Smith Counseling Centres

Mr. Smith’s “new-fangled” CHILI…

Dick Smith — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:52:12 +0000

Ingrediants:

1lb. of ground sirloin

1 can of stewed tomatoes

1 can of tomato juice

1 can of kidney beans

1 onion round slices(for taste/seasoning)

Directions:

Brown the ground beef in a saute pan,

drain the excess liquid.

Add ingredients, while stirring slowly.

Slice onion on top of chili

Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer for 30 minutes.

Serve with crackers and milk.

Smith Counseling at the Detroit International Auto Show

Chris — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:40:12 +0000

Dick Smith and Chris on a field trip to the Detroit Auto Show.

Another Earth

CM — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:58:01 +0000

I recently watched the film Another Earth. It is about a girl who is accepted to MIT and is interested in astronomy. After a night of partying, she is driving and hears an announcement on the radio that a planet, nearly identical to earth has been discovered. As she is gazing out the window, trying to locate this “spot” in the sky, she crashes into another vehicle, killing a child and an adult. She spends four years in prison, and the movie more or less begins with her release. The accident occurs in the first 10 minutes. While it looks at other things, two of the biggest themes it deals with is grief, and guilt.

I think the reason I found this movie so moving, and relatable, is because in many ways I think the feelings this girl in the movie feels, are many of the feelings I have been trying to cope with since receiving a second DUI in 2007. I ended up with a long stint in jail, and when I was released I struggled with these feelings of guilt and shame. I can’t imagine that I am the only one dealing with these feelings. I am not saying that what I did in anyway equates to what the girl in this movie did, or has to deal with, but the feelings are similar. Figuring out how to wash away the guilt, and feelings of shame is something I have struggled with. There is a scene towards the end, where she visits a janitor she has worked with who is in the hospital. He has lost his hearing and vision due to self-inflicted injuries. She writes into the palm of his hand, “forgive”, which after viewing just once I feel is the moral of the story and an important part of finding sobriety. You must find forgiveness, and learn to forgive yourself.

Pulled Pork with Mustard BBQ Sauce

Chris — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 19:28:59 +0000

Mustard BBQ Sauce

1/2 C. Dijon Mustard
1 1/4 C. Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 C. Honey
3/4 C. Brown Sugar
2 Tbs. Chili Powder
3 Tbs. Worcestershire Sauce
2 tsp. Salt

Pulled Pork

1 3-8 Lb. Pork Shoulder (Boston Butt, Blade or Picnic Ham)
1/2 C. Salt
1/2 C. Sugar

For the pork

Combine salt and sugar; Cover the pork shoulder very liberally in the salt & sugar mixture. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours but no more than 24 hours; overnight works well. Longer is better. This draws a lot of excess moisture out of the pork, and will create a gorgeous golden brown skin on the outside of the shoulder.
Once the pork has sat, remove from fridge and drain accumulated moisture from vessel. Pat pork dry, and let sit at room temperature; 45 minutes to an hour. Letting sit at room temp is not entirely necessary, but if you have the time, go for it. Pre-heat oven to 225 degrees F.
Roast shoulder for 6 hours. Because we are cooking at a low temperature for a long time, cooking time should remain the same regardless of how large the shoulder is. After the first hour or so, start basting the shoulder every 1/2 hour with the fat that accumulates at the bottom of the roasting pan.
After 6 hours has elapsed, remove pork from the oven and let cool to room temperature before shredding. If you are not going to use the entire shoulder, only shred what you will need. Shredded pork has a tendency to dry out quickly, so only shredding what you need will allow the shoulder to keep better. To re-heat, simply place the unused portion into a 200 degree oven for 20 minutes or until heated through. Using two forks or your hands works well for shredding the pork

For the Mustard BBQ Sauce

Combine all ingredients over medium to medium-low heat and bring to simmer for 10-15 minutes. This sauce does not need to cook long.

For the pulled pork

Simply combine all the pork you have already shredded with the BBQ Sauce. I like to dress the pork lightly so the sauce doesn’t dominate the flavors, but this is up to you.

New Functionality Added!

Chris — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:28:25 +0000

Registered users now have the ability to post new content directly to the website. Additionally, a new “website instruction” section, under F.A.Q has been added to the website that explains how to use and take advantage of many of the new features on the website. Please let Dick know about any problems and we will …

New User Registration

Chris — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:03:17 +0000

From the Smith Counseling homepage, or from any other page, click on the user registration link, or follow the link on this page.
Once on the user registration page you will be prompted for a username, and email address. These are the only two requirements for registration. Your username can be anything you like; something like an abbreviation of your name, or a shortened email address
After you have clicked on the register button, an email will be mailed to you with an automatically generated password. This is only to confim that the email address provided is a real email address.
Once you have received the automatically generated email from the Smith Counseling website, you can log into the website using the username you chose, and the password provided. You will probably want to change your password to something you can remember at this point. We have provided instructions on how to do so below.

Account Dashboard

Chris — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:02:51 +0000

Once you have registered for the site you will be given access to the back-end of the website, known as the Account Dashboard. A link to the account dashboard can be found on every page of the website, and also along the toolbar at the very top of every page. These features only appear once you have successfully logged-in to the website. It is from the account dashboard that you can take advantage of many of the exciting features of the Smith Counseling website.

From the Account Dashboard you can do things like:

Update your user profile
Change your password
Post new content to the Smith Counseling website.

Updating Your User Profile

Chris — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:01:45 +0000

In the Account Dashboard there is a menu which appears down the left side of the page. Near the bottom of the menu there is a link called Profile. Here you can manage everything that has to do with your profile.

From the Profile tab you can manage things like:

Changing your password.
The email address associated with your account
How your name will appear publicly on the website when you post content, like a comment or post.

Posting Content Using The “Posts” Feature

Chris — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:00:31 +0000

From the Account Dashboard, on the menu running down the left hand side of the page click or hover over “Posts”. This will reveal two options; “All Posts” and “Add New”. To create a new post, choose “Add New”.
From the “Add New” posts section, all you need to do is fill out the post form. Choose a title for your post, and add your post content.
There is a basic text editor with an interface similar to Microsoft Word for individuals unfamiliar with HTML markup. This is the “Visual” tab in the top right corner of the content box in the post form. You may find it useful to write a post in Microsaoft Word, or another word processor and copy it into the new post form. The “Visual” text editor will do its best to interprit how you intend the text to look.
Once you have your new post ready to go, select “Submit for Review” in the top-right hand corner of the page. Once a site moderator (Dick,Bob,Chris) approve the post it will appear live on the front end of the website.
There are very few reasons why a post would not be approved, or might be modified slightly. Reasons include inappropriate language or posts that are inappropriate in general.
Alternatively, you have the option to stop half way through a new post and return to it for later by choosing “Save Draft” instead of “Submit for Review”.
After writing your post, you will want to choose categories and tags to associate with the post. These options determine where on the website the post will appear, and help make your post easier to search for once the website becomes large. By default, if no category is selected, your post will appear under the Member Corner portion of the website.
There is a nice tutorial on the WordPress website that discusses creating and publishing posts.

Sobriety, Self Discovery & Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech

Chris — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:18:39 +0000

In the group meeting on Tuesday there was an interesting discussion on sobriety and the idea of what it means to be self-directed. In the Thursday group this topic was touched on again after an individual brought feeling a little like they were without direction since deciding to make the decision to get sober, and they were afraid that this feeling could ultimately threaten their sobriety. This led to an interesting discussion about what it means to be sober, and the topic of self discovery. While a lot of insightful things were said, the conclusion that many people in Thursday’s group were able to agree upon was that sobriety isn’t just about deciding not to use or abuse drugs or alcohol. The consensus of the group seemed to be that if one is to be happy and content in one’s sobriety, one must look inside one’s self and reflect on the reasons for their own use.

Personally I can attest to the fact that finding sobriety is a long and arduous process. I personally found it to be a lot like being born a new person. When I was finally ready to accept that there was a problem, and that the solution to that problem was sobriety, it was if the person I had been died. I needed to re-learn everything I knew. I couldn’t keep the same friends, and I couldn’t stay on the same path I had been. I suddenly needed to find a new identity. In many ways I don’t even consider myself to be the same person today as I was when I was drinking. In no way has it been easy, and it is an ongoing process, but I am working towards the person I would like to become and each day takes me further and further from the person I was. There have been a lot of days that I question myself, and the decisions I make. I have personally found affirmation and inspiration in the 2005 Stanford University Commencement Speech given by Steve Jobs. I only came across this video after his passing, but I think that there is wisdom in what he said, particularly for someone working at sobriety. It is for this reason that I decided to share it with everyone.