Rob - I don't agree with the 'once you're hooked, you're hooked' diagnosis. For me, and likely many others out there, it was a passing fancy. I might have been hooked early one...but that passed and I moved on. I might have smoked it on occasion like many others do, but for me (and this isn't a singular occurance either) I now can't abide it. Blends even having a small amount of Latakia almost offend me. Now for you 'non-Latakia smoker bashers' out there, just take it easy. This isn't a path that I chose, it's just what happened. It's circumstance, not choice...like appendicitis, or whatever.

idbowman: Your dog has the most absolutely perfect face to kiss. I just hope its a female because even though my president has evolved I don't kiss guys. If in fact your dog is a male we have to get Rob in Mo to put a pipe in his mouth because he is a brother.

Dave: We are brothers. Nobody is bashing anybody. We appreciate each other and we love our pipes. We all smoke what we like and like what we smoke. Problems arise when others at home don't like what we like and then we make adjustments. Some of us are banished to the back porch and some to their truck. I for example hate cigarette smoke but I love the aroma of cigars and pipes. Go figure who may find what agreeable or not. Latakia most definitely stinks and is disagreeable to most non pipe smokers. The man enjoying it does not smell the stink so it presents a unique challenge on the home front. I know that you have written positive reports on Stormfront so I purchased a few ounces and I don't do well with burley so each to his own.

Ian: Good news man, especially being intact. Men need to keep their nuts. Send the photo over to Rob and he can take care of the job for you. Rob is a master at adding a pipe to a handsome face. Give your dog a hug for me.

Rob: Give this man a large oom paul please.

Marty - I love the concept...DogBro. He is indeed a brother. My only regret on behalf of of canine kin is that their glorious lives are too short.



And Rob -

Quote:

Too many variables, too many tobaccos, and changing tastes over time to pin it down to a certain tobacco...

No one has likely said it any better! So true. How do I justify likely one blend that has VA/Per/Turkish and not another that has VA/Per/Turkish components....when one might have just a pinch more Smyrna that the other...or Perique (the varying amount of which in a blend can "change everything". Man, when you find the right one for you it's a glory day!

Dave: Agreed. I've loved and lost dogs. As a widower, I've suffered more loss than some others and now living alone I've given much thought to adopting a male German Shepherd for manly companionship. I've decided against it for the time being because of the responsibility of ownership and the fact that I cannot handle another loss. Perhaps in a new home my thoughts will change but I'm dogless for the time being.

Great thread guys. There's nothing better than pipes, tobacco, dogs and guns!!!
Oh yea, almost forgot the Latakia.

Doc: Yes cannot forget the guns we all have and don't forget the alcohol either. We 1948'ers are probably the focus of the Feds (ATF) Ha Ha and we keep dogs to look after us.

Funny you should mention your taste "shift", John, as I just noticed that I'm reaching for the lats more and more. About every three or four years, suddenly about half of what I smoke are latakia blends. It usually lasts about six months or so, than I roll back to perhaps one in five or ten bowls being latakia blends. Odd cycle I seem to go through.

Natch

I have to say, You are all one fun group of Pipesmokers.

I live alone too, now, and I tell ya, threads like this make my day! Everybody poppin in , with somethin to say, things get a little sidetracked, little bit of jokin and hackin, as I read, its almost like we are all sittin in the same room BS'in.
This has got to be the BEST Forum out there!

LIPIPE,, I know a little how you feel, at least concerning dogs.
My last Border Collie was with me for 14 years,,he worked cattle like a pro, and knew his commands. (we had 8 years workin 2,500 hd of Yearlins) He did some amazing things, and he hunted rabbits , and he would spot a fallen dove from the truck, and if I couldnt find it, Id wave my arm , and he'd jump out of the truck, and head straight to the dove, in tall grass..
He traveled all over this country, and into Canada with me. I think in 14 years , we only had 6 days apart, when I went to a grazing school in Colorado.

Then I started Guiding Elk hunts in Idaho, and the second year, I left him home, so I could get out of base camp, and take my hunters into spike camps, where a dog could be a problem,,,,,,That season, I called home, while I was on top of a mountain, with 2 hunters , horseback. I was told my best friend, ran over my dog, and they were saving his body till i came back , up in the barn, (it was freezing temps)
Man, I almost cried like a baby.. took all i had to not let it show, to my hunters.
It took me 4 years of looking at other Border Collies, because I figured I would never find one that would hold up to my old dog..
I did though, finally, and she is 8, but she has these seizures, and one of these days it'll probably take her.
I tell ya,, there aint nothin like havin a good dog. and I sometimes wonder, why, they are such good companions to man, but have such short lives?


LIPIPE, I sure hope you get to the point where you can get yourself a German Sheppard. The day of loss, will be there in the future, but, theres alot of days inbetween, alot of good days, and thats what its about ,in my mind.

Dusty: Good post my friend. It certainly is comfortable to BS with other men in our virtual community. We are an interesting group. We live in vastly different environments, our age differences span 40 years, some have professional skills, others better skilled with their hands, and we have different religious and political affiliations but yes, we really like each other and we look forward to our time together. When men smoke a pipe "together" they are in a supportive environment. The support is nourishing to the inner being and it is always genuine. Men need food for survival, women for physical nourishment and they also need the company of other men to sustain them through the emotional and physical trials a life that is Testosterone driven creates. Our enjoyment of the pipe and our thoughtfulness and our sincerity are the foundations of our brotherhood. Where else could fellas like us, nearly 20 years apart in age, me in the burbs of Long Island on the East Coast meet up with someone such as yourself in SW Montana who is a rancher and a hunter and talk about our beloved dogs? I too lost a pure breed Cocker Spaniel who was hit by a car while I was at work in my office 50 miles away. He left my wife's side in our yard put his nose to the ground and followed a scent right into a roadway. Men are tough on the outside but soft inside. It takes a man to understand manhood and that is the essence of brotherhood. Thanks for your post, your support and your friendship.