Smoking poll

[arpthark]

Just curious.

[ShoelessWes]

I smoke a pipe 2 or 3 times a week. I stick with nice Danish Cavendishs as well as some hand blended stuff without humectant.

It is relaxing. It is nostalgic. It is enjoyable. People don't seem to complain at all about it (the smell is nice and it doesn't kill my breath).

On top of all that, my lifestyle isn't very conducive to addiction. I have no plans of stopping any time soon. There are so many other things that negatively effect my health that I can address before this, that I doubt I'll ever stop.

[TexTuba]

Yes, I like to smoke when I drink.

[ShoelessWes]

So you're addicted to smoking.

Given that I sometimes go weeks/months without doing it, have no cravings for it, have no side effects without it, etc. I could not disagree more.

[ShoelessWes]

On top of all that, my lifestyle isn't very conducive to addiction.

No problems, Ian, I was being confusing. That falls into this category^. I fly 120+ times a year, spend time on event sites for 18+ hours a day sometimes, and tour with drum corps and marching bands (can't smoke on school grounds).

When it is all said and done, it equals out to 2 to 3 times a week, because when I'm home I'll smoke my pipe while I write drill, respond to emails, write music, and set up my next trips, etc.

Sitting down at Edward's Pipe and Tobacco in the smoking lounge while I work is one of the only forms of public socializing I get. On top of that, I tend to get along better with older people, so that is the crowd I flock to. I'm also equally comfortable just sitting there drinking scotch or diet coke, but have found that I rather enjoy the taste of a nice cavendish.

Addiction may not be as black and white as you (and the television shows) make it; and if I'm addicted to pipe smoking, I'm most definitely addicted to cheeseburgers, french fries, beer, diet coke, coffee, straight razor shaving, and many more things.

[Chuck Jackson]

A pack of Marlboro Silver Menthol 100's a day. At least 8 Diet Cokes a day. Alot of coffee every day. Run at least 5 miles/day, 5 Days/week. Last physical "says" I'm in perfect health. At 51 I am 6'2", 190 lbs, or what I weighed in High School. I could get hit by a bus tomorrow, so I allow myself my addictions. It is not my aim in life to die in a wonderfully preserved body, but to go to the whatever thoroughly used up, Martini in one hand and a cigarette in the other saying "Now THAT was fun!!".

Chuck"your mileage may vary"Jackson

[Mojo workin']

One half to one pack a day for about 11 years. This started when I woke up and realized I needed a day job at age 29.

Yes, I like to smoke when I drink.

Alcohol accompanied my 11 year usage of tobacco.

Had a heart attack three years ago.

I no longer smoke, and drink half as much as I formerly did.

[bort]

Never. I watched the slow painful deaths of my paternal grandparents and their siblings, all from smoking complications. And my mom's dad died from lung cancer at 55 years old (6years before I was born). Survive WWII but die from smoking? ****, no thanks. That said, what other people do is none of my damn business.

[tbn.al]

Quit cold turkey 19 years ago after 2 packs a day for 26 years. I'm lucky I can still blow enough air to play. Hell! I 'm lucky to be alive.

[Dan Schultz]

I quite a nasty three pack-a-day habit about 20 years ago. Do you realize how much time it takes to smoke that much?

Reminds me of a joke. One blond asked the other if she smoked after sex. She said "I don't know... I've never looked".

[Todd S. Malicoate]

I smoked a carton a week for almost 30 years. Now I use a PV (personal vaporizer) or, as they are more commonly known, an "electronic cigarette."

I've been using the PV for about 6 months now. I've noticed a big change in capacity! More importantly, though, I am no longer taking in carcinogens to simply get a dose of nicotine.

I don't understand why more people aren't switching to the PVs. They cost around 1/8 as much, don't smell bad and make you smell bad, don't have the myriad of harmful chemicals found in burning "analog" cigarettes, don't have any waste to dispose of, allow you to REALLY control your nicotine intake through various levels of concentrate "juice," come in a huge variety of flavors, and allow you to stay inside in the nastiest weather.

Maybe I'm just not a picky person, but I don't even notice a difference between analog smoking and my PV. I haven't had any desire to have an analog since my first draw on my PV.

If you're interested in switching like I have, feel free to ask questions. The biggest first recommendation I have is to stay away from those "light-up tip" singles you can buy in smoke shops. They're absolutely dreadful.

[Jeffrey Hicks]

Did briefly after being discharged from the Marine Corps. Now I cannot stand being around it so I only smoke when I am on fire...

[bort]

I've never understood the fascination with Diet Coke either!

[MartyNeilan]

(Although I don't think anything can top Bloke's post...)

[Tubajug]

The biggest first recommendation I have is to stay away from those "light-up tip" singles you can buy in smoke shops. They're absolutely dreadful.

If I remember right, there was a story a few weeks ago on the radio about a guy who got injured when the battery in one of those blew up. I think he lost some teeth and a bit of his tongue. Ouch...

[Tubajug]

The biggest first recommendation I have is to stay away from those "light-up tip" singles you can buy in smoke shops. They're absolutely dreadful.

If I remember right, there was a story a few weeks ago on the radio about a guy who got injured when the battery in one of those blew up. I think he lost some teeth and a bit of his tongue. Ouch...

He'll never play the tuba again!

He would just have to slur everything! And there might be a funny whistle from the lack of teeth....

[SRanney]

I smoked only for 11 years, 1.5 packs per day. I quit cold turkey in May 2004.