📢 YouTube Announcement 📺

My next creative adventure this time has been to put the CAL Chat podcast on YouTube & it’s now officially ready to launch!  I’ve learned a ton (aka: made a lot of mistakes 😜), but I’ve also been having a lot of fun with it.  Here are some highlights of the channel: Full Anonymity ~ No…

CAL – Al-Anon’s Best Sellers of 2021

WHAT I LEARNED: A few weeks ago I recently received my hardcopy of the new “2022 World Service Conference Summary” (item # P-46).  Pasted below are images from pages 80-81 that show some stats for 2021’s best selling Al-Anon books, booklets, and the “Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism 2021” (item # N/A) outreach magazine.  It’s surprising that…

📣 Podcast Announcement: DEEP DIVE SHOW 🤿

I AM HAPPY to announce a brand new spin-off podcast show called “CAL Chat–DEEP DIVE” which will focus on a single piece of Al-Anon/Alateen literature over a series of episodes.  The first episode features the inaugural “1961 World Service Conference Summary” (item # P-46) with a special guest, Evelyn, a current Area Delegate.  Stay tuned…

📢 Announcement 📢

AT LAST!  It’s announcement time! 📣  My next creative venture has taken me to Pinterest & if you’d like to follow along on my new journey, you can find me there @calchatfan or visit pinterest.com/calchatfan.  One thing I really like is that I’m able to organize each post (or “pin”📌) into a category (or “board”). …

CAL – Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism 2008 (Item # N/A)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. In keeping with the same printing schedule as the first “Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism 2007” that came out in September 2006, the subsequent annual edition, “Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism 2008,” debuted in the fall of 2007.  (From 2007 to 2019, the outreach magazine had only 2 print runs each year, so Al-Anon members could…

CAL – Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism 2007 (Item # N/A)

Usually around February, my order of the new annual public outreach magazine, “Al-Anon Faces Alcoholism” arrives. However, it is now the middle of 2022, & I haven’t received an answer yet on whether there will even be a new issue for this year. I’m guessing that since the 2021 issue was the first time a…

CAL – How Al-Anon Works – Audiobook (Item # eA-22)

My next “CAL Chat” podcast guest mentioned that “How Al-Anon Works” (item # B-32) was her favorite piece to use for outreach purposes that she wanted to discuss on the new upcoming Episode #13. To prepare, I was going to re-read it but then I thought, “How could I do it differently this time?” So…

CAL – Updated Al-Anon Service Guidelines for 2021 (Various Item #’s)

On October 6th, 2021, I got an interesting update from Al-Anon’s World Service Office’s (the WSO) newsletter “In The Loop” that mentioned:  “We are excited to announce that we are in the process of updating the Al-Anon/Alateen Guidelines!  In addition to getting a fresh, new look, the guidelines will also reflect updated information.  A milestone…

CAL – Al-Anon & Alateen Groups at Work 2014-2017 (Item # P-24)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Recently on this blog, I did an in-depth review of the “Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual 2014-2017” (item # P-24/27).  If you read that review, then this entry will seem pretty similar for “Al-Anon & Alateen Groups at Work 2014-2017” (item # P-24).  …I used to think this item was a digest (or…

CAL – Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual 2014-2017 (Item # P-24/27)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. Originally, I only read the “Al-Anon/Alateen Service Manual” on an as-needed basis, but when my next podcast guest said that this was her favorite book that she wanted to talk about on my “CAL Chat” show, I had to dust off my manual & put on my scuba reading mask to…

CAL – Alateen Safety Guidelines (Item # G-34)

WHAT I LEARNED: 1. According to this Alateen guideline, any reporting of child abuse is done on a personal basis, not as an Alateen Sponsor or an AMIAS (an Al-Anon Member Involved in Alateen Service).  This is done with Tradition 10 in mind to keep the fellowship out of public controversy! 2. Even though I’m not a certified…

CAL – Area Alateen Coordinators (Item # G-24)

WHAT I LEARNED: The Alateen Coordinator works with World Service Office, the Area Alateen Process Person (AAPP – not to be confused with AARP, ha ha 😄), & basically any other person in the Area that is involved with Alateen.  Ensuring safety for the teens is a top priority, as well as providing proper training,…