@motie2 Well, I'm definitely in that category. When people tell me there glad to see me, I always say, "At my age, it's better to be seen than viewed".
Sykes founded Smokingpipes.com in 2000, while completing his undergraduate degree in history at Vanderbilt University. Some might today assume, like Athena was said to have sprung whole from the head of Zeus, that Sykes sprang wholly prepared upon the world of pipes. The truth, however, is that he didn't have any idea what he was getting into. Mostly. He had not then ever written a line of code, and he had no inkling as to how to run a business, even one that was just two guys and a small rented warehouse space in Tennessee. What he did have from his part-time job at a local tobacco shop was an inkling of the sort that in hindsight others would call insight: technology, particularly the World Wide Web, could revolutionize pipe and tobacco retail just as it was transforming so many other industries. Of equal importance was Sykes's growing interest in pipes as works of functional art that deserved critical discussion. This interest was good enough to get things started; the knowledge needed to run a successful business would develop over time as it does for most of us in our 20s: by doing with enthusiasm. So it was with enthusiasm and two convictions--that the pipe business needed technology and that pipes were serious and beautiful things--that Sykes laid the foundation for what Smokingpipes.com would eventually become. This trinity still largely defines his role in the company today where his primary responsibilities include overseeing finances, operations, and software development, as well as vendor relationships and sales, all things that he has learned a little about in the ensuing years. But even as time has carried on and the company has grown, Sykes is still never more passionate than when working directly with, or teaching others about, pipes.
@motie2 It's scary to think there are really people out there like JP. I can see the need for some order on blogs, but mistakes and/or unrelated humor will happen from time to time. But that's no reason to go to extremes in monitoring because... we'll, that's extreme...😏
<<The period following a golden age is often called a decline, twilight, or dusk era. Given the context of pipe smoking and the recent moves by Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) and other companies to discontinue blends, one might poetically call this the Twilight Age of pipe smoking. It suggests a time when the art is still practiced but is slowly fading in commercial availability and mainstream appeal.
Alternatively, if one wishes to be more dramatic, terms like the Autumn of the Briar or the Fading Ember Era could work, evoking the slow waning of a once-thriving tradition.>>
@motie2 Sad, but hopefully not true concerning a new generation of pipe smokers. I've said this before, but at the STL Pipe Show and the LV Pipe Show, I loosely surmise 50% populating the show are 30 - 35 and younger. To me, it is an encouraging sign of a great hobby that still has some longevity left. That being said, the waining blend selections would tend to make us think otherwise. Hopefully it is the former rather than the latter...
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And this from a President that does not smoke. Hopefully Freedom continues to Reign Supreme!
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Well, I'm definitely in that category.
When people tell me there glad to see me, I always say, "At my age, it's better to be seen than viewed".
Sykes Wilford
Chief Executive Officer
Sykes founded Smokingpipes.com in 2000, while completing his undergraduate degree in history at Vanderbilt University. Some might today assume, like Athena was said to have sprung whole from the head of Zeus, that Sykes sprang wholly prepared upon the world of pipes. The truth, however, is that he didn't have any idea what he was getting into. Mostly. He had not then ever written a line of code, and he had no inkling as to how to run a business, even one that was just two guys and a small rented warehouse space in Tennessee. What he did have from his part-time job at a local tobacco shop was an inkling of the sort that in hindsight others would call insight: technology, particularly the World Wide Web, could revolutionize pipe and tobacco retail just as it was transforming so many other industries. Of equal importance was Sykes's growing interest in pipes as works of functional art that deserved critical discussion. This interest was good enough to get things started; the knowledge needed to run a successful business would develop over time as it does for most of us in our 20s: by doing with enthusiasm. So it was with enthusiasm and two convictions--that the pipe business needed technology and that pipes were serious and beautiful things--that Sykes laid the foundation for what Smokingpipes.com would eventually become. This trinity still largely defines his role in the company today where his primary responsibilities include overseeing finances, operations, and software development, as well as vendor relationships and sales, all things that he has learned a little about in the ensuing years. But even as time has carried on and the company has grown, Sykes is still never more passionate than when working directly with, or teaching others about, pipes.
Pipe smoking returns one to better times….
Pipe smoking returns one to better times
That was a GREAT video!
Tnx for sharing...
It's scary to think there are really people out there like JP.
I can see the need for some order on blogs, but mistakes and/or unrelated humor will happen from time to time. But that's no reason to go to extremes in monitoring because... we'll, that's extreme...😏
https://www.zazzle.com/frog_samurais_dawn_victory_t_shirt-256974516925856190
https://www.zazzle.com/s/pipe+smoking
(available on Amazon)
<<The period following a golden age is often called a decline, twilight, or dusk era. Given the context of pipe smoking and the recent moves by Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) and other companies to discontinue blends, one might poetically call this the Twilight Age of pipe smoking. It suggests a time when the art is still practiced but is slowly fading in commercial availability and mainstream appeal.
Alternatively, if one wishes to be more dramatic, terms like the Autumn of the Briar or the Fading Ember Era could work, evoking the slow waning of a once-thriving tradition.>>
Sad, but hopefully not true concerning a new generation of pipe smokers.
I've said this before, but at the STL Pipe Show and the LV Pipe Show, I loosely surmise 50% populating the show are 30 - 35 and younger.
To me, it is an encouraging sign of a great hobby that still has some longevity left.
That being said, the waining blend selections would tend to make us think otherwise.
Hopefully it is the former rather than the latter...
Absolutely loved it!
Tnx...