Thanks to plenty of help from you all. I understand that I can't impress every reader and that's just the nature of writing. As of now, I still have a day to make changes before I need to have this in hard copy and on my way to turn it in. I am much happier with what I have now than what I had before.
Once again, thanks to all who have been helpful with edits and suggestions.
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There are many things to be enjoyed in life, and for some -including myself- one of those is lighting up a pipe and puffing away on a good tobacco blend. There is something about the hobby of pipe smoking that just draws us in and creates a bond.
I picked up pipe tobacco smoking last year during the summer as another extension of my cigarette and cigar smoking. It was an experience that led me to put down the cigarettes, the worst of the bunch as far as society could be concerned. Pipe smoking surely is still frowned upon by society that views smoking as a dirty and unhealthy activity
But pipe smoking also has an image in the minds of the public. Cigar smoking could be said to be something that the affluent do due to its usage in advertising and movies, but pipe smoking is generally held as something that the bright or eccentric engage in.
Some influential and recognizable people have been associated with pipe smoking, or were avid puffers themselves: mathematician Albert Einstein, General Douglas MacArthur, General George Patton, authors Mark Twain and J.R.R. Tolkien, researcher Jacques Cousteau, President Gerald Ford, physicist Julius Oppenheimer and many others.
Those real people almost all stand in the shadow of probably the most famous pipe smoker of all, the fictional private investigator, Sherlock Holmes. Holmes is always depicted in pictures with a large calabash pipe, the signature sharp nose and his deerstalker cap. This image of the almost genius Holmes is one most would conjure up when thinking about someone who smokes a pipe.
Most of us are none of those men, but by smoking a pipe there is a loose association with them.
The history behind it all brings that nostalgia of yesteryears and among them that includes old family members. Like many in the pipe smoking community, our grandfathers may have smoked a pipe, as mine did. I remember as a child my grandfather riding high on his tractor with a pipe clenched in his mouth as he bush hogged the field.
For those I have encountered in public while I am smoking some have recounted to me that the smell coming from my pipe reminds them of their grandpa. Those are positive experiences that hopefully bring a moment of fond memories to those I and other pipers encounter. That nostalgia is just one allure that draws those in the hobby to pipe smoking, one of other more common refrains is the contemplative and relaxing nature of piper smoking. It could be described as almost ritualistic in the most peaceful way.
Aside from the enjoyment in the act of smoking, there is also the aesthetics of the hobby when it comes to collecting. I have 10 pipes which may seem like a lot, but there are many within the pipe smoking community that far exceed my own modest collection. Pipes come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and with the resurgence of uniquely shaped artisan pipes have begun to command admiration and hundreds of dollars per piece from the market.
But at the heart of it all is the tobacco itself. The pipes are nothing more than expensive pieces of woodwork without the leaf. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of blends from numerous brands and artisan blenders to smoke. What my granddad smoked is barely the tip of the iceberg anymore in the world of tobacco blends. Now thanks in large part to the internet and the growing community of pipe smokers, there is a Willie Wonka buffet of blends: sweet smelling aromatics, rich Virginias, spicy Orientals, smoky English. There is an endless list of blends that it would be impossible to try them all, but some do try.
There is just something special to us about the hobby. From picking a pipe that suits a mood or just plucking an old favorite, to choosing the tobacco that seems like a good fit for your disposition or even the time of day, pipe smoking is something that is immensely enjoyed yet not quite understood by the public. Luckily the old guard has been welcoming of younger smokers into the briar brotherhood. We all share a bond that other smokers don’t have quite the claim to.
Once again, thanks to all who have been helpful with edits and suggestions.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
There are many things to be enjoyed in life, and for some -including myself- one of those is lighting up a pipe and puffing away on a good tobacco blend. There is something about the hobby of pipe smoking that just draws us in and creates a bond.
I picked up pipe tobacco smoking last year during the summer as another extension of my cigarette and cigar smoking. It was an experience that led me to put down the cigarettes, the worst of the bunch as far as society could be concerned. Pipe smoking surely is still frowned upon by society that views smoking as a dirty and unhealthy activity
But pipe smoking also has an image in the minds of the public. Cigar smoking could be said to be something that the affluent do due to its usage in advertising and movies, but pipe smoking is generally held as something that the bright or eccentric engage in.
Some influential and recognizable people have been associated with pipe smoking, or were avid puffers themselves: mathematician Albert Einstein, General Douglas MacArthur, General George Patton, authors Mark Twain and J.R.R. Tolkien, researcher Jacques Cousteau, President Gerald Ford, physicist Julius Oppenheimer and many others.
Those real people almost all stand in the shadow of probably the most famous pipe smoker of all, the fictional private investigator, Sherlock Holmes. Holmes is always depicted in pictures with a large calabash pipe, the signature sharp nose and his deerstalker cap. This image of the almost genius Holmes is one most would conjure up when thinking about someone who smokes a pipe.
Most of us are none of those men, but by smoking a pipe there is a loose association with them.
The history behind it all brings that nostalgia of yesteryears and among them that includes old family members. Like many in the pipe smoking community, our grandfathers may have smoked a pipe, as mine did. I remember as a child my grandfather riding high on his tractor with a pipe clenched in his mouth as he bush hogged the field.
For those I have encountered in public while I am smoking some have recounted to me that the smell coming from my pipe reminds them of their grandpa. Those are positive experiences that hopefully bring a moment of fond memories to those I and other pipers encounter. That nostalgia is just one allure that draws those in the hobby to pipe smoking, one of other more common refrains is the contemplative and relaxing nature of piper smoking. It could be described as almost ritualistic in the most peaceful way.
Aside from the enjoyment in the act of smoking, there is also the aesthetics of the hobby when it comes to collecting. I have 10 pipes which may seem like a lot, but there are many within the pipe smoking community that far exceed my own modest collection. Pipes come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, and with the resurgence of uniquely shaped artisan pipes have begun to command admiration and hundreds of dollars per piece from the market.
But at the heart of it all is the tobacco itself. The pipes are nothing more than expensive pieces of woodwork without the leaf. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of blends from numerous brands and artisan blenders to smoke. What my granddad smoked is barely the tip of the iceberg anymore in the world of tobacco blends. Now thanks in large part to the internet and the growing community of pipe smokers, there is a Willie Wonka buffet of blends: sweet smelling aromatics, rich Virginias, spicy Orientals, smoky English. There is an endless list of blends that it would be impossible to try them all, but some do try.
There is just something special to us about the hobby. From picking a pipe that suits a mood or just plucking an old favorite, to choosing the tobacco that seems like a good fit for your disposition or even the time of day, pipe smoking is something that is immensely enjoyed yet not quite understood by the public. Luckily the old guard has been welcoming of younger smokers into the briar brotherhood. We all share a bond that other smokers don’t have quite the claim to.
BUT, what if that became the point of this column?