PaulHag gets pissed!

[Ms. Floydp]

Originally Posted by floydp

I'm almost 50 like Mark, and I have a flat top. I get looked at funny everywhere I go.

He always says he's funny looking... LOL

It's not true though.

Our local shop has a camera in the humidor so the owner can stand at the register and watch what you're doing.

[RPB67]

People always judge a book by its cover. I usually walk into a cigar store in my sweatpants and sneaks and they all give me looks.Then when they see you are a spender their tone changes very quickly.

[altbier]

Well Frank, thats just because of....well.....ummmmmm, oh nevermind. Let Anita explain it!

[Ms. Floydp]

LOL @ George, I plead the 5th... you know I was thinking that we all have stories about how one is perceived when they go into a cigar shop but let me tell you something (the mom in me)... we went to Richmond for the 1st CS Richmond event and when we got to Uncle Mikey's, I've never felt so at home anywhere, other than home. On the day of the herf we asked Mikey how he wanted to take care of business, do we pay for our smokes that we were getting from his humidor one at a time or how did he want to do it. He told us to just keep track of what we were taking and at the end of the day we'd settle up. Well we got there at 11:00 am and started smoking right away so by the time we were ready to go to the restaraunt around 5:00 or 5:30, we'd purchased quite a few. We made sure that we wrote everything down and paid before we left. That's one trusting man!! We would never ever have stiffed him on anything but he didn't know that!! That's the kind of shop and ownership I wish we had here, close enough to go to everyday because we would. There were people in and out of his humidor all day long!! I hope he didn't get stiffed on anything, but I'm sure he didn't!!

That's just how things are at Uncle Mikey's and why everyone loves his shop so much!!

[Franksmith]

I really, truly do not want to cause any problems here, please take this with my respect... I have noticed over the last few days that there seems to be an increasing amount of swearing... especially in the humi thread and I think it is a mistake for such a successful and friendly place as this to foster that type of language.

As soon as it becomes common place in friendly conversation, then it will become common place in not so friendly discussion and all the while, courtesy and respect will, IMO, start to erode. One of the qualities that attracted me to CS is the level of respect and decency of all of the members... and please do not take this to mean because what was said here means that Paul is not decent... I just think that the language barrier is one slippery slope this place would do well to avoid. I guess I shouldn't have brought it up in this thread and I should have started a new one and for that I am sorry.

I like that this is a place that is full of people and threads that I describe and show to my wife and kids... it has a level of class that I have never seen on an internet forum before and I like it so much that I'm hoping it stays that way.

Peace and long ashes my BOTL's

[CigarHoss]

Originally Posted by Thurm15

Frank I was wondering what word offended you till I referred to the All knowing authority on bad words: Mr George Carlin

Here is the original Carlin comedy routine that caused the Fracas.

"I love words. I thank you for hearing my words. I want to tell you something about words that I uh, I think is important. I love..as I say, they're my work, they're my play, they're my passion. Words are all we have really.

We have thoughts, but thoughts are fluid. You know, [humming]. And, then we assign a word to a thought, [clicks tongue]. And we're stuck with that word for that thought. So be careful with words. I like to think, yeah, the same words that hurt can heal. It's a matter of how you pick them.

There are some people that aren't into all the words. There are some people who would have you not use certain words. Yeah, there are 400,000 words in the English language, and there are seven of them that you can't say on television. What a ratio that is. 399,993 to seven. They must really be bad. They'd have to be outrageous, to be separated from a group that large. All of you over here, you seven. Bad words. That's what they told us they were, remember? 'That's a bad word.' 'Awwww.' There are no bad words. Bad thoughts. Bad Intentions.

And words, you know the seven don't you? S**t, P**s, F**k, C**t, C******ker, M********ker, and T**s, huh? Those are the heavy seven. Those are the ones that will infect your soul, curve your spine and keep the country from winning the war.

Paul I believe it was the 2nd word that offended Franksmith.

Great response! George Carlin is pretty funny.

However, I actually think it was the use of "a-hole" in the last paragraph that has Frank upset.

[PaulHag]

Yes please take this to a new thread before it becomes PaulHag gets pissed pt.2.
I think maybe a moderator should just trash this whole thread all together.

[punch]

It's OK Paul. I find people who are constantly getting offended to be offensive.

For what its worth, I can see why you are upset with the situation. I have always been taught that those that don't trust me should themselves not be trusted. Don't consider it an insult for a business owner not to trust you. Keep in mind that the regular help knows you and trusts you, and they are who you have the most contact with. I was in the same situation as you two weeks ago, only it was not the business owner, but some new help. I'm sure we have all been there, and it does tend to pi$$ one off.

[Thurm15]

Don't sweat it Paul. Excellent Post!

[CigarHoss]

Originally Posted by punch

It's OK Paul. I find people who are constantly getting offended to be offensive.

Guys:

This is becoming a bit antagonistic and it really should stop, now.

PaulHag: Your thread starter would have just as effectively relayed your frustrations about the jerk of a cigar store owner without the language.

FrankSmith: You could be right about the language. While there were many other polite words he could have used, there are many other colorful ones he DIDN'T use, considering his level of frustration with the situation. Keep in mind, though, jacking someone's thread and making them the example of your frustrations over the language that you find offensive is the perfect way to cause a problem.

Why don't we keep this friendly, gentlemen, by either continuing this discussion in the chat rooms, through PMs, or at the very least, a new thread.

Otherwise, hopefully any posts following subsequently will have PaulHag's experience at the smokeshop as it's focus.

[poker]

Funny thing is Paul that when I went to Europe, many places there wont even let you touch the cigars. In Switzerland for example, you must be "escorted" into the humidor. You tell the escort what you want & they in turn will "pick" one out for you LOL!
I understand this is not out of the ordinary in many places in Europe now days.

Sounds like the guy who runs the place appologized for his partners behavior, so hopefully this is all water under the bridge.

[Franksmith]

I would like to mention that I am very sorry for A) going OT on someone Else's thread but most of all B) for making Paul out to be the bad guy in his own thread. I should not have brought up the topic in his or someone Else's thread... I should have gone and started my own thread without ANY reference to anyone. The crazy part is that I really did not intend to implicate Paul as the villain of what I wanted to discuss but that is exactly what I ended up doing. I guess I was doing it here for an example but I did not intend it to be what it turned out to be.

So, sorry Paul, Sorry for messing with your thread and am very sorry for making you out to be the bad guy you are not.

I have PM'd Paul a message like this with a request for his addie so I can send a "sorry" package but just in case he doesn't give it to me I would love to get it from whomever has it.

Thanks for listening, and that will be the end of my hijacking this thread.

[Ninja Vanish]

Good post Frank, there is nothing better you can do to ease the tensions between you two than to apologize. IT's good to see people making amends. Hopefully everything will work out alright between ya'll. Hey, that's what life's about right? Live and learn, live and learn.

P.S. Sending him smokes is a good way too. ; )

[Roger Miller"]

Paul:
i think your experience is related to the owner and not you. as an illustration you only need to look at the two responses you received in the same shop. Your behavior is constant while the people observing it changed.

I have some sympathy with small shop owners though. Shoplifting can, and does, take a toll on their bottom line. It is very hard to recoup losses due to theft. Let's say they have a 15% net margin after costs of goods and expenses. If, through theft, they lose one $5 cigar (their cost) they need to sell $33 worth of cigars to make that up. ($5/.15). In doing so, they also lose all profit potential from that $33 in sales. Kind of tough for a small shop.

I'm in my 50's, and frequent a my local shops. They know me by name, know i am a regular and good customer. I am accompanied every time i go into the walk-in. It's just their policy. I understand that. However, they usually are chatting me up, offering suggestions, and genuinely being decent folks. There is no air of suspicion like what you experienced. The a$$hole guy in your shop just doesn't have any business acumen in how to cultivate a business relationship. Too bad, because others will be turned off just like you and he will loose business as a result.

Oh well.

_____
rm

[GOAT LOCKER]

Originally Posted by poker

Funny thing is Paul that when I went to Europe, many places there wont even let you touch the cigars. In Switzerland for example, you must be "escorted" into the humidor. You tell the escort what you want & they in turn will "pick" one out for you LOL!
I understand this is not out of the ordinary in many places in Europe now days.

I found it similar in Japan. At Cigar Club in Tokyo, a pretty little Japanese girl follows you around the humidor with a cedar box. It was OK to touch the stick, under her watchfull eyes, but they then went into the little box that she held. I was supervised to a lesser degree in Malaysia and not at all in Canada. In the US, it seems to vary. Most shops I visit here don't watch customers at all.