Alienated

PipeProfessor

I was talking with the owner of a local B&M today and we were commenting on how we often feel alienated as pipe and premium cigar smokers. Does anyone else feel this way, or is it just us?

LostMason

I feel that way just being a smoker,I get less disgusted looks when I pull out my pipe though.
Amazing how the same people who snub me when I light a cigarette,will walk over and chat
with me when I light up a bowl of Butternut Burley or PS Lux Bulls Eye Flake.

pipesith

I've noticed some people giving me looks of bewilderment. Could be seeing someone smoking a pipe is a rarity around here. But I don't care. I just smile and go along on my business. I may get a "My grandpa or dad smoked a pipe" comment sometimes which starts a good conversation.

drac2485

I still see a ton of people smoking cigarettes everywhere, so I don't mind smoking a pipe or cigar in public, but it's amazing at how alienated I do feel.  Being younger (not white headed yet) I get a lot of looks when smoking a pipe in public, the looks like they think I'm smoking pot.  I've even had pot heads ask me what I was smoking because it smelled soooooooo good "where's you get that pot?".  The worst was when I had a smoker, Marlboro Reds, complain that my cigar stunk...  I could smell them over the cigar from about 15 feet away but they complained.  Those of us enjoying the premium tobaccos are definitely being alienated and the new FDA regs prove it.

tomatobodhi

Whenever I have been out and about with a pipe, I make a point of asking anyone around me whether they would mind if I start a bowl. I've never had anyone say they'd rather I didn't, and I would rather take the risk that they say they prefer I don't and do my part to improve Pipe PR.

I take the same approach to hunting. I hunt squirrels at the only State Park in Arkansas that allows hunting, but because it is a State Park, I encounter families and hikers at the trailhead where I park my car and enter. I always take time to talk to people there about the role of hunting in wildlife management on the Park, show people my air rifle and tell them why I choose an airgun (to be less intrusive and considerate to hikers). I take the time because I understand that public opinion (misguided as it might be sometimes) could eventually prevent me from enjoying my hunting.

Better to be overly considerate and win public support. That's my two cents.

Topaz75

There is clearly a massive anti-smoking Nazi thing going on that I find more than a little disconcerting. It's that whole slippery slope deal about which we've always been warned. It started with public buildings and restaurants and has continued unabated since then. Once they outlawed smoking in bars, I knew we were in trouble.

Today, I am in a shore town in New Jersey where it's against the rules to smoke on the beach. The goddamn beach! I fear it won't be long before none of us will be able to smoke in any public area, indoors or out.

drac2485

@topaz75 I've been hearing your argument for a while and watching it happen locally.  Fortunately, its not to the point you can't smoke on the street.  At least its not California.  I've heard they have some crazy rules and keep trying to pass more. I heard that if you smoke in your vehicle you have to keep your windows up and can't blow the smoke out of the car.

pipeman83

I still get comments after 33 years in the hobby because I still look young and people still associate pipe smoking with "old men", but I just ignore it because I love it. If someone makes a stupid comment I just  keep on puffing, I don't even respond to them because it interrupts my smoking.

Woodsman

New Jersey towns are getting out of hand. My town has no smoking in any of the town parks. At this time they allow me to smoke in my car in the parking lots. I sometimes feel that I'm the only pipe smoker in Bergen County. 

ghostsofpompeii

I feel more like the main character in one of those post-Apocalyptic last man on earth type movies. Haven't bumped into a fellow piper in decades. Probably the last time I saw someone with a pipe in their mouth other than an actor on TV or looking at myself in a mirror was about a decade ago before The Tinder Box closed it's doors in my local mall. Back when you could ask for a free sample and smoke it in the shop.

The people I really feel sorry for are the pocket of remaining cigarette smokers relegated to a catching a quick smoke in the back of a store or office building near the dumpster, looked upon by their peers as some sort of Leper. Often victims of the 'stink-eye' stare from some PC soccer mom with a short memory and not so squeaky clean past. Or an x-smoker ... they are the worse.

Thankfully people seem to be a bit more accepting of me smoking my pipe as I walk in the park or forest preserve. I'll get the curious stare when someone realizes the plume of smoke around my head isn't from a cigarette but a pipe. Then oftentimes someone will compliment the aroma of the tobacco. I can't recall a hostile response or unkind comment.   

DixonHill

Young folks will often say "Hey, what's in that pipe? Heh, heh" Others who wish to engage will smile wistfully and note that their father / grandfather / favorite uncle used to smoke a pipe. And some will remark, favorably, on the aroma. 

It is getting more difficult to smoke in public here in Maine. So I'm often confined to my front porch. And given the weather here in Maine, my pipe smoking tends to go into hibernation during the winter.

jim102864

I guess my approach to feeling alienated is to smoke my pipe wherever I'm confident I will be welcome to do so.  I've participated in the last six monthly pipe club meetings at a B&M in Hartford and bugged my regular cigar B&M owner to the point that he's also formed a pipe club of sorts at his shop.  Other than feeling a slight initial twinge of self-awareness, I"ve begun to bring my pipe to the cigar shop lounge more frequently, making sure I also buy and smoke a stick while i'm there.  Truth be told, I'm a relative newbie so I'm still not comfortable enough smoking anywhere else (other than than at home) such as when I'm around town going about my business, but I can feel myself becoming less self-aware with each passing day.  The hobby is simply too enjoyable not to engage in it whenever I can.  I also bring up the hobby with friends every single time I see them in a thus far losing effort to get them to give it a try.

Deadpool57

Surround yourself with the ones who have the same interest.  I never feel alienated because I'm around a bunch of cigar smokers a lot.  I think the most common thing that is told to me is, "I love the smell of that, are pipes better than cigarettes?"  Being younger, a few people might send some jabs your way.  Just send the jabs back and hit a cigar and/or pipe shop.  Unless you live in an area where such luxaries are not easy to come by, in which case, plan trips to shows!

ghostsofpompeii

It's much easier to get a friend to smoke a cigar than engaging them in the possibility of considering smoking a pipe. I've tried talking cigarette smokers with health concerns of their own into making the transition from cigarette to a pipe on a variety of occasions to no avail. Apparently the act of pipe smoking is too complicated and time consuming for some ... or at least the excuse they may give you - requiring them to juggle more than one thing at a time. But they will consider cutting back by including the occasional cigar, hoping eventually to transition completely to cigars. For them, like the cigarette, little effort goes into the act of cigar smoking. Cigar smoking requires a minimum of accessories ... a cigar, lighter, and something to clip off the end. But when suggesting pipe smoking you're hit with objections like ... "I'd have to buy a pipe, tobacco, a pouch for everyday use and a humidor to store the bulk tobacco and keep it fresh, pipe cleaners and what-ever other tools are needed to tamp down the tobacco and ream the tobacco while smoking ... it's just too much work.     

motie2

@ghostsofpompei writes: << it's just too much work.>>

Same reason I don't shave.......

ghostsofpompeii

The last time I shaved it was because I lost a bet. It was back when the 85 Bears were making their Superbowl run and lost that game to the Miami Dolphins. I bet on the Bears and my co-worker picked Miami. The bet was I'd shave my beard - and he'd shave his head. Well I lost and everyone kidded me saying that I looked like a 12 year old fat kid without my beard. I was 35 ... and didn't think I was all that fat. But I guess it was better than saying I looked like a 65 year old fat woman, considering I was a long-haired rock musician and the comparison could have gone either way. I started growing back my beard the following day. And eventually got my revenge - the Bears won the Superbowl.   

mfresa

My neighbors agree that the pipe is much better than the cigars I used to smoke (maduros).  Smoking aromatics helps, no one has complained as long as I'm outside (with them).
What also helps is a few beers or other beverage available to them when they come over for a chat.
As for people who have excuses not to try it, that is OK.  I tell them it is a "ritual", which it is a bit.  That intrigues them more and the questions start.  No worries, life is short, enjoy it while you can.

Woodsman

T

jhubb10

Since I am a very new smoker I only smoke in the backyard.  However, I feel I should be able to smoke anywhere I want outdoors without getting complaints.  I am tired of the new PC culture, there is no need to nerf the world.

PappyJoe

@ghostsofpompeii - I grew a beard in 1972 and pretty much kept it until the Coast Guard decided that everyone had to be clean shaven like the other military services in 1986. Started growing in back the day I retired and only trim it 2 or 3 times a year.

daveinlax

Since I am a very new smoker I only smoke in the backyard.  However, I
feel I should be able to smoke anywhere I want outdoors without getting
complaints.  I am tired of the new PC culture, there is no need to nerf
the world.

LoL! Why would you expect the wide world to welcome you when you can't even enjoy a couple of bowls in your home?
I'm not talking chain smoking nails or cigars but just a couple of bowls once in awhile.

vinnie799

Many many people have looked toward me smoking my pipes saying that they're so and so smoked a pipe. I follow with,"he must have been a good man with good taste". :-)

jhubb10

PappyJoe Thank you for your service.  I am a former Coastie myself served 1998-2002, I was an Electronics Technician Second Class.

jhubb10

daveinlax very good point I am going to have to sit the wife down and tell her how its going to be, I am sure it will go well.  Its half my house I should be able to enjoy a bowl in the house.

daveinlax

Yup moderation is the key to a happy home. I'd recommend starting her out with a bowl of Lane's 1Q while sitting around watching a movie or TV.

Greenbriar

LOL the other day I was at in public and had a man complain that I was smoking an aromatic! I went by him, he said, "love that pipe, son," then he got a whiff of my autumn evening and yelled back over his shoulder, "When you get home, smoke something real in that thing!"

tim12string

Due to the fact I have a long pony tail, a full beard & wear a lot of bright colors, people always assume I am smoking weed. I've gotten used to it. I just say, "Does it SMELL like I am smoking weed?!"