Maybe times are changing

trouttimes · Dec 12, 2018

I was working security for an A-lister Christmas party in Aspen last nite. I can get wound tight around these type of people so I stepped out to have a smoke and calm the nerves. I was shocked at the number of people who came out and ask me about pipe smoking. It reminded them of their father or grandfather. Several had thought about taking up a pipe but it was just so socially unacceptable in their circles or it made them into a hipster. I talked about why I smoked a pipe and who it effected me. Several asked more detailed questions. Maybe the tide might be changing. Not one person criticized me for smoking. Of course, it is Colorado so they were puffing on the herb right beside me.

macaroon · Dec 12, 2018

I'm of college age, and I've been surprised by the number of my friends who have expressed positive reactions to my pipe smoking. I can assure you that they would not be so amicable if I switched to cigarettes!

cosmicfolklore · Dec 12, 2018

In all of the time that I have been pipe smoking, I have had maybe two negative reactions, compared to overwhelming shows of interest, admiration, and enjoyment of the aromas. I have had mothers bring their kids up to see my pipe, people will ask to set next to me while I smoke, and it definitely makes other non-pipesmoking men curious and ask questions. And, time and time again, I will run into men who tell me that they started smoking a pipe because they saw me.
It's all in the way you carry yourself. If you are smoking a pipe with low self-esteem, looking like you are ashamed of it, people will react in kind. People can smell insecurities. You can't fake being self-confident. But, if you are confident, people will react positively to your pipesmoking. I firmly believe that.

jpmcwjr · Dec 12, 2018

When you can fake sincerity, you've got it made! Agree, though with happy public smoking. Hot chicks comment to me, but, alas, it's because I remind them of their grandfather.
Had one bad one out of 50+ reactions, out for a walk at Waikiki and a woman pointedly covered her mouth and nose as she approached. No big whoops.

cosmicfolklore · Dec 12, 2018

I had been shopping in the grocery store for a while and was already in the back of the store, meat dept, when I noticed that I still had my lit pipe in my mouth. I grabbed it stuck it in my shirt pocket quickly, but no one around me even noticed that I was smoking.
Now, if I had of slyly tried to sneak a puff, with my eyes scanning the crowd of shoppers, I would have been as obvious as a sore thumb, with alarms and buzzers going off all around me.
That's how the world works. If you look like you're supposed to be doing what you're doing, no one will think anything amiss.

mso489 · Dec 12, 2018

Apparently you put across the pipe really well. So much of this kind of group reaction is situational. The few social events where I've smoked, outdoors, I've gotten considered neglect, which was fine, but no one warmed up and remembered their dad or grandpa.

canucklehead · Dec 12, 2018

That's how the world works. If you look like you're supposed to be doing what you're doing, no one will think anything amiss.

You aren't doing it wrong if no one knows what you are doing.

trouttimes · Dec 12, 2018

Not so thrilled that some of the women said I reminded them of their father or grandfather. Definitely let's me know the nite is not going to end great.

voorhees · Dec 12, 2018

Pipes and cigars to an extent do not carry the stigma of ordinary cigarettes. I smoke at the local pub in the designated area. If I get any looks, I don’t notice. I’m sure some may have an opinion one way or another, but I’ve gotten mostly positive inquiries. Or the buffoon who asks if I’m smoking weed.

mikethompson · Dec 12, 2018

I've never really smoked my pipe out in the wild, so I can't comment. But threads like this pop up once in a while, and generally no one has a negative reaction to pipe smoking.

npod · Dec 12, 2018

Love the comments above. I concur with the statement that confidence is the key. About two years ago I started smoking my pipe openly in public. The general comments are nearly always positive. The biggest problem can be to act genuinely interested in the “my grandpa smoked a pipe” conversation and pretend it’s the first time you ever heard that.

rmpeeps · Dec 13, 2018

I wish I was somebody’s grandpa. Crazy great uncle is gonna have to do.

foursidedtriangle · Dec 13, 2018

Maybe I am the opposite, if it is accepted that is a turn off. I do have a rebellious streak.

haparnold · Dec 13, 2018

I guess the times, they are a-changing:

Although I haven't been around long enough to know if this is a new phenomenon or not. Pipes are so much more pleasant to bystanders than cigarettes, I imagine they may have always gotten more of a 'pass'.

mikethompson · Dec 13, 2018

We have very restrictive smoking laws in Ontario, you can't really smoke anywhere unless you're walking down the street. That said, only once I've seen someone smoke their pipe outside, and when I was driving by.

bassbug · Dec 13, 2018

I'm lucky enough to have a park/playground right next to me and it happens to have a nice, shaded park bench that's well beyond the 20 meter (a little more than 20 yards) distance from the playground, as dictated by Ontario laws. Its right on the path to the playground and I regularly sit there and smoke when the weather permits. I've had quite a number of comments from people passing by, but every single one of them was positive including my two favorites
From a young man, maybe 20-25 years old who stopped, took a deep breath and said "damn dude, that smells freakin' amazing"
From a woman, maybe 35 years old, who also stopped and said "my favorite uncle died a year ago and I miss the smell of his pipe, thank you for the reminder"
Overall, life is good with a pipe

franklyn22 · Dec 13, 2018

I recently visited California and was chatting with the lady that owns a local pipe shop there and she said in some cities there you can be pulled over and ticketed by the police for just smoking in your car while driving on the road if you pass by a building that is within the 50 or 100 feet or whatever the distance is from the road. I could not even believe that one. Maybe times are changing somewhere but not in California!

trouttimes · Dec 13, 2018

Just another good reason not to live in CA!

cosmicfolklore · Dec 13, 2018

I wouldn't piss on California if it were on fire. ...what, too soon? : puffy

:

cosmicfolklore · Dec 13, 2018

But, interestingly enough, my wife and I were going through movies that we've seen made recently, series, and shows, and I am pretty sure that there are more movies made within the last ten years that have people really smoking pipes than they've ever had.

Maybe times are changing

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