anyway.

I'm such an oral person that if I'm stressed, I have to smoke a cigarette, chew a straw, drink anything fit for human consumption, or eat. Since I am finally getting my sexy back, I sure as hell don't want to go on an eating rampage. I don't even want to eat too many carrots or celery sticks because, eat enough of that negative-calorie stuff, a positive pound or two is going to slap itself onto my waist.

The thing is, when I stress, I don't crave salty the way I did when I was younger. Hormones or God's sense of humor has changed my body. Stress these days sends me running for the cookies, donuts or ice cream. The sight of a cookie turns me into a glutton. I don't do donuts in singles. Ice cream, though... Ice cream is a frenemy. I love it, but I have sensitive teeth so I can only do small amounts.

You don't know how happy I was to see this at Walmart a couple weeks ago:

This is the sh*t.  It's like Freezer-Aisle crack.

90 calories. It's just the right amount of heaven to keep me sane for a day. I swear, if I could, I'd marry one of these bars. Except that would make me one of those people who suffer from O.S. As if I don't have enough issues (that I told y'all about) to make someone resurrect Freud.

At any rate, I am trying to get my health act back together. Between the Chantix and the Snickers, I should be completely sane and mostly healthy within another month. So far, I'm still losing weight, and I'm hoping that my recent success with that doesn't slow down when the nicotine leaves my bloodstream. First-world problems, huh?

This is my life.

Peace
--Free

The Habit That Kicked Me Before I Kicked It

You might be real tired of hearing about it, but it is about to be Day 34 of my being smoke-free. Every day that I wake up, breathing better, feeling better - and, hell, just not making my sarcoidosis worse - I want to shout and dance like we used to do in church.

The cigarettes and I have a long and entertaining history. Think I'm kidding?

As I was telling +Marla Hughes and +J.D. Hughes last night, there was time when I walked to the store for cigarettes. Not that big of a deal to walk for the smoke, but this was 3 blocks from my job, I was wearing three and a half inch heels, a skirt and it was during the wettest, slip-tricky part of winter breakup. I must have looked like a jones'd-out hooker on my way back to my office, the way I was huffing and sucking on that cigarette...

There was another time that I learned to roll my cigarettes. (It's a sick habit when you are rolling something that isn't really going to mellow you out.) I learned the fine art of cigarette rolling because I had an unreliable husband and lived in the worst neighborhood I ever had. My husband kept the car (when we had one) and might disappear for days. Walking to the store that was down the street was out of the question. Being the slightly siddity, Bougie heifer I am, I was scared to walk to the mailbox without a security detail. Call me what you want, but the first chance I got, I bought a bag of tobacco, some tubes and a rolling machine. (My ex said I even went uppity in that respect. I guess most folks just use rolling papers.)

Like I said, cigarettes had my ass kicked several years before I kicked them. (Listen to me - talking like I've got years under the belt instead of a single month!) I would say that I had a bad thing going, but a friend of mine had it way worse to let her tell it. We worked at the same company but in different departments and, at one point, she had to spend a week on the night shift taking a class I was giving. During breaks, to keep herself alert, she told me stories of her life living and working outside an Indian reservation. I just about died laughing when she told me how she had let herself run out of cigarettes when she was without any transportation but a mule. The nearest, safest place for her to stock up was on the reservation - about six miles away. The funny part was when she demonstrated her riding that mule in dusky light to get to the store or whatever before it was too late. I asked if it was worth it. She said those were the best cigarettes she'd ever smoked in her life. At the time she was telling this to me, she had been smoke-free for about 10 years. 

I have another friend who almost lit her hair on fire. She was tossing a cigarette out of the car window (karma, karma) and it blew back in on her long hair. She damn near killed herself, trying to bat out the fire. 

Another friend got all dolled up for a date - fake hair, fake nails, tits might have been real - and, while lighting a cigarette, set an acrylic nail on fire. Had to dip her finger in her drink. Believe it or not, her and her date have now been married for a lot of years...

The most embarrassing things that have happened to me because of smoking have to do with bad luck, clumsiness and/or drunkenness. I have burned my fingers, burned my lips, and almost torched the front porch... (That last one was bad luck: Outside having a smoke, house phone rang, I dropped lit cigarette into what I thought was a paper cup with water in it. No water in cup. Cup lit up. Smoke alerted neighbor. I felt stupid. Shit, I could have felt homeless.) Once, when extremely drunk (off half a bottle of wine), I tried to put out a cigarette with my foot, forgetting I wasn't wearing shoes. I almost missed an important flight once because I just had to risk that smoke-break during a layover. Try leaving and re-entering Dallas-Ft. Worth airport's security with a twenty-minute window. Go ahead, try it.

Despite all the negatives to smoking, I can honestly say that cigarettes did serve some sort of purpose in my life. It was having a cigarette that saved my ex's life a couple of times. If I hadn't had that few minutes of smoking while I plotted, I might not have talked myself out of his murder. Think about it: no smoking in jail. There were times when the girls were teenagers and never had to find out what it would be like to have the taste slapped out of their mouths, the black beat off their asses or being knocked into a new year. This was all due to the calming influence of tobacco. Now that I think about it, my sister and I raised four kids and helped with another ten or twelve kids. I'm lucky that cigarettes is all I ever smoked. If I could drink, I'd have ended up an alcoholic, but I never get past the third glass of anything... Not to make light of it, but I'm pretty sure that crack was going to be next on my list of addictions.

Peace

--Free

Laughing By Myself

You ever do something so stupid or silly or funny that you not only laugh at yourself, but have to call and tell someone else about it? Not me. Well... not often, but...

About five minutes ago, I damn near gave myself a heart attack.

Because I quit smoking (and because I am a lover of all things that smell good), my nephew bought me one of those automatic air freshener doo-dads. You know what I mean - the thing that spritzes the air every so often? Yeah. It's pretty cool. I don't have to burn through my candles every couple of weeks. I set the timer to spritz from 15 seconds to 10 minutes and - spitzzz! - I get a nice fresh shot of Vanilla Bean fragrance. It's really good if I don't forget not to stand right in front of the nozzle.

Anyway.

I climb into bed to relax a bit (notice I didn't mention sleep) and play around on the social networks, maybe listen to a little music - anything but sleep. Sleep is not something that happens much for me these days. Anyway, it's too damn hot to sleep. So... I'm lolling around, bed-dancing to random Shoutcast jazz, pretending I can sing and having a good old time. Then it happens. (Well, it happened a few minutes after I came across a picture of a snake.) I close my eyes, just to rest them for a moment. I can't get the image of that damn snake out of my mind. Pretty soon, I'm doing the little eww-shiver thing I do whenever I think of snakes. And

SPITZZZ!!!

Popping hell! I screamed and damn near fell backwards out of the bed. For a split second, I could've sworn something slithered across the foot of my bed.

My poor roommate is actually awake for a bit and up front, watching her TV shows. She came running, bless her heart. I couldn't even play this one off. I told her, then called my sister. When they stop laughing, I can inform them that they are both off my Christmas 2013 list.

If I had a case of insomnia before, I know have whatever the opposite of a coma is. I might not sleep for years.

NOTE: If I know you and find out you laughed at me about this, we're over.

Peace
--Free

Waiting for the Smoke to Clear

It has been 12 days since my last cigarette. All this fresh air is about to kill me! (Just kidding.)

According to the Android app on my phone, my health is improving incrementally:

• Carbon monoxide level in my blood down by 100%
• Taste & smell improved by 100%
• 100 percent of nicotine gone from my body
• 86% of my nicotine dependence is gone
• My withdrawal symptoms are down by 43%
• My circulation has improved by 13%
• I'm down 3% on my risk of coronary heart disease, heart attack and stroke

I've still got a ways to go before I'm even half as healthy as I need to be, but I'm getting there. If a bus doesn't mow me down. If I don't slide my Sarc-clumsy ass on the ice and break my tailbone. If, if, if...

Slowly, surely, I creep through this  minefield of beating my addiction to nicotine. It has been good for my lungs and my prayer life.

The thing is, I want to encourage anyone else who is trying to kick a habit. If you smoke or drink or have way too much sex - you can at least attempt to stop. Find your personal motivation factors. I have Sarcoidosis, therefore, I should not smoke. I was married to a drunk and I will never be an alcoholic. I don't have to worry about excess sex; I create enough problems for myself just thinking too much about it.

Bottom line: if you want to quit something - you can do it. It's just a matter of when and how. I don't want my "when" to be too late or my "how" to be death.

Peace
--Free

Cessation Nation is the Android app I'm using. Go find one that works for you. Good luck.

Smoke and Snow

Winding up my first day on Chantix. Done with my first month of it really being winter. Hopefully, come spring, I will be smokefree, extra-pounds free and, please, oerish please, my Lord in Heaven, sweater-and-coat free!

I am making my New Year's wishes (not resolutions) early:

• To be back to work before the end of 2013
• To have mended any broken relationships
• To cherish each moment that I am healthy & Sarc-free
• To build on all the new friendships I am being blessed with everyday
• To live every moment as if it is my last: taking chances, risking ego for joy

Those are the things I am working on. For today & quite a few tomorrows (God willing), I am going to finish whipping this apartment into shape.

Peace
--Free