Where Are the Women Pipe Smokers?

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judcole

Lifer
Sep 14, 2011
7,149
32,928
Detroit
This is a debate on every forum that is "male dominated" that I have seen. Bass players. Tuba players. LS engines. Weaving...oh wait that was only male dominated until the 19th century.

Most of the time we males can be hostile in ways that we do not necessarily realize. (Complimenting looks rather than knowledge or, in this case pipes specifically with a direct reference to the gender of the smoker.) Make fun as you wish but often we don't realize how our "compliments" come across.

Finally, many have been run off due to private messages that are less than...dare I say it...gentlemanly.
I dare say this hits it right on the nose, I remember well a long discussion on this very forum about whether it was appropriate for women to smoke a pipe, and several members vehemently saying that it was a male thing only.
Discussions about "manliness" help set a tone as well - "manliest" pipe shapes, tobaccos, "manly" poems, etc. People posting threads about being upset because they can't open carry into their favorite B&M. Et cetera, et cetera, ad infinitum. This forum often reeks of testosterone.

There were several women back in the old Yahoo Pipesmokers2 newsgroup who participated in the discussions. That place was a lot less testosterone fueled than this forum is. We also have a couple who are active in the PipesMagazine Facebook group. That FB group, however, is about pipes, tobacco, and accessories only.
 

Casual

Lifer
Oct 3, 2019
2,577
9,420
NL, CA
Unpopular opinion: there is nothing wrong with male only spaces, hobbies, clubs, or interactions.

Take a woman only space and throw a man in there, and you will see their behaviour change as well. They will start the stereotypical sexual signalling behaviours, just the female versions. Same as you see here when a woman shows up, just we display the male version.

There is a good reason to have both male only and female only spaces, as well as the coed ones.
 

agnosticpipe

Lifer
Nov 3, 2013
3,332
3,413
In the sticks in Mississippi
My wife has been smoking a pipe since the early 1980s, but has little interest in discussing pipes and tobaccos with others. She's not the type to join anything for the sake of being in a group to share her ideas and thoughts. She has just always liked to smoke a pipe when she feels like it, whether inside or outside, with little said about it. She does have favorite pipes and tobaccos though, and will talk to me about them when she feels like it. I, on the other hand love to tinker with restoring pipes, and like talking about pipes and tobacco with others. I don't know if she is more like other women or not when it comes to smoking a pipe, I'm just glad she likes sharing it with me.

fullsizeoutput_1f58.jpeg
 
Jan 28, 2018
12,955
134,672
67
Sarasota, FL
Well, hell Telescope, you must have not been here for my pipesmoking in the pool pictures. One of the reasons guys give me such a hard time on here is because they’re jealous of how beautiful I am. puffy
I think one reason women supposedly love you so much is the same reason they don't like pipes. That is, they don't like large objects in their mouths.
 

bullet08

Lifer
Nov 26, 2018
8,932
37,916
RTP, NC. USA
Well, issue with PM can be solved easily. We all know what sexual harassment can do now days. And once reported to admin, I'm pretty sure some action will be taken. As to why they don't join, no clue. When I was on other forum, it was very popular with both men and women. There weren't any specific issues between them. Of course, that forum was not regarding pipes and tobacco.
 

olkofri

Lifer
Sep 9, 2017
8,033
14,644
The Arm of Orion
When I was on other forum, it was very popular with both men and women. There weren't any specific issues between them.
I've noticed this as well. I've been on computers, photography, pipes, and leatherwork fora. In others as well, but those have been my mainstay, check-daily, spend-all-day-there fora. The photography and leatherwork have many women actively participating, the computers and pipes hardly any. Just the way it is, male and female natures being different in order to be complementary.

I don't see the reason to sweat the paucity of women here, or—worse—embark on some affirmative action absurdity to bring more members of the fair sex to this place.
 

musicman

Lifer
Nov 12, 2019
1,119
6,052
Cincinnati, OH
Most probably are just trying to avoid unwanted male attention. That’d be my guess anyway.
This right here. There's a pattern here. Female pipe smoker joins, and posts their welcome, often with a pic (most often, a totally normal pic too). About 70 percent of the replies are standard and welcoming, but about 30 percent are of the "yeah baby" variety, maybe not as overt as that, but in the same vein. Women in the United States and many other places already have to deal with a constant stream of unwanted advances. Why would they spend time here if this website is no exception? Then the woman sticks around for 1-4 weeks and we never see them post again. They don't come here looking for a mate.

Men: When a lady posts here, answer them as if they were just another person posting. They aren't looking for compliments and comments on their gender or appearance. Most of you are very gentlemanly and understand this (and btw, these days it is not "gentlemanly" to make unwanted comments about a woman's appearance etc.), but the few that insist on doing otherwise are ruining the site for these ladies.
 

PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
One thing I can say for certain, is that the younger generation of younger girls/women, late teens to early twenties, does participate in the online world of computer gaming, in many games that use to be in the past, mainly male dominated, and I mean, Shooter Games, not girly games at all.

I’ve been playing online shooter games for many years, with female gamers 3x younger then me.

So when it comes to the younger generations male and female, they are actually hanging out together online.

I am an extreme PC Gamer, I play Apex Legends daily, amongst other games, and in Discord communities, there are girls everywhere.

Let’s face it, smoking in any form has always had a bad reputation, and it’s not something the newer generations are particularly drawn too either.

Pro Female Gamers too!

 
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judcole

Lifer
Sep 14, 2011
7,149
32,928
Detroit
, the computers and pipes hardly any. Just the way it is, male and female natures being different in order to be complementary.
I'm retired IT. In my 30 years in the industry, I had lots of female colleagues...and some darned good ones, to boot. I've found it fascinating - and sad - how somehow this has become seen as a male field, when some of our greatest pioneers were women. Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, anyone?
Grace_Hopper_1963.jpg

Grace_Hopper.jpg
 

Zack Miller

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 13, 2020
643
1,948
Fort Worth, Texas
I'm retired IT. In my 30 years in the industry, I had lots of female colleagues...and some darned good ones, to boot. I've found it fascinating - and sad - how somehow this has become seen as a male field, when some of our greatest pioneers were women. Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, anyone?
Grace_Hopper_1963.jpg

Grace_Hopper.jpg
When we lived in Maine, my wife worked at Bath Iron Works. We would always go to the launchings of the newest destroyer. When they launched the Grace Hopper, I think it was about zero degrees. Froze our butts off.