So, I'm hanging out at the B&M, smoking my pipe and talking about my favorite topic, bulldog pipes, and this kid and his father comes into the shop. The kids is like 10 or 12 (I can't tell these days), and his dad starts showing him pipes and the kids is rattling off about Danish styles verses Italians, and how Petersons are all bunk. As an aside, kids can come into a tobacconist here. They just can't purchase tobacco.
The clerk asks them if they smoke pipes, because it was obvious that they didn't. The dad says that his son is an expert on all things pipes, and the kids is on all sorts of forums. That said, he may be reading this. I'll just point out that I was the old guy in the back room, ha ha. Anyways, because he may be reading this, I won't say that the kid had any social issues. But, lets just say that pipes and tobaccos were a "specialty" of knowledge for this kid. An expert.
The kid knew his latakias, Virginias, and goopy aromatics, and when he asked me what I was smoking, I told him, and he was amazed and asked me if I got tongue bite. Ha ha, I guess he had read quite a few reviews about Virginias.
The kid seemed to know by style whether a pipes was a Castello or a Dunhill. He was really smart. So, I asked him which forums he was on. I seemed to have taken the conversation outside of his realm of expertise. He was on forums, which one or who he was, he just really couldn't comprehend the questions, even when I tried to tell him that I was CosmicFolklore.
"Why don't you like Petersons?" "They're reported to be inferior in design that makes them gurgle, in drilling, and blah, blah, blah. It was verbatim stuff you hear on here.
"Is a Dunhill a good pipe?" "oh yes, they use only the best, blah blah blah" Copy and paste from half a dozen other conversations on here.
"What do you think about latakia?" "It is the major component in what is called English blends, Balkan, etc... It is spicy, and warm, with notes of campfire... blah blah blah."
It was disconcerting. The dad just raised his eyebrows at me, as if to ask me if I was convinced that his son had his facts straight. So, I asked, "and you say your son has never smoked a pipe?" "Nope." "Anyone in the family smoke?" "Nope." "Do you buy him pipes?" "Nope." Meanwhile the kid doesn't pay one bit of attention to me smoking, or anyone else smoking their pipes. It was all abstract knowledge.
I told his dad that this was creepy. He buckled an eyebrow at that. So, I explained that on a forum, we assume that everyone is a real pipe smoker, of age, and doing their own thing. How many ten year old cut and paste autistic kids are one here? I've occasionally entertained the idea that a movie star preparing for a role as a pipe smoker in a movie might take a look at this site. Leonardo before making Django or something. And, the idea that there could be a kid playing with us by creating a login and assuming to be an old codger, or a Starcat, or a Hodji, or something. Kid stuff to play with us. But, what if the most respected experts are really 10 year olds that have just read a bunch of stuff and have no concept of what smoking a pipe is really like? Who are all of these other forum members?
Needless to say, we all looked at each other after they left, pipe guys, owner, and cigar guys, and all said "Creepy" at the same time. More appropriately, we should have said, "unusual." It is cool that pipes are fascinating to a kid. It is also cool that he knows so much. I was impressed. But, it just left me with a weirdness creeping up my spine like spiders.
The clerk asks them if they smoke pipes, because it was obvious that they didn't. The dad says that his son is an expert on all things pipes, and the kids is on all sorts of forums. That said, he may be reading this. I'll just point out that I was the old guy in the back room, ha ha. Anyways, because he may be reading this, I won't say that the kid had any social issues. But, lets just say that pipes and tobaccos were a "specialty" of knowledge for this kid. An expert.
The kid knew his latakias, Virginias, and goopy aromatics, and when he asked me what I was smoking, I told him, and he was amazed and asked me if I got tongue bite. Ha ha, I guess he had read quite a few reviews about Virginias.
The kid seemed to know by style whether a pipes was a Castello or a Dunhill. He was really smart. So, I asked him which forums he was on. I seemed to have taken the conversation outside of his realm of expertise. He was on forums, which one or who he was, he just really couldn't comprehend the questions, even when I tried to tell him that I was CosmicFolklore.
"Why don't you like Petersons?" "They're reported to be inferior in design that makes them gurgle, in drilling, and blah, blah, blah. It was verbatim stuff you hear on here.
"Is a Dunhill a good pipe?" "oh yes, they use only the best, blah blah blah" Copy and paste from half a dozen other conversations on here.
"What do you think about latakia?" "It is the major component in what is called English blends, Balkan, etc... It is spicy, and warm, with notes of campfire... blah blah blah."
It was disconcerting. The dad just raised his eyebrows at me, as if to ask me if I was convinced that his son had his facts straight. So, I asked, "and you say your son has never smoked a pipe?" "Nope." "Anyone in the family smoke?" "Nope." "Do you buy him pipes?" "Nope." Meanwhile the kid doesn't pay one bit of attention to me smoking, or anyone else smoking their pipes. It was all abstract knowledge.
I told his dad that this was creepy. He buckled an eyebrow at that. So, I explained that on a forum, we assume that everyone is a real pipe smoker, of age, and doing their own thing. How many ten year old cut and paste autistic kids are one here? I've occasionally entertained the idea that a movie star preparing for a role as a pipe smoker in a movie might take a look at this site. Leonardo before making Django or something. And, the idea that there could be a kid playing with us by creating a login and assuming to be an old codger, or a Starcat, or a Hodji, or something. Kid stuff to play with us. But, what if the most respected experts are really 10 year olds that have just read a bunch of stuff and have no concept of what smoking a pipe is really like? Who are all of these other forum members?
Needless to say, we all looked at each other after they left, pipe guys, owner, and cigar guys, and all said "Creepy" at the same time. More appropriately, we should have said, "unusual." It is cool that pipes are fascinating to a kid. It is also cool that he knows so much. I was impressed. But, it just left me with a weirdness creeping up my spine like spiders.
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