Look, Jim, it's Working!

Irony, thy name is cigarette tax:

Flood is among thousands of Wisconsin residents who have quit smoking using the Wisconsin Tobacco Quit Line, which logged a record number of callers last year.

In Rock County, the number of residents calling leapt 530 percent from 2007 to 2008, said Kate Kobinsky, coordinator of the Quit Line at the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention in Madison. In 2007, 138 county residents received services from the Quit Line, while that number jumped to 869 last year.

It was the perfect storm, Kobinsky said.

An increase in the cigarette tax went into effect Jan. 1, 2008, more public places became smoke-free and the Quit Line expanded its services to include a free, two-week starter kit of quit-smoking mediations, she said.

Rock County ranks 69th out of the state's 72 counties and the city of Milwaukee for the highest percent of adult residents—28 percent—who smoke, according to the 2008 County Health Rankings. The state average is 20.9 percent.

Two women I work with are quitting - one has stopped, the other is cutting down and getting ready.

Join them, improve your health, and keep more money in your pocket instead of Uncle Jim's. 'Cause he doesn't want you to quit - he just wants a piece of the action.

The article has interesting tips to help you.