re: #5 Eclectic Cyborg

My relatives confound me sometimes.

My mother in law just got out of the hospital after a 5 day stay (including over Christmas) for COPD/Breathing complications and she is STILL SMOKING!

My heart breaks, I wish I could make her and my wife stop.
They’ve both tried in the past but never kicked it for good.

I’ve tried for years to get my parents to quit. My mother actually has said she’d quit, has quit in the past, and would have no problem doing so again. Except she does have a problem, namely that she won’t agree to quit unless my father does, and he’s as stubborn as a mule. Time and again I’ve implored upon to quit, even if just to save money in cash-strapped times, but they blow me off by telling me that the doctors assure them they’re in good health. Except I know that’s bull because both have had their doctors tell them they need to quit.

I’ve sort of come to make peace with the reality that one of them’s not going to quit until they turn up with a major health issue related to their smoking, and by then I imagine they’ll just keep smoking because in their minds they’re already past the point-of-no-return.