Ray's Tobacco World

[HRPuffinStuff-cr]

A very sad day in the State of Wisconsin and particularly, in the City of Milwaukee, for all fine tobacco enthusiasts. Ray Pashalian, owner and operator of Ray's Tobacco World, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, September 15, 2008, at the age of only 61 years.

I did not know Ray for very long, but we became fast friends immediately. I would come to the store (which always smelled wonderfully of pipe smoke and pipe tobacco) and spend an hour looking at all the cigars and pipe tobacco, talking about cigars and smoking, baseball and football, and other guy topics. Other customers would race in, race right past us to the walk-in humidor, grab their smokes, toss Ray some money, and run out. They seemed almost ritualistic in their behavior.

But not me.

Ray fixed my pipe (which I had not smoked in years), gave me some great deals on pipe tobacco blends, tossed in cigars when I bought a humidor (which I know I could have bought cheaper on-line). It was just a fun way to spend an hour on a weeknight, then scurry home with my new tobacco treasures. And the cool thing about Ray (and all the older guys that work there) is that they trust you implicitly. They leave you alone in the store while they go in the back and rummage around for that Oriental pipe tobacco blend you like, not worrying that you're loading up your pockets out of the humidor. We spent an hour looking for the missing hygrometer from my humidor I was going to buy. I could have konked him over the head and cleaned out the store. But Ray and the other guys never seem to worry about "their boys", and god help anybody that would try to rob Ray's when we are there.

What a terrible, terrible loss.

I will smoke a God of Fire tonight, in Ray's honor.

[dozenmonkeyz-cr]

Smoke rings towards the sky for Ray tonight.

[Python]

Sorry to hear about the loss of your friend.

[riverdog-cr]

If only we all had a Ray in our towns....... Sorry to hear of his passing.

[Acesfull]

That definately is a downer, sounds like Mike at my local Tinderbox... He is an olderguy with a big white beard.. Total tobacco enthusiast and definately knows his pipe tobacco and cigars. Hopefully he shop doesnt close and someone takes the torch.