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lraisch

Part of the Furniture Now
Jul 4, 2011
614
1,199
Granite Falls, Washington state
I haven’t really seen anything inappropriate but I have had people advocate by proxy, mentioning heated discussion in the past, recommending I not call it a hobby.


I didn’t see anybody suggest this. It might be. If you're looking for a loophole, this may not be it.
Based on your other posts, it sounds no more a hobby than eating dinner every day.



I never considered the word hobby indicating triviality. I know it is possible to be very passionate about a hobby. For instance: My career has been based heavily influenced by former hobbies.



You're on to something good with the word 'pasttime'. It resonates well, but seems to be missing some of the medicating/spiritual aspect to it.


You are on forums. I'd speculate that maybe your hobby is reminding us 'navel gazers' that smoking pipes isn't that complicated. When I've been over-thinking (one of my main hobbies) I appreciate the grounding.


This is a very valid point.
I wouldn't consider drinking coffee a hobby, but to some people it is one.

I also see risk in calling smoking a hobby:
“I’m not really addicted, it’s just a hobby. I can quit any time”
According to the propaganda, this how it starts.

Interestingly, the forum rules call pipe clubs a hobby. I’m just following the rules :) I'd consider the forum to be an open pipe club.

The sponsors probably call the forum good marketing. Things have different meaning to different people.
The comparison with coffee drinking has resonated for me as I have to have my morning cup!

I don't have an addiction to coffee, as that is usually the only time I drink it. I have a favorite blend that I grind fresh and do a "pour over". Does that make me a hobbyist? To me, it is just part of my daily routine.

I was not happy with the characterization of pipe smoking as a hobby when I first heard it described that way, because for me it was just something I do every day.

The term hobby implied that it was more of an occasional interest, something pursued by dilettantes ("a person who cultivates an area of interest, such as the arts, without real commitment or knowledge").

Clearly I do embrace pipe smoking as a hobby as well since I am an SPC and NASPC member, participate in the forum and have far more pipes than I need just to smoke a bowl or two a day.

Perhaps someone can suggest a term that incorporates both the hobby aspect and the everyday nature of enjoying our pipes.
 

aspiring_sage

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 7, 2021
556
1,945
West of the Twin Cities, MN
Perhaps someone can suggest a term that incorporates both the hobby aspect and the everyday nature of enjoying our pipes.
I don't have high hopes that such a term can exist.
I'm not giving up though!

I'm afraid "obsession" excludes some hobbists, but "amusment" isn't serious enough.

Perhaps "labor of love" would satisfy all :)

"Schtick"?
 
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mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I can see the problem with the word hobby. If you chew gum once a month, or every day, it's not exactly a hobby. Maybe if you collect flavors and have a special cabinet to display them, it becomes a hobby.

If you have a cob and smoke it on your summer vacation, that's not exactly a hobby. Once you get a rack and have an array of blends, it becomes more like a hobby.

I'm not sure it ever ascends to a religious practice or a way of life. That sounds a little glorified, but in some cultures pipe smoking is part of religious ceremonies.

Most of us on Forums would have to plead guilty to having a pipe smoking hobby, or resort to a semantic argument. Hobby does sound a little insipid, but most non-pipe smokers would think it appropriate.

As the old joke goes, call me anything, just don't call me late for supper.
 

olkofri

Lifer
Sep 9, 2017
8,033
14,644
The Arm of Orion
Hobby? Yeah, for some it is in very deed.

Like so many other activities, it depends on how each individual approaches it.

I've found that the less you try to please others, the more at peace you are likely to be with yourself. (Which is not an endorsement of individualism, by the way. [In things essential, be one; in all other things, be free.])
 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
60,846
553,737
@JimInks
Is smoking all new blends and then posting your reviews a hobby for you? Not the actual activity of smoking pipes, but the reviews? I would think that it's a hobby.

Sorry to drag you into this...just curious.
Never gave it any thought before now. I just do what I do. Revieiwing is just a natural thing for me to do. I guess it could be considered a hobby. One with passion.
 
Jan 30, 2020
1,850
6,086
New Jersey
Hey, how come no one’s done that dumb ass in before the lock thing yet?
I hot water flush my $1000 filtered corn cobs daily. That should do it.

If I picked up any blend the local store had and smoked it in my one pipe mindlessly, I wouldn’t call it a hobby. I don’t do that as I invest more time and interest into it where non-pipe smokers wonder what’s wrong with me. It’s clearly beyond something I just happen to do.
 
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