a pipe-smoker's dream (a.k.a holy mother of FUCK)
Offline i'm a 7-year veteran of pipe-smoking. i average about four bowls a week. i'm almost to the point where i can't read without it.
like most people, i started with aromatic blends. captain black cherry is still one of my favorites, though a bit hard to find. then i graduated to stout blends of virginia and latakia. for a while i smoked only peterson blends, particularly old dublin. in the last year or so i got into flake tobacco, especially peterson irish flake.
after awhile, the strength of peterson blends just wasn't up to my standards, so i discovered samuel gawith tobaccos. gawith is made in kendal, the heart of england's lake district, a beautiful area i visited back in 2003. gawith is very good about strong blends. they make an excellent navy flake, but i found my true love in commonwealth full strength mixture, which is a ribbon cut composed of 50% virginia, 50% latakia. it has an aroma almost like coal smoke and a wonderful, rich flavor.
today i got adventurous and decided to try a twist tobacco. i went to the tobacconist and bought a can of gawith black xx.
when i opened the can, i was more than surprised to find what looked a bit too much like a black dog turd staring up at me. i took out my swiss army knife, cut a few slices, rubbed it out, and lightly packed my pipe (flake, plug, and twist tobaccos are dense and moist, and if you pack them too tight they'll never stay lit).
well, the flavor was surprisingly subdued, with strong hints of leather and earth. the smoke was a bit harsh but definitely not the harshest i've ever had.
but then the nicotine hit.
like a fucking longshoreman's fist.
sweet jesus, i haven't had a similar experience since i foolishly smoked a cuban corona as an inexperienced 20 year-old. as i type this, my head is still swimming and my arms are a bit numb (and i don't inhale). in other words, i love it. if there are any other pipe fanatics on here who like a good old-fashioned man's smoke, i can't recommend it enough. i grew up on a tobacco farm and i thought nothing could ever surprise or challenge me again. boy, was i wrong.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
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Next thing you know you'll be mainlining coke off the ass of a ten year old neighbor you abducted while you wait for the Mexican drug cartels to pick him up and sell him into sexual slavery.
You should be *ashamed*.
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
hey, fuck you man, there's no goddamn WAY.
after all, i live in slovakia now and there's not a mexican in a 1,000-mile radius...damn.
seriously though, i did intend to write that i think this shit is the closest you can legally get to doing a line.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
I'm also a pipe smoker. I prefer Latakia and Perique blends these days. I buy it by the pound and vacuum seal it in smaller packages. http://www.cornellanddiehl.com is my main supplier. "Pirate Kake" is loaded with Latakia, comes pressed and looks like a slab of hash. Smoking a bowl will chase away mosquitos and non pipe smokers as well.
What brand name is that twist your smoking?
Ever "hang-ten" on the bow of a nuclear powered aircraft carrier at 30+ knots?
Well, I used to be a pipe smoker. I had the set of 14 different pipes so that I could rotate them. However, I was dependent on my local tobacconist. When he retired, I was left high and dry. I asked him for his recipes but he would not provide. Nor would he tell me who had the deal. Apparently, his stuff dies with him.
At this point, I would need to find a good guy or learn to blend my own...
=
the brand is samuel gawith black xx. apparently there's also a black xxx, but most of the websites i've looked at give it negative reviews for being just too damn strong.
i'd love to buy tobacco in bulk but my i'm afraid my wife would freak. she barely tolerates my pipe smoking as it is. also, here in slovakia there are no suppliers like that, and even if there were this country is so damn expensive i'm sure the price would be prohibitive. anyway, i don't have a vacuum sealer.
still, maybe i'll check out the website you gave. if they ship to central europe and if the shipping wouldn't be too ridiculous, i might give it a try. that pirate kake sounds intriguing. is it plug tobacco? i swear, i'm almost to the point where i look down my nose at loose tobacco these days.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
btw, just as i suspected my tolerance has gone up pretty quickly. i smoked my fourth bowl of the stuff today and i no longer get the nicotine rush, though it's still definitely relaxing. this is actually good, though. i wouldn't want that kind of edge indefinitely.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
Pirate Kake comes in a brick! About an inch thick and the size of a roof single. I use mason jars to seal up the bulk. Boil them in shallow water with the tobacco inside and seal them while hot. It forms a vacuum. Mainly you're heating the glass. I just opened a jar I sealed 7 months ago, still fresh.
If your wife hates you smoking a pipe she'll REALLY hate pirate kake. The room smell will chase most away. I love the stuff.
Buying bulk is the only way to go, it cuts the price in half. Cans can hide mold and costs more as well.
Bayou Night is another of my favorites. (cornell and deihl) It's loaded with Perique tobacco and is very spicey. It makes you smoke it slowly.
http://www.tobaccoreviews.com/browse_all.cfm is a good site to read reviews of pipe tobaccos.
I go nowhere without my Meerschaum pipe.
Ever "hang-ten" on the bow of a nuclear powered aircraft carrier at 30+ knots?
thanks for the tips. i don't have to worry about the room note because i'm absolutely forbidden to smoke in the house. i still beg my wife every now and then to at least let me smoke aromatic blends in my office but this is the one issue she really puts her foot down on. she says it'll spread to the whole house and she's also afraid of discoloring the walls. i even offered to save up and buy a heavy weatherproof door for my office but she doesn't believe it will help. honestly, she might be right.
i have two meerschaums myself. one is relatively low quality. i bought it on ebay for around $30 in 2006. i'm sure it's block meerschaum but it's taking forever to color and i go through stages where i smoke only that pipe for two or three weeks at a time in an attempt to deepen the color. it has colored lightly, mostly around the rim and the shank, but it seems to have plateaued at that point. it has an amber-colored lucite stem that has that shitty plastic screw-in system i hate so much. the threads inevitably wore out so now i just pull the inner part out like a standard push-in stem whenever i clean it.
my other meerschaum is my pride and joy. i bought it at a tobacconist's in london in 2003 for around $140. it was already deeply colored and sandblasted. it's good and heavy and feels like an honest-to-god stone (not too heavy though). i don't know if it was colored naturally or not, but none of the coloring has worn off and indeed it has darkened over the years, so i suspect it was natural. the shank especially is now a rich amber color.
my two favorite briars are both petersons. i'm a huge fan of peterson pipes. my most expensive pipe is a sherlock holmes deerstalker that i bought in prague in 2006. it has a sterling silver band and cost me around $300. my other is a peterson system standard that cost me around $80. i also bought it in 2006. for some reason i had a lot of money to spend on pipes that year! both petersons have enormous bowls, which i like because i like a good looong smoke that lasts around 90 minutes. it's hard to find tobaccos that burn slowly enough for me. they're both also built to hold filters but i never use pipe filters. honestly, i've never understood those who do.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
I have had a pipe for the last 3 years. I enjoy a bowl infrequently -- maybe twice a year. That sucks, because the tobacco goes stale. I end up buying the smallest amounts possible.
There are few tobacco shops around. Most of them specialize in cigars, and pipes are an afterthought. The folks behind the counter rarely know anything at all about the pipes, let alone the tobacco. As a result, I am still mostly ignorant. Or naive. Whichever. Maybe both.
I do appreciate the pipe-talk. Any education is good education. And now that spring has hit, I suspect it's time for another bowl. (My wife too refuses to allow me to smoke in the house.)
"Yes, I seriously believe that consciousness is a product of a natural process. I find that the neuroscientists, psychologists, and philosophers who proceed from that premise are the ones who are actually making useful contributions to our understanding of the mind." - PZ Myers
i hear your pain. most of the knowledge i've gained has been through trial and error, as well as consulting the internet. pipe-smoking is definitely a dying art. i've been to tobacconists on both sides of the atlantic and yes, most of the time the employees are absolutely useless, especially when it comes to pipes.
to be honest, though, america is in a much better place than europe when it comes to pipe-smoking. you can get some very interesting blends in europe which i have yet to find in the US. for example, there's "kentucky bird," which is a blend of tobacco and flowers with an interesting dry, sour note which imo is reminiscent of pino grigiot, or "holger danske black and bourbon," which is almost a european twin of regular captain black for double the price (pipe tobacco in central europe is EXPENSIVE, like most other things). however, as i said, the price can be steep and the opportunity to buy in bulk is nonexistant. also, there are no small tobacconists in slovakia who make their own blends. in america, however, with a little hunting you can usually find a decent tobacconist.
i'm not sure where you're from, nigel, but if for some ungodly reason you need your fix of kitsch grotesquery, head on down to gatlinburg, TN. the trip is worth it just for the shop called gatlinburlier in the gatlinburg mall. they have excellent blends there and the employees are VERY knowledgable (and, i might add, opinionated) about pipes. they have a website too. i believe it's www.gatlinburlier.com. i've mail-ordered from them a couple of times and the experience was very positive. i haven't been there in several years, but last time i was there my favorite blend was "mellow moonshine." i'm not sure, but it seems to be a somewhat spicey blend of burley and cavendish flavored with whiskey. these days i'm sure i'd want something with a lot more punch, full of good dark-fired virginia and latakia, but "mellow moonshine" is a good satisfying smoke for the casual pipe-smoker.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
The best slow burning tobbacco I've ever smoked was "Stonehaven". http://www.tobaccoreviews.com/blend_detail.cfm?ALPHA=S&TID=502 It's hard to find right now, in fact I can't find it anywhere. You might have more luck in Europe. It's wonderful!!! Looks like beef jerky. (a flake) I'd kill the Pope right now with piano wire for an 8oz. bag. It's that good. LOL
Ever "hang-ten" on the bow of a nuclear powered aircraft carrier at 30+ knots?
I smoke a pipe. I'd never put tobacco in it though. Ugh.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
So what do you do with this stuff, inhale it or just swish it around in your mouth?
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
"ugh"?
if that's a comparison between pipe tobacco and pot, it's a ridiculous one. i've never smoked pot myself, or done any illicit substances, but god knows i've been around it plenty of times (my bro is currently in rehab for the second time) and i think the shit smells like burning hair. even the harshest tobacco blends won't approach that.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
lol, "swish." usually it's referred to as "puffing." i don't typically inhale pipe smoke, especially not the kind i like. i might take a drag every few minutes if i'm smoking a nice mild burley or cavendish, especially in summer.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
So is it for the nicotine hit, the taste, some sort of soothing physical ritual...?
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
all of the above, although very few tobaccos deliver a nicotine "hit." as i said before, i almost can't read without it. it focuses the mind and sharpens comprehension. even the rhythm of the puffing enhances meditation.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
its a pity i don't smoke a pipe often, there is a great tabbacco shop near where i live that has an awesome pipe tabbacco selection. also an awesome "roll your own" selection, not to mention a decent hubbly ("hooka" if that what u call it where ever you live) section. really it is heavan and it is 5 minutes drive from my house. so suck it.
I make great use of there roll your own smokes only problem is everyone assumes its not tabbacco but whatever
Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
No animal shall wear clothes.
No animal shall sleep in a bed.
No animal shall drink alcohol.
No animal shall kill any other animal.
All animals are equal.
Where you able to read on your own easily at some point, without smoking?
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
well, first of all i'm obviously exaggerating a tad. i AM able to read without it. i just get distracted more easily if i don't have it and i definitely miss it. but the same goes for a comfortable armchair if i don't have that.
however, i do think the overall quality of my reading has improved since i took up pipe-smoking.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
I dont want to insult your brother or anything, but how do you have to go to rehab for smoking pot. I personally love the smell of tobacco although i dont smoke it that often b/c i don't want to get addicted and I really love the smell of pot which I... uhh ahem... find pleasurable and rather non habit forming
I Am My God
The absence of evidence IS evidence of absence
Yeah I gotta say I've never heard of anyone going to rehab for pot, in fact I am amazed that's even possible. As far as tobacco I enjoy a puff every now and then but I definitely prefer sweet mary jane.
sorry to be unclear but no, he's not in rehab for pot. i just said that to emphasize that, thanks to my bro, i've been around A LOT of druggies, doing pot and everything else, though most of them have had the good sense not to do the harder stuff in front of me. those that did learned very quickly that i don't tolerate the sight of it.
and just in case anyone is wondering, no, i don't believe the bullshit about marijuana being a "gateway drug." i do, however, find the smell of it positively acrid, almost chemical, and have no idea how anyone can find it pleasant. then again, some nonsmokers say the same thing about pipes.
incidentally, i'm not physically addicted to tobacco in any way. there have been several times when i've gone weeks or even months without it and i've never had cravings. perhaps it's because i didn't start till i was 20. my dad started smoking cigarettes at 15 and he is hopelessly addicted.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
Marjuana tends to be a gateway drug to those that already have problem that they are trying not to deal with. However these days there are alot more easier drugs and ways to get high that doesn't involve weed. The reality is if there are people that are using drugs to escape from their problems then weed tends to be a gateway drug for them, just like alcohol can be a gateway drug as well for these types of folks. However for those that just use it recreational form it's not a gateway drug.
well, this is basically what i always say: the shit that made my brother smoke pot is the same shit that made him shoot heroin. the only difference was time and circumstances.
i don't know how things are up north, but in the US anyone who grew up under the ridiculously expensive failure of the reagan-era "war on drugs" was told that marijuana use would, sooner or later, inevitably lead to harder drugs, regardless of who you were. christ, i think they even made a bugs bunny cartoon telling us this shit. this is what we were told a "gateway drug" is: an inescapable slippery slope.
seriously, i think the measures they took to feed us that drivel were at least as expensive as the gulf war.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
Major difference of opinion then. Tobacco in a pipe tastes like shit, and does nothing for me. Weed is like wine. Different flavours and smells, even differet effects.
Illicity is irrelevant. Tobacco is going to be illegal too soon enough. And neither should be illegal in the first place.
Enlightened Atheist, Gaming God.
Almost all the people I know from High School that became drug addicts later in life, actually smoke cigarettes and drank beer before starting to smoke weed, yet it was the marijuana not those two other drugs that caused them to start cocaine and heroin. That's the problem with the gateway drug idea, there is something else that they are trying to either avoid dealing with or escape from.
However back to the topic, when I do smoke weed, I do have a pipe for that, sure not the same as tobacco pipes, but still as fancy as some of them, and they all got a little back story to them.....then again I haven't smoke weed in 5 years now, well at least not from those pipes, just a bit at the occasional party.
yea the gateway spiel is bullshit. Ive experimented a bit with harder drugs and i had consciously come to the conclusion that i wanted to experience them before i had ever tried weed. If you're the type of person that would smoke weed then you're probably the type of person that would be willing to try the harder stuff. There is nothing about weed that would change you to make you more likely to go further unless you already would have. Heroin terrifies me though and for good reason. I'm sure ill never try it unless maybe when im eighty years old and am already on my way out, maybe... I hope your brother recovers. I'm sure addiction is probably even worse than it is portrayed by hollywood.
Back to tobacco, are there any cigar smokers out there? I like to cigar on special occasions with my friends and we usually buy crap 2-3 dollar cigars but over the summer we tried our first real cigars, fuente fuente opus x. It was the most intense and awesome experience i've ever had. If only that brand wasn't so expensive. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good medium priced cigar? I'm still a complete amateur when it comes to tobacco.
I Am My God
The absence of evidence IS evidence of absence
yes, i'm quite a cigar-lover too. i don't smoke them as much i used to because they're expensive here in SK, the shops really don't know how to store them well, and the selection is terrible. even though cubans are legal and readily available here, i wish i could go to a good american cigar store. i like good rich black double or triple maduros, and nobody has those here.
never had an opus x myself. i can't imagine them being any better than a good cuban h. uppman corona and as expensive as those are in europe, even they don't approach opus x in price. a good solid cheap(er) cigar is almost anything by hoyo de monterey. i love romeo y julieta maduros. arturo fuente makes a good churchill if you're into the big long stogie look. probably the looongest smoke i ever had was a partagas black label maduro robusto, the torpedo-shaped kind. robustos are my favorite kind of cigars period, but those partagas fuckers last twice as long as any churchill i've ever had. my friend and i sucked away at those for 90 MINUTES once with no end in sight. definitely bang for your buck, if your jaw doesn't get sore (ah, homoeroticism).
by far the closest brand you can get to a cuban in the US (and a good cuban, i might add) is criollo. they're not too pricey, but be prepared for a finish that packs a nicotine punch. definitely not for the faint of heart but HIGHLY recommended. the only thing i ever had to match it was a cuban monte cristo corona i bought in europe for about twice as much. cigar brands have hype like everything else. don't buy the hype. i've learned the hard way that pricey doesn't mean good.
oh, and almost all good cigars come in regular (brown) and maduro (black) wrappers. i almost always choose maduro. i've never understood why anyone wouldn't.
"I have never felt comfortable around people who talk about their feelings for Jesus, or any other deity for that matter, because they are usually none too bright. . . . Or maybe 'stupid' is a better way of saying it; but I have never seen much point in getting heavy with either stupid people or Jesus freaks, just as long as they don't bother me. In a world as weird and cruel as this one we have made for ourselves, I figure anybody who can find peace and personal happiness without ripping off somebody else deserves to be left alone. They will not inherit the earth, but then neither will I. . . . And I have learned to live, as it were, with the idea that I will never find peace and happiness, either. But as long as I know there's a pretty good chance I can get my hands on either one of them every once in a while, I do the best I can between high spots."
--Hunter S. Thompson
My experience with tobacco is the 1 1/2 cigarettes I've smoked in my entire life. I've never really had the desire to use it except for pipes. I remember back during my tenure as a Jehovah's Witness going to peoples' houses it was a highlight getting invited in to a pipe smoker's house. I loved the smell of pipes and still do. If it weren't for the risk of cancer I'd totally do it.