No, I have not spat out my dummy (pacifier) or thrown my toys out of the perambulator in a fit of pique at some real or imagined insult. I have not been banned nor have I resigned, but I will not be posting in the Forums (or any other site) for the foreseeable future. The only reason for this message is that in the light of recent events I did not want my absence to be seen as any sort of disenchantment with PM Forums, its Mods or the membership. In fact the last three months have been great fun; I have imparted some knowledge but gained more. I now look after my pipes like the treasures they are, and I pay great attention to the tobaccos I smoke – I am a better piper for it! The reasons for my decision are straightforward:
1. I am embarking on a major medical writing project which will require intense concentration. The pipe itself helps with this, but to be honest the Forums do not. I usually have several live tabs going when I am doing my ‘usual’ academic work, one of which is always PM Forums. I find myself flipping back and forth; this is an obsessive distraction which does not usually signify, but it will from now on.
2. I promised Pauline (“Her Indoors”) that I would desist / take a break after three months – my ‘tour’ finishes at midnight today, UK time.
I should finish by putting matters to right with regards Pauline. Like me, other members have given a tongue-in-cheek (“Her Indoors”, “She who must be obeyed”…….) impression of their spouses / partners whereas others have conjured maudlin, negative visions. She is a nurse, and nurses are indeed bossy; she is obsessively tidy and house proud; she can’t park the car straight but she notices if a piece of furniture is a fraction out of place! Like the original “Odd Couple” we are opposites, but it works.
She is anti-smoking, but I was a pipe smoker when we met and she tolerates my hobby. When we first moved into this house I smoked on the patio, but in a very cold winter I was permitted to smoke in the utility room / dog house. In January this year, after my abdominal operation, she instructed me to smoke in the kitchen, and here I remain. Further she bought me that beautiful 1914 Barling’s pipe for my 60th birthday and, with a triumphant gleam in her eye, she recently bought me my ‘last pipe’ as a Christmas gift. Need I say more?
I hope to be back at some time in the future, and I will report when the results of the Morta carbon dating and NM spectroscopy of Stonehaven vs Germain’s Rich Dark Flake are in. In the meantime, ‘Au revoir’, as they say in ‘Gay Paree’, Bryanf!!
1. I am embarking on a major medical writing project which will require intense concentration. The pipe itself helps with this, but to be honest the Forums do not. I usually have several live tabs going when I am doing my ‘usual’ academic work, one of which is always PM Forums. I find myself flipping back and forth; this is an obsessive distraction which does not usually signify, but it will from now on.
2. I promised Pauline (“Her Indoors”) that I would desist / take a break after three months – my ‘tour’ finishes at midnight today, UK time.
I should finish by putting matters to right with regards Pauline. Like me, other members have given a tongue-in-cheek (“Her Indoors”, “She who must be obeyed”…….) impression of their spouses / partners whereas others have conjured maudlin, negative visions. She is a nurse, and nurses are indeed bossy; she is obsessively tidy and house proud; she can’t park the car straight but she notices if a piece of furniture is a fraction out of place! Like the original “Odd Couple” we are opposites, but it works.
She is anti-smoking, but I was a pipe smoker when we met and she tolerates my hobby. When we first moved into this house I smoked on the patio, but in a very cold winter I was permitted to smoke in the utility room / dog house. In January this year, after my abdominal operation, she instructed me to smoke in the kitchen, and here I remain. Further she bought me that beautiful 1914 Barling’s pipe for my 60th birthday and, with a triumphant gleam in her eye, she recently bought me my ‘last pipe’ as a Christmas gift. Need I say more?
I hope to be back at some time in the future, and I will report when the results of the Morta carbon dating and NM spectroscopy of Stonehaven vs Germain’s Rich Dark Flake are in. In the meantime, ‘Au revoir’, as they say in ‘Gay Paree’, Bryanf!!
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