The Smokers' Thread
- Thread starter W3H5
- 174 comments
- 22,875 views
- 5,481
- Seattle, WA
- RykonZero
I feel I should mention as part of my 18th birthday, I've gotten a cigar. I'll probably smoke it tomorrow if I have time.
Good! Don't stop with this cigar. Get another one and another one and ..... .
- 5,481
- Seattle, WA
- RykonZero
Both. I've done cigarettes before, they really didn't interest me, and I was afraid of the addiction. I'm fairly certain I can avoid it by treating a cigar as a treat, a once in a while occasion. If I like it, I might keep a humidor around with a few cigars for a special occasion. If not, then at least I know.
That said, something's gotta be said about the implied refinement in smoking a cigar. I wish nothing more than to feel like a sir. If only I could grow a magnificent moustache.
Oh, and I should mention I requested the cigar myself.
Geez, I drink tea, want to smoke a cigar, and love whiskey, I think I was born in the wrong country and era.
- 5,481
- Seattle, WA
- RykonZero
Well, I'll try to avoid it regardless. At least with cigars I'm not risking lung cancer.
Ibonibo
Premium
- 5,440
- Luxemburg
- Already paying my Isp 4 Access
^Mouth cancer isn't that nicer to you 
I have a cigar laying around here too, It's a cuban.
Been laying around for a few months (it's
ed), as other have said, fear of inhaling due to the habit with cigarettes. Probably will smoke it though soonish on a occassion (getting new car).
I have a cigar laying around here too, It's a cuban
.Been laying around for a few months (it's
- 19,311
- Inland Empire SoCal
- SOLID_LIFTERS
Unless you inhale like I do from time to time.
- 5,139
- SLO
- playnthru
I stared smoking cigarettes when I was 12. I quit at age 28, then started smoking cigars. Smoked cigars for about 2 years until I went back to cigarettes. Then finally at age 30 quit for good. Now elven years later and I have not had a smoke since. 
👍
I do however occasionally smoke (prescription medication).
Which is legal as per my states laws.
I use it to combat an ongoing (2 + year) medical condition. It was prescribed because none of the prescription medication (pills 
) have done much good.
👍I do however occasionally smoke (prescription medication).
Which is legal as per my states laws. I use it to combat an ongoing (2 + year) medical condition. It was prescribed because none of the prescription medication (pills ) have done much good.
- 7,663
- Pasadena, MD
- Minty TS
I have nothing against smokers or the concept, and I'm not trying to talk anyone out of it if they want to. Just that it seems like a bad idea to smoke it just because it was a gift and you don't want to seem rude or something.
I see no problem with Cigars as a gift if the person's already had one or if you know they want to try one, which:
That's all good then.
Was just curious if you were giving it a go because it was something you'd actually wanted. I've seen people get hooked on stuff they wouldn't have tried if they hadn't received it as a gift.
The mustache should start growing in with the cigars. Give it time.
- 30,036
- Thailand
I bought one about a year back. Just 8GBP here in China as, IIRC, they were invented here and are the most popular thing since getting jabbed in the eye with broken glass!
I didn't find it helped suppress the cravings for a real smoke although the one I bought tasted much better than a real 'smoke'. I even took it into work and puffed it in the office but found I had to hit a few puffs every 15 minutes or so where as I'd go for a cigarette around once an hour.
Then the bloody thing runs out of charge and I start chewing my nails off. I gave up after a few weeks of using it.
Cigars and pipe tobacco don't have the same massive addictiveness as cigarette tobacco which is littered with nasty chemicals to keep it burning.
- 30,036
- Thailand
Good question. I honestly would like a moment to explain so please await my edit. I'm going to smoke while I think of an answer.
(This is not me being cheeky, I'm really due a smoke and I want to think over why I do smoke. Like I said, good question. 👍 )
OK, here goes:
In the morning when I wake I smoke first thing, before dressing. It's a habit, the same habit which reminds me to take my medicine in the morn. Sometimes if I don't have time for a smoke after waking I also forget to drop my meds. Like I say, habit.
After breakfast I like to have a smoke because somehow a cigarette rounds off a meal very nicely. It's hard to explain to a non-smoker.
During the day I like to break up my working hours by taking a short break every hour or so and lighting up, it breaks a monotonous routine of sitting by a computer all day or going from class to class with no distraction (for lack of a better word.).
In the same way that some people chew gum, I smoke. It's not healthy, I regret starting but it's become so much a part of my life that going without would mean a radical overhaul of my life, which, incidentally, is the reason I still suffer from alcoholism; habits are hard to replace with other habits and even harder to break completely.
Do I enjoy smoking? 75% of the time. The other 25% is addiction or the necessity to smoke from the control nicotine has over my brain functions.
I could go into more detail but without diverting from the subject of smoking and delving into addiction in general, I hope this is a decent enough answer to your question.
Also, a favourite line of mine from Trainspotting, from Begbie complaining about Mark Renton being a junkie while himself smoking a cigarette and drinking alcohol:
"You wouldn't catch me puttin' any o' that **** in my body.."
(This is not me being cheeky, I'm really due a smoke and I want to think over why I do smoke. Like I said, good question. 👍 )
OK, here goes:
In the morning when I wake I smoke first thing, before dressing. It's a habit, the same habit which reminds me to take my medicine in the morn. Sometimes if I don't have time for a smoke after waking I also forget to drop my meds. Like I say, habit.
After breakfast I like to have a smoke because somehow a cigarette rounds off a meal very nicely. It's hard to explain to a non-smoker.
During the day I like to break up my working hours by taking a short break every hour or so and lighting up, it breaks a monotonous routine of sitting by a computer all day or going from class to class with no distraction (for lack of a better word.).
In the same way that some people chew gum, I smoke. It's not healthy, I regret starting but it's become so much a part of my life that going without would mean a radical overhaul of my life, which, incidentally, is the reason I still suffer from alcoholism; habits are hard to replace with other habits and even harder to break completely.
Do I enjoy smoking? 75% of the time. The other 25% is addiction or the necessity to smoke from the control nicotine has over my brain functions.
I could go into more detail but without diverting from the subject of smoking and delving into addiction in general, I hope this is a decent enough answer to your question.
Also, a favourite line of mine from Trainspotting, from Begbie complaining about Mark Renton being a junkie while himself smoking a cigarette and drinking alcohol:
"You wouldn't catch me puttin' any o' that **** in my body.."
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- 8,100
- Guelph, Ontario
Alright. 👍
But with bad food, you can counteract it with exercise and good eating habits. I wouldn't dislike smoking so much if there was a way for you to, "work off" the effects like you can with a Pepsi.
Plus the stench...
And I feel that living in the city isn't a choice for some people like smoking is.
(For what it's worth, I can't stand the city.)
[/QUOTE]
Smoking is a personal choice and I used to find it very enjoyable and relaxing.[/QUOTE]
I understand that part, what I can't understand is why people smoke knowing that you can get addicted to it.
Edit:
Thanks for taking the time to respond, but it still doesn't quite explain to me why people do it.
It explains why you continue to do it, but I still wonder why people start in the first place.
I mean, it lowers your fitness, is expensive, the smell, can kill you, and while it does make you feel good, there are a lot of other things in the world that you can enjoy that doesn't harm you.
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- 30,036
- Thailand
I ran 10km yesterday in just under an hour and a half after not having been on the 'mill since summer last year. No issues there.
I also cycle middle distance (40-60km) at fast pace on a regular basis. Doing this allows me to smoke without inducing the same crippling health problems that a non-active person would face from smoking.
I also eat almost exclusively at McDonald's most days of the week and drink Coke like it's going out of fashion. I'm still maintain better levels of health and fitness than many non-smokers, non-drinkers and healthy eaters despite these flaws of mine. Can I put it down to natural fitness? I don't know. Is my metabolism part responsible? Probably. Does it help that I keep myself in good shape from physical exercise? Definitely.
I'm not saying smoking doesn't affect me. Without the smokes I could be super fit, but it something I have to live with.
Now that is something ironic to me. I walked to the bus stop today and from the bus to the office wearing a respirator because this city has seriously dangerous levels of pollution (see aqicn.info - Chongqing city), yet I smoke 20 a day.
Yes I'm worried about my health from the air pollution which leads to me wearing a respirator but I don't worry enough about putting cigarette smoke into myself because my brain tells me I need to. Addiction is a mother flipper!
Why did I start? At 17 years old I felt there was something missing from my daily routine so one day decided to buy a ten box of smokes. Didn't get through them all that day. Continued the next. Never looked back after that. Stupid really, but hey, we all do stupid things sometimes in our lives, right?
- 8,100
- Guelph, Ontario
That's one of the main things that bugs me, knowing how much better it would be if you didn't smoke.
Couldn't agree with that more, Dad and I always used to try and get my Mom to quit, but nothing ever worked.
The part that pisses me off is that while my Grandmother is dying in the hospital from some sort of cigarette induced cancer, my Mom is still smoking.
What the hell...
I find that quite sad. No disrespect to you, it's just the way I feel about it.
Aww hell yeah.
- 2,037
- Colorado
Why people do it is a very difficult question. For me, and a lot of people I know, it was a rebellious act in Highschool. We knew our parents, the teachers, the coaches, and other authority figures hated it, and it was instant recognition that we were "bad" kids, and that made us feel good for whatever reason. It also gave us a sense of identity, much the same way this very thread brought GTP smokers together to discuss the habit. Looking back is was unbelievably stupid, but I understand why at least.
As for reversing the effects of junk food, I actually think it's just as bad as smoking. I know that eating a bunch of crap can't just sneak up and do you in like smoking can, and I know that even though I don't smoke anymore, it still might get me. But, on the whole, people who get cancer from smoking, usually get it after 30-40 years of twenty plus cigarettes a day. Now, if you can compulsively do something, anything, bad twenty times a day for 40 years, I guarantee it might kill you. If you eat 20 candy bars a day for 40 years I know the effects will be severe. That being said, people who are addicted and compulsively eat junk food have about the same health problems as smokers at about the same age - heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, low blood sugar. That is not a defense to smoking, but rather a testament to how bad junk food actually is. As time goes on we're finding out that junk food is a lot worse than previously thought as the junk food generation nears middle age, the cases of severe, life threatening illness are skyrocketing. Smoking is very bad, yes, and I wish i never had smoked, and you're right a casual Pepsi can be worked off, but my point is compulsive consumption of bad food and drinks is just as harmful as cigarettes, but doesn't get the same bad rap, and maybe it should.
- 30,036
- Thailand
Since giving up beer I've had a compulsion to drink Coke. The difference between Coke and cigarettes? Coke doesn't make me want to drink it by implanting its idea for the next Coke in my mind.
I drink anywhere from 2 - 6 cans of Coke a day. But there are days when I go without and not get worked up about it. If I go half a day without a smoke I start pulling my hair out because nicotine has seeded the need to smoke the next cigarette in my mind as soon as I put out the current one.
Will drinking too much Coke have worse negative effects than smoking? Probably not because I'm energetic and burn through most of the sugar, calories and other things in Coke throughout my day.
I've actually just been out on lunch and bought a new box. It's something that is always on my mind. I also bought a Coke. If I was limited for cash can you guess what I would choose to buy?
I drink anywhere from 2 - 6 cans of Coke a day. But there are days when I go without and not get worked up about it. If I go half a day without a smoke I start pulling my hair out because nicotine has seeded the need to smoke the next cigarette in my mind as soon as I put out the current one.
Will drinking too much Coke have worse negative effects than smoking? Probably not because I'm energetic and burn through most of the sugar, calories and other things in Coke throughout my day.
I've actually just been out on lunch and bought a new box. It's something that is always on my mind. I also bought a Coke. If I was limited for cash can you guess what I would choose to buy?
- 3,679
- Warwick Uni
- lbsf1 GTP_lbsf1
- obsmu (my brothers acount)
Agree with shem about smoking not meaning you are automatically a wheezing bag of bones. I cycle about 7 miles a day (to get to and from the train station to get to college) and when I go mountain biking I can push harder for longer than lots of other non smokers. I know smoking doesn't help however lots of non smokers seem to think that smoking automatically means you get out of breath at the thought of excersise.
Saying that though I get very worn out running up stairs however thats probably more due to my complete hatred of running, I can cycle for miles upon miles however can't run more than a couple of hundred metres.
Saying that though I get very worn out running up stairs however thats probably more due to my complete hatred of running, I can cycle for miles upon miles however can't run more than a couple of hundred metres.
- 6,804
- The Netherlands
That's assuming people always make logical or sensible choices
, as for me, I can't really recall the moment I decided to smoke other than that at the time I started (when I was 18 like I mentioned before) most of my mates smoked and I was going to a lot of concerts and parties where inhaling second hand smoke was a given (so I got exposed or used to it more than before) making the barrier to lighten up a cigarette myself significantly lower.At that age I was fully aware of its consequences ofcourse and I was always an anti-smoker before (my mum smoked and I hated it, couldn't understand why she did it or anyone else for that matter) making it even less of a logical step but as I said the circumstances changed (and I changed) and at some point I started to smoke myself occasionally thinking I could stop at any point as at that age you also tend to overestimate your abilities.
Obviously, your reasoning is the healthy one and I won't try to justify my decision to smoke other than give an explanation as to why someone would start smoking in the first place.
ADzstat
(Banned)
- 100
- Hampshire
- ADzstat
That's assuming people always make logical or sensible choices
At that age I was fully aware of its consequences ofcourse and I was always an anti-smoker before (my mum smoked and I hated it, couldn't understand why she did it or anyone else for that matter) making it even less of a logical step but as I said the circumstances changed (and I changed) and at some point I started to smoke myself occasionally thinking I could stop at any point as at that age you also tend to overestimate your abilities.
Obviously, your reasoning is the healthy one and I won't try to justify my decision to smoke other than give an explanation as to why someone would start smoking in the first place.
I only smoke when I'm on fire 
- 1,945
- Treviglio
- PAPPACLART
- PAPPALCART
I smoke Rollies. In the UK I smoked Golden Virginia but in Australia where I am it is hard to get hold of so I smoke Winfield Gold instead.
