Lifestyle?!!

[nevadablue]

No.

And, I don't live a 'house maintenance' lifestyle, although a lot of my time is put into fixing this place like we want it to be.

No, woodstove lifestyle, although I spend more time with my chainsaw than my pipe.

No, not at all. Lifestyle has nothing to do with pipes.

 

[brightleaf]

My favorite exposure to the idea of lifestyle was through a miniseries documentary called The Century of the Self by Adam Curtis. It explains how lifestyle was a way marketing/propaganda agencies were able to categorize different groups of people for targeted advertising. I think they were able to fit everyone within 12 different groups. It changed advertising from showcasing rational/practical aspects of a product, and instead focused on how a product helped define and enhance certain characteristics of our individuality. The result worked, and is the main method of advertising today. The documentary is free many places, including Youtube. I recommend it.

 

[deathmetal]

For me, it is more of a personal pursuit, or something that I like to do in life. It is a rejection of the idea of lifestyle because it is something that can fit in almost any lifestyle, unless your lifestyle is to live underwater or something of that nature. Like reading good books, drinking good beer, blasting death metal, etc. it is an expression of personality through habits and passions in which I find joy.

 

[cwarmouth]

I think that deathmetal sums it up well. I also agree with others have said about the term being a marketing ploy. It sounds cliche to me.

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

It's not a lifestyle, it's just simply a part of my life. It's something I enjoy. It relaxes me. I enjoy all the different blends, and all the different pipes, and it's nice to chat with others who enjoy the same things. It might move slightly into hobby territory, but that's only because labeling as such just makes it easier to explain to others and explains collecting multiple pipes. It's something I look forward to after a long hard day on the job, just as others might look forward to a glass or two of Scotch. At this moment, I'm relaxing with a bowl of McClelland Holiday Spirit and a glass of Captain Morgan Private Stock. It's something I enjoy to make the daily grind of life worth it and tolerable.

 

[brian64]

miniseries documentary called The Century of the Self

Great documentary...very enlightening, especially part 1 concerning Edward Bernays.

 

[deathmetal]

It changed advertising from showcasing rational/practical aspects of a product, and instead focused on how a product helped define and enhance certain characteristics of our individuality.

The weakness of humanity, our individualism (desire to express our individuality and self-interest, even when or especially conflicting with obvious reality)?
You don't say...
The real secret, in my view, is that individualism in groups creates herd behavior.

 

[warren]

One travels in a herd to minimize threat exposure from predators. There is comfort in numbers, fitting in and being unnoticed. I prefer to be alone and unnoticed.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I prefer to be alone and unnoticed.

Never been much of a follower, or a group type myself.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Everyone has a lifestyle! It may not be the one you want, or that you ever think about the way you live your life as a "lifestyle". The term takes a terrible turn due to advertising, showing smartass yuppies spending money and looking smug. OTOH, if you're real conscious about your "lifestyle" or try to adopt one that's not really you, discord happens.

 

[deathmetal]

My lifestyle is slack; among my enjoyments, pipe smoking ranks up there with the best of 'em.

 

[quint]

Pipe smoking a 'lifestyle'? Not for me. It's just a daily activity I do for enjoyment and relaxation. Spending hours smoking every day, it is a big part of my life, but it isn't my whole life.
'Lifestyle' sounds like a term rich people or hipsters might use to sound cool or sophisticated. :laughat:

 

[hawky454]

I would call it a lifestyle for me as it very much consumes me. I love everything about it, the history, the pipes but most importantly the tobacco. I think about it constantly and I dream about it a night. Yup, it's definitely a lifestyle for me.

 

[warren]

You've moved beyond lifestyle and into obsession.

 

[jpmcwjr]

'Lifestyle' sounds like a term rich people or hipsters might use to sound cool or sophisticated. :laughat:

It is. But it also has a place in advertising by honing the pitch to the folks likely to be watching the program who are also likely to buy your product(s). Beer on football programs. Maxipads on Oprah. Oil filters on NASCAR races. It's more sophisticated than those simple examples, but that's the gist.

 

[josephcross]

I have a life but I’ve got no style.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Heh. And yet the mavens of Madison Ave. will have you pegged into one segment or another of "lifestyles".

 

[cosmicfolklore]

It's all "Champagne wishes and caviar dreams, baby!"

 

[deathmetal]

And yet the mavens of Madison Ave. will have you pegged into one segment or another of "lifestyles".

A good reason to distrust the concept entirely.
My lifestyle is a combination of strategic sloth and applied logical analysis.
However, it would not feel right without a pipe going.

 

[fitzy]

I feel like it's something made up by Madison Ave aka Cigar Aficionado magazine to sell shit to the Gen X's/hipsters. When I look at the cigar industry now and I see boutique this and small batch that I think to myself what the hell happened to the cigar industry. I'm sure the cigar makers love to sell those $20 to $50 cigars. No thanks I'll stick with my $4 to $8 sticks.
Small batch cigars are made up so those Gen X'ers can all get all excited about finding this rare xyz cigar and pay silly amounts of money for it.
I'm sorry it's not a Fing boutique anything if it's sold by large etailers like cigarsinternational or jrcigar.
Overnight I've become a grumpy old man.