First Step Consultation – Brian Farr M.S. in Ed., C.A.S.A.C.

By my senior year of high school, I had seen the movie “Easy Rider” with Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nickalaus numerous times.  Several of my friends and I had started a cult following of types for the film, and we discussed various aspects of it often and in detail.  I even got the […]

When I was growing up, my mother never missed a chance to bust out the decorations and gussy up our house for every single holiday that came down the line.  The “big” ones were no surprise – Christmas, Halloween, and Easter – those seemed to warrant the time and effort spent on breaking out the […]

We should have set up the tent first.  More accurately, I should have set it up.  In the back yard.  Before we were here, in this moment, and needed it.  Such lack of planning and complete inability to look into the future is a hallmark of my personality.  A quirk – a habit – part […]

    Rage.  White hot heart pounding fists clenched teeth grinding head screaming ready to attack or scream at any minute rage.  My family is threatened by forces completely outside of our control – again.  And that makes me angry.     It’s always surprising to me – Mr. Counselor, Mr. Recovery, Mr. Spokesperson for […]

Let me just begin by saying that I am not an avid fan of any sport.  I like to watch the World Series and the Superbowl each year, but that has much more to do with the traditions surrounding those events and the excuse to eat unhealthy foods than with who actually wins.  I also […]

  Some of the best and most challenging advice I have gotten over these last 15 years of looking through the world with sober eyes is to “Keep it Simple”.  An alternate version of this motto floating around recovery circles is “Keep it Simple Stupid,” and in either case, it usually works for a trouble […]

I grew up in and around a bait and tackle shop business, and, consequently, learned quite a bit about fishermen “and women,” and the sport of fishing from a very young age.  As the family legend goes, my grandfather decided that our small town needed a store to supply fishing goods after an excursion with […]

  When I decided to take a hiatus from my weekly blogs, a few things happened that I did not expect.  The first was that I stopped writing regularly. I had hoped I would have the discipline to write each week, maybe even each day without knowing that I had something to publish – a […]

My wife and I recently celebrated 12 years of marital bliss.  This year we kept it simple, staying at our house together alone, and asking our in laws to watch the kids for the night.  We refused to answer the phone, and basked in the quality time together that seems so rare in our wonderful […]

Pharmaceutical drugs are quickly becoming a huge problem among young people.  The number one drug of abuse for the youngest age group in our country continues to be inhalants, however.  Can you guess what these two substances have in common that makes them so attractive to these curious young minds? They can both cause death […]