Originally Posted by garryyjr (Post 1967148)

I smoke to enjoy and relax. In a car, I only do it on my longer trips and when I am alone.
So, to answer the question; No, I am not an oblivious smoker.

Originally Posted by RWhisenand (Post 1967112)

I can't help but find it ironic that he smokes during a bullfight, but considers Americans less civilized then Europeans.

Originally Posted by ColdCuts (Post 1967110)

I was just watching an hour-long documentary called The Havana: Cigar Of Connoisseurs (2005). It's a good documentary and it's free if you're an Amazon Prime member. In any case, on the program they interview a number of habanos dignitaries, one of which is Jose Luis Vilallonga. I had to Google him. He was a Spanish aristocrat and bit-part actor who co-starred with Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. He passed in 2007. Anyway, he had this to say about cigars...

"I smoke two cigars a day. One after lunch, and one after dinner. Sometimes when I go out at night I smoke another one. Three altogether. But, I never never smoke when I'm out on the streets. I never smoke driving a car. I smoke, like many other Spanish do, during the bullfight, which is barbaric, because you don't savor the aroma or taste the cigar." He goes on to explain that he smokes at the bullfights simply because it's tradition.

The documentary immediately cuts to a scene in Cuba of a man puffing away while driving a car. The posh sounding narrator says, "Almost everybody smokes cigars here, whatever the time, whatever the place."

Toward the end of the documentary, Vilallonga continues, "The Americans are what I call oblivious smokers. Oblivious smokers, because they smoke in the streets. They smoke when driving a car. They don't have this european sense which is more civilized, really. Smoking a cigar is like taking a break in the day. I sit here and, three-quarters of an hour, an hour, I smoke a cigar."

This got me thinking. I want to know how it is for you. For me, if I didn't smoke on the streets, it would cut my cigar smoking in half. And, as it is, it's difficult for me to make time for a cigar. I don't smoke inside my home either. Perhaps that's part of it. I guess I admire this guy. If I could sit everyday for an hour after lunch and an hour after dinner and smoke in my opulent living room, I suppose I would. So, are you guys like me, or are you guys like Jose?

Originally Posted by massphatness (Post 1967224)

A Spanish aristocrat takes time out of his day to smoke a cigar, relax and enjoy it? Go figure. Not everyone won the sperm & egg lottery and can afforded the luxury of time.

My preference is to smoke in a relaxing environment as I enjoy the chance to savor a cigar and focus on the experience. Some time by the fire pit or on the trail with my dog is optimal, but those opportunities don't present themselves on a daily basis. However, like Tom said, I do smoke when I drive. I look forward to having a cigar on my 45 minute commute home each day. It gives me something to focus on besides the chunk of my life spent cooped up in a vehicle simply driving. I may not enjoy the cigar as much as I do in more relaxed environs, but it adds value to my day & I still enjoy it.

So while I would prefer the genteel lifestyle that would afford me two or more hours of cigar smoking relaxation time each day, I am an oblivious smoker largely by necessity.

Originally Posted by massphatness (Post 1967224)

I do smoke when I drive. I look forward to having a cigar on my 45 minute commute home each day. It gives me something to focus on besides the chunk of my life spent cooped up in a vehicle simply driving. I may not enjoy the cigar as much as I do in more relaxed environs, but it adds value to my day & I still enjoy it.

Originally Posted by shilala (Post 1967281)

I don't smoke around folks where they might be annoyed.
That said, I'll smoke anywhere so long as I'm not violating directive #1 up there.
Smoking a cigar is always an event to me, but so is every single minute of my life. I don't waste a one.

Originally Posted by shilala (Post 1967281)

i don't smoke around folks where they might be annoyed.
That said, i'll smoke anywhere so long as i'm not violating directive #1 up there.
Smoking a cigar is always an event to me, but so is every single minute of my life. I don't waste a one.

Originally Posted by nutcracker (Post 1967152)

A stroll in a park with a cigar is a rare pleasure.
Probably soon to be banned.

Originally Posted by shilala (Post 1967281)

I don't smoke around folks where they might be annoyed.
That said, I'll smoke anywhere so long as I'm not violating directive #1 up there.