CAL – So You Love an Alcoholic (Item # P-14)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. So you love an alcoholic?  Well join the club!  This is the fourth pamphlet in the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (item # K-10).  I like that it lists several “Do’s” & “Don’ts.”  I’ve seen a great list like this for Alateen (item # M-9), but this is the first one I’ve…

CAL – Understanding Ourselves & Alcoholism (Item # P-48)

WHAT I LEARNED: This is the third pamphlet in the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (item # K-10) & I think it could’ve easily been named “Been There, Done That!”  It lays out the predictable patterns of both the alcoholic & the non-alcoholic with such precision it seems it could be a science.  This pamphlet doesn’t sugar-coat…

CAL – Information for the Newcomer (Item # S-4)

WHAT I LEARNED: In my view, this pamphlet is a short breakdown of each part of the preamble read at the beginning of meetings.  I can see why, of the 6 different types of Packets available, this is the first pamphlet of the most popular one: the general Al-Anon Newcomer Packet (item # K-10).  It answers 11 frequently asked…

CAL – Purpose & Suggestions (Item # P-13)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Lois W. & Anne B. wrote this as Al-Anon’s very first pamphlet in 1951.  Interestingly, its title used to be “Purposes & Suggestions.”  According to “The Al-Anon Family Groups (Classic Edition)” (item # B-5), the title was changed in 1976 affirming only one purpose (see Tradition 5).  …Makes me curious what…

CAL – Al-Anon: Then and Now (Item # AR-2)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Regional Service Seminars (RSS’s) were established in 1979 but I have never heard of these. 2. Apparently between the US & Canada there are 9 regions total & 3 RSS’s per year.  I’m on the hunt to find out more about these & when the next one will be.  🕵️‍♀️ If…

CAL – Al-Anon’s World Service Office (Item # S-30)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. The World Service Office has a fitness room!!  Where else would I learn this type of info?  Ha ha 😜 2. It seems every department, with the exception of Administration, is supported by 1 or more volunteer committees.  The Membership Outreach (not to be confused with Public Outreach) department has the most at 4. ━━━━━▼━━━━━…

CAL – Al-Anon’s Co-Founders (Item # P-87)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. That the original card file of groups from Al-Anon’s meager beginnings can still be viewed at the World Service Office headquarters in Virginia.  Add that to my bucket list! ☑️ 2. For more info about Anne B., see item # P-66 & for more about Lois W., see item # B-7….

CAL – Anne’s Story (Item # P-66)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Although this is a discontinued pamphlet, in my search for more info on Anne B. (the other co-founder of Al-Anon Family Groups), I was glad to find that there was a piece of CAL just dedicated to her. 2. I had no idea that she & Lois W. were neighbors.  It…

CAL – Lois Remembers (Item # B-7)

For the books that I’ll read for this blog, I’ll be going in order of “lowest sellers” to “highest sellers” according to what I’ve sold in the past year & a half to District 6 members.  Not sure why “Lois Remembers” is on the bottom of this list…  Maybe because it came out in 1979 &…