Clay Pipes

[yoru]

I just got two new clays in today (of the 6 ordered) and have to say, very pleased with them. The stem always feels weird in yer mouth when you get out of the habit of using clays -- but I'd almost forgotten what it is even like to smoke a tobacco blend free of -any- other flavours. It really is something. Not something I'd want for every single smoke, but something I love in its own right alongside my briars nonetheless.
that and one of the two has this tiny 5min bowl that I've been wanting something in that size of for a while now since I don't always feel like going outside for an hour....hell I rarely feel like that except at school.
Funy thing though, the bowl was -seriously mis-aligned on the small one. Sure it works fine, and the defect is actually kind of cute in a way, I just cracked a grin and started laughing when I saw it -- about 3-5 mm on the far end of the bowl (the part furthest from yer mouth when smoking) and almost triple that at the fattest point of the near side -- wall thickness between the outside and the bowl I mean.
Like I said it doesn't affect the smoke in any way (the other one made perfectly is about as thick full-round as this little oddity is at its thinnest point so we're good)-- but it is funny in some strange way. "Cute" is the best way I know to put it.

 

[yoru]

A few things.
1: found anifty "clay pipes 101" course here http://groups.google.com/group/alt.smokers.pipes/msg/c232a2c42b06a2bd?pli=1
2: Just ran a pipe cleaner through my pipe. . . and it came out 100% clean and dry, even licked it because I didn't believe it...100% clean.... I finished smoking it maybe an hour ago. . .so if you plan on cleaning them with pipe cleaners to avoid the eventual firing as long as possible...do so quickly.
3: The guy mentions smoking sage (literally) and got me curious, anyone tried smoking anything other than tobacco? Pardon me, let me rephrase. Has anyone tried smoking -herbs-, or perhaps clove leaves? I'm tempted to dry out a bouquet of flowers just to see what happens when you smoke it (I used to chew rose petals. . that seemed to go well enough, this might as well *shrugs*)
Its funny, the only other clay pipe I ever owned I had for about a week before my brother 'ruined' it with pot (after reading that article I'd be willing to be baptism by fire might have cured it, but I was mostly just pissed anyway) and I only smoked it twice. In fact the masking tape trick to spare my teeth was really all I knew about them before today.
And now I gotta say, I've developed quite the affection for the little things.