Greetings to The Brothers of Briar Members

First... thank-you for having me as a member. I'm sure that not only will it be enjoyable to read all the postings on various subjects, but that I will also learn many pipe-ish things, here also.

Born and "bred" in New York City, and have been smoking my modest briar pipe collection, on and off, since 1966 the year I turned 16 years old. Being allowed by my parents to smoke a pipe when I turned 16 yrs. old, was a big milestone in my life. I considered myself as a grownup, a man!...and the girls would just flock to me because I was different then the rest of the skinny, jerks who smoked cigarettes. Well, it didn't quite turn out as I planned, girl-wise. Yada, yada, yada.....fast forward. In my salad days, I learned how to hate my pipes. Smoked cheapo tobaccos, gooey aromatics, and smoke the pipe all wrong. Tongue-bite, gurgling-juicy smokes, acrid-rank smells, oxidized bits, smelly ashtrays, sticky pipe cleaners....YECH! Concurrently, pipe shops in NYC started closing down by the dozens, and the price of briar pipes, and tobaccos skyrocketed. So I stopped smoking about 20 years ago.

I'm back. My pipes laid there, for 20 years, in a forgotten drawer, comatose.....and each time I saw them, they begged me to ...."give us one more chance"..... So, I joined a few pipe smoking forums, watched some very informative You-Tube videos, asked questions, followed suggestions, and now.... I can actually enjoy the art of smoking my briar pipes once again.

So now your up to date. I'm still discovering the merits and demerits of some of the various mixtures and blends that are now available to us pipe smokers. Back when I started to pick up the pipe this incredible variety of blend choices, and computer-shopping was nonexistent. All my favorite B&M tobacco shops are gone like Wilke's, Wally Frank, De La Concha, Barkley Rex (many locations back in the day), and most of them have become cigar lounges. Too bad. The aromas wafting around the old-timey Tobacconist shops was not to be believed! I miss those days. Gone, also, are all the hole-in-the-wall, "Pipe Hospitals" that operated in lower-Manhattan. What's a "pipe hospital"? Back in the day, a guy could get his pipe repaired while he waited, or even more commonly done, men dropped off their broken pipes at one of these "pipe hospitals" in the morning, went to work, and they just picked up their refreshed, and repaired pipes, when quitting time rolled around. Very convenient for the many pipe-smokers walking around the streets of NYC. These quaint, "pipe hospitals" were nothing more that 4' X 6' wooden shacks. They looked very much like today's garden/storage sheds. All had a small lathe, plenty of files, and other hand tools, plenty of briar and Vulcanite dust, and hundreds of repaired and unclaimed pipes hanging all over the ceiling, dangling from strings. Eye candy for this young, sixteen year old "man".

That was then, and this is now. So....on with the show. Thanks for the interest.

Frank
NYC

Those were the days, my friend. I remember those places well. And you could smoke in movie theater loges! Welcome to the cabal. (I too started on the pipe at age 16. No hiatus, however, other than a six-month fascination with premium cigars, a new discovery at the time.)

Great intro Frank, and glad to have you aboard. Welcome to BoB, and I look forward to more of your reminiscences.


Cheers,

RR

Informative intro, thank you and welcome!

Welcome Frank. I enjoyed your talk about the city. It brought back memories for me as I was a boy growing up across the Hudson and visited the city many times. I hope you enjoy this board as much as I do.

Welcome to BoB, Frank! I hope you enjoy your time here

"T"

Thank-you one and all. Been lurking here for a while and decided to take the plunge and join up...and, so I did.

Sorry for the long, rambling intro. I have a tendency to be a little long winded. Yell at me when that happens. Looking forward to some learnin' from you guys and gals. See... I could be politically correct when I want, which ain't too often.

Love making new friends that share my interests. Love re-smoking my pipes. Most of the pipes that I own were bought 20-40 years ago, when meat was cheap. Back then, I knew absolutely nothing about fine pipes and tobaccos. I smoked "Mixture No. 79" because my father did so when he was in the Coast Guard (WW-ll), and sometimes "Sugar Barrel". Got sick to my stomach, way too many times to count and had no idea just how to suck on my briars. In my youth I did everything fast, including smoking my pipes. Freight-trained through a lot of leaf, crappy leaf, and nicotined my way into hating pipe-smoking for a looooong time. Until recently. Lurked around some pipe-smoking forums, watched some informative You-Tube videos that taught me a few things, and now I'm back, increasing my carbon footprint. Screw, Al Gore!

Like to smoke my pipes. After I got me some learnin', I can do it much more betterer than I used to do it. Now, those old briars can do what they were born to do. I can sit back and watch the world go by in a smoky reverie.

Just so you know, I ain't confrontational, and will not argue a point to death. Not me. Ain't in my DNA, and it ain't worth the trouble. You know what they say about opinions......

So, I'll be back, and post.... when I think I have something to say of interest......


Frank
NYC

Welcome to the forum! One day turnaround on pipe repairs you say? Must have been the Golden Age......

Hello Frank, a warm welcome to the BoB. I'm looking forward to reading your postings.

AJ

We have a few members over 100, but you're the first over 800.
Welcome to BoB, old-timer!

Yes....Hermit.  

The forum has listed my age at 823.  Sometimes, I feel that way when I get out a a too soft chair, but, I'm not ready for the "Marble Orchard" just yet.

Funny.....

Frank
NYC

BTW....how do I correct/edit the wrong age notation?

**********************************************************

Just went into my "profile", and edited my DOB. I make these annoying kinds of mistakes all the time. : ))

BriarPipeNYC wrote:

Yes....Hermit.  

The forum has listed my age at 823.  Sometimes, I feel that way when I get out a a too soft chair, but, I'm not ready for the "Marble Orchard" just yet.

Funny.....

Frank
NYC

BTW....how do I correct/edit the wrong age notation?

Hit 'profile' on the BoB bar on the top of the page, and, if it doesn't popup as the first page, 'information'

changing your birthdate is about 1/2 down the page, after 'gender'

Thanks....I just this second, edited my DOB. Sorry.


Frank

Great intro Frank. I look forward to reading your posts.

Welcome to BoB.

A warm welcome from Blighty, Frank.

Glad you rediscovered your briars!

Welcome to BoB Frank. Sorry for replying so late, but been extremely busy. Looking forward to your posts.

Welcome from the Mile High City!

Welcome, Frank,, I enjoyed your posts,,,Love too chat with you some time..

Stick wrote:

A warm welcome from Blighty, Frank.

Glad you rediscovered your briars!

Just re-read your post Frank and enjoyed it again as much as the first time. Very interesting read mate, thank you!

Great to have you with us Frank. Welcome back to the wonderful world of pipe smoking.

BB