Re-thinking Wistfulness for Tobacco Exclusivity

[briarfoxx]

I’ll preface this with the fact that I also have a habit of trying as many blends as I think I may like and have way too many opened tins laying around. I attribute that to the fact that people don’t always behave as they believe is best for themselves.

That said, I think dismissing the potential benefits of simplifying your life by limiting your consumptive behavior based on the likelihood that old-timers only did so due to the reality of their time and situation rather than due to a stoic personal choice of self-discipline is a mistake.

The cause of the old-timer having limited consumptive options doesn’t matter. What matters is what effects such a situation (or its opposite) has on a person. The fact is that there likely are psychological benefits to having fewer choices. Studies have shown that having an abundance of choices causes stress and anxiety. Modern advances have many benefits but negative side effects come with them. Studies also show that spending a minimum of three consecutive days in nature has tremendous benefit to your psyche as well—also something many people of the past enjoyed in their lives as a matter of course. But if you now don’t live in the country, doing so requires a concerted effort on your part.

All of that isn’t to say anyone shouldn’t pursue their piping hobby as they see fit. My only point is that trying to emulate a lifestyle that sounds psychologically beneficial by imposing “artificial” limitations on your consumptive behavior—rather than having those limitations imposed upon you by your environment—doesn’t make it any less worthwhile a pursuit.

 

[SBC]

I’ll preface this with the fact that I also have a habit of trying as many blends as I think I may like and have way too many opened tins laying around. I attribute that to the fact that people don’t always behave as they believe is best for themselves.

That said, I think dismissing the potential benefits of simplifying your life by limiting your consumptive behavior based on the likelihood that old-timers only did so due to the reality of their time and situation rather than due to a stoic personal choice of self-discipline is a mistake.

The cause of the old-timer having limited consumptive options doesn’t matter. What matters is what effects such a situation (or its opposite) has on a person. The fact is that there likely are psychological benefits to having fewer choices. Studies have shown that having an abundance of choices causes stress and anxiety. Modern advances have many benefits but negative side effects come with them. Studies also show that spending a minimum of three consecutive days in nature has tremendous benefit to your psyche as well—also something many people of the past enjoyed in their lives as a matter of course. But if you now don’t live in the country, doing so requires a concerted effort on your part.

All of that isn’t to say anyone shouldn’t pursue their piping hobby as they see fit. My only point is that trying to emulate a lifestyle that sounds psychologically beneficial by imposing “artificial” limitations on your consumptive behavior—rather than having those limitations imposed upon you by your environment—doesn’t make it any less worthwhile a pursuit.

This is very well put. I certainly don't disagree.

You'll notice that the only point I made along those lines is that a choice to limit ourselves would not be identical to a previous generation's choice being limited for them.

But having made that point, you're absolutely correct that limitations in many arenas of life -- be they imposed externally or internally -- are healthy and formative. We're not better people for our affluence.

We do sometimes fall for the psychological trick that if an historical dynamic was "just the way it had to be, then," then such a dynamic (if more intentionally imposed, now) would be of no value to us, now (even if it was of spiritual value to them, then).

But why? If it's a healthy dynamic, then it's a healthy dynamic. It might just take greater intentionality, now.

Our exposure to myriad options (food, vehicles, clothes, women) has not made us more content.

 

[Sam Gamgee]

Our exposure to myriad options (food, vehicles, clothes, women) has not made us more content.

You are correct. I was having a discussion with a fellow not long ago about how, once upon a time (for most of human history), a man would prob only see one woman naked his whole life, and he would likely have been content with that one woman. Now with the ubiquity of pornography, a young man will go to his wedding night having seen tens of thousands of naked women, some of whom will haunt him for all of life.

I’m not sure there is any going back for society as a whole (short of a nuclear reset), but for the individual it’s a worthwhile endeavor to simplify one’s life.

 

[SBC]

You are correct. I was having a discussion with a fellow not long ago about how, once upon a time (for most of human history), a man would prob only see one woman naked his whole life, and he would likely have been content with that one woman. Now with the ubiquity of pornography, a young man will go to his wedding night having seen tens of thousands of naked women, some of whom will haunt him for all of life.

I’m not sure there is any going back for society as a whole (short of a nuclear reset), but for the individual it’s a worthwhile endeavor to simplify one’s life.

In some times and places, not only would you see no other naked women, but you'd see far fewer women, period. Imagine a fellow growing up in a small, isolated village, prior to the advent of our transportation technologies (not to mention our media technologies, which allow us to see depictions of other women). In some times and places, he might not see more than a couple hundred women in his life.

Is such a guy more or less likely to be thrilled with is wife? Not only is he not comparing her @$$, legs, waist, and breasts, to those of others... he's not even comparing her face to more than a couple hundred others!

What we forget is that this has desirable aspects, not only for insecure women, but also for us. Imagine feeling about your wife the way that you think you'd feel with your actress/porn star de jour. That would be great.

We rob ourselves of joy.

 

[briarfoxx]

This is very well put. I certainly don't disagree.

You'll notice that the only point I made along those lines is that a choice to limit ourselves would not be identical to a previous generation's choice being limited for them.

But having made that point, you're absolutely correct that limitations in many arenas of life -- be they imposed externally or internally -- are healthy and formative. We're not better people for our affluence.

We do sometimes fall for the psychological trick that if an historical dynamic was "just the way it had to be, then," then such a dynamic (if more intentionally imposed, now) would be of no value to us, now (even if it was of spiritual value to them, then).

But why? If it's a healthy dynamic, then it's a healthy dynamic. It might just take greater intentionality, now.

Our exposure to myriad options (food, vehicles, clothes, women) has not made us more content.

Yes, good points! One thing I did not mention in my first post that I perhaps should have was that I was only addressing your point #1 (which points I do understand to be more musings, rather than asserted conclusions ).

I agree with points #2 and #3. Eating the same thing repeatedly would get tiresome and nostalgia can be rose-tinted. Hobbits certainly would enjoy a variety of leaf options!

My inclination of thought would probably be that having a small handful of blend options for some change here and there and for different seasons might be the healthiest balance, along with trying the odd new one once in a while.

 

[Steddy]

I have four blends and plenty of pipes to see to my needs forever.

What four Burley blends?

 

[Sam Gamgee]

In some times and places, not only would you see no other naked women, but you'd see far fewer women, period. Imagine a fellow growing up in a small, isolated village, prior to the advent of our transportation technologies (not to mention our media technologies, which allow us to see depictions of other women). In some times and places, he might not see more than a couple hundred women in his life.

Is such a guy more or less likely to be thrilled with is wife? Not only is he not comparing her @$$, legs, waist, and breasts, to those of others... he's not even comparing her face to more than a couple hundred others!

What we forget is that this has desirable aspects, not only for insecure women, but also for us. Imagine feeling about your wife the way that you think you'd feel with your actress/porn star de jour. That would be great.

We rob ourselves of joy.

Man, lots of wisdom and insight here. I wish we were neighbors and smoking buddies. Damn.

Try to imagine the joy of a fellow like you described on his wedding night. The heavens opened!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

In some times and places, not only would you see no other naked women, but you'd see far fewer women, period. Imagine a fellow growing up in a small, isolated village, prior to the advent of our transportation technologies (not to mention our media technologies, which allow us to see depictions of other women). In some times and places, he might not see more than a couple hundred women in his life.

Is such a guy more or less likely to be thrilled with is wife? Not only is he not comparing her @$$, legs, waist, and breasts, to those of others... he's not even comparing her face to more than a couple hundred others!

What we forget is that this has desirable aspects, not only for insecure women, but also for us. Imagine feeling about your wife the way that you think you'd feel with your actress/porn star de jour. That would be great.

We rob ourselves of joy.

Yeh, well, people also never took baths, and smelled like shit. So, they hardly ever took their clothes off. Back in the day, when a bounty hunter was called in for a "dead or alive" they usually chose dead, because the smell of a corpse wasn't that much worse than the smell of someone alive back then.

 

[Chasing Embers]

In some times and places, not only would you see no other naked women, but you'd see far fewer women, period. Imagine a fellow growing up in a small, isolated village, prior to the advent of our transportation technologies (not to mention our media technologies, which allow us to see depictions of other women). In some times and places, he might not see more than a couple hundred women in his life.

Sounds like nirvana.

 

[North Pole piper]

Not entirely sure I'm answering the question at this point but here are my wooden nickels. The internet obviously transformed the relationship between a pipe smoker and their tobacco. I can sit at home and order literally order hundreds of different tobacco's straight to my front door. But in my opinion the single biggest factor in regards to the relationship a pipe smoker has with their tobacco is the removal of smoking from society by government. We are all aware it's not IF but WHEN tobacco is either completely banned or taxed out of existence is only a matter of time, and yes even for the USA, the holy land for tobacco. Fear is what drives tobacco sales today and cellaring. Fear of running out or not being able to afforded it in the future. I often wonder how many of us would cellar or stock pile if we were told tobacco, like in the days of old would be around at a reasonable price until you are pushing daisy's.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I often wonder how many of us would cellar or stock pile if we were told tobacco, like in the days of old would be around at a reasonable price until you are pushing daisy's.

Some cellaring is done to have a blend around in the event of it being discontinued. Losing Mephisto was an early driving force for me to put back more as well.

 

[UB 40]

One of your main sentences @SBC seems to me: “I've wished that I represented something simpler and more rooted -- less influenced by the consumptive mode of a luxurious society.”

It’s the same with onion soup you can always put a simple thing over the top, if you think it in categories of Nouvelle Cuisine.

Maybe To be rooted takes place either from being poor or based on a decision to split from our live style, that industry praises the right way.

I am also have been looking for a variety of things, told that I couldn’t have reached the true thing. Sometimes I am fed up with that stuff, I don’t even watch tv any more.

It’s the feeling to have encountered the most important poles, to be fed up by trend and hypes and things. Sometimes it comes to mind that a limitation to all the needs may widen up the doors of perception (T. Leary) and maybe open a way to consciousness and the things underneath, that may be hidden under the lament of advertising campaigns, breaking news and new movements.

There is an uproaring call to reduce our industrial livestyle, to leave your things, you might move into a small house. Iit is like the Leica Slogan, I think it was one, “one lens, one camera, one film”. It is widely discussed if that this approach leads you to better Images.

But I am not a monk, nor a saint, meditating, I need to eat until and I saturated.

So I move on , so hungry to get new impressions and thoughts as well as new tobaccos, although I encountered the poles of taste and what can be expected from that.

Those people here are discussing a similar thing:

 

[woodsroad]

You are correct. I was having a discussion with a fellow not long ago about how, once upon a time (for most of human history), a man would prob only see one woman naked his whole life, and he would likely have been content with that one woman.

This is most certainly not true. Both men and woman have been shown throughout history to have had multiple sex partners, often out of wedlock. Humans are not monogamous by nature.

 

[brian64]

This is most certainly not true. Both men and woman have been shown throughout history to have had multiple sex partners, often out of wedlock. Humans are not monogamous by nature.

Humans are not monogamous by fallen nature.

(fixed that for you...you're welcome)

 

[SBC]

This is most certainly not true. Both men and woman have been shown throughout history to have had multiple sex partners, often out of wedlock. Humans are not monogamous by nature.

Humans are not always peaceful, by nature. We sometimes murder when not inhibited.
Humans do not always honor ownership, by nature. We sometimes steal when not inhibited.
Humans are not always honest, by nature. We sometimes slander when not inhibited.

None of this proves that our natures are what they were supposed to be.

Certainly, a man who never saw a naked woman besides his wife would still be tempted to covet other women. But his temptation would be magnitudes less exacerbated.

 

[woodsroad]

Humans are not always peaceful, by nature. We sometimes murder when not inhibited.
Humans do not always honor ownership, by nature. We sometimes steal when not inhibited.
Humans are not always honest, by nature. We sometimes slander when not inhibited.

None of this proves that our natures are what they were supposed to be.

Certainly, a man who never saw a naked woman besides his wife would still be tempted to covet other women. But his temptation would be magnitudes less exacerbated.

Being as what you posit is primarily a theological response, and I have no experience in the I’ve only ever seen my wife naked arena, I’ll just leave it as “people love to f~<k strangers”

 

[jpberg]

I’m a one blend smoker. As far as being in a golden age of tobacco, horseshit.
The number of blending houses can practically be counted on one hand, and the variety and quality of leaf has been dropping precipitously for decades.
200 different blends made by 3 or 4 companies from a very small selection of tobacco leaf isn’t golden, it’s marketing.

 

[jpberg]

Being as what you posit is primarily a theological response, and I have no experience in the I’ve only ever seen my wife naked arena, I’ll just leave it as “people love to f~<k strangers”

You free for dinner and a show this weekend?

 

[Searock Fan]

This thread seems to be about sex. I'm married so I don't know anything about that.

 

[The Amish Tyrant]

Sounds like nirvana.

The older I get, the more I comprehend, understand, and respect this concept as to the post you responded to.