I am struck by the way tobacco smoking has become a shameful, degrading, morally offensive practice over the last 20 years. There have always been non-smokers, but it doesn't seem as though there was any problem coexisting until about the 80s. There was a time when a major hotel or restaurant would be expected to have a smoking lounge...and smokers didn't need a rule to retire to that lounge when they wanted a smoke. Likewise, non-smokers simply didn't go to places where smoking could reasonably be expected, and it was understood that non-smoking equivalents would be available - they didn't intrude into the decisions and pleasures of others. I guess we're all just that much less considerate these days.
+Kevyn Winkless It's very much a perception thing. I smoke a pipe, and about two weeks ago, a guy ran crossed the street and kind of jumped on me: "I could smell your pipe half a block away... thank-you, you made my day".
I was ready for an anti-smoker tirade, and was too dumb-founded to make an intelligible response.
Your preference, your right. I'm glad you've found a solution you like. For myself, I'm a pipe smoker. I like the smell of a good pipe tobacco, and I enjoy the process of smoking as a relaxing ritual. I prefer to smoke outdoors, both because it's more enjoyable and out of consideration to others who don't enjoy the scent of a pipe as I do. But recent developments in the anti-smoking campaign make it impossible to smoke in public, and I'm effectively relegated to huddling in shadowed corners like a criminal.
+Jeff Cave Yes, I get that sometimes too, but it's been a long time since you could smoke a pipe outside of your own home in some parts of Canada without either breaking the law or being accosted by anti-smokers. I hadn't been back to Canada in ages actually, and was shocked last year with how restrictive Manitoba is now.
I was ready for an anti-smoker tirade, and was too dumb-founded to make an intelligible response.