Smoking poll, do you smoke?

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Over the last 20yrs in particular, there has been a great change in the views and opinions towards smoking tobacco and smoking in general across the world, particularly with the onset and actions of various smoking bans taking place in various countries/areas- this is just curiosity poll/thread on smoking, I myself have smoked for many years but have been cutting down a lot recently(the average varies a lot, but usually between 4 and 8 a day, I keep a diary of these things) although I have not made up my mind yet when exactly I want to quit yet, as its not something I want to make a life habit of, if only because of the cost of it and for my fiancé, who although smokes himself, is worried that something may happen to me down the line so wants me to quit by the end of this year(he has plans to give it up when I do).
This is not a smoking bashing thread (I�fm sure most people are aware of the dangers at least to a certain extent anyways now days of it as well) and please be respectful and polite if you have anything to say .

[Glenn]

I'm a former smoker. I quit about five times before the last time (hopefully it really will be the last time). When I did smoke I smoked close to a pack a day, and when I would go out drinking I would probably cover that in a few hours. Now, though, it's been I think two years since I quit, and while I've had maybe six cigarettes since then, they still smell pretty awful to me. When I smoked after I quit it was in a time of nostalgia and when I had been drinking, but I think I'm over that now. Anyway, it's nice being smoke-free now, for various reasons. One is not having to freeze to have a cigarette in the winter, another is not having to suffer the oppressive heat and humidity of south Louisiana summers (that was actually what motivated me to quit in the last place). Of course, neither of those would be problems for me now, being in Hawaii, but I'm not going to be here forever. Anyway, that's my story.

[lastmagi]

I have one or two friends that smoke. Me, I've never smoked at all. It seems these kinds of people [nonsmokers] are actually kind of rare these days...?

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I'm kinda the oposite in some respects Glenn, ever since i was a child(as far back as i can remember) for as long as i can remember, i always thoroughly enjoyed the smell of tobacco being smoked(sounds weird i know ), in fact, i've always generally enjoyed the smell of alot of burning things like different varieties of wood.
I went on holiday to Australia over a year ago to visit some of my family for an 11day holiday, in Australia there is alot of Tobacconists/places selling a huge variety of tabacco, i remember finding this great tabacco called "Log Cabin Tobacco" and although it was very pricey thus coming in a metal tin, containing no added chemicals and was not even cut, i thoroughly enjoyed it but it was very satisfying and i smoked very little of it(as less as one or two a day or none at all). Unfortunatly i've never been able to find it since in my home country(England), but if i could i would be very happy as i noticed not only was it enjoyable far healthier in comparsion to the large majority of other tabacco's out there, i also noticed it would be somthing easy to move onto to give up on(i don't smoke cigerettes, just "rollys"/hand rolled cigerettes).
Even though i dont drink(well, i don't know if you could call 1 smirnoff ice in the last 4months drinking lol ), i still regually go down to my local pubs to catch up with friends or play pool("yay"!), but i always find i smoke alot more when im busy like that. I didn't really give up drinking for any reason in particular, i guess it was just because i could when it came down to it, although i used to drink a huge amount of cider when i was younger(i'm only 20 years old by the way )- i seemed to smoke less though when i used to drink in the past for some weird reason though.

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I have one or two friends that smoke. Me, I've never smoked at all. It seems these kinds of people [nonsmokers] are actually kind of rare these days...?

I would say its the total oposite, there's far more non-smokers or anti-smokers than there are smokers where i live in general, although i don't know about america as i live in england. Everywhere you look over here theres adds and campaigns trying to make you quit, which is really ironic IMO considering there's been a large increase in pro-drinking/alchohol adds everywhere.

[Glenn]

There are plenty enough anti-tobacco commercials here, trust me (I'm especially referring to those annoying "truth" commercials). Also, I think in California and New York there are bars where smoking isn't allowed, as well as entire restaurants in many parts of the country.

On a side note, where I'm from is known as "Cancer Alley," and aside from the high concentration of chemical plants in the area I believe it's also home to the highest concentration of smokers. So, not smoking there has been a challenge. Oh well, enough from the Board of Tourism.

[lastmagi]

Now that I think about it, maybe I was just thinking more about the teenagers in where I live, so that may have biased my answer. I live in a suburban area where you'd be hard-pressed not to find a teenager who hasn't smoked (usually marijuana). Can't say much about other areas, though.

And yeah Toki, I love the smell of burning wood, especially when spring is just around the corner :)

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Most of the anti-smoking adds we get over here are giving up smoking support group adds, and there are also these adds where they'll have a diary/story of some old person dying in hospital of lung cancer or middle aged mother with children who's just found she's gonna die because of smoking sort of thing etc. These adds are on all the time now days, no kidding- i once saw 13 of them in 20minutes during a series of comercial breaks on the same channel! I guess there's nothing in particular wrong with them, its an honorable cause i guess, but it is just blatant emotional blackmail targetted at anyone who smokes, in a similar sense that some christians will use the fear of hell to make people be better christians i guess.
But with the crumbling NHS system over here in england, which is in a seriously bad state right now(some hospitals have completely run out of beds now and are beginning to move patients out of the hospitals back into their own homes because of the hospital bed shortage crisis ), with these 24/7 anti smoking comercials that are costing millions of pounds every week to show on TV, i often wonder if some of this money would be better spent back in the hospitals where they really seriously need it ...?

[Mitsuo]

My dad tried to counter act a bill that has been passed in Utah. The bill that he was trying to stop was trying to make all bars non-smoking. He tried to counter act it with a bill that let the bar owners have a choice as to whether or not they would allow it. My dad wanted the owners to have a choice, but others wanted a law to prevent smoking. Messed up. It takes away the business.

[Tokis-Phoenix]

My dad tried to counter act a bill that has been passed in Utah. The bill that he was trying to stop was trying to make all bars non-smoking. He tried to counter act it with a bill that let the bar owners have a choice as to whether or not they would allow it. My dad wanted the owners to have a choice, but others wanted a law to prevent smoking. Messed up. It takes away the business.

How do you feel on this subject? Do you think that pub owners should have the choice wether they want a smoking pub or not or do you think that there should be certain steps that a pub landlord should have to take if he wants a smoking pub- or do you feel that smoking should be banned completely in pubs whatever the situation/circumstances ?

[SortOf]

Occasionally only, never made a strong habbit of it.

[Ma Cherie]

I don't smoke and never thought of taking up the habit. I could never stand the smell of smoke, and at times I try to stay away from smokers because I don't want to the smell to get into my clothes.

But that's just me.

[strongvoicesforward]

I don't smoke and never thought of taking up the habit. I could never stand the smell of smoke, and at times I try to stay away from smokers because I don't want to the smell to get into my clothes.
But that's just me.

Not just you. Me, too. The smell disgusts me and I try to avoid it as much as possible.

Strange how some smokers don`t even seem to be aware that they stink.

[Riyko]

My dad tried to counter act a bill that has been passed in Utah. The bill that he was trying to stop was trying to make all bars non-smoking. He tried to counter act it with a bill that let the bar owners have a choice as to whether or not they would allow it. My dad wanted the owners to have a choice, but others wanted a law to prevent smoking. Messed up. It takes away the business.

so smoking isn't allowed in bars here in Utah? XD I didn't know that, but then I don't ever pay attention. Also Utah has a law where you have to be 19 to buy cigerettes here so if you ever plan on moving here and your under 19 and you smoke kick the habit >_<

[Flashjeff]

I've never smoked in my life, never even considered trying it. Going back to when I was a kid, I thought it didn't make any sense and was a stupid habit. I hated the smell most of all as I found it absolutely repulsive. Still do. As I grew up, I read about how dangerous smoking is, and later, saw first hand how it can slowly kill when my mom, a lifetime smoker contracted lung cancer and eventually died from it.

In September of 1992, she was diagnosed with lung cancer, despite surgery, chemo and radiation, she wasted away from the disease, by December, she was bedridden, reduced from a vibrant, active woman to a mere shell, by mid-January, she was gone at only 58, ironically, the same age George Harrison was when he died from lung cancer years later. When I see people smoking, I can't help but wonder if they know what they're getting into, if they know they're potentially shortening their lives.

But then, it's their lives to throw away if they so choose, so I just worry about keeping myself healthy as best I can.

[Kinsao]

I have smoked in the past, but not on a regular basis and I don't any more.

My father had multiple lung collapses on and off for 2 years, starting when he was 17, due to smoking (since age 11). His scars were very impressive (looked like he was a fallen angel who had his wings cut off) but didn't encourage me to aspire to them. Especially as thoracic surgery is the most painful you can have.

However, my main reasons for not smoking were (a) because I was a cyclist more at that time and had ambitions, and (b) I loved singing (and also had ambitions in that direction, but that's another story ^^). I started singing lessons at age 19 and, although I hadn't smoked for several years before then anyway, ever since then smoking has definitely been out of the question for me.

Oh, I forgot (c) - it was like putting money down the drain.

[scieck]

I have quit smoking 2 years ago for the following reasons:

• i am enjoying life, i don't want to depart from it any earlier than i should
• here in england a packet of cigarette cost around &#163;5.00, that is about $7.50 or 7.50 euros more or less
• it annoyed the hell out of me to give the greatest part of this money to the government, just so i could slowly kill my self
• i was very aware of stinking after having smoked a cigarette
• it is just so uncool to smoke

To quit smoking is the hardest battle i had to fight, but winning it gave me great satisfaction, inproved my health and left me with the confidence to be able to fight any obstacle that this beautiful but some time hard life places in front of us.

[miu]

I used to smoke maybe 3 to 5 cigs a day and now smoke only if I go out. I first smoked when I was 16 or and it was sort of my 'teen rebellion' thing because I didn't drink at all when I was younger (most people here start with dirnking rather than smoking)... Nowadays I don't have any reason to smoke so I quit it and plan to reduce it even when I go out - there just aren't any benefits to it, you only feel crap afterwards.

I still think that people should be more respectful to other people's choices, both smokers and non-smokers. There are some non-smokers who are extremely rude to smokers (and vice versa, of course), which is completely unnecessary. It's enough if you politely ask them not to smoke near you... I think that most smokers will go somewhere else to smoke if you ask them.

[Mike Cash]

This thread seems to take for granted that "smoking" = "cigarettes".

[Kinsao]

Well, I regularly smoke cheroots.

Actually, I did forget, I occasionally smoke a hookah, with apple or melon tobacco (not kidding).

[moffeltoff]

I only smoke ciggaretts when I go out but I quite frequently smoke shisha.

[nurizeko]

I tried smoking when i was in school, and ive had a few cigarettes over the years but so few its basically not worth considoring me as a smoker.

i could probably still count all the cigarettes ive ever had in a single hand.

ive passively smoked pot before, i tried to smoke it properly once but i couldnt breath afterwards so i just dont touch that s*** at all.

Im quite pleased i dont have an addictive personality.

[RockLee]

I tried it once, weed too...nearly killed me! I hate smoke, my eyes hurt because of it and I get short of breath because of smoke.

You really STINK out of your mouth when you smoke, even worse when it's cigars IMHO.
I'm happy now they banned smoking from pretty much all public places.It's a nasty habit

@Mike : I think it's smoking in general, also cigars

[lineartube]

..err... smoking 3-4 cubans cigars a year counts? If so, then yes. And why? Because I like it and it is a liberty and pleasure that I wan't to enjoy for as long as I can.

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I started smoking when i was about 13yrs old, although it happened before then too but only rarely- i've always had a tough family life, most of my family are dead, so i guess i just started smoking to fit in with various crouds at the full time boarding school i went too at the time when i went through a rebelious stage in my life as a kid.
I never thought about giving up smoking until i met my fiance, as before then i always felt i had no one and nothing to live for, and there's been alot of times in my life where i couldn't care less what happened to me- now that i have meaning to my life i have more reason to take care of myself more i guess now .
Just because you give up smoking though does not mean you won't get cancer somwhere down the line, even lung cancer, as there are millions of things we consume every day that have cancer causing chemicals and other things that are very unhealthy for us- you could get run over by a car tomorrow, or fall down the stairs, or get stabbed etc; in my life i have only come to realise that the worst kind of death to grieve and suffer over is the quick death, as you never get a chance to say "good bye" or come to terms with it easily, but...I know if i can take care of myself better, then at least perhaps the ones that love and care for me may not have to suffer tradgedy so early on and frequently in their lives as i did...