Pipes and my father

[veteranvmb]

I have been thinking about trying a pipe out and see whats its all about, but I am afraid I might like it.

I read a lot of the pipe posts and see these collections of pipes, cleaning methods , tobacco and everything else.

It made me think of my dad, who probably smoked pipes for about ten years. He was a big cigarette smoker.

He had one pipe, maybee two in all that time. Ith He used paper matches and he had some pipe cleaners(those long thing flexible twig things. )

I remember about twice a year him taking me on a drive to lower manhattan to barclay rex I believe.
He would buy several pouches of some cherry flavored or almond scented tobacco, or the loose house blends .
He would then put just a piece of orange peel in each pouch.

I dont remember him ever cleaning the pipe, using a different pipe(except that second one on occassion) and only cleaning once in a while with the pipe cleaner. He smoked maybee about 3 times a week, one or two pipefulls. (usually on the weekend).

He seemed to enjoy that one pipe. LOL

Just speaking out loud of a rememberance. It was special for me at the young age to go just with my dad, someplace special that was a mans place....

Much regards Jerry

[slyder]

i tried a pipe a few weeks ago. Got a cob and some carter hall tobacco..........now i have 6 pipes and about 30 samples of tobacco from charlie and don!! I really like it though. Very soothing. I still smoke my cigars at work but when im home in the basement bar im gonna smoke the pipe. The tobacco is alot cheaper too. There are just way too many different brands/blends out there....would take a lifetime to try em all.

[cp478]

Love the fond memories, thanks for sharing!

[Cigary]

I'm with you Jerry,,,I can remember my Dad smoking a pipe and his generation seemed to smoke them quite a bit as did all the uncles and so on. I started smoking a pipe when I was about 25 and loved it. I remember it being a Savinelli with a beautiful bowl and bite proof stem. I think I paid about $100 back in 1980 for it so that was a lot of money for a pipe and I must have thought I was some kind of bigshot to pay that much for a pipe. I kept up the habit until it aggravated my TMJ in 1984 and just couldn't smoke it anymore,,,but I do miss it alot. Pipes are a bit more maintenance in that you need to ensure that you keep the stem clean. I never did like the "juices" backflowing and getting that acrid taste like cigars can do when tar builds up in the head ( which is why I use a V cut )

[kellzey]

I've always been fond of pipe tobacco smell as my German grandfather smoked at home. I was frequently care for by my grandparents while my single mother worked and went to college at night.

I remember being on the front porch with him while he smoked and him bang his pipe on the columns of the house to get the burnt ash out.

I remember his ashtray stand and pipes in his living room by the fireplace.


I smoked a pipe for a year or two in college (occasionally) and occasionally for a few years after college before I was married.

The smell of a Tinderbox store always reminds me of my grandfather.

Good times, good times....

[levallois]

I have a favorite uncle who smoked a pipe. He had to quit when he turned 85 - he just turned 91. I know he misses it and I will always remember him with his ever present pipe sticking out of his mouth, no matter what he was doing - working on the car, shoveling snow, playing golf, etc.

John

[Cigary]

Very cool stories,,,keep em coming. This is another reason why I love tobacco like cigars, pipes, etc because the smell of it is what reminds us of times in our lives,,,our best memories of a patchwork life. The sense of smell or hearing something is what prompts us to remember those events from our life. I know all too well that people who hate tobacco will not understand this but the smell of cigars and pipes always brings a smile to my face.

[ermtony]

It was my father who started me on pipes when I was 16. He caught me smoking cigarettes so rather than get angry he gave me one of his old Alco metal stemmed pipes and a couple of bowls for it, saying I would be better off with that. I still have that pipe and the Bewlay bent he bought me the following Christmas and they are still in use now, 37 years later. The only shame is that he gave up his pipe when he was 60 on health grounds.

Now, just recently, my 25 year old son started asking me about pipes so in turn I gave him two of my old ones. We'll see how that goes.

[Arizona]

Great stories fellas, so enjoyable to read and reflect on those days past. Yes it seems our "forefathers" in pipe smoking did only have one or two pipes oftentimes and seemed to want for nothing. And you can bet many smoked a single blend for many years.

[piperdown]

Jerry, thanks for sharing that! You've got some great stories that trigger memories for a lot of people. Keep em coming!

[gjcab09]

Originally Posted by Cigary

...smell of it is what reminds us of times in our lives,,,our best memories of a patchwork life...

Gary, you've struck upon something that influences my own cigar/pipe smoking to a great extent. Without going into detail, none of us really knows how much time we've got left on this earth. When I smell pipe smoke, I invariably think of my Grandpa, I smoke cigars, (and the occasional pipe) because I want my daughter to have an instant memory trigger of me. I hope it makes her smile when the time comes, even though she doesn't like the smell now.

[DSturg369]

I personally don't remember ever seeing my Dad smoking a pipe but after he passed away and we were sorting through his belongings, I came across a box set of 3 Medico Crest pipes. My Mom told me he smoked them while he was in Korea and Vietnam. I have them now, cleaned them up and even smoke the Bulldog shape now and again around the Christmas Holiday season but mostly have them displayed in my pipe cabinet to look at everyday.

[Mitch]

Growing up my grandma and grandpa smoked cigarettes which even to this day I think is disgusting. My grandpa did have around 7 pipes and a jar of cherry tobacco. We loved going to his house when he smoked the pipe (took out some of the smell of the cigarette smoke). He is one of the reasons for me getting into pipe smoking. I have asked my grandma where his pipes went, and she said she thinks they were taken when she moved out of the house after he passed away. It's a bummer I don't get the pipes, but oh well. I would smoke the cherry tobacco, but for some reason it doesn't sound good to me.

[veteranvmb]

Originally Posted by DSturg369

I personally don't remember ever seeing my Dad smoking a pipe but after he passed away and we were sorting through his belongings, I came across a box set of 3 Medico Crest pipes. My Mom told me he smoked them while he was in Korea and Vietnam. I have them now, cleaned them up and even smoke the Bulldog shape now and again around the Christmas Holiday season but mostly have them displayed in my pipe cabinet to look at everyday.

Glad you were able to get a physical memory. Being in both places. (The war in vietnam, but truce time in Korea), For those not on a front line, there are long periods of nothing to do and shear boredom. A lot of soldiers take up smokeing, drinking, pipes in the old days.
Perhaps that is when your dad smoked. But when he came home, did not have that downtime anymore. Or perhaps your mom wouldnt let him smoke in the house. LOL

enjoy it and your memories. Jerry

[DSturg369]

LOL... Dad was a smoker of pipes, cigars, and cigarettes. He stopped, cold turkey, right after he retired and my younger brother was born.