Have you ever had something in the back of your mind that you liked and wanted to do but somehow it was never the right time or life got in the way?
For me that was pipes. Whether it was Captain Haddock in Tintin or Sherlock Holmes or movies like Lord of the Rings where the characters smoked a pipe, pipe smoking impressed itself on me.
But as we know tobacco has been vilified in society as “cancer causing” and so the idea of smoking in general is looked down upon. Which partially explains why I probably delayed getting a pipe.
The other reason is that I always thought I was too young for it. Pipe smokers are generally portrayed as being older and that was my impression.
Now that I’m 51 years old I decided I’m old enough to sport a pipe without looking odd.
The latest medical research shows that nicotine is actually beneficial to human health and the human body has nicotine receptors built into it.
Certain vegetables like tomatoes and aubergines actually contain nicotine.
People have also realised it’s the added chemicals in cigarettes which cause cancer, and not the tobacco.
Tobacco smoking goes back to about 5000 - 3000 BC according to Wikipedia. That’s a long time. Tobacco smoking is not new to man, it is in fact an ancient practice.
Besides, there are countless pipe smokers in ripe old age who have smoked their entire lives with no trace of cancer or other smoking related issues. The oldest I’ve heard of was 96 years old and he smoked a pipe since the age of twenty but no doubt he is far from unique in this aspect. On YouTube alone I’ve read many comments from people who’ve smoked a pipe 40+ years.
All this gives me peace of mind that pipe smoking is safe and even healthy, and so I can enjoy it without worry. Ironically pipe smoking is a very relaxing pastime which forces you by its nature to slow down, smoke slowly and relax. So you could say it benefits both body and mind.
I’m still learning and it’s not as easy as you might think. You need to taste a lot of ash as you persist in practicing until you master the correct technique. But it’s something all pipe smokers have had to endure. Learn by doing.
I am finally getting better at it and I find it more enjoyable than cigar smoking because cigars have one taste (I’m taking about non flavoured cigars) whereas pipe tobacco is surprisingly complex in flavour and variety of flavours obtained through blending various types of tobaccos. You can get aromatic blends where a flavour like vanilla or cherry has been added but I avoid those and only use pure tobacco blends because I want it as pure and healthy as possible.
Maybe you also were impressed on by pipe smoking when you were younger? Did you try it? If not, maybe it’s time you did as well? Just saying.
