Smoking...

[chrisb]

smokers won't be around to drain the pension schemes :evil:

Now that sort of comment is not funny.

Thanks for the input, however :evil:


Cheers

Stern

Not supposed to be funny, but it is true

I smoked 20 to 40 a day from 19yo to 37yo, and gave it up when I walked (by mistake) into the Smokers cardiac ward in Wythenshawe Hospital. When I got back to the car, I threw my fags and lighter into the litter bin. Never smoked since.
You have to WANT to give up smoking. not saying that you never get a slight craving, and you'll always be a "lapsed smoker", I've been free for 18 years 5 months and 75 mins at the time of posting (Gave up midday 8th Feb 1991)

[Parabola]

There is only one thing worse than being in the same room as a smoker - and that is travelling in a smoker's smelly car.

dunk

+1 and its ten times worse when its a hot car for some reason

[AM94]

Sat outside my local coffee shop today with some colleagues- thought it would be nice to grab a quick sandwich and have a break from work, whilst enjoying some fresh air.

Problem one with the smoking ban: all the smokers now congregate in the outside seating of any place that sells food. It felt like I was in the middle of a forest fire and after 5-minutes of ingesting more smoke than sandwich, we moved inside.

As this coffee shop is also tagged onto a supermarket, all the staff from it sit at the tables, have their breaks and cram as many cigarettes into their 15, 30 or 60 minute break they can. So you get a double whammy of customers and local employees all puffinf away as though they are moments from the gallows and this is their last request.

What I fail to see the logic in is that you cannot smoke inside a pub, club or restaurant but it is fine to do so in their garden, patio, outside seating, etc. Yes you aren't a contained space but the second hand smoke is still there and still making the life of people who choose not to smoke annoying as hell. :angryfire:

I understand that people have the right to smoke but don't I have the right to not be fumigated while eating inside AND out in a commercial establishment?

[sundial]

There is only one thing worse than being in the same room as a smoker - and that is travelling in a smoker's smelly car.

dunk

+1 and its ten times worse when its a hot car for some reason

It's a fact that the late Robert Maxwell's Rolls Royce remained unsold because was impossible to get rid of the stale cigar smoke odour.

I used to smoke between 40 and 60 fags every day depending on the length of my working day and thought I'd never be able to quit. However, I managed to quit and considered myself "smoke and nicotine free" after 6 months (that was almost 20 years ago) . My dentist advised me it takes 6 months for the residual chemicals to get out of your system. Anyway, a few months after I quit the habit my brother gave me a lift to London in his car - he is a heavy smoker and he was puffing throughout the journey. I ended up with a first ever asthma-like attack and could not breath properly for a week afterwards after being in his car for just 90 minutes and having to inhale his smoke. He would not open the windows and just said, "Well you used to smoke so should not be a problem." He still smokes and when he visits and gets out of his car after a long journey, the stink of cigarette smoke on him is quite obnoxious. When I mention how bad he smells he does not believe me and he loses his temper. I do not permit smoking in my house and he has to sit on the front doorstep if he wants a fag. Then he chucks his dog end in my front garden or stubs it out in a plant container and when I ask him not to he again loses his temper. There must be millions of dog ends thrown in the streets every day and someone(s) has to sweep them up - or else the penniless and maybe homeless people scavenge for them and put them in their tins . Sad old world we live in ... blame Francis Drake.

Cheers

dunk

[sundial]

Sat outside my local coffee shop today with some colleagues- thought it would be nice to grab a quick sandwich and have a break from work, whilst enjoying some fresh air.

Problem one with the smoking ban: all the smokers now congregate in the outside seating of any place that sells food. It felt like I was in the middle of a forest fire and after 5-minutes of ingesting more smoke than sandwich, we moved inside.

As this coffee shop is also tagged onto a supermarket, all the staff from it sit at the tables, have their breaks and cram as many cigarettes into their 15, 30 or 60 minute break they can. So you get a double whammy of customers and local employees.

What I fail to see the logic in is that you cannot smoke inside a pub, club or restaurant but it is fine to do so in their garden, patio, outside seating, etc. Yes you aren't a contained space but the second hand smoke is still there and still making the life of people who choose not to smoke annoying as hell. :angryfire:

I understand that people have the right to smoke but don't I have the right to not be fumigated while eating inside AND out in a commercial establishment?

I once complained to Peterborough NHS Trust about the hospital workers who used to congregate literally "foot deep" in discarded fag ends by the hospital bike sheds adjacent to a public footpath when puffing on their cigarettes. The smell as I passed them when walking home was horrible. Some of those smoking I know are professional medics including a radiologist friend who I speak to regularly. Whenever I ask him if he is still smoking he says, "Yes," but with a disgruntled :-( expression as if to say he cannot quit. He must see many chest Xrays in the course of his work but for some reason he still smokes. And one of his radiology dept.colleagues who was my neighbour and who was a chain smoker died of lung cancer.

Cheers

dunk

[SternG]

Ok Dunk we get it. :)

It's obnoxious, it's lethal, it's pointless.

Quitting now. Forty-six hours and counting...

Torture...



Cheers

Stern

[AM94]

Quitting now. Forty-six hours and counting...

Stern

Keep up the good work.

Are you putting the money you would have spent on cigarettes in a jar? A great motivator if you need some extra inspiration. :)

[sundial]

Any thoughts??

Cheers

Stern

Well you did ask ... hence all the replies. Good luck with your decision and hope you succeed ... and add MANY years to your life as a result.

Cheers

dunk

[SternG]

Any thoughts??

Cheers

Stern

Well you did ask ... hence all the replies. Good luck with your decision and hope you succeed ... and add MANY years to your life as a result.

Cheers

dunk

Thanks, mate. It's hard at the moment but I'm hopeful... and putting all that money in a jar :wink:


Stern

[DeusIrae]

Do you smoke after sex?





Dunno. Never look.

[BigD]

Smoking...

[Paddy]

Stopping smoking isn't torture. There is no pain, no sweating, in fact nothing more uncomfortable than a nagging thought that you want another fag. That's it.

Use that brain, stop smoking. It's really that simple. I found it oddly pleasurable to stop, since I read the Allan Carr book, and used my head to overcome the pernicious weed's influence. Can't stand smoke now, it really stinks. I think I'm largely preaching to the converted on here though...

[Loddonite]

Do you smoke after sex?





Dunno. Never look.

I steam a bit , does that count?



Stern, Good luck with the Nosmo King - After 6 months the only thing I miss is the man behind the counter in the shop outside Aldgate station - I never go in there any more.

[SternG]

Stern, Good luck with the Nosmo King - After 6 months the only thing I miss is the man behind the counter in the shop outside Aldgate station - I never go in there any more.

Thanks. So far it's going well. The craving is still there, but I'm resisting it.

[Rod]

Stern, Good luck with the Nosmo King - After 6 months the only thing I miss is the man behind the counter in the shop outside Aldgate station - I never go in there any more.

Thanks. So far it's going well. The craving is still there, but I'm resisting it.

Stick it out Stern :) you'll beat it.

Rod

[SternG]

Stick it out Stern :) you'll beat it.

Rod

Cheers Rod. Thank God guys like us have a few distractions :D




Stern

[Griff]

Packed in 31st Oct 1974
It was raining at the time

[SimonH]

I packed in in 2001 (after 25yrs). Just had enough and really wanted to beat it. Did it cold turkey. I'd say after a week, the worst was over. Thereafter was just convincing myself I no longer smoke.

Worst bit was going to the pub with my still smoking mates, but got through that ok.

Couple of them still smoke, boy do I give them a hard time :lol:

Best of luck Stern :)

[ingenioren]

Stern as they say,
the 3 best things are a drink first and a smoke afterwards, you'll just have to have that other drink.....

Apart from that, on cross channel/north sea ferries, you'd see the smokers coming to eat in
the non smoking areas, then go out in between meals for a fag - SAD !!!!!

Well done, keep up the good work
Peter

[simmo]

I love now coming home from a night out not stinking of cigarette smoke, but get very lonely when most if not all of my mates go outside for a smoke every 10 minutes :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Rinaldo1711]

This chap's packet of fags was quite expensive - $23 quadrillion charged to his card:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8152278.stm

[ingenioren]

This chap's packet of fags was quite expensive - $23 quadrillion charged to his card:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8152278.stm

Could be a new twist on getting folks to quit :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
Peter

[SternG]

I thought I’d update this thread and report that the “ban” has turned out to be a great big joke. Offices and Banks are smoke-free zones (but then they mostly were even before the new legislation) but people keep on puffing away practically everywhere else and nobody’s saying or doing anything about it :|

Do I mind? On the one hand I tend to think hell no, let them smoke all they want. On the other, well, somebody stop them :evil:


Cheers

Stern

[johnnyguitar]

I don't really need any more watches at the moment, but I had my heart set on a pair of very nice Totem loudspeakers :wink:

I guess it'll have to wait...


Stern

You can buy them with the money you save not buying fags!! Good luck!
I smoked for 10 years - I was still smoking when it was banned in public places in the UK and I thought it was much better, even as a smoker.

[sundial]

Benefits of quitting smoking ... http://whyquit.com/whyquit/A_Benefits_Time_Table.html ... also the possible consequences of continuing.

Cheers

dunk

[SternG]

the possible consequences of continuing.

Cheers

dunk

Dunk, I am quite confident that those will not be a concern for me 8) :D

Mind you, it hasn't been easy.


Cheers

Stern

[sundial]

The hardest part for me when quitting was making the commitment - but having made it the rest was easy. One factor which convinced me I could quit was knowing that other former smokers had managed it - ie former colleagues who seemed to be enjoying life much better without tobacco.

Another factor was the memory of how my father died from smoking related heart/respiratory problems. During the last five years of his life he had an oxygen cylinder by his bed - and another next to his armchair - and every time he had a fag he would cough and cough repeatedly - then he would have to grab the oxygen face mask and use it for a couple of minutes with the fag still burning in the ash tray. When he was admitted to hospital after a heart attack he had another coughing fit and almost choked to death after he swallowed his false teeth. The staff had to resuscitate him but he never fully recovered - his lungs and kidneys could not cope with the fluid overload.

Once he was a very proud man with a super job as Managing Director of a well known Ipswich grocery /restaurant business. In 1960 he even had a 'smoking jacket' which he would wear at home in the evenings whilst puffing away on his oval shaped 'Perfectos' or 'Players Navy Cut' cigarettes. He always coughed very heavily whilst smoking and his face would go redder and redder as he did so. His velvet smoking jacket ended up looking very tatty with burn holes as he could not see what he was doing during a coughing fit when the ash would be knocked or shaken off the end of his cigarette. His lungs became more and more congested over the years and he ended up with emphysema and unable to walk far.

Cheers

dunk

[Puller]

apparently smokers dont get "farmers lung"...the only benefit I know of. Gave up 4.5 yrs ago...best thing I did. we now havew smoking cessations specialists at our work. works well.

[Der]

...guess I must be one of the few remaining smokers left on the forum...

[Luke)]

Why do you lot even smoke £4.5 a pack, jesus

[seikopath]

Smoking is banned in UK bars, pubs and clubs, and they are far nicer for the majority that don't smoke, so no sympathy from me.

+1

+2

+3

[sestrel]

I had no idea how much a packet cost these days. Good grief, the last time I bought a packet was in the 'The Bull',in stratton from the machine I think, and they cost just under a pound. I think lord Palmerston was still the PM then :lol:

[sundial]

When I started smoking in 1963 ( I quit in 1990) 5 Park Drive tipped (all I could afford) were 10d (4p) a packet. Smokers used to compare how 'smooth' various cigarettes were ... makes me shudder now having seen so many lung cancer cases including people in my own family and two former neighbours who all died prematurely. I will never forget the disbelief of a neighbour after she was diagnosed with lung cancer - tragic.

A former g/f was recently rushed into hospital after coughing up copious amounts of blood. She continued coughing up blood for two weeks and lost her voice and could only talk in a whisper. She could have died. The professor consultant she saw in hospital could not find the cause. After she was discharged she went straight home and started rolling cigarettes again. The reason I stopped dating her was that I could not tolerate the smell of stale tobacco on her breath - there is nothing worse for destroying a lady's femininity. However, she and I are still good friends. She works as a district nurse and often looks after cancer patients. Even though she witnesses so much smoking related illness and suffers herself she just cannot quit smoking. Addiction is stronger than common sense.

Cheers

dunk

[Der]

Why do you lot even smoke £4.5 a pack, jesus

more like £6 these days

[raptor]

I am a cigar smoker
used to bea cigarrete smoker for a while mildly (2-5) a day
done inhale cigar and i enjoy it once a week
i smoke when i am alone ( outside) with some nice cognac remy martin XO
i dont like places full of smoke and by the end of the year here the same as in uk will apply for smoking inside building
we dont smoke in office buildings now
i enjoy the occasional cigar ;no one else inhales my smoke ( due to our weather we spent a lot of time outdoors)
8)

[Maris]

Smoking is banned in UK bars, pubs and clubs, and they are far nicer for the majority that don't smoke, so no sympathy from me.

+1

Having just come out of hospital with Bronchiechtasis another +1

[Andy H]

Well, after my heart scare on Sunday, and my subsequent stay in Hospital, with various tests and stuff, I can now believe that the attack was brought on by smoking, amongst other things. I haven´t touched a cigarette since Sunday night, although I had the chance to have one, I had tobacco in my pocket throughout my stay in Hospital, and I stood next to my Wife while she had a smoke outside, without feeling too tempted. Hopefully I can pull this through, I really, really do not want to smoke another cigarette. And my Wife is stopping as well.

And anybody who doesn´t quit after reading what Dunk has posted, needs their brain testing!
That´s why I didn´t read this thread until now! :mrgreen:

[sundial]

I managed to quit by selecting/deciding on a future date when I would stop. In the interim period I told myself every day, several times a day, why I was going to stop and reinforced all those reasons . I literally brainwashed myself into quitting. Thus was 'ready for it' when a few weeks afterwards I did quit with the aid of nicotine chewing gum on the first day. I forgot to use the gum on the second day. I was lucky not experience any withdrawal symptoms and am convinced the pre quit brainwashing did the trick by really convincing myself of the need to stop. Best decision I ever made - apart from subsequently buying watches I could never otherwise have been able to afford - including a Dornbluth 99.1 :)

Cheers

dunk

[rocket-roy]

I have given up recently through the use of Champix :) I guess I decided bcos it was getting a little out of hand. Used to smoke about 20-30 a day depending on how much alcohol was involved.

However, you get dictated, no you can't smoke here, sorry can't smoke there, not in a pub, train, public place yet the goverment was making a good £5 for every packet I was buying. Every budget, smokers get clobbered without fail. Everywhere I looked, I see a "No Smoking" sign, which reminded me that I needed a smoke. In fact, I was finding it a hassle just to fucking have a smoke.

I think Champix is great, take the tablets and carrying on smoking as normal. Then during day 7 to 14, choose a quit day and then stick to it. The drug really helps in the interim as I started to smoke less and less.

It has been about 8 weeks now. I have been quite good, I don't smoke even if I have a drink or am drunk which I found to be the ultimate test for me. I must admit, I have had a fag or two on weekends but I will not go back to smoking full-time :D I fully think I can do without the smoke but I am still on Champix and will continue for another 4 weeks. After 4 weeks, I could carry on with the medication for another 3 months. Time will tell.

Good luck all in whatever you choose, just stay happy and keep smiling :)

[fozzzy1971]

I miss a good smokey club and i think its sad you have to travel to europe to find one, when its there rules forbidding them in the UK.