Smokin'
Although I can’t stand cigarettes, over the last four or five years I’ve had anywhere from 1 to 5 cigars a year on average. Just on social occasions or with mates at work. But over the last 5 weeks up here at Christmas Island I’ve had at least a dozen cigars of varying sizes and qualities.
And I’m starting to seriously like them.
Well, when I say like them... they’re a bit of a mixed bag, really. I quite like the taste and the feeling - especially the emotional reaction one gets when smoking - one of relief or relaxation. And there's a certain sort of old world nostalgia about cigars. But I don’t like the ashtray mouth that persists for the rest of the day, or the burning feeling in the mouth one gets occasionally. Nor do I like the tightness in the chest I’ve been getting lately - although its hard to tell if its anxiety about the risk of cancer or the fact that I’m asthmatic and the smoke is damaging my lungs. Its probably the former since one doesn’t really inhale cigar smoke.
The first feelings of addiction are there. There’s a very definite hunger for more. The same kind of hunger I’ve felt with coke or chocolate or chips. The feeling that the day won’t be quite complete without a cigar.
For a week or so, I had one cigar a night. Then I decided to cut it down to one every two days. Today, I threw my cigar in the bin (Oh, what a waste!). I’ve really got enough addictions in my life. I’ve kicked chocolate and coke recently and the weight seems to be coming off. Cigars are now on my drop-list as well.
(sigh).
I really do like smoking cigars. I wonder what a pipe would be like to smoke? A bit Lord of the Rings-ish, really. Funny how you never see Aragorn coughing his guts up after 80 years of smoking pipe weed, eh?
And I’m starting to seriously like them.
Well, when I say like them... they’re a bit of a mixed bag, really. I quite like the taste and the feeling - especially the emotional reaction one gets when smoking - one of relief or relaxation. And there's a certain sort of old world nostalgia about cigars. But I don’t like the ashtray mouth that persists for the rest of the day, or the burning feeling in the mouth one gets occasionally. Nor do I like the tightness in the chest I’ve been getting lately - although its hard to tell if its anxiety about the risk of cancer or the fact that I’m asthmatic and the smoke is damaging my lungs. Its probably the former since one doesn’t really inhale cigar smoke.
The first feelings of addiction are there. There’s a very definite hunger for more. The same kind of hunger I’ve felt with coke or chocolate or chips. The feeling that the day won’t be quite complete without a cigar.
For a week or so, I had one cigar a night. Then I decided to cut it down to one every two days. Today, I threw my cigar in the bin (Oh, what a waste!). I’ve really got enough addictions in my life. I’ve kicked chocolate and coke recently and the weight seems to be coming off. Cigars are now on my drop-list as well.
(sigh).
I really do like smoking cigars. I wonder what a pipe would be like to smoke? A bit Lord of the Rings-ish, really. Funny how you never see Aragorn coughing his guts up after 80 years of smoking pipe weed, eh?