Yes, you guys read the heading correct!  I am in recovery from substance abuse.  I believe wholeheartedly in the concept of non-aggression, and I love researching, holding, and trading crypto-currencies.

FINALLY STARTING MY STEEMIT JOURNEY

This is an absolutely exciting day for me!  I have been kicking around the idea of starting this blog for some time.  First off, I'm grateful to all you men and women who are taking the time to read this.  I first heard about Steemit through a Facebook group last summer that was focused on individual freedoms and private property rights.  I was impressed by the platform, but never got around to creating an account.  And WOW has the platform grown since then!  So take a little ride with me, and check out a little about my life.

I admit, I don't know that much about how this platform operates.  But the cool thing, from what I've seen so far the community is really fantastic.  I'm here to learn and grow with you guys!  

MY TROUBLES WITH SUBSTANCES

A huge part of my personal story has to do with drugs and alcohol.  I am not ashamed to tell people anymore about my history.  I have learned that by sharing my experience, strength, and hope with others who are afflicted as I was, I can help others to get what was freely given to me:  Freedom and serenity.  It wasn't easy.  For years and years I bounced in and out of various institutions.  Rehabilitation centers.  For a long time I felt like I had no future.  No direction.  No ambition,  I was suffering from the "internal condition" part of the disease.  That no matter what happened, whether I was sober or annihilated, I was unhappy.  And the plain truth of it was, I was worse when I was sober.  Drugs and alcohol are the addicted person's solution.  What happens when you take away that special something away from someone?  That special something that helps them escape the pain of reality?  They get PISSED.  More angry and agitated than ever before.  I could completely identify with what other people who had recovered were telling me.

The last time I went into a drug program, I felt it in my heart that I wanted to stop.  I had literally no material possessions.  I was beaten down emotionally, broken down physically, and confused mentally.   I had no idea HOW to stop.  I wanted to leave the drugs and the alcohol alone but my mind wouldn't stop thinking about it.  No amount of willpower could solve the problem for me.  So what did I do?  I got some help.  Finally, I recognized that this was not something I could beat on my own.  My own experience proved it.  I got involved in a program of recovery and finally did what they had been telling me to do for the better part of a decade.  And it worked!  All I wanted when I started was to relieve my mind of the constant and nagging mental obsession that plagued almost every waking hour of my life.  But I got that, and so much more.  I am forever grateful to the people who helped me, especially early on.  And today, I have gained lifelong friendships with other people who suffered through the same thing I did.  I am blessed to have an awesome relationship with a woman I love very much. I do my best to carry a message of hope to others as well. Recovery gave me another chance at life! I go to a couple rehabilitation centers, (both of the ones I was admitted to) and talk recovery with men who are as hopeless as I once was.  It's truly a beautiful and humbling experience.

CRYPTO-CURRENCIES ARE MY PASSION

How cool is it to have a platform like Steemit?  It's fantastic.  It really is a no-brainer for me to be here.  I was well aware of Bitcoin for years before I owned any.  Too caught up in the maelstrom of addiction to really be buying any crypto.  HA!  And sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I would have bought 5 years ago.  But things happen the way they are supposed to happen.  

Ideologically, for me, crypto makes perfect sense.  Decentralized.  Fiat currencies have no intrinsic value, and are only based on a promise . . .and one day, the governments issuing the currency will not deliver on it.  Quite simply, we are an information age society, using an industrial system of money.  6 months ago, I really started getting in to crypto.  Not just holding it or reading about it.  But getting actively involved in a lot of different areas.  I started taking a class on Trader Development at the https://www.therationalinvestor.co/  

What I've learned so far has been nothing short of fantastic.  The crypto community opened their arms up to me and for that I am extremely grateful.  YouTube was an invaluable tool and I was happy to see that many people I subscribe to on YouTube are here as well!  [@jerrybanfield](https://steemit.com/@jerrybanfield) was the first person I watched on YouTube that showed me how to create an account and purchase coins on exchanges like Poloniex, so I was excited when I heard he had started an account on Steemit.  I really don't know if I would be doing what I'm doing with my life now, if not for him.  I'm currently working for the benefit of a relatively new project called XtraBytes.  An entirely new way to verify each block on the chain through an algorithm called Proof of Signature.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to be working on various crypto projects full time while gaining experience.  I truly love it and it has fundamentally changed my life for the better.

I'm looking forward to learning more from all of you guys and girls here about all things crypto related.  You guys know your stuff here!  Please, feel free to drop some people's name in the comments section . . Steemit is like a an infinite pool of knowledge about crypto-currencies.  And it makes sense.  

VOLUNTARYISM MAKES PERFECT SENSE TO ME

The simple idea of "owning oneself" is the cornerstone that led to me being a voluntaryist.  I identify with the concept of private property, the non-aggression principle, and personal liberty so strongly.  I don't pretend to know it all though.  I am still growing in this way of life.  But the cool thing about Steemit, is there is a large community of like-minded people here as well.  Rothbard's "The Anatomy of the State" was the first book that opened my eyes to the blatant parasitism and unethical activities governments perform on a daily basis to survive.  I truly believe that each and every person should be allowed to do whatever they wish, provided they are not harming other people or other people's property.

And to think, at one time I thought I was a Socialist!  That's the awesome thing about life though.  It is always changing.  Evolving.  What was once the driving force in my life, (if you read the first part, you would get what I mean) has been cast aside, and new driving forces emerge)

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ MY SHORT INTRODUCTION

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.  Drop some comments.  Link me to your favorite Steemit articles.  Your favorite people to follow.  LOOK AT THIS KID! ha!